My Introduction
 

My name is Amberlynn, I'm 22 years old from Florida. I'm married with one child on the way. I work from home, basically I designed a few games and I run those. My husband will soon be joining the Coast Guard. I'm obviously here because of my love for movies. Which used to be my main hobby. Nowadays its game programming, design, etc. Though I still make sure I have time to catch all the new films.

I use the name StormSiren on a few forums and random places that allow for it. It basically represents my two favorite things. Storms and the Sirens from Greek Mythology. Just to make sure people realize my name doesn't represent the sound coming from the Tornado warning system, its actually deeper than that.

I'm a writer, though don't hold my punctuation or anything against me on the forums as unless I'm working, I'm rather relaxed with my typing. I'm rather shy, though extremely opinionated, so if I have something to say, I usually say it. Let's see.... there is really nothing else important about me.

A few of my hobbies:
Games, Movies, Music, Photography, Art, Writing, Web Design, etc etc. I'm rather crafty/artsy. Little things I like to do would be making icons/signatures, writing in my livejournal, rambling in forums, playing movie quotes games, spending quality time with my hubby.. etc.

A few favorite movies of mine:
Tombstone, Harry Potter, Fast and the Furious, Gone in 60 Seconds, S.W.A.T, Assault on Precinct 13, Shrek, Braveheart, Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves, Indiana Jones, The Birds, Psycho, The Out-of-Towners (old version and new), The Shining (old version and new), Rose Red, Full Metal Jacket, Sixth Sense, The Ring, Rain Man, Lock Stock and Two Smoking Barrels, etc etc.

I could go on all day... There are alot of classics I like such as Singing in the Rain, though I'm seriously not big on classics at all. I really despise Westerns except for the one I listed. Hmm though I absolutely love Japanese/Foreign Films (I adore anime as well). Subtitles all the way. Cannot stand dubbing one bit. Some Japanese movies that I like are Battle Royale, Suicide Club, Sky High, Ju-On, Ringu, and of course the list goes on. I highly recommend Sky High if you are into those kind of films, and its available at blockbuster right now. I also love Adam Sandler, Mike Myers, Stephen King, and Alfred Hitchcock films.

But eh, I suppose thats enough rambling for now. So nice to meet you all, I love these forums already from what I have seen. I just happened upon them by chance as I was looking for movie forums specifically.

nice to meet you and welcome...i like your avatar

What up hommie'? Hopefully you'll post some of your photography in the "art" thread. It's also good to see a writer. Who's your favorite author? Favorite genre in writing? Anywho, keep it real and keep posting.

Oh yeah, hopefully we MoFo's will be able to lead you away from movies like Fast and Furious and Assault on Precint 13. :D ;)

why hey there, welcome

Nice to see a thorough introduction. Hope you have lots of fun here and post lots :)

Evening! :D

Nice to see you and hope you stick around...

Come join our merry band. Good intro, I'm relatively new here too, but I've quickly become addicted, its always good to meet people who share a love of movies rather than a mere passing intrest.
Will keep an eye out for your stuff, don't be shy!! ;D

Yes, welcome. I can't wait to hear more from you!

wow..by far the best avatar i've seen...you have talent...i'm jelaous!!

To everyone who welcomed me, thank you! I'm surprised to see such a warm welcome, never had one of those on a forum before and unfortunately I'm a pretty avid forum hopper (slightly addicted to them for some odd reason).

Thank you :) I love using lightning in my avatars/signatures. So that one is my favorite.

*laugh* Don't say that, I only spent like 10 minutes making it. Just so you know, the eye is of Yuna from FFX. Actually that particular picture might be from FFX-2 but either way. Thank you :)

Woot! Its awesome to see that someone other than my hubby and me actually like that movie! (or even heard of it for that matter ^_^).

Actually I think I will post some art, I just got a new scanner and haven't hooked it up yet but this would give me a good reason to do so.

I actually have two obvious favorite authors. Elizabeth Mayne and Stephen King. I love so many books though so I can't possibly name all of my favorites.

My genre is horror. I dabble in fantasy though that is usually just for storylines in my games as they are placed in a medieval/fantasy setting. I usually stick to horror though. I'm currently working on a movie script to create the Ultimate Horror Film of All Time.... well I have been working on it for three years... its hard to make the best horror movie ever.... doubt it will be, but can't blame me for trying with how bad the recent ones have been.

And there is nothing wrong with Fast and the Furious *grin* I spend alot of time racing, so I ended up loving that movie from the start. And I like Assault on Precinct 13 because of my 'normal' career field. Which was going to be FBI, though I decided to just go with security right now, going to work my way up later (didn't have time to devote to the career right now).

But anyway, thanks again for the welcomes!

security, writing, racing, designing........i'm depressed now.....

hei, but you're the one who's the sole official advertizing MoFo for that big sport trademark.............!

Yeah, fa' sho'.
I imagine it having an opposite reality where there's one "normal" person and hoards of horror like people running for their lives. Rivers of blood, food made with guts, skinned cars dancing, and a giant knife that just wonders around and cuts everything in half.
I hope you're willing to admit you're wrong. :D

Welcome StormSiren! :)

You're going to fit in around here quite well, Amber. Welcome to the forum. We've been lucky lately with an influx of pretty decent members.

Regarding your favorites. Given what you've said, and the way you've said it, I expect this list of yours will be completely different one year from now. This forum is very good at opening people up to a whole slew of different styles. There may be dozens upon dozens of films that people will recommend that you've never heard of, and after seeing some of them, you will look at cinema in a whole new light. Maybe. I am speaking from personal experience and from what I've seen happen on this site time and time again.

Tombstone used to be one of my favorite westerns (I hated the genre too, for a long time), but now...I think it's a big pile of funky dung disguised with some great actors and cool narration. I look forward to seeing your cinematic pallet becoming more refined…no offence meant at all…trust me. It’s just exciting when a new fish comes along…an intelligent new fish…and getting to ‘watch’ them go gonzo over films like Men with Guns, Red River, McCabe & Mrs. Miller, Dancer in the Dark, and Rashômon.

Stick around, put up your feet, happy posting, and most of all...Welcome Home. :)

He’s not even close to being a favorite of mine (too many average or boring books in his retinue), but I love, love, love The Dark Tower and The Girl Who Loved Tom Gordon. Are you a Tower lover too?

No kidding. And here I was all proud of myself for zipping up without hurting myself today. I even bought myself a package of Hostess Cupcake’s…you know, with the bonus third cake…to celebrate. Now I just feel like drowning myself in a tub of bourbon. Hey, it’s Saturday…that’s a good reason to drink! :)

Welcome to MOFO! :) glad to have you around. you seem like a very interesting person and I look forward to hearing more from you.



