Lurker > Zanzenburger

_Near_ posted...

I mean, some these aren't really bad rules. Promoting vegetarianism is actually good. And taking a break once a week can help lots of people.

On the other side of the aisle, we've got innocent children dying for a doctrine that they aren't old enough to make an informed decision about.

Just to be clear, it's Jehova Witnesses that decline blood transfusions, not Adventists.

Honestly, there is really nothing about being an SDA that is harmful. Annoying maybe like the jewelry thing, but most rules are either negligible or actually good for you (hence why SDAs have the highest life expectancies of any other religion).
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DreadedWave posted...

I finally ignored him and and all of his alts so I didn't even notice he was gone.

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l33t_iRk3n_Rm33 posted...

Basically imagine if there was a place where lots of people were huge fans of your favorite video game franchise and you could easily go there to talk about it every week instead of leaving your gushing to the Internet.

Now, imagine everyone else being morally obligated not to call this fanbase annoying no matter what you all do.

That's religion.

Bruh, you can call a religion annoying all you want. I've called mine and its fanbase annoying several times tbqh.
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I've never been to Europe, but my guess would be taxes.

Taxes are supposed to cover public spaces like roads and sidewalks, and the US is all about cutting taxes, especially in the more rural parts of the US. In my own city, the citizens are making the town go bankrupt from tax cutting, to the point that we can't even afford our own police or firefighters, much less road maintenance and water lines. I'm honestly running for city council next spring just so I can knock some sense into our ridiculous system.

If people didn't fear taxes so much, more could get done for our public, shared spaces. People would much rather the public spaces die off and they just stay isolated in their own homes all the time.
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Lightsasori posted...

Damn, you JW's and SDA are pretty hardcore when it comes to the old testaments. I thought Southern Baptists were harsh when we say that even the ignorant go to hell (hence why Southern Baptists are so aggressive when it comes to evangelizing and making sure everyone heard the "good news") and that doing good deeds will still make you go to hell if you're not doing it for God/Jesus.

The SDAs are going through a modernization that's been going on for about 10-20 years now. Many of the leaders are finding some of the errors in their interpretation of scripture (not necessarily the scripture itself) and have become more lax on some of the "rules" that governed the religion.

For example, some of the many rules SDAs were bound to were:
- You cannot work on the Sabbath (from Friday night to Saturday night)
- You must be a vegetarian/vegan
- You cannot wear jewelry
- You cannot marry outside your religion

Since then, some of the rules have loosened up to this:
- Work on Sabbath is acceptable as long as you a) are not accepting payment, b) donating your payment for that day, or c) doing humanitarian work (like being a doctor saving lives. etc.)
- Vegetarian/vegan lifestyle is encouraged, but not required. Though you still cannot eat pork or other "unclean" foods
- Jewelry is still frowned upon by the older members of the church, but is no longer forbidden (and wedding rings and watches are okay to everyone)
- Interfaith marriage is becoming more and more accepted, as long as you are introducing your partner to Jesus
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spanky1 posted...

It's interesting that they used contaminated blood given to hemophiliacs as a way to teach the dangers of blood transfusions. As a hemophiliac myself (who should have a reason to fear blood transfusions), that is just silly. The contaminated blood was as a result of improper screening an regulations involving blood transfusions. As a result of that incident, much stricter protocols were put into place that made blood transfusions much safer. Like any medical procedure, trial and error will continue to help improve science.

Like, if a religion is for or against a certain thing, then fine. But don't start finding irrelevant examples to justify your case just because it will help your cause. If transfusions are wrong because God said so, then fine. But don't start using science to backup your claims if you're going to reject science to begin with.

I've had similar criticisms of my own religion as well.
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This is such a CE topic.
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spanky1 posted...

It's kinda funny the Seventh Day Adventists are brought up in this topic. They share an origin with the JWs with the whole millerites and great disappointment stuff that happened way back in the 1800s. Bunch of different religions shot off from that.

That's why I brought it up. My family is SDA but I also have some family that are JW.
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Lightsasori posted...

I asked because a girl I was dating was also a Seventh Day Adventist and she explained that to me when we talked about my religious past (I was raised Southern Baptist). Though I learned now never to bring up religion and politics when dating lol.

