Wednesday, February 04, 2015

The Islamic State Works Against Itself?

NBC: Syria

















Reuters February 3

Cited

'Islamic State shows burning of hostage, Jordan vows 'earth-shaking' response

BY SULEIMAN AL-KHALIDI AMMAN Tue Feb 3, 2015 6:51pm EST'

Cited

'(Reuters) - Islamic State militants released a video on Tuesday appearing to show a captured Jordanian pilot being burnt alive in a cage, a killing that shocked the world and prompted Jordan to promise an "earth-shaking" response.

A Jordanian official said the authorities would swiftly execute several militants in retaliation, including an Iraqi woman whom Amman had sought to swap for the pilot taken captive after his plane crashed in Syria in December.

Reuters could not immediately confirm the content of the video, which showed a man resembling airman Mouath al-Kasaesbeh standing in a small black cage before being set ablaze.

The furious reaction of the Jordanian authorities made clear they treated it as genuine. Jordan, which has been mounting air raids in Syria as part of the U.S.-led alliance against Islamic State insurgents, would deliver a "strong, earth-shaking and decisive" response, a government spokesman said.

"The revenge will be as big as the calamity that has hit Jordan," army spokesman Colonel Mamdouh al Ameri said in a televised statement confirming the death of the pilot, who was seized by Islamic State in December.'

Cited

'The Jordanian military might also escalate attacks on Islamic State, said retired air force General Mamoun Abu Nowar. "We might even see in a couple of days the rate of sorties increased dramatically.

We might have some special operations against their leadership too," he said. In the Islamic State video, Kasaesbeh is interviewed, describing the mission he was due to carry out before his jet crashed.

The video also showed footage of the aftermath of air strikes, with people trying to remove civilians from debris.

A man resembling Kasaesbeh is shown inside the cage with his clothes dampened, apparently with flammable liquid, and one of the masked fighters holds a torch, setting alight a line of fuel which leads into the cage. The man is set ablaze and kneels to the ground.'

Cited

Islamic State emerged out of al Qaeda in Iraq. It expanded into Syria as the country was plunged into a civil war estimated to have killed 200,000 people since 2011.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights monitoring group said on Tuesday that 51 civilians, including children, had been killed by Syrian air force strikes inside the country within the past day. 

The U.S.-led coalition says it does not coordinate with the Syrian government of President Bashar al-Assad, described by Washington as part of the problem. It does work with the Iraqi government, which is also fighting Islamic State.

End Citations

My condolences to all concerned for loss of life.

Blackburn explains terrorism is the intentional use of violence particularly to bring about widespread fear for political ends. Blackburn (1996: 374).

I can intellectually and philosophically grant that burning persons alive, beheadings and dreaming up other executions/murderous acts and attempts at such, will succeed at terrorizing the public to some degree, and probably will terrorize some in the military and governments as well.

But, as the Reuters' article demonstrates such acts and actions also can cause a severe counter-reaction.

Evil should not be repaid for evil by the individual or State (Romans 12, 1 Peter 3: 9), but I do believe in law and order via the State (Romans 13, 1 Peter 2) in order to counter terrorism within reason and where necessary.

The Islamic State as a political and religious movement while it creates more terrorism on its behalf is also creating more political and religious opposition against itself worldwide.

Therefore philosophically making a world dominated politically and religiously by radical Islam less likely...

The Islamic State is therefore working against itself...

BLACKBURN, SIMON (1996) Oxford Dictionary of Philosophy, Oxford, Oxford University Press.

From Twitter: Absolutely not.

Thursday, January 29, 2015

'Canada Disappears' World Map

Daily Mail:Reddit User TeaDranks. Notice how small Canada actually is compared to for example, Europe and the United States; this at least significantly philosophically justifies a) My worldwide search for work in my limited academic field. b) My worldwide search for social media contacts. c) My worldwide search for anything else possibly related. d) So, yes, Canadians this is largely why Americans and Europeans ignore Canada...Iceland and Australia face a similar fate to Canada with the map.

Daily Mail January 28

Cited

'India grows, Canada disappears, and the United States and United Kingdom look exactly the same:

World map shows country size based on population and not land mass

A new cartogram created by Reddit user TeaDranks shows each country's size scaled to its population Countries with large populations like China and India dominate the map

Smaller populations which have big geographic areas like Australia, Canada and Russia appear small

Other nations like Fiji, Iceland, Macau and Malta are barely visible'

'The United States and United Kingdom look almost exactly the same on this map as they do a typical world map'

By SALLY LEE FOR DAILY MAIL AUSTRALIA and CHRIS SPARGO

Huffington Post January 26

Cited

Legal Marijuana Is The Fastest-Growing Industry In The U.S.: Report: Matt Ferner

Rocky Mountain High? I have never been to Colorado, but lately most of the time when the State is mentioned in the media it has to do with the topic of 'pot'. Not that I can talk, living here in British Columbia...
Iceland-Barely visible on the mentioned map.