Slay is right about that! It's beginning to happen to me after just a few months and I'm sure It will happen to you too. Wether you like it or not.

speaking of which, Slay, I just got Men With Guns in from blockbuster.com and look forward to going gonzo over. Then I will finally be able to post something worthwhile in your John Sayles thread (I hope).

Greetings, i truly think you'll be quite at home here, you sound like a perfect mofo.

Yay!!! My poor thread. Nobody knows who he is apparently...except the cool people.

*sigh*

There are so few of us.

:cool:

oh...so i DO have a reason to live! huraaaaa.......

Great, steal the word I use on introduction threads.....it'll take me all day to think of another word... ;)

Afternoon?

Morning? :D

Morning http://bestsmileys.com/lol/4.gif

Hey there and welcome to Mofo it's :cool: to have you

Welcome to the site. I think you'll get along fine here. And for the record, I still enjoy Tombstone. :)

Thank you, its good to know that out of my list there is atleast one good movie.


I must say, I don't believe I will be sticking around here for much longer. As nice as the greetings and welcomes were at first, now I'm just getting terribly offended with everyone's choice of words. I don't normally end up places where people's opinions are not respected. Which is how I feel mine are being treated at this moment.

To better explain. I gave a list of my favorite movies. With how often I watch movies and the fact that my collection consists of over 5,000. I cannot possibly list all of my actual favorites. I have no all-time favorite. So instead, off the top of my head, I listed ones from each genre. To show that I'm diverse when it comes to that and I'm open to almost every genre of film.

I showed car/racing movies, crime/police films, drama, action/adventure, comedy, children/disney/animated, foreign, western, classics, etc. There are many wonderful elder movies in each genre, though my dvd collection that is right next to me seems to have my newer movies. Hence why I listed those. The vibe I'm getting though, seems that the only 'good' movies around here are ones from before the 80's. I already explained that I'm not much for classics. I grew up without ever watching them. When I got slightly older I started watching alot of them and never really liked any of them. There are a select few that I enjoyed, though I haven't watched them since. I can say that they were well-written and performed. I can appreciate the art involved. Though its not my style.

People mention that I seem like the perfect mofo, so welcome. I am going to have to disagree. I do not believe my tastes fit in around here. Not only were my taste in movies not refined, but also my taste in authors.
I know I was told that he meant no offence. Though I'm slightly offended yes. My cinematic pallet may not match yours, though that does not mean it is not refined. I enjoy the movies that I enjoy. You enjoy the ones that you do. This is my opinion and I don't see how my pallet isn't as good as yours because I appreciate different films than you do. I looked at the five movies you mentioned. I will not go 'gonzo' over any of them except maybe one. Only Rashômon sounded interesting to me because it actually fits in a genre I like, crime drama. I was seriously when I said I do not like westerns. So being part of a forum isn't going to make that change. Unlike most people I say I do not like movies from the experience of watching a whole slew of them. Not because I never bothered to give them a try because I 'think' I won't like them. No offence meant as I respect that you enjoy those films. I'm just saying that I don't want to sit around bored for a few hours to officially say that "I don't". I don't mind people suggesting movies to me. I love that. Even if I'm not going to watch it, I won't bag on it or say anything bad. Though when people nearly ridicule what I like in order to suggest other movies, is considered rude in my opinion. Say you don't like them. Give reasons why. Express your opinion. Then go ahead and mention some other movies. But I do not see one reason from -anyone- as to why they do not like the movies I mentioned. I would love to hear reasons why.
I hope you were joking. As thats how I took the first post you made. I don't feel that I should have to defend the movies I like. If you don't like the movie -- Say Why. Otherwise don't tell me that I'm wrong for having my own opinion of it. If that was a joke, then good, ignore all this. If it wasn't then why would you say something like that to someone? How can someone's opinion be wrong because it doesn't match yours. Even if you express why you do not like a movie, that doesn't mean its going to change my opinion, but I will not accept saying that "I enjoy this movie." Someone else says, "That movie sucks." That is their opinion. I respect that. But when they start to say "You are wrong", its like excuse me? I'm not wrong, either are you for not liking it. But instead of posting that I'm wrong, post why you don't like it so I can even more appreciate why you don't. I posted why I like it. Why don't you?



I hope I haven't lost everyone in this post. The basis of what I'm trying to say is:

I would appreciate if everyone would express their own opinion without insulting mine (by saying I'm not refined or something to that nature), or if they have an opinion about a movie to say what it is without having me explain why I like a movie and then still say that I'm wrong.

Someone else mentioned that whether I like it or not my tastes in movies will change. Thats fine, I'm completely open to movies. I watch every single genre except for western. Though thats the point, I watch every genre, so my tastes won't change. I already have those tastes. I just haven't watched every single film in every single genre. I was also told the forums will open me to a whole slew of different styles. I suggest reading my first post. Look at all the different styles of the movies I listed. Then I ask, did you really mean to a whole slew of different styles of the older movies in each genre? Because I didn't list movies like Patton, or something? I listed Shrek because I think its hilarious and adorable.

In short, I don't feel I fit in here at all. So good day to everyone.

some people don't recognize emoticons at the end of sentences..............

I think Fast & Furious was horrible because it used the hollywood equation to make money, not a movie.

Target Teens + Explosions + Hot Guy + Hot Girl + Current Trend (Imports) + Shiny Stuff + Bright Colors = Money

Don't waste your time lecturing me on how it's a business, cause that's crap. The Aviator did fine financially and it was a good movie. You can also save your comments about what makes a "good" movie. Everyone knows it's objective but if you were to put The Fast And The Furious next to The Seventh Seal it would be obvious which was better/good.

And, why wouldn't you want to defend movies you like. What kind of fairyland would that be were everyone just nodded in agreement because some people were sensitive?

"I'm completely open to movies."
"I watch every genre, so my taste won't change."
....Okay.

In short, I don't agree with anything you said. If you aren't able to defend, not even defend but explain why you like a movie, you're right, you probably wouldn't enjoy this place or any other forum where someone might ask, "Why?"

I do hope you decide to stay though because being that you write I'm sure you could turn out some interesting reviews.

i have to say to an extent she has a point...i too feel like i don't really belong here, because i feel that most of you are much more into movies then i am ( suffice to look at the recommend/not recommend thread i made )....let's use a bad word here, i feel this forum is populated by elitists, i realize you have nothing to apologize for because you know so much about movies and you've seen thousands of them, but you can understand why i don't post so much....i would say this forum is sorta like a private club of movie geeks.....i like my movies, but obviously my knowledge of them is nowhere near yours and that makes me a tad uncomfortable....and a bit useless....
still..i'm sticking arround.....

i thought fast and the furious was a very fun movie ( well the first one, the second one was bull )...is there anything wrong with a fun adrenalin packed movie?

