Riots in Oakland

[Captain Oates 911]

Then why'd you post it?

I asked the Jehova's Witnesses about this one day. They were coming over quite a bit and talking about Jesus being the ultimate general in the fight against evil. I asked if he used an AK-47.

It kind of went downhill from there.

They tried to out-maneuver me yesterday by sending a pre-doughnut stuffer long blonde haired judas goat to get me to open the door.

Then this Carl Rove look - alike jumped in front of her and tried to give me all this twaddle and get me tithing like a simpleton. He wanted me to open my security door. No way Pedro. Get a job.

I am beset by these people peddling their pay now and benefit later stuff.

[slim 1,534]

I've always had an open door. Typically when it becomes apparent I'm not going to contribute anything they move on.

However, I will give them the benefit of the doubt. Out of all the so-called "Christians" I see, there aren't too many groups that spread the good news the way the Witnesses do. Many think an all-expenses-paid trip to build a house in Mexico is akin to "missionary" work. I'd have to disagree. Pounding the pavement and knocking on doors in the ghetto seems a lot more like the Lord's work to me. I saw more Witnesses ministering to folks in jail than any other group of so-called Christians combined.

[Mags 112]

I posted it because I love any excuse to look at David Mitchell, who is totally going to be my next British husband.

He is. I can confirm I have the cupboard ready.

[Captain Oates 911]

I've always had an open door. Typically when it becomes apparent I'm not going to contribute anything they move on.

However, I will give them the benefit of the doubt. Out of all the so-called "Christians" I see, there aren't too many groups that spread the good news the way the Witnesses do. Many think an all-expenses-paid trip to build a house in Mexico is akin to "missionary" work. I'd have to disagree. Pounding the pavement and knocking on doors in the ghetto seems a lot more like the Lord's work to me. I saw more Witnesses ministering to folks in jail than any other group of so-called Christians combined.

That's because a person in prison is at their most vulnerable and open to suggestion.

People who are feeling strong and well off and healthy are not as 'needy' and vulnerable to being 'taken over' by people offering the way to be happiness.

Same with hospitals where they have a captive audience.

That's why Crespo Dollar moves on the poor. They need money desperately so he says give me your last thou and the lord will give you back 10 fold within a year.

That's why these debt consolidation people are all over the telly - offering solutions to the desperate.

Look at the people who joined the Mooneys - confused people in extreme mental anguish at the time they joined. Isolate them, brainwash them, keep them dependent. David Koresh, Charles Manson - they all work the same with runaways and the needy and the gullible.

They aren't there to fulfill the needs of their victims but to gain adherents and later to milk them

..and to shun people like me and forbid their worker ants from talking to people like me in case they see through it

They don't try and recruit people who are healthy and solvent and sorted because they know we don't need them and we don't have vulnerabilities to exploit

It's all about money and forming a human chain letter

Edited July 11, 2010 by saywhat

[slim 1,534]

So what about the state lottery system then?

[Captain Oates 911]

So what about the state lottery system then?

Yes that exploits the gullible

what percentage of people who buy the tickets, research the chances of winning ?

How many can quote it ?

Even in a civilized country, the gaming machines have to pay out 40% and that's all(bet they don't in vegas)- how many of the players know that ?

Off course the punters are being stolen from and of course they are the poorest in society.

Look at the lines in a UK supermarket at 5pm on a Saturday - all old and limping and coughing with bronchitis and worried and poor and hopeless.

I know that they can't be helped coz I know they would blow the money if they won. They might even give it to Crespo Dollar or buy a tub of soil from the holy land at £500

I really don't know why I see a difference between religious exploitation for money compared to the lottery. After all, the suckers do get a glow out of religion whereas the lottery people seldom get anything back.

I don't like to see people use religion as weapon. Like in Colorado where military officer recruits had their exam results altered to show fail - unless they signed up to a church which the trainers ran.

Unless I see priests doing what they have been doing

It's all exploitation here when you scratch the surface. It all just seems so much worse here in the USA

[_Simpson_ 250]

No, it's not a whole other debate, it's part and parcel of the reason why America is more violent than any other industrialized nation, violent as in endless killings not merely yobbish fights on a Saturday night when all the drunks come out the pubs. You can deny the connection all you like, but, it's pretty plain to see if you have even a smidgen of experience with living in other nations.

It is a whole other debate, the issue from the get go is the way police are doing there jobs not about making guns illegal. Are you trying to suggest our officers shouldn't carry guns?

Again you are failing to understand that I am criticizing policy and attitudes, not individuals - there is no suggestion from me that the police are universally evil, that they never do anything right or that there are no good policemen who can make arrests without violence in the US. There are problems, real ones that people without their heads stuffed inside American idols and spouting blind patriotism appreciate and I would imagine would like to change if they can.

and again your are missing my point. Due to the amount of violence cops experience in certain areas its not surprise that you hear of these shootings. The policies are reasonable the criminals are not.