Tuesday, January 27, 2015

From The News...Scientology

California-Facebook-Travel+Leisure























San Jose Mercury January 27

Cited

'Tom Cruise bugged Nicole Kidman's phone, says Scientology movie Compiled by Tony Hicks' 

Cited

'Tom Cruise and Church of Scientology leader David Miscavige ordered Nicole Kidman's phones to be tapped in the 1990s, according to a new documentary on Scientology that's causing a stir at the Sundance Film Festival in Utah.

Former Scientologist Mark "Marty" Rathbun, a longtime member of the church and a former aide to Miscavige, makes the allegations in "Going Clear: Scientology & The Prison of Belief," which debuted Sunday at Sundance.

During the late 1990s, church officials reportedly became worried about Cruise's loyalties to the organization, while he and Kidman spent a year in England filming Stanley Kubrick's "Eyes Wide Shut." The relationship reportedly wasn't a hit among Scientology officials, according to the documentary. Kidman's dad Dr. Anthony Kidman, who died last year, was a prominent psychologist in Australia. Scientology's late founder L. Ron Hubbard distrusted psychologists and psychiatrists, a trait supposedly shared today by church officials.'

Cited

'Among other claims in the film, based on Lawrence Wright's 2013 book of the same name, was that higher-ups in the church saw Kidman as a "potential trouble source" who was connected to "suppressive persons," according to the New York Daily News.'

Cited

'The Church of Scientology released a statement saying filmmakers wouldn't meet with church officials.

"Their sources are the usual collection of obsessive, disgruntled former Church members kicked out as long as 30 years ago for malfeasance, who have a documented history of making up lies about the Church for money," the statement read.'

End Citations

Jesus Christ stated to look at the fruit, the results of religion in Matthew 7

Matthew 7:15-23

New American Standard Bible (NASB) A Tree and Its Fruit

15 “Beware of the false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly are ravenous wolves. 16 You will [a]know them by their fruits. [b]Grapes are not gathered from thorn bushes nor figs from thistles, are they? 17 So every good tree bears good fruit, but the bad tree bears bad fruit. 18 A good tree cannot produce bad fruit, nor can a bad tree produce good fruit. 19 Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. 20 So then, you will [c]know them by their fruits. 21 “Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father who is in heaven will enter. 22 Many will say to Me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in Your name, and in Your name cast out demons, and in Your name perform many [d]miracles?’ 23 And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness.’

Footnotes: Matthew 7:16 Or recognize Matthew 7:16 Lit They do not gather Matthew 7:20 Or recognize Matthew 7:22 Or works of power New American Standard Bible (NASB) Copyright © 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation

Ankerberg and Welden describe Scientology as a 'novel and eclectic religion drawing from Eastern philosophy, modern psychology and occult practice. It seeks to release human potential, free the soul and restore man to his original state as pure, immortal spirit.' (1999: 423).

God is viewed as 'purposefully undefined; all Theta (life), the Eighth Dynamic/infinity'; Jesus was a man not particularly enlightened that was invented by the Church as savior of the world, although some Scientologists may classify him as 'Operating Thetan (OT), a person aware of true nature and abilities. (1999: 424).

Salvation would therefore consist of the enlightenment of the thetan to his or her true nature and abilities. (1999: 424). This being an eternal spirit with divine powers. (1999: 424).

ANKERBERG, JOHN AND JOHN WELDON (1999) Encyclopedia of Cults and New Religions, Eugene, Oregon, Harvest House Publishers.

Briefly then Scientology would deny by what I have written and through implication a Biblical view of God, the deity of Christ and the atoning and resurrection work of Christ in regard to salvation.

Other key Biblical and New Testament doctrines would also be denied.

The religion being founded by Mr. Hubbard, a science-fiction writer; it lacking Scriptural, historical, religious documentation, that would support, in contrast, academically, the Hebrew Bible and New Testament.

Saturday, January 24, 2015

The Battle of Chocolate: USA V UK



Starring Saint Chuckles with Guest in background

We chose the type of visual effect with the Microsoft LifeCam, but did not know exactly how it would it appear until we finished filming. I did not realize I would be blacked out, although it appeared that way from the back during the presentation but my view was distorted.

Anyway, it turned out funny and educational...

No, I am not jumping...

Bolten Abbey, England (trekearth)