You thought it was fine. Good.
I thought it sucked. Good.
Wierd, huh?

Well, I think you took things the wrong way. Hopefully you will come back and read this thread again before deciding the site really isn't for you. Although it is sometimes fun to just state ones opinion and leave it at that, some of the best discussions about film arise when people start counter-arguing points in a film.

First off, let me tell you about my first experiences with MoFo. MoFo was the first public board I ever really signed onto, as I had found them all to be rather odd/awkward/frustrating experiences. Flaming, disagreements, name-calling etc. all sort of turned me off from the medium. MoFo was the first one I had seen where most of the people seemed nice/interesting and of an age closer to my own. Still, I had a rough start.

I pretty much felt the same as you seem to right now. I would post some feelings/thoughts about a movie, and when the comments came under fire, I felt as if people I didn't even know were personally attacking me. I would react as such and friction began with a few members and an admin or two (although I immediately got gelled with some other members who didn't really comment on the films too much).

So I said to myself, "Well, I don't want to chatter on endlessly to my friends here at home about something they aren't as passionate about as I am, and here is a large group of people who are passionate about it, but they don't seem like my ideas/opinions about film, and seem to attack them."

How to handle this...What if I attempted to approach my ideas about film as maleable ideas that are just my current perceptions of the material, based on my knowledge of the medium at this time? I also knew that I had not ever really looked into the actual art of film craft at all (you may have, I hadn't), and wanted to possibly pick up some of that information. I decided to approach the site as a learning tool and attempted to stay away from any sort of "discussion" about the films I liked. Me being an opinionated chap, it wasn't exactly easy. ;)

But! It worked, and I started to glean information about the art if filmmaking and about some films I hadn't been exposed to. All the while I was constantly approaching the boards with a "roll with the punches" attitude because, and you seem to be the same as many on this board, we were an opinionated bunch, and the comments do go a flying no matter what the discussion. ;)

As with any large body of focused knowledge, my level of understanding started to change, whether I wanted it to or not. My tastes changed somewhat, but I still liked (and still do to this day) some of the films that I had taken flack for earlier, but it just didn't seem to matter anymore, as I was used to seeing people go off about pretty much ever film ever made. I found that no matter what the film, of in how high accliam it was held, it had it's detractors, and they were gonna tell us about it!! It started becoming part of the fun, because it just wasn't personal to me any more (although I still felt strongly about films I just separated it from the boards, and after to getting to know a lot of the folks on the board, who are all very different mind you, our opinions were part of the discussion, and the people separated from the ideas.

I am so glad I decided to stay around, because I have learned so much, and had my eyes opened to so much good film. I still get guff for liking ID4 and Tombstone myself, but I still watch them. :)

I also watch the Leone films, Kurosawa, Lean, Boyle, Juenet, Scorsese, Lynch, Gilliam, Besson and a host of other directors works that I would never have picked up and I would have missed so much if not for the folks on this board.

I guess what i am trying to say in this ramble, is that with a little internet armor on, this board can be a valuable source of knowledge and one can meet a variety of cool people (and yes, some not so cool people, but that comes with the territory), and have an overall rewarding experience. It just requires a certain amount of ideological distance. Oh, and your tastes will change, but that doesnt mean you have to stop liking what you like. :)

Rule #1 Roll with the punches

Rule #2 Throw a few punches every once in a while, to keep people rolling. ;)

Rule #3 Have fun!

Hope you stick around, and keep watching Tombstone! Cause' that's just my game...

I don't know, man. Take the stuff for what it is. If someone comes across as an elitist to you, grab some knowlege from their post and ignore the rest. Don't you hang around in the political threads most of the time anyway? No board is perfect, but this one is pretty damn good. Maybe it just doesn't work for some...

Amberlynn, I was going to leave a rather lengthy post, but Sedai somehow stole all of my ideas and published them without my permission. Damn that guy! Anywho, don't let any of the comments about your favorite movies get to you. Stay or not, debate or not, explain or not, change or not, it's entirely up to you. Just don't let any of this stuff bother you; that's my little bit of advice. You know, many of us here have movie taste that doesn't fit the "movie buff norm", so to speak. In fact, I find the movie taste here at MoFo to be VERY diverse. I like a lot of your faves, by the way.

Edit: Oh! Welcome to the site! :)

acctualy i mostly hang arround in the recommend foreign movies thread....i also throw my two cents in the threads about recent movies i've seen (war of the worlds, batman begins etc., although noone notices them,they're not very meaningfull or analitical like most of your posts )
hehe...political threads, i guess i do, buit that sounds like i'm an activist or something.....
maybe one day i'll have something interesting to say......i've already made ( in my opinion ) and interesting point in the recommend foreign favs thread...i think that may be my only advantage on this forum, i may have watched certain european movies you guys haven't, lord knows i haven't watched much of the "classics" ( older movies....i just don't have acces to them, and i prefer newer production )....
as far as the recommend /don't recommend thread ( my pathetic attempt to make this forum work in my advantage )....i haven't heard of a single movie that was suggested and not one of them ( as i recall ) was made after 1990....so that means i'll never watch them unless they show them on tv....( my videostore is 2x2meters and has nothing older then 5 years, and i don't have the money to just order dvds on line, i save my money for the movies i absolutley adore )

Who said all your choices were bad? Certainly not me. I quite enjoy the Harry Potter and Indiana Jones movies, Shrek, Braveheart, The Birds, Psycho, The Shining, Full Metal Jacket, Sixth Sense, Rain Man, and Lock, Stock, and Two Smoking Barrels.

Men with Guns and Dancer in the Dark were both made after the 80s had come and gone. That is not the popular consensus here at all. But the classics are liked for the most part.

I didn’t say your tastes were not refined. I did say that after time your tastes may become more refined. Hey…if you think you don’t need to broaden your horizons, then don’t. It’s no skin off my nose. And with the author’s…I didn’t say your taste sucks there either. I did say that King isn’t one of my favorites. You’re confusing my having differing opinions and likes as an insult to yours. I have read nearly every single Stephen King book ever written. There might be two I have missed. Most of his books I don’t care for a whole lot, then there are those that I absolutely cherish and adore…how is that an insult to you?

Again…I didn’t say it wasn’t refined. Perhaps making sure what someone actually said before getting angry will help.

Again…I didn’t say that your pallet isn’t as good as mine. I didn’t say that anywhere. I didn’t allude to it or put you down in any way.

Okay.

Sounds like you’ve already made up your mind because you ‘think’ you won’t like them.