I think it's time you quit with all the ####### about how I hate America but of course you will not because you really believe it based on your childlike belief that criticizing aspects of America that are failing is unpatriotic, never mind that I am not a citizen. Even if I was a citizen, I would not be so stupid as to believe that when things are crappy in America they must still be better than the best of things in other countries. America is like everywhere else, it is a mix of good, bad and indifferent. It's not the best place to live in the world, but nor is it the worst - it is unique, but then so are all the other places that one could live happily, safely and productively and yes Simpson, there are plenty of places in the world that are great places to live, the US is just one of many and in terms of how it is policed it's not at the top of the list by any stretch of the imagination.

I never said hate, thats your word. I said discontent. I dont think you wish bad things on this country but I think you dont you like this country by any stretch of the imagination. I think you focus in on all our negatives and give us very little credit for anything. And again this is from two years of observing not this thread alone. Did you contribute positively to the American appreciation thread?

[_Simpson_ 250]

Uh, yeah. I can honestly say that in the 12 years I lived in Britain there was only one time I felt genuinely in danger, and it was from the fists of a lagered up man on the Greenwich railway station platform because I wouldn't give him a snog. In the nearly three years since I've been back, I cannot enumerate how many times I've felt the bristle of fear from a situation. I do not live in LA proper -- I live in cosy little Burbank where the police blotter reads like Mayberry RFD's -- but still this place freaks me out at night occasionally. I saw a guy get tasered in broad daylight in Santa Barbara last year -- it seemed so unreal I looked around to see if a film was being shot. I saw someone get stabbed in Culver City right in front of me when I was at a bar with a good reputation.

I lived in London and Bristol, cities with big problems, but I walked around pretty sure nothing was going to happen to me just because I happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time. Here, I can't say that, not at all. And to be honest, this is one of the reasons I am seriously contemplating moving back to Britain permanently.

Do you need help packing?

[elmcitymaven 9,712]

No.

[_Simpson_ 250]

No.

Ok, but if you change your mind I just want you to know I'm there for you.

[elmcitymaven 9,712]

Ok, but if you change your mind I just want you to know I'm there for you.

Thanks for the offer. I'll put you at the top of the list.

[_Simpson_ 250]

Thanks for the offer. I'll put you at the top of the list.

Thank you. I look forward to the day I'm able to assist you.

[Captain Oates 911]

Thank you. I look forward to the day I'm able to assist you.

You seem to be saying that if people want to change society for the better, then they should just leave and you want it all to be frozen in 1776.

Slaves, witch burning, dry toilets. Some of the best ideas that came into Britain were brought by foreigners like Brunel's dad. I am sure they moaned about the rain and the food but it's a good job we didn't just tell them to go home.

I reckon the people who won't listen to and understand people who have complaints (better described as suggestions for improvement), are the same ones who won't compromise with their spouses and want it all their own way. Dominating, dismissive, uncompromising, stick in the mud, backward, regressive. My way or the highway. Keep your nose out of my slave holding desires - you don't belong here - go back up North.

Anytime anyone tells someone else to leave the country, I know immediately that their first desire is not to have their imperfect union brought under the spotlight as they are secretly ashamed by some aspects of it - or should be.

US Prisons for example.

[Trumplestiltskin 5,791]

Anytime someone tells someone they disagree with to get out of the country, it seems clear that they stand for none of the values they supposedly hold dear.

It's interesting to me how readily some of these people describe others as Unamerican, unpatriotic or some variation thereof; yet they cannot see how they should be more concerned about attitudes closer to home.

[_Simpson_ 250]

You seem to be saying that if people want to change society for the better, then they should just leave and you want it all to be frozen in 1776.

No, what I'm saying is that pissing and moaning all the time is not constructive. Not recognizing the good things but focusing in on all the bad things all the time does nothing positive for this country.

Slaves, witch burning, dry toilets. Some of the best ideas that came into Britain were brought by foreigners like Brunel's dad. I am sure they moaned about the rain and the food but it's a good job we didn't just tell them to go home.

We are a country of foreigners, believe me I know the importance. Thats what makes our country so great. Lets keep in mind that im addressing the people that piss and moan 24/7. You seem to not want to take that into consideration.

I reckon the people who won't listen to and understand people who have complaints (better described as suggestions for improvement), are the same ones who won't compromise with their spouses and want it all their own way. Dominating, dismissive, uncompromising, stick in the mud, backward, regressive. My way or the highway. Keep your nose out of my slave holding desires - you don't belong here - go back up North.

Suggestions for improvement. That implies that they give a dam and really care, I think not, these people who piss and moan 24/7 do not have our best intentions in mind. You would probably be better of keeping you silly theories to yourself.

Anytime anyone tells someone else to leave the country, I know immediately that their first desire is not to have their imperfect union brought under the spotlight as they are secretly ashamed by some aspects of it - or should be.

All I did was offer to help her pack. What good can come from someone who doesnt want to be in this country and thinks very little of this great country?

Edited July 12, 2010 by _Simpson_