I can tell you that, based on the official viewpoints of SDA's as backed by the national conference, that is not a thing we believe. If she believed that, that may have been a teaching from that one particular church. Maybe they had a grudge or something.

While SDA's aren't really too fond of Catholics, there is no animosity towards them. And any anti-Christ talk within the church is typically metaphorical, not literal.
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unpleasant_milk posted...

Au contraire, the vitriol is fully warranted.
The poster literally said he wouldn't save the life of his child, if the life saving treatment involved blood transfusions.
I can't be 'pleasant' to such a clearly deluded and let's face it, horribly neglectful viewpoint.

I was just saying at least wait for him to respond before you start criticizing his viewpoints. That's all.
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Lightsasori posted...

Is it true that Seventh Day Adventist think that the Pope is the anti-christ and the Catholic Church is the whore of Babylon?

The hell? lol

EDIT: No, I've never heard of that, in case my above comment wasn't clear.
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spanky1 posted...

Zanzenburger posted...

OrangeWizard posted...

People would rather talk about me, than to me

The weirdest part about the topic is the posters telling you how your religion is supposed to work.

It's like the religion equivalent to a man "mansplaining" womanhood to a woman.

I just see people asking him questions, not telling him how his religion is supposed to work.

Really referring to posts like these:

smoliske posted...

it's the one religion than makes no sense, since you are pretty much damned if you believe in it

8.3 million members who believe only 144,000 will ascend to heaven and the religion was founded in 1870.

I'm not a math person but

BlueMage279 posted...

unpleasant_milk posted...

Would you let your kid die if he/she needed a blood transfusion?

That seems to be a common desire amongst that cult

Yes they would typically let them die. Accepting a blood transfusion is grounds for disfellowshipment (excommunication).

unpleasant_milk posted...

Insane rantings of a demented cult > life of your child

Jehovah witness logic.

It sounds crazy but it's completely true.

Especially the last two where they asked that particular user and others answered the question for him. Yes, his answer ended up being the same but let the guy post, lol. It didn't need the added vitriol.
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DK9292 posted...

Spiders. :C

What about spiders?

And did you ever pull the trigger and move?
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OrangeWizard posted...

People would rather talk about me, than to me

The weirdest part about the topic is the posters telling you how your religion is supposed to work.

It's like the religion equivalent to a man "mansplaining" womanhood to a woman.
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Sorry, this item isn't available in Apple News.
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unpleasant_milk posted...

I feel sorry for you. And more so for those innocent minds you are filling with rubbish.

No need to feel sorry. But thanks!
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unpleasant_milk posted...

Fully indoctrinated cultist alert!

Bruh, I'm a pastor at a nondenominational church.

Fear meh
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lol, hearing people talk about Jehova's Witnesses reminds me of how people talk about Seventh Day Adventists, which is the religion I was born and raised in. People also fear it and call it a cult, just because it has more "rules" than your average religion. Yet SDA's is not only the fastest growing religion in the United States (google it), but members of SDA's, on average, live 10 years longer than the typical American due to its health-based doctrine.

My point? Fearing religions and labeling them a certain way only serves to close your mind as much as those religions you claim to criticize. Actually talk to members of the religions rather than just make assumptions based on some article you read by a dissenter.
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Zack_Attackv1 posted...

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Hexagon posted...

Let's Talk

Sorry, I should have been more specific. I meant mental health as it specifically relates to college students on college campuses. Right now, the media is all about sexual assault on campuses, political/free speech, sjws, but there isn't really that much focus on a much more prevalent issue we are current facing. Perhaps it just hasn't caught up yet.
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C7D posted...

Yes, but their presentation is largely inconsistent with the time frame. Many of the issues seniors face today are more consistent with brain morphology rather than strictly environment.

I'm not gonna pretend to argue with you on that since I am not an expert on the subject.

What I will say is my own theory on it: could it possibly have to do with the fact that they had the issues all along but we just didn't have the technology or knowhow to diagnose them?

Afterall, prior to recent area, illness was seen as a weakness and people tried desperately to shrug it off, sleep it off, or drink it off. People hid their darkness demons for fear of social ridicule or worse, the inability to serve for those that wanted to do so.
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C7D posted...

weapon_d00d816 posted...

We certainly diagnose mental illness more. I feel like more and more people are actually seeking help than trying to deal with it themselves. Mental illness has reached peak mainstream exposure.