I didn’t ridicule what you like, Amber. I chose one movie on your list to use as an example about how MY tastes changed. You are much, much, too eager to feel offended here.

Again…I didn’t say you were wrong. Look at my opening quote at the top of this post. *sigh*

EDIT: Ah, I see you meant Pimp...he was being playful...hence the smilies.

I said, “You are wrong!”? Where? I’m looking, but I don’t see it.

EDIT: See above.

Again…no one said you are not refined. No one.

What I meant by styles is this: Have you ever seen a Werner Herzog film? He has a unique style that is all his own. He likes to make films that focus on characters who are gripped in a passion. He also rarely, if ever, uses special effects. He had to use hundreds of natives and a brave engineer in order to actually pull a 100+ ton ship over a mountain.

How about Vittorio De Sica? He made a couple of the most wonderful films ever made, and his style was Italian neo-realism.

Have you ever watched any Akira Kurosawa? How about Sam Peckinpah? Ingmar Bergman? John Sayles? Wes Anderson? There are so many directors from all the different eras out there that have unique vision and style, that you may or may not have been exposed to. That’s what I meant.

Yeah…you fit in. You’re as touchy as the rest of us. Just don’t expect everyone to put on their kid gloves and play nice. A community will sometimes have its arguments, hurt feelings, and spilt milk. It’s up to you to decide whether you have a thick enough skin to handle it. If you don’t…well…Good Day. :kiss:


Oh...Adidass: Most of my favorites now are movies that I hadn't even heard of when I first joined. My first post on this board was about Jay & Silent Bob...who I still think are the *****...but since then I've watched so many movies. Very few join a forum with a large database of knowledge. They join and learn...or don't. Stick around...it seems like people like you here.

Firstly let me say that I disagree with the term elitist, although I'm relatively new to this forum, I haven't come across any elitist dissaproval on my views.
One of the things I learnt from film school, is that different people have different perceptions to film, I always find it intresting when someone offers a different opinion or take on a movie from my own.
This is a site for movie lovers in all forms, from classic film junkies, specific genre buffs, european film addicts and so on.
Because someone doesn't agree with you DOESN'T mean your opinion is wrong, but similarly they are entitled to their opinion.
Take what you need from this forum, I have found it to be a great site personally and have used many recommendations already.
Don't be put off by what you percieve to be negative responses, I'm sure on the whole you will find more positives than negatives.
Film is similar to music, everyone has their own tastes, that's what makes forums like this intresting, if we all agreed on every film it would be pretty boring reading carbon copies of every review.
Your imput is as valueable as the next persons, stick around and don't take it too seriously. :rotfl:

I think instead of "elitist", you meant "knowledgeable". People have been very friendly to you, despite your somewhat abrasive initial posts. And you turn around and call them 'geeks' and 'elitists'??
:(

As for StormSiren, I can see where some of the comments made could strike a newcomer as a bit off. The thing is though, people's taste does get refined as they interact with other people who are knowedgeable about any topic. If I made a top 10 list three years ago, I think the only thing that would still be on it after 3 years of movie forums would be The Princess Bride.

Exchanging ideas is going to mean trading the ones you have for new ones, by definition. If that's going to be threatening to you to the point where you have to lash out at people... grow up. :p It seems assumable that you found the site and signed up because you wanted to talk about movies, though. So why not talk about them already?

Let's face it guys; we're all just sitting on our asses in front of the computer when we know we should be doing something else.

LordSlaytan was only trying to generate a response from you, which he did and it was a good one. Sad to say, but you got upset and I'm sure that was not his intention. He certainly didn't mean to scare you away. Hopefully he won't take your response as an over-reaction. If you decide to stay friend, you will notice that we all have our own distinct personalities; we have just witnessed a bit of yours. It seems to me that you don't like having to explain yourself for things that you thought you made clear already--none of us do. But in a forum like this where with each post the topic gets a little less defined, it helps to have an attitude like yours (remember that because you have yet to meet Holden Pike and Silver Bullet).

It's hard to express yourself on a keyboard to someone you have never met, and emphasis or intention can sometimes become misunderstood. It's not in your choice of movies that we learn about you, it's in your choice of words.

i knew i was gonna get negative responses for that...my bad, wrong choice of words....( by geeks and elitists i meant nothing bad, it's only americans that imediatly take offense to that term...i meant knowledgable people)
i know people have been nice to me, you took my post completely wrong...i just meant to say that your converstions and observations about movies are on a higher level then mine and i sorta feel , well like a little boy trying to cut into an adult converstion..:)
don't get all defensive....you're all mature people....let's keep it that way.....

By mature do you mean OLD???
Now you've offended me, be prepared for an iminent invasion of Croatia by small ginger haired Scotsmen!!!!
FREEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEDOM. :laugh:

Whoa Nelly! "small ginger haired Scotsmen"?! By "small" do you mean short?! Some people are SO insensitive!

*witness thread go into a totally different direction!

Hey, somebody stuck up for me! Yay!!! I thought I had to wait for Annie to come back before that would happen. Lucky for me you were here, Tim-Mae.

Anywho...

Yes, I was trying to create some interaction. I had no idea that I was being nasty, rude and utterly disrespectful. I actually took a bit of time trying to write a kind and thoughtful welcome for her. It's too bad that it turned out the way it did.

It reminds me of when that one guy joined and bitched about people not immediatly taking a shine to him and me telling him I wanted to shoot him in the face. He totally took my sexual advance as a threatening gesture. That really surprised me. I need to be more careful with the way I put things. :)

BTW Amber: You never did mention whether you have read any of the The Dark Tower books or The Girl Who Loved Tom Gordon. I am genuinly interested in hearing what you have to say about them. And...I did not mean to insult you in any way. Seriously. *sigh*



Wha…wha…wha?!?!? I take offense to that, sir! :D

hahahahahahaha!!!!

It usually takes awhile, even on a friendly board, to develop a rapport with people. This is one of the more responsive boards I've used. In fact, it's the most welcoming, by far. Anyplace else, you're looking at about 500 unanswered posts before someone finally says, "when did you get here?"

Are you calling me short???
Now you're on my ****-list too. ;)

I love a man who has a list of ****!

wow!!!what a mental image.....*runs away scared shitless*
i've said this before a milion times...i'm partial to scotish people..in fact, my sis tells me that she met a couple of young scotish guys in Novalja!!!! ....and i wasn't there!!!!*cries*

true....that's why i'm sticking around....i've gone through the labor pains of joining a forum before....once again i apologize....i meant no offense....truce?

Hey yor OK in my buk adidasss! yes pleaze stik arround. Truse! ;)

Seriously, stick around dude.

i should really spellcheck shouldn't i?

no! who cares? i was just kidding you! in fact, you write very well, despite the syntax.

my mamma worned me that peepl wud make fun of my spelin...she realy shud ev send me tu skool.....

