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Comment Re:God (Score 1) 794

Well, not really. Ex 20 is the delivery of the 10 command, literally a few weeks later at most, we have the Israelites making a golden calf to worship while Moses is back on the mountain communing with God.

The thing is, they still believe in Jehovah (Yahweh) as God. They just wanted something a little more concrete. You see this throughout Jewish history up until the time of Babylonian captivity. They just love their idols too. It is really surprising to the modern reader, but even many of the great reformers praised for their god-fearing ways do not really give up the idols completely, they allow them to co-exist.

They were not very good monotheists. Jehovah took a dim view of this of course.

Archaeologists digging up Palestine find idols everywhere until the time of Babylonian captivity and then they stop very suddenly

Comment Re:leaded gas (Score 1) 266

If you don't use lead, you have to raise octane in ways that are more expensive, more highly refined gas and more expensive octane raising additives are your options, both are more expensive than using lead.

Back in the 70's, there was an additional factor. Existing infrastructure used lead to raise octane rating -- there were transition costs and some scarcity during the transition away from lead. And of course, as a new product, you can generally charge that otherwise.

Comment Re:They still have not caught a single terrorist. (Score 1) 289

I think that the TSA would advertise far and wide the successful detection and capture of a terrorist, as the "TSA has not captured a single terrorist" statements has been raised repeatedly. So yeah, I think it safe to conclude that the gun-toting people involved were not terrorists.

Comment Re:Work on the basics (Score 1) 387

Your preferences were identical to mine, but I kept reading about how Python was actually a pretty useful and powerful tool. So, I decided to started working through the Euclid Project using Python (I am up to #45) -- Only invested a few days so far, but since this process is very fresh in my memory, thought I would share.

My brain is starting to get to used the both of my objections -- There is quite a bit a built in goodness especially when you factor in all the libraries out there.

My long term goals are to benefit from the cross-platform scripting -- Python beats the pants on Perl IMHO -- having used Perl primarily for this purpose, I always tend to find myself wondering how a Perl script works a few months after I wrote it.

Cross platform GUI is tempting, but have not investigated yet.

Comment Too late to burn him as a false prophet? (Score 1) 385

Deu 18:20-22

But the prophet who presumes to speak a word in my name that I have not commanded him to speak, or who speaks in the name of other gods, that same prophet shall die.'
And if you say in your heart, 'How may we know the word that the LORD has not spoken?'--
when a prophet speaks in the name of the LORD, if the word does not come to pass or come true, that is a word that the LORD has not spoken; the prophet has spoken it presumptuously. You need not be afraid of him.

Being dead has not prevent exhuming the body and "punishing it" in the past. And to be honest, I don't recall anywhere the Bible calls for burning false prophets in the general case (though there are examples of putting them to death)

Of course Asimov never claimed to be a prophet, just a prognosticator. Jean Dixon on the other hand ...

Comment Re:Ban or Censor? (Score 1) 360

So, you have no problem with teaching showing snuff films, and child pornography to 2nd graders. I think that using discretion in books and other media used in schools is a far lesser problem than failing to do so. Censorship requires authoritative (governments, Catholic church and many others can be cited) agencies banishing or restricting objectionable content -- with associated civil or criminal penalties (official or not) associated with violations -- without penalties, there is no real restriction. Lessor restrictions are really not censorship, that though may well be undesirable or even odious and evil.

Say I personally kill you for reading the Bible because I think it is evil -- this is not censorship.
Say Muslims are known to kill people for reading the Bible because I think it is evil -- this is not necessarily censorship, depends on whether said Muslims are extremist that are officially or unofficial sanctioned or tolerated, if so -- yeah its censorship, otherwise it is same same as me doing it.

Being a member of the school book and saying a teacher crossed the line by showing Debbie Does Dallas to 2nd graders crossed the line and make sure she gets fired is not censorship, it is reasonable because community standards dictate that such would be totally inappropriate content. Showing Debbie Does Dallas to seniors is almost certainly the same answer -- it is not the in the purview of the school exercising its in loco parentis rights and responsibility to educate students in such a manner. Minors do not have the same legal rights as adults. See Contributing to the delinquency of a minor if you still doubt the responsibility to exercise judgment.

Comment Re:More people have died (Score 2) 360

Highest estimate I was able to find at all related to the Bible related deaths was 17 million in a quick search.

How about Das Capital and everything related to it? 100 million give or take.

The 100 million deaths related to Communism being attributed to Das Kapital is certainly at least as valid as counting the Crusades and the Inquisition as being a result of the Bible -- Nothing in the Bible can accurately be attributed as a direct cause of these 2 events. Just as in the case of Das Kapital was not the direct cause of the many atrocities of communism.

The Bible is at best 2nd place is the history of killing people because of a book.

It may be in third place if you count Mein Kampf related deaths at about 15 million (6 million Jews + 9 million war deaths), as the 17 million for the Bible may be a bit high on the as accurate numbers for Bible related deaths are hard not available.

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