Random Rants LX: I wish to register a complaint

[Civ'ed]

Mom keeps accusing me of plagiarism.
I'm not copying a damn thing.

 

[Arakhor]

Apparently, we have not one but two creation "museums" in the UK.

 

[Borachio]

Oh heck. That reminds me: I went to a Free Church last Sunday (out of curiosity) with very low expectations. Unhappily my expectations weren't fulfilled and I'd apparently not set them quite low enough.

It didn't start out too badly. There was this old guy who stood at the front at chatted on about this and that in a friendly enough fashion and every few minutes we all dutifully stood up and sang a hymn or two.

But then this guy, in his fifties, I guess, decided to give a sermon. Biblical literalism it most certainly was. Logical and coherent it most certainly wasn't.

At one stage I'm pretty sure he said (though my eyes, and ears, were beginning to glaze over at this point, so I may have it wrong): "If you don't believe the Bible, there was no Genesis story, no Garden of Eden, no Fall, and therefore no crucifixion and no NEED for the crucifixion. And THEREFORE the Bible story must be true!"

All this against a backdrop of NASA probes for Pluto. "Why on Earth do they bother doing that?"

I tell you, my flabber was nearly as ghasted as it's ever been.

 

[Arakhor]

I find original sin to be a pretty objectionable doctrine, all told, but countless people do seem to embrace the idea.

 

[The_J]

The study design of my current main dataset makes my head hurt .

 

[SS-18 ICBM]

Signing up for the US Marine Corps as a conscientious objector has got to be the dumbest thing I've read all day.

 

[The_J]

Can't find that part, but I applied for a job at a military institution while also being a conscientious objector (okay, was a research position).
I find it more confusing that the reporter suggests that the guy should've stayed in military, but not actually do engage in warfare, because it would violate his religious freedom o_O.

 

[Commodore]

Signing up for the US Marine Corps as a conscientious objector has got to be the dumbest thing I've read all day.

That's one of the problems with attaching recruitment incentives like a free college education to military enlistment. Such incentives attract people who only want those benefits but don't really want to do what is expected of them as soldiers. The sole purpose of a military is to defeat their nation's enemies through violent action. Those whose beliefs strictly prohibit them from participating in such action should avoid the military altogether, and normally they would. But since the military offers things like free college education, tuition assistance, student loan repayment programs, and guaranteed low interest rates on just about any type of credit a person can apply for, the conscientious objectors join the military and essentially serve as useless lumps on the battlefield. I say "on the battlefield" because I have seen conscientious objectors deployed to both Iraq and Afghanistan, and they weren't chaplains (just about the only conscientious objector that has a real purpose on the battlefield).

Personally, I don't feel conscientious objectors should be allowed to serve in the military at all unless they are joining to become chaplains.

 

[Borachio]

How about medical personnel?

I've never been in the military in any way (apart from the cubs when I was 9, and I wasn't good at that, even), but, in my naivety, I think I'd prefer someone who was good with wounds than someone who was good with a prayer book.

 

[Commodore]

How about medical personnel?

I've never been in the military in any way (apart from the cubs when I was 9, and I wasn't good at that, even), but, in my naivety, I think I'd prefer someone who was good with wounds than someone who was good with a prayer book.

Medics are still expected to fight, that's why they are issued weapons; whereas chaplains are not issued weapons. Hell, in my unit, our medic was also one of the rear gunners on my Stryker. In fact, it is part of US combat doctrine to suppress the enemy before trying to retrieve or provide aid to wounded comrades. The idea being that if you run out there to drag your buddy back to safety while you are still being shot at, all you will achieve is becoming another casualty.

 

[Borachio]

Let me get this straight once and for all: you're saying that medics must be armed but that chaplains mustn't?

I'm failing to see the logic of an armed medic but an unarmed chaplain. Somehow.

 

[Snerk]

 

[bhavv]

So today I tell my father about the job stuff and upcoming interviews. He replies:

'Whos going to hire you when you aren't even smart?'

'Erm, I do have a shirt ready to wear for interviews'

'No, when are you going to shave and cut your hair?'

'Dafuq? Out in the real world, people don't discriminate against that'

'Ideally they don't, but I've been a manager for 40 years and I know they do'

'Thats just cos your biased'

'Nuh uh, I'm not biased'

'Ok, so why did the agency put me into their top 10 job ready list and told me that good presentation was one of the reasons why?'

*Le dumb ass father falls silent, defeated like the moron that he is.

 

[Borachio]

Would that be the dumbass defeated moronic father from whose loins you sprang, and who has supported you through 30 (is it?) years of your life?

That one?

 

[bhavv]

No, it would be the dumbass father that thinks all white and black people are the scum of the earth, and that told me he would have had me aborted if he knew I would have turned out gay.

 

[Borachio]

All white and black people? That would be everyone, then?

So that's who you get your misanthropy from?

 

[bhavv]

Nope cos he thinks Indians rule supreme cos they invented the 0.

And yes, such moronic parents are where I get my misanthropy from.

But surely thats better than if I had believed all their crap and became a suicide bomber.

 

[Borachio]

Ah, I see. He doesn't think that Indian people are either white or black, then. Are they some kind of grey colour?

 

[Arakhor]

Somewhat needless to say, good presentation at the job-centre is not necessarily the same as good presentation at an office.

 

[bhavv]

Apparently brown.

They have 'gorah' for white people, and 'kalah' for black people, both words are 100% of the time used offensively. And then ... 'Oh no, I'm not racist or biased!'.

Morons.