Sure. :)

huraaa!!!

well, i was going to also leave a large post but everyone said it for me.....if everyone agreed with everyone else, this would be a very boring world...i find that it's interesting to hear and read other people's ideas and reactions to all different things...movies, tv shows, music, etc....that is what makes the world go round....

these are the nicest people that i've come across on any forum movies or not, and i do enjoy coming here...so i hope you give this another try....

Nearly..............:yup: :kiss:

Leave our LordyLord (LordSlaytan) alone, he is precious to us all :yup:

Yeah especially lay of Slay, he saved me from forum flirting with another Dude!!! :eek:
Slay, you da man! (I mean that in a totally hetrosexual " did you see that bears game" kinda way)
Or do I???? :goof:
Your bluff Slay, how's yer poker face? :licklips:

Nibbles…I’d like to scoop you up and plant kisses all over your entire body…er, face. Yeah.

Okay…body. :)

Stopped you, Stu…not saved you. You freaky corn husker, you.

Yay!!! I’m loved by a heterosexual man!

Go Slay! Go Slay!! It’s your birthday! It’s your birthday!! Whoop-whoop!!!

Huh? Do you what? Have your finger up your…

Go Slay! Go Slay!! It’s your birthday! It’s your birthday!! Whoop-whoop!!!

Stu… I’d like to scoop you up and plant kisses all over your entire body…er, face. Yeah.

Okay…body. :)

I think we lost her folks :( . If she would have stuck around a little longer I think she would have understood. Most of the things said on this forum that seem offensive to a new user are only said in jest, and that when we commented on changing her taste we only meant we wanted to share our favorite movies with her in hopes that she would enjoy them as much as we did. As the best part of the forum is being introduced to wonderfull new movies you otherwise never we have seen, and then coming back discussing them, sharing the joy with eveyone else and then making a few recommendations of your own. On that note I'll stop because I'm starting to sound like an infomercial. My Point is if your out there StormSiren, please give us another chance. We just might surprise you. :)

[quote=adidasss]i knew i was gonna get negative responses for that...my bad, wrong choice of words....( by geeks and elitists i meant nothing bad, it's only americans that imediatly take offense to that term...i meant knowledgable people)
[quote]

you do NOT have to apologize because some (/too many :( ) people in the US (but Germany is another typical example of country infected by the same plague) are considering words as definite entities that has "one meaning and it's all" - even outta context. they should all study linguistics (and i don't mean Chomsky *****), and you should be ready to sacrifice some points/friends/whatever to teach them that (especially linguistic) taboos are not leading anywhere. only in the head of someone that didn't read much of that beautiful word, ELITIST, in beautiful litterature, would find it an ugly word. me, i'm not afraid of calling myself an elitist. those who don't like it can go f-word themselves.
be strong, dear Adidasssssssssssssssss! ;) :) and don't be politically correct, the best ones on earth are gonna love you for it!

Don't listen to that wimpy French guy behind the curtain.

Oh...in America, wimpy = studly, so it's ok that I call him that. ;)

well, stormsiren really started stirred up quite the discussion about this forum and also what is/is not offensive. She left some legacy even if she doesn't come back by making us think about the way things are around here. Lucky for us most of those thoughts were positive.

[quote=chicagofrog][quote=adidasss]i knew i was gonna get negative responses for that...my bad, wrong choice of words....( by geeks and elitists i meant nothing bad, it's only americans that imediatly take offense to that term...i meant knowledgable people)
You are a bigot.

Of all the people here, you should know that you use words to communicate ideas. adidasss used a word that HE KNEW was going to be offensive. That isn't "out of context".

Yeah, us silly Americans with our "definitions" of "words."

I don't see how "elitist" is any more beautiful than any other word. It has a literal meaning, but like most words it carries connotations with it that arise from common usage. The word "elitist" does not generally refer to people who are merely superior, but those who think they are and are not, or else are but produce an unreasonable amount of pride and condescension for it. And, to put it bluntly, I think you qualify.

There is not a "taboo" on the word; it is simply a harsh, forceful word that implies harsh, forceful things. It is entirely necessary that some words be harsh (and be reacted to in kind), and it is only sensible that those words be used sparingly enough that you do not rob them of their force. You don't bold every word, for example, because if you did none of them would stand out, which is the entire reason for using a bold font in the first place.

Similarly, the idea that every word should be dull and emotionless and contain no stigma is silly and awkward. It also contradicts your earlier complaint about people taking words too literally. Either people should treat words more abstractly, or they shouldn't attach connotations to words; which is it?

I think Storm Siren was a plant from the movie haters forum.
It's Sabotage, plain and simple.
I think if your that easily offended, then basic human interaction must be hard. There are a lot of people out there who disagree with me frequently, or have different opinions, but you've got to roll with the punches!!!
Life would be really boring if we all got along.
I would rather have lively debate anyday, and as long as it doesn't end up in a personal attack, slagging match, or threat of violence, I'm all for it.

did i say "more beautiful"? that's exactly my point, it's just like any of other words.
if A says to B to "****** off" that's offensive. if A speaks to himself cuz something slipped from his hand and says "******", i don't see the offence in the word. some people though would say "******" is an offensive word, full stop. not mentioning what contxt it becomes offensive in.
i don't now that i have to justify an opinion about such obvious a thing, especially since adidass said himself he was sorry if he hurt the feelings of anyone.
if you read a book about, let's say, an ancient Japanese traditional martial art school that has a very elitist selection or a very elitist final test to get the black belt, i don't see any offence in the word itself. it just means it'll be hard to get the black belt, maybe even too hard and the sensei/teacher should be "more cool", but why would you see so much hate and all kinda negative feelings behind what is just a word?

like i said, if you want to directly insult me for a post about an opinion i wrote about without having attacked anyone in particular, come on and drop the bomb onto me like your president has a cute penchant to do when people are not with him, they're against him.
elitist to me doesn't mean you think you are better, it means you want a system/school/government/anything that want people to want to improve. in the example given above, it would be those martial artists that are not the best yet (and don't think the are either) but are trying their best to become it, with the exclusion of those who are lazy and are not trying to improve. i try to improve my skills in languages, music, martial arts, etc... whatever i dedicate myself to. if my wanting to improve myself and the reality check that i'll do better WITH people who have the same goal appears to you as a synonym for considering oneself superior to others, then yes, words don't mean anything anymore.
plus there's a huge step between knowing you're better at something than someone and believing you're superior to that person in everything (this last way of thinking being completely unrealistic and stupid).

the svastika is a symbol for the nazis in Germany like it is for buddhism in India and for paganism in the baltic countries and Euskadi. words are the same, you may offend some people with them, while they mean an entirely different thing elsewhere. but since people move nowadays a lil bit more often (and faster) than 300 years ago, it wouldn't be totally useless in my humble opinion to open the mind of people teaching them that symbols, pictures, words, can mean different things, can be offensive or not depending on the place, the people they come from/are used by, the context...

gosh, poor directors that make a movie that's considered offensive. at least they get some money for it at the end, and publicity.

yeah well not everyone would 'rather have lively debate anyday'.....well I would but do you see my point. Everyone has their own interpretations of situations but I hope you do stick around StormSiren and don't get put off by all this hoo ha, it'll blow over.