This, and/or the fact that this incoming generation grew up during the recession. There was a constant air of negativity and pessimism during that time, and of course the direct economic impact upon families.

Interesting analysis... The greatest generation grew up in the great depression and went through the worst war in the history of mankind unscathed. Next?

Have you seen the range of mental illness found in various senior citizens and veterans? That's a whole other beast of its own.
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lilORANG posted...

so has this thing always been rampant or are doctors just recently learning what to look for to make these diagnoses? Because you did not hear about this stuff prior to a few years ago.

It's just so hard to relate to someone when the exact same s*** millions of people handle perfectly fine drives others to suicide. Like something got f***ed in their upbringing .

Take ADD as an example. The diagnoses of ADD has multiplied in the last decade. The question often remains among education circles whether more and more students are suffering from ADD, or if the numbers have always been the same but we only now have the tools to more easily diagnose it?

Same applies here. Though I'm more prone to believe that we do have more mental health issues today than we had 20 years ago, not just that we have more tools to diagnose them. And I do believe technology has a part to play, but also the economic conditions that our students are growing up in. They're very different from 80s and 90s kids.
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lilORANG posted...

I wish I understood the issue better because I feel like they're all just being babies.

But if doctors and stuff are saying they have actual mental illness, like I guess they know better, but I managed the same workload in college. Blows my mind when I see people whining about their homework and saying they need to visit a counselor.

That's the thing. It would be one thing if it is just students saying that they need help. We are getting more and more doctor referrals saying that the students indeed suffer from those mental illnesses and who need the additional resources and support.

We really don't have the credentials to tell the doctors they're wrong. Not that it's our job to try, anyways.
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DelianSK posted...

But what constitutes signs? Is it a simple question like "do you feel sad sometimes" and they say that's signs of depression?

There are valid instruments we use that are provided by various nonprofit groups and organizations. Basically survey questionnaires where they answer a serious of questions and when you add up the scores you can determine what they have based on the score.
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DifferentialEquation posted...

We now have administrators who humor people being triggered over miniscule things. If someone says they're suffering PTSD because they saw some random person wearing a MAGA hat then they're taken seriously instead of just being told to piss off.

There's really not much of a choice. The law works in such a way that if you were to ignore that student or not provide them some sort of help, you could get sued and lose millions as a university. And even if it doesn't get that far, students can (and usually do) successfully protest your removal from the institution.

For example, check this article out:

https://spoonuniversity.com/healthier/involuntary-withdrawal-policies-harm-mentally-ill-college-students

"Colleges with blanketed involuntary removal policies also might be violating federal disability laws. The Americans With Disabilities Act prohibits discrimination against those with psychiatric disabilities and blanket removal policies unfairly target those with mental illnesses."

This right here could get universities in a lot of trouble. Usually the simplest route to avoid issues that can shut down the campus is to treat everyone that requests treatment. Hands are generally tied.
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CensorErik posted...

I hiked 105 miles this summer and then went to Disney World for the first time ever and I un-did all that hiking by eating EVERYTHING in sight. Lol. So weightlifting today and hiking tomorrow...weather permitting.

Sounds fun! Here the weather is finally at a comfortable 70 degrees, making it perfect for hikes and such.
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FLUFFYGERM posted...

this raises an interesting point. why are college students so emotionally and mentally fragile, to the point where trump being elected literally caused them to need crayons and play-doh? what is it about our education system over the last five years that has utterly destroyed the youth?

That's the question. We don't really know. Balrog provided an interesting article that looks at it from a cultural level, and may give some insight.

But our college is required to screen students for mental health disorders every year, and the last two years have been off the charts with students showing signs of both anxiety, PTSD, and depression.
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Balrog0 posted...

Godnorgosh posted...

Advanced tech didn't start with this wave of freshmen, though. Something else is going on here.

nah I think the social media generation is a pretty decent explanation of what's going on

this is a trend taht's been going on; not exclusive to college students, etiher

https://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/our-changing-culture/201510/are-mental-health-issues-the-rise

Interesting article. I will read it more thoroughly a little later. But I agree, our culture is changing, and the lasting impact won't be truly seen until the next few years when the generation enters the workforce.
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Godnorgosh posted...

TC, I wonder if any data exists on levels of student loan debt these first year students are taking on, and if so, whether there's an obvious correlation between that and reported rates of depression, etc.

