h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

But where those kids split on because they really were up to no good, or could it have been another kid with a grudge?

Kids do daft things just because they think it would be fun or for a dare without real intent to harm, rather than consider the consequences of their actions as seen by others.

However there is the possibilty that they really do intend to cause harm

If a new theory proves correct and the Black Death was actually not Bubonic Plague and was a viral infection not bacterial, you may get your wish Hypatia! I can't find a link at the mo, but the researcher reckons it may well resurface.

Regarding the church and the current (apparent) upsurge in Christianity...

I saw a post somehwere yesterday, can't recall which thread now , about how the age of Aquarius, which supposedly began in the 60s, was meant to mark the end of the age of Pisces, which was associated with Christianity because of the fish symbolism... not sure how much I agree with that, but I guess some do.

So why has Christianity suddenly become big news after apparently having been a dying religion for the past couple of decades. It seems like there were regular stories in the newspapers and on news analysis programmes such as Newsnight or Channel Four News about how congregations and revenues were declining in both the C of E and Catholic church in Great Britain.

Why is Christianity so big and so important in America - a country which is supposed to have a seperation of church and state? I know the country was founded largely by Puritans... is there some lasting legacy there? How many other countries could have spawned religions such as the Mormons and the Shakers I wonder?

[GDZ]

Witty, it seems that the two teens were accused of selling drugs. When Sherriff's deputies searcher the two teens backpacks they saw the drawings, then they searched their lockers.

Yes, a tragedy may have been averted. However, some people do put things to paper to exorcize their particular demons. Note that I am not defending these kids. They are likely troubled and need help. I still don't think that jail time is the best recourse, and I think that they may have not been served justice.

Egon, the first announcement was that Kerry himself would be denied the sacraments. Then this hit the news a couple of weeks ago.

http://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/2004/119/53.0.html

I thought there would be an outcry from other bishops and cardinals, but if there was I missed it.

Ah, yes. Brilliant move, eh? Let's ~really~ drive people away, shall we? What an idiot!

And Caer, there actually was a viral form of the Black Death. In fact, based on the descriptions of symptoms, and later observations in more primative societies, historians and scientists posit that there were three forms of plague circulating from the 14th to the 18th centuries. There was the classic bubonic (the only bacterial version), in which people grew boboes (the classic black swellings)...between 50 and 75% survived that one. Then there was the pneumonic, which was basically a very, very, very bad case of pneumonia (coughing blood, etc) and that killed between 85-95% of cases. The worse was septicemic plague, in which the virus attacked blood vessels, causing them to burst. Death from septicemic was a certainty, and people would often drop dead with no discernable symptoms.

So yeah, the short answer is yes, plague is always possible.

RS, The LDS (mormon) church is an abberation amongst modern religions. It is the only modern religion to be very successfull. Being from the ergion that holds teh headquarters for that church, I am quite familiar wwith it. The only other faiths that have had similar success as the LDS faith have older roots ie: Pentacostals.

The United States Government is supposed to stay out of the affairs of Churchs. That is what the idea of speration of Church and State is. It gets blown way out of porportion when someone gets offended over a precieved union between a particular church and teh government.

[Hati]

congrats Lil on the sale

I think we all agree that global warming is occuring - I'd just like to add that we're not entirely sure if it's man-made or not. If it's not, the climatic changes (eg britain getting flooded) are going to be so slow that there won't be any need to invade france in one fell swoop. If it's man-made, then who knows how fast it's going to happen...

RS, although you might not believe it to read the popular media, America's apparent infatuation with religion (and I use the phrase advisedly) is the work of a dedicated and well-organised minority group. Their movement is called Reconstructionism, a.k.a. Theonomic Reconstructionism, a.k.a. Dominion Theology. Google any of those and be afraid.

Re: Global Warming....I don't know. About every time that I research it at all I get less worried about it. It's like my concern is inversley proportional to those who try to stop it. I don't know why.

And re: the Catholic Church....First of all, I don't agree with many things about their system of beliefs, etc. However, I'm a bit confused as to the claim of "driving people away." Surely it's better for them to openly say what their tennets are now instead of trying to trap people into the faith and practices now before explaining the more touchy issues of their faith?

Like I've said, I don't really condone a lot of what the Catholic Church has recently introduced. But I'd rather have them openly state the things that they believe than be hypocritical (I can already hear the "it's too late" joke....)

Oh, but as for refusing communion to people, that just seems silly.