Storm Siren's gone. She hasn't posted a reply after loads of support, hey ho, you win some, you loose some.
And just like that....she was gone.

Support? Nobody ever gave her any *****.

I was about to chime in on that point.... After a few more days have gone by and I have re-read all this stuff, she just over-reacted. Mayhap it's time to lock this thread and move on...

Yes, he did apologize and nobody seems to have a gripe with him, but you chimed in at that point to suggest that we americans (and since I was the one american who'd reacted to his choice of words, I'm thinking that meant me) were too dull to understand his meaning. This was not the case, as he clearly stated that his usage of the word "elitist" was "bad" when he said it.

"Hate"? You are overblowing the whole thing, in a very transparent attempt to paint the reaction as irrational. I certainly don't hate adidasss. I found his description to be not only inaccurate, but insulting to people who have been nice to him. I'm glad to see that he simply chose the wrong word, and that he is aware that people have welcomed him here. It is you who chose to be rude, and it's very clear that you're doing so under the guise of not liking americans.

The definition of "elite" is as you have given it, a non-judgemental term. But the definition of "elitist" is as follows, per www.dictionary.com:
e·lit·ism or é·lit·ism ( P ) Pronunciation Key (-ltzm, -l-)
n.
The belief that certain persons or members of certain classes or groups deserve favored treatment by virtue of their perceived superiority, as in intellect, social status, or financial resources.

The sense of entitlement enjoyed by such a group or class.
Control, rule, or domination by such a group or class.

So, not only is the standard definition of the word insulting, but he knew his usage of the word would be.

Don't try and change it around now, it's all clearly visable upthread.


Utter crap. This is, ironically, exactly what you are doing.

That's great. You implied that others don't.

Your rudeness has nothing to do with the Germans or "offensive" directors. Don't try and pull all these people in with you.

There'd be no point in calling something "beautiful" if it were not beautiful compared to something else. The word exists largely to differentiate things from one another. There'd be much less point in saying something was "beautiful" if you thought everything was, just as you wouldn't take a movie critic seriously if he gave everything four stars.


There's no argument over that. Context definitely matters, but that in no way supports your odd little rant (and the bizarre targetting of Americans in particular) about taboos and taking words literally.


You don't get points for not attacking "anyone in particular" when you only avoid doing so by putting down broad groups of people, instead.

And if you're going to take a political shot devoid of any real argument, at least do so with some tact. Not every argument has to tie into your entire political worldview.


As Sammy has already pointed out, if this is how you use the word, then you're not using it the way most others do. Context is quite important, but it cannot and should not replace the core definition of a word if at all possible, lest we all end up using words based on how we feel about them, which only leads to more misunderstandings and arguments.

You're not being argued with here because we don't understand you, however, but because we do. You assumed that anyone who didn't share your own personal definition of the word "elitist," or had other connotations attached to it than you did, should "study linguistics," as if having any kind of cultural vernacular is some kind of flaw. That's pretty astonishing coming from someone who seems so dead-set against any kind of cultural hegemony.

*Notices Sammy and Yoda actually agreeing on something*
*Falls over*
*Hits head on toilet*
*Invents flux capacitor*

Great Scott!!!

:laugh:

hahahahahahahahaha!!!

I hope I'm not being out of line here, but I think locking the thread would be completely ridiculous. Let people post what they want, where they want. Just my opinion.

Oh, of course, but in the spirit of keeping a clean and well organized forum, I figured the thread had gone completely away from what it was, and the conversations that are occuring could go on anywhere. But, alas, this place is as good as any, I guess. Continue to bashing ;)

If you think it's possible we'll need an entire thread devoted to Un-bigoting Chicagofrog, lock this one and I'll start one that will be searchable. ;)

Where's the Thumbscrews thread then? :D

:D Are you saying this is torture?

I'm saying that torture might be needed....... :)

I'm freeeeeeeeee!!!! :randy:
Do I have to call myself Chicagofrog though???
Can Storm Siren be my safe word??? ;)

:yup:

i just wanted to say ( if i may) that when i used the word elitist to describe the people who hang around here i never had a bad thought, i just couldn't think of a better word to describe knowledgeable people who like to hang around other knowledgeable people ( and i'm not trying to kiss anyone's ass with this post )...i later realized that the word does have negative connotations, mostly implying that elitists are condescending, which you people are not...nuff said?

Totally cool. :)

wicked!:)

Pimps.

what about a thread to help Samsonite out of her emotional void (expression first used in this context by one of the best comics writer, Dave Sim (Cerebus))? lack of logics? forgetting things (in posts and private messages) she wrote one month earlier and saying she never did? hating about someone what she liked a lot some time before?

i'm writing this although i don't visit the forums to get bad vibes, but i'm not the one that's gonna shut up when a frustrated feminist attacks me.

i don't agree with Yoda on many things but at least his arguments are deep. it's just he believes in objectivity i guess. and i don't. and i've got better things to do than losing time on whether the apple or the pear tastes better.

adidass gave here another (nice) possible definition of that word i was defending. tis all about possibilities against taboos and prohibition. i'll always be for the first. against 99% of Americans, Germans and French all together if need be.
and yes, i do believe that insulting a whole country/state is better than insulting individuals, Yoda.
so ****** the US, ****** Germany and ****** France. and i love you SOME Americans, some French and some Germans. after all, i'm an elitist a$$hole.

Turn your TV off.

NO! i like Korean TV crap too much.

I never liked that you're a bigot.
Sorry if you were confused.

Now Froggie don't you ever say anything nasty about our Sammi again or I will pull your legs of and eat them :licklips:

If you don't believe in objectivity, then you don't believe in anything, including what you just said (because it's subjective). Fun, eh?

Also, the mere act of arguing presupposes that there is an objective truth to convince the other person of. If there is no objective truth, then there is no right or wrong side to things, and thus all argument is rendered pointless. So are we to believe your words (in saying there is no objectivity), or your actions (arguing as if there is a real truth to convince people of)?