No data that I am aware of, though it would be an interesting study to take on for an aspiring doctoral student.

I'd say it may be an issue for increased anxiety and depression amongst recent college graduates, but I'm talking about college freshmen here. I don't think they truly feel the weight of student loans until they have to pay it back.
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DelianSK posted...

Because it's become cool to have a mental illness. Look on facebook at any time and it's full of everyone talking about what real depression is and how they were all emotionally abused.

It's honestly a joke.

Now, if you have real mental issues then that's fine. More power to you. I take zoloft for depression. But I don't feel the need to advertise it.

It's not my place to judge whether the mental illness hold any true merit, but my job is to treat every mental health issue as a real issue with real consequences. The problem we are facing in universities is that the increased workload caught us unprepared, forcing us to hire more staff, training existing staff, and purchase various software packages used to track meetings with students, compile threat reports, resource guides, etc.

It's a costly and time-consuming process and it keeps me from doing my other million jobs to run the college.
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Just this year, I have had a record low number of judicial issues to address since the start of classes, yet a record high number of counseling appointments from students suffering from first-week-of-school anxieties.

Less students are out partying and more are depressed in their rooms. It's less visible in larger campuses where the traditional partiers are the loudest students on campus, but the numbers are changing.
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OrtegaTron posted...

Visual aid, TC

Awesome. After a killer August, work has slowed to a crawl at my job so I'm just waiting till 5pm over here.

CensorErik posted...

I'm popping open cans too, TC. Diet Pepsi. About to swing some dumbbells in a few mins.

Nice! I need to get back to working out. I got into a summer slump and put on a few.
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OrtegaTron posted...

I'm drinking coffee on my porch while a squirrel chirps at me and my dog. Its a beautiful day. No complaints.

That's surprisingly refreshing. brb gonna live vicariously through you.
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OrtegaTron posted...

No, its only half past noon

Tell me about it.
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Each year, there are particular issues that my higher ed circles focus on in conferences and trainings. A few years back, it was hazing, sexual assault, then veteran student GI issues, and last year being Emotional Support Animals (ESAs). This year, it seems the conversation is revolving around student mental health.

Usually these conversations are spurred by increased activity around that particular topic regarding the incoming freshman class. For reasons we have yet to pinpoint, more students than ever are entering college with cited mental health issues, including depression, PTSD, Bipolar tendencies, anxiety, among others.

As a result, there is increased required training for us as administrators to be able to handle the unique issues they bring, which add increased costs to universities to provide the resources, which increases university spending, which overall increases tuition dollars.

Who knows what next year's convo will be? I'm surprised I haven't seen this discussed more in the media (the closest I've seen is the discussion of people "triggered" by political protests or actions, but that's not really the same).

College students are entering more and more with both self-proclaimed and doctor-diagnosed mental health issues. What are your thoughts on this?
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Tell me your woes, CE.
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darkphoenix181 posted...

philsov posted...

I think a honeymoon phase is worse.

Friend of mine in houston recently snagged a beau in dallas. At least twice a day, they're tagging each other in sappy, text-filled jpegs about love and relationships and shit.

holy balls. Ever heard of messenger?

my hubby is literally the greatest man on earth and reminds me everyday of how lucky I am !

I feel sorry for all the other ladies not married to my hubby, but right now I am too doted on the care or notice as he delivers me breakfast in bed and rubs my feet while I eat

I deserve this

I've noticed that girls who do this (and to a lesser extent, guys), are more likely to divorce/break up. It's like, the type of person that needs to post how amazing their relationship is can't be satisfied by the relationship itself, but by other people reaffirming how great it is. Then, when the "romance" portion of the relationship stops and they have nothing to post about to their friends, they get frustrated and the relationship ends.

Just a theory, but I've counted 6 couples on my fb feed who followed this pattern, 5 women and 1 man. Typically the couples who keep more to themselves on social media tend to last longer.
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discodancer77 posted...

Crazy awesome opening theme

This.

The opening theme literally made the show appear more awesome than it was.

And the show often teetered to the point of awesomeness at certain points, but always seemed to just fall short. Honestly, if they cut off some of the padding/filler and humans, it would have been a decent show.
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D:
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gmo7897 posted...

@Zanzenburger , No fair. You can't bring foster kids into this. That almost makes us seem human.