The thoughts and opinions stated above are not necessarily mine, but may in fact be the result of some current rapid mood swings and brief flashes of insanity that real life is currently provoking. Won't know 'till tomorrow.

The RCC started out as a good idea. Blame a lot of what you know on Gregory VII and Innocent III. Oh, and Pius X.

But really, the institutional hierarchy of the RCC is almost impossible to maintain with any semblence of common sense. Institutions are incapable of responding to the concerns of their individual members, and the responses of the RCC to things like the molestation scandal are no different than the responses of other corporations like Enron and Arthur Anderson.

The states do a lot of things that make no sense. When you think that religion is supposed to be all love and foregivness and then you find out it is really all about going to hell. Mormon state such as Utah arresting kids for "disturbing pictures" Holy violation of first amendment Batman. If we were worried about these kids why not, ohhh say have a little chat, keep an eye on em. Suggest counceling. If you can be arrested for drawing a picture in this country that is a scary scary thing.

Also the AC in historic buildings. Although it does keep the humidity down which is good for artifacts inside of em. Luckily, have never been in the UK when it was really hot enough to worry about AC...

Lil, it is always good to get recognition. Especially for your passions...

On the fire issue, why does no one do controlled burns? Not so much to get out of control if real fire season ever comes. Of course it is just another example of us screwing with nature, interrupting the natural burn cycle. We think we are so smart sometimes....

I've actually had Plague Vaccination so I ain't scared of no Black Death...

The United States Forest Service and Bureau of Land Management do controlled burns regularly out here in Montana. My guess would be that they go on in other states as well on American public lands. There always is an outcry, though, from various groups and people afraid of fire (those with a Bambi mentality, and curiously enough from pro-logging groups who feel trees are being wasted in these burns) in any form.

The threats to denying communion to pro-choice Catholic politicans and their supporters go against everything this country was founded on and what the originial colonists were trying to get away from. I hope that more practicing Catholics protest to the very highest authorities in their Church about this. I know I would. I rarely use this phrase, but it's positively anti-American.

Tamberlaine, I suspect your plague vaccination would only be effective against the first and treatable form of bacterial plague. Although it is now 6 years since I was up to date on vaccinations, things haven't changed that much since I was happily jabbing people for obscure trips across the .

The Shakers are an off shoot of Quakers which arose in the UK, they were in turn an off shoot of Calvinism and Lutheranism, which came out of Germany. But MR knows more about them than I do. In spite of surprisingly extensive religious tuition (from going to boarding school; the fear of hell fire was supposed to stop us from having naughty thoughts) I know very little about the subject as I chose to forget most ot it! I do like the Te Deum and Nunc Dimittis though and rousing rendition of Jerusalem will bring a tear the old eye.

Luther, according to Calvin, did not go far enough in his reforms. He was, and I quote from Calvin, "Catholic in all but a minor way." So Calvin, who was Luther's fan, started his own church in Geneva. And the Quakers were actually an offshoot of the Calvinists who called themselves Barkers, who were one of the many protestant but not Anglican groups in England during the Interregnum/ Restoration period. George Fox is considered the founder of the Quakers, who's message of direct communication with the divine was well-received by those who had originally backed Cromwell, but were concerned that he was setting himself up essentially as a king.

The Shakers took the Quaker message one step further. Sex within the sanctity of marriage became no sex at all, which makes it hard to maintain any sizable religious community, really.

The Shakers are known for their lifestyle and arts and crafts. They made the most wonderfully simple yet lovely furniture.

http://www.shakerworkshops.com/

Note the recipe of the month link. The Shakers are also known for their slightly peculiar cuisine. My mother has the advertised cookbook, and I tried the recipe for Shaker Lemon Pie. Oddly enough, it had me slice whole lemons into the filling and then bake them, pith, peel and all. It was quite bitter.

They're one of the few religious sects that demand complete chastity for all adherents, which goes a long way towards explaining why there are only about a dozen Shakers left!

"When you think that religion is supposed to be all love and foregivness and then you find out it is really all about going to hell."

I'd say that all depends on how you look at it and that you could argue it either way. Seems like more of a medium between the two as I've always seen it: using love and forgiveness as a means to avoid Hell. Such a shame that too many Christians forget some of the more technical parts of the scriptures and never notice the patterns of events.

I guess it's the difference between the "what a shame" Christians, the "let's feel good and be casual" Christians and the "let's help people out" Christians.

... and the Melgibsonites.

[ltp]