Substitute "country/state" with the name of a race or ethnic group, and you'll see why Sam's calling you a bigot.

hei Nebbs,
1) i wish you'd take sides more indiscriminately
2) you've been so nice that i'd give you a frog leg of mine were you to be very very hungry :)

yeah fun. what i say applies to me, and only me. what you say, to me, just applies to you cuz there's no objectivity, except this one: there's NO objectivity. definitely not yours. i do believe in close-mindedness though. your little "fun eh?" don't impress me more than your thinking you're more intelligent, oh so! smart, etc. if it makes you happy, fine.
there's no discussion possible with someone who believes there's ONE truth. and even less with someone who thinks he's got the truth.
fun eh?

yes, but only one. that words don't have any inherent meaning, and that everything is subjective. and things are what your eyes show they are, only... your eyes.
all you're coming with is the same typical problem represented by christianity/western-american democracy/taboo words/puritanism, all "theories" based on one sole truth and prohibitions, that began AD 0 and kept brainwashing people too many centuries already.
i don't even hope something could change you. don't expect in return, i'm gonna be easy to brainwash like in your schools.

the Bible again. "right" and "wrong" as universal rules. dumb, stupid, puritan, disgusting. your point of view, keep it. i don't buy it, and don't want it for free either.

see above. no contradiction.

1) i can do that. i'm not the one with taboos here!
2) a word is a word, yep. first, i don't even have to answer to her, it's like if after talking politics i'd call her "nazi" or whatever, which has nothing to do with the subject. (note that your country and Germany are specialists of this base technique, since no one can criticize Israel without being called an antisemitist). i mean it was meant to insult, not to reason and argue. (i've seen women are good at that, Sam, you're another clicheed proof, nothing more). secondly, funny i get to hear that from the most bigot country in the world. thirdly, i'd swear "bigot" after the definition would rather designate people who believe, like you, there's not subjective truths, but one objective truth, and they're the happy ones to have it. plus they hate or disrespect or insult you for having another view.

it sucks.

i still like you but us girls have to stick together :D

oh, do i detect some sexism? i like sticking TO girls myself... ;)

"no objectivity, except this one." That about sums it up; no absolutes...uh, except that there are no absolutes. But how have you discerned that, I wonder? How would you arrive at that conclusion? You must have picked it randomly, because you could not discern the existence of an objective truth if you did not have other objective truths, even small ones about the validity of reason or deduction, or the inherent evil of human suffering, to lead you do it. So either you believe in other things as well, or else you chose your ideology out of a hat.


Why? You say this is the case, but you're offering absolutely no basis for it. In fact, logic dictates the opposite is true, and I've already told you why: because no meaningful discussion is possible with someone who doesn't believe there's a truth to get at in the first place, which would be the entire point of such a discussion. Would you argue with someone over the best way to get to a place they didn't believe existed at all?


It's good not to be brainwashed, but not if you can only avoid it by never believing in anything at all. That's like deciding it's better to never talk to avoid ever mispronouncing a word.


I fail to see what purpose, if any, these sentences serve. I'll note, though, that though you have some negative emotional reaction to words like "puritan" and "taboo," not everyone shares those connotations, so simply invoking them doesn't really further whatever argument you're making.

So, The Bible is "disgusting" because it believes some things are "right" and some things "wrong." Is that objectively true? Would you say The Bible is "wrong" and your disgust for it "right"? If not, and if it is simply your preference, why try to talk me out of mine? Which should I believe; that your view is superior and I should adopt it, or that we all have our own preferences and subjective opinions and therefore no one can say which is better?


You'll have to point to me the part in which you reconciled the obvious, blatant contradiction in your worldview. I don't see it. Must be that damned Western/taboo/puritan/Christian brainwashing again.

I'll try explaining it once more, in simple terms: you say there is no objective truth, yet make many claims that you believe are true, and expound significant time and energy to convince me of their truth. If these things that you believe were not truths, but merely preferences of yours, what reason would you have for trying to persuade me of them? And even if you for some odd reason enjoyed the mere act of persuasion for its own sake, from what basis would you claim that they are superior to my own, given that you deny the existence of any objectivity? Without objectivity, my beliefs cannot be wrong, or even bad; just different from your own.

Your response to this was "I'm only trying to convince you of ONE objective truth." But that's not true. We've argued about countless things, in terms of politics, society, and culture, and you've made dozens of forceful statements on each. This is not by any means the only thing you've tried to convince me of. And even if it was, how many objective truths you're trying to convince me of is irrelevant to the point being made; it can be one, or it can be ten-thousand. The same counter-arguments apply.


Great. So do it. Defend that same statement directed at a specific race of people, rather than a country. I'm not saying you cannot do it; I'm simply asking that you own up to exactly what it is you're saying, because I think you're obfuscating it.

So let's shine some light on just where your beliefs have taken you, ideologically: you think that it's okay to insult an entire race of people, rather than individuals within that race for their individual actions. So my question is: why? Isn't the connection between races largely an artificial one? Don't their circumstances and personal decisions define who they are to a much greater degree than any biological similiarity they may have with their race, and don't they therefore deserve to be judged individually, rather than generalized about?

These questions are largely rhetorical, because we both know the answer to all of them is "yes" to anyone but an ignorant, backwards man. So then how have you gotten yourself into a position where you must defend it? Simple: by setting up a reasonable thing (voluntary social taboos, which are really just collective opinion) as an unmitigated bad, and opposing it at every turn no matter what positions you have to take to do so. You've turned yourself into a puppet; all I have to do is declare something "taboo" and you rush to take the other side, no matter how indefensible the thing I'm condemning is. The result is that you defend the indefensible (such as a racist worldview, or a monarchial political system). Ironically, by being so open-minded, you open yourself up to more manipulation and restrictions than the people you have such an obvious disdain for.


I don't see what point you're making, so I'll simply make note of this: whether or not my country is largely comprised of bigots has no direct bearing on a) whether or not I am a bigot as well, and b) whether or not you are a bigot, which is the accusation at hand. Even if I did come from a country full of bigots, it wouldn't change the fact that you appear to be one. Your response, then, is ad hominem.