Sorry! I forgot our prime directive!

EDIT: Oops wait. Being sorry is also too human. I rescind the apology.
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Why should I get your vote? Because I am endorsed by my three little foster kids:



And who would want to say no to those cute smiles?
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GOATTHlEF posted...

@spartan99ruler
@Zanzenburger
@Tommy873

Which of you deserves it more and why

Because I have burger in my name, and who hates food?
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lol

On a slightly related note, the new Superhero Girls movies and TV show made Harley Quinn and Poison Ivy into good guys. Were they not able to find enough female heroes that they had to dig into the villain pool?
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NES4EVER posted...

Just goes to show you don't have to be blood to be mom and dad to someone.

I applaud you for your efforts in adopting and the positive impact you've got on these kids.

Thanks
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leverageblargh posted...

Oh it's pretty clear they're shitty people but I was just thinking about how much of a problem they're going to be for you and those kids long-term, even if they're imprisoned.

If they're junkies, then their desire to get back the kids is probably temporary and their prime concern's always going to be to get their fix. Maybe they'll get their shit together in prison but it's unlikely.

But if they're straight up psychos who enjoy abusing kids and want them back so they have an easy target....well I doubt any amount of prison time's going to fix that and it's a problem you're going to be dealing with for a long, long time.

Do you know what those extended family members that you mentioned are like? Same sort of shit people or sane people that condemn what those two have done?

Well, they have no idea who we are or where their girls went. All they know is that the girls are in the state. They'd have a pretty hard time finding them even if they looked.

They were fostered for a while by extended family and from what the case worker told me, they were alright as parents, but they got tired of dealing with the girls' behavioral issues and gave them up willingly. It seems no other family seems interested.

My wife did some facebook stalking and found the family. Apparently the mom and dad are the black sheep of their respective families. The rest aren't as bad but they also don't seem at all interested in helping them out. The fact that an uncle took the kids and gave them up after a few months kinda shows they don't want to deal with the baggage.


myztikrice posted...

Are they white?

Yep.
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leverageblargh posted...

Are the birth parents junkies?

I have no clue, but I think it's safe to assume they are. The five year old did tell me her mom tried to get her to smoke a cigarette. If that give you an idea of the kind of people they are.
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pikachupwnage posted...

Zanzenburger posted...

Some of those had me reacting the same way as the guys in the video. Pretty impressive stuff.

That Ness and Shiek one was insane.

I have had a few similar sorts moments(both against me and me doing it) in my several hundred Smash 4 hours but updates destroyed all my ingame recordings of em :/

Yeah, as a Jigglypuff main, I lose more battles than I win, but every now and then I will win with the craziest chain of events, including some god-tier recoveries.
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leverageblargh posted...

Is the court case for their conviction of these crimes or a custody battle?

Both. criminal trial in October and custody trial either September or November.

Mernardi posted...

So...if the birth parents lose the case, does that mean you official adopt the kids?

Yep. As the foster parents, we get first choice in getting the kids unless another extended family member requests them.

Romulox28 posted...

Zanzenburger posted...

Neglect, physical abuse, sexual abuse. At least what's been proven so far.

yikes, so do you have to work with a caseworker or therapist or something with the kids? id imagine it must be super tough to be raised by someone other than your parents and adding physical/sexual abuse and neglect on top makes it even more difficult.

hope you get to keep the kids zanzenburger, i have seen you make so many posts on here with your struggles with the adoption process and i just want you to become a dad already

Yes, the two older ones are going to counseling. The 2 year old is too young to tell what effect it has on her. She already sees us as her real parents. The older ones know we are not their real parents but have accepted us as their caregivers for now. They do call us mom and dad already.

EDIT: To add to your second part about becoming a dad already, whether or not we keep them, I feel I've been a dad for two months and it has been amazing. After learning how to brush their hair, reading them bedtime stories, taking them to school, and making them dinner, I've been enjoying the role as parent even if they are not mine (yet).
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leverageblargh posted...

So what did the birth parents do to create the emergency situation in the first place?

Neglect, physical abuse, sexual abuse. At least what's been proven so far.

Sada_Pop posted...

Do you have help? What is the back story to this?

I have my wife to help, and we get monthly checks from the state for them. Basically we are acting as foster parents for kids who were removed from their home for the reasons stated above.
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