Now that I understand that words have no objective meanings, I've discerned that what the frog meant by this statement was actually as follows: "Rose bushes, while difficult to grow, reap rich rewards for those willing to put in the effort." And I agree with him.

first, better argumentation than in the previous mails, bravo Yoda, i mean it.

looking around with open eyes, reading books and watching movies, observing the movement of the stars, etc etc... everything is a proof of impermanence and subjectivity.
not listening to school education's lies helps too, and getting informed/making your opinion on your own permits to detect those lies, mostly well hidden, even in official dictionaries, to put one example.

human condition like anything samsaric is suffering. necessary, not evil.

we all chose one, didn't we? i could ask you the same question.

i understand that argument of yours. but if there's only one truth whatever the question is, only one person is right, absolutely right, and that position of yours doesn't leave any free room for other interpretation of facts, history, theories, ideologies, ... so why at the end would you be willing to discuss? just to prove how right you are and how wrong the others? when one does, shouldn't that person always try to learn something too? to me it seems more humble and, to use one of your words, "right", than always being persuaded you detain the truth and others don't, always wanting (and thinking you're able to be) the teacher and never the pupil.

any system of thought pushed to its extremes shows some weakness, mine like yours (although you're the one that'll try to persuade others of the contrary, your system of course is perfect and has no failure at all... :rolleyes: ).
i chose mine since i prefer to have one limit of tolerance rather than 1000 different ones. "everything is relative/subjective" has one sole limit of tolerance/adversary: its opposite: "every single thing is objective (and thus, objectively right or wrong)".
yours has 1000 limits of tolerance; if one political system is right, all the others are wrong, if christianity is right, all other religions are wrong (or at best, they detain some petty elements of truth that only your religion has entirely), if one word is offensive, no free interpretation of that word is possible, etc...
and since there's one absolute truth, this is true everywhere, anywhere, any time, objectively.
that's exactly the system of thought i've been struggling against all my life.

i do believe in some things. i wouldn't try to convince people of my opinions though, except the "limit of tolerance" of my system, that begins where their tolerance ends too.

that's exactly how it all began, with the word "elitist". i can use your own words: not everyone shares the connotations given the word "elitist". plus, come to Europe and tell anyone you're a puritan (whether you really are or not, just to test), and you'll see that yes, everyone here does connotate that word negatively. and try and call someone puritan here, it's an (objective ;) ) insult.
you fail to see how subjective your comments are, and how your attacks can just as well be applied to you and your convictions.

i didn't call the Bible disgusting. but your system like the subjective!!! way it was read and interpreted by people, the church... and missionaries is one proof more that tolerance ends where your (and the missionaries') conviction that there's only one truth begins. in my system of thought, you wouldn't kill infidels or torture people that don't accept your faith, you would learn from the Cherokees and Apaches and their religion and not force your Bible upon them, you would respect the fact that some cultural systems are patriarcal or matriarcal, monarchic or democratic, Buddhist or Muslim or Avestic, that the men in some tribes in Africa can have 3 wives just as there are other tribes where women can have 3 husbands, ...... etc etc, and you wouldn't see any contradiction in believing in something, choosing your way of life and moral principles etc, while still being able to respect other ways. i don't want 3 wives, i don't wanna be to my wife one husband next to 2 other ones, i believe in faithfullness and monogamy, i do NOT believe in the power of majorities or that because most think so, it makes it true, that is i do not believe in democracy and would prefer some sort of monarchy (which only your close-mindedness makes you see as "objectively" despicable - i don't care, first, since objectivity doesn't exist, second, because history in many cases proves you wrong)... the difference with you is i don't wanna change/convince/baptize anyone (especially against their will, like missionaries did all over the world, like the French revolutionaries/bourgeois (a fact too often forgotten) did in France and Britanny and Savoie (nope, they're not the same country!) and the US still try to do in Iraq and will keep doing so etc...).
some of your friends of thought thru history even called that "giving us the honor of being educated by them, to be shown the truth... rings a bell??)

did you actually read my post? i know you did, so, do you interpret things so differently than me there's no use in even using the same language?
when one says: "keep you Bible for you", is he trying to convince you into adopting another religion? :rolleyes: doesn't sound so to me, or i would have said, like your Xtians throughout history, "burn your sacred book(s), destroy your idols and adopt the only one true god".

...uffffffff, so much energy to come to an intelligent conclusion...

must really be the Xtian point of view that when you talk to people, you're trying to convince them you're right...
again, you make the mistake of applying to me a system of thought that's yours.
1) yep, they're preferences of mine, like yours are nothing more than preferences of yours
2) the only thing i ever wanted to convince you of, is not to adopt my political, religious, social... opinions, but to see that yours can be right somewhere, some time, for some people and peoples, like mine can be right somewhere, some time, for some people and peoples.
of course, in your system, the contradiction is too big: since there's one truth only and one god, how could several truths and several gods coexist in the same universe at the same time? oh, sorry, i forgot: for you there is necessarily only one universe too!

all the time, repeating and repeating, there's no superior system of thoughts. i would add there's one though, that has been the cause for exterminations, wars, religious intolerance, censorship on TV and in movies and comics and novels, etc... and this one is not mine! :rolleyes:
in Europe, as far as TV/other media censorship is concerned, we call that an insulting word: "puritanism".
try and apply all your questions to yourself first.

wow, if you actually could think that very simple, tolerant way, we would all part friendly........ and so would it have been all over the world in all those centuries and we would have been spared most of the wars... and boring TV political contests...

we could keep talking about 1000 more things, you're the one that thinks he's right and the other(s) wrong, and the one that wanna persuade other people, infidels and pagans and opponents to democracy, of the one unfathomable truth (yours). in your system, there are 1000 things to persuade of, on each single subject. in mine, whether we talk politics or religions or whatever, there's one only: that i am as right as you are, depending on the eyes of the beholder (place/time/country/ ethny...).

idem here. i take your sentence. you see? some things you say i do agree with completely. (like two citations above too)

the man's and woman's brain are biologically different.
Asian people cannot drink as much alcohol as White people, since they lack an enzym.
wouldn't i have added a scientific fact like the last one, and ended the sentence with "white people", i'd probably be sued for racism, right?

it' bullsh!t to deny that there are constancies observable in each country, within races too, and the existence of individual differences doesn't contradict the existence of differences between peoples, races, countries, whether cultural, biological, etc... even the color of the skin influences the resistance to the sun and heat, thus having influences on the (cultural) way of life of different peoples. we now live in a world where such scientific facts are not to be mentioned since they could be related to that taboo word "race". how stupid is that?

define racism first, i know at least 3 definitions of that word, including the simplistic one found in dictionaries.
i could say "i don't know how democracy is defensible", and actually i don't, but in my system there may be one place, one time, one universe, where that system might not be so bad... i see how monarchy is, how weird einh? and who's close-minded here?

nope, i can still fight something, someone, some ideology, but knowing that it's a choice i've made, only a choice, not because i've got the only truth.
that's how old European pagans thought before the intolerance of judeochristianity was brought upon them at the edge of a sword.

so is yours, since i did say it depends on the definition and simply who you apply the word to. like, to me, you are the bigots, and there's not bigger bigotry than your way of thinking.

Sorry froggie :sleep: