halloweenie

The pirate says "yarr, it's drivin' me nuts!"

i have been researching (online) various supernatural creatures and one of the things i was looking up was ifrit. what i have read on various sites has been sort of confusing, and i thought i should just ask the people who would know.

are djinn separate from but equal to humans?

are ifrit a type of djinn?

how many types of djinn are there?

are ifrit supposed to be evil, good, or have the capacity to do both good and evil but are neither one totally?

i have read that djinn are living in a completely separate plane of existence than us, but then i also read that they have the ability to affect humans. which is it?

i also read that ifrit are able to make their own choices just like humans, and then somewhere else said ifrit are the most evil of all the djinn. which is it?

finally, do most muslims from all areas of the globe believe in them?

ok, this is really the last question, how does one properly spell "djinn" and "ifrit"? the spell checker has gone nuts trying to get me to correct these two words.

i'm not trying to get anyone to do my homework, i'm well beyond school age, i just like to learn about other cultures' traditions. i don't mean any offense by anything stupid i may have asked or said here.

i just want to know why people who were never affiliated with the rasta religion are such a huge part of the rastafarian culture. even the namesake, ras tafari (haile selassie) was never a part of the religion; he was a christian. marcus garvey was a christian as well but is revered as a prophet by rastas.

if i have it wrong correct me, but this what it seems like from the outside.

please be specific, i would like to know exactly what issue the tea parties are about, and what is the goal that is hoped to be accomplished by having them.

PLEASE, do not answer with a snarky comment about the tea parties, and PLEASE do not answer with some vague, nebulous rant for or against them.

also, PLEASE, and i know this is hard for almost everyone in the politics section, but PLEASE, do not be insulting to whichever side you are against, just give me a clear, understandable answer.

is this the end of torchwood? gwen's pregnant, jack is gone, and i can't believe they killed ianto!

i know there's no way of knowing but i can't help but speculate.

do you think they will start a new season with all new characters?

will they just have gwen and a bunch of new people? if so, will rhys be in torchwood? what about lois? will she be a new member?

or will they wait for the actor who plays jack to be free to film the series (i read that he has other commitments and can't film)?

my hope is that they bring back gwen and have lois come in as a new member, let rhys stay in his role as husband but not in torchwood, and of course have jack as well.

my fear is that they will just let it be over. i read that there is talk about a usa made torchwood, but i don't think it could be even half as good.

anyone else hear anything about this series or just have an opinion on what you'd like to see in a new season?

last night i realized i love my dogs more than almost anyone human i know. at first i felt a bit weird about that, and i started to think of everyone i know and love, to see if i loved them more than my dogs. i would say that only about 5-7 people make the 'i love them as much as my dogs' list. everyone else was in the 'i love them less than my dogs' category. this includes many members of my family and all of my friends, as well as the bulk of humanity that i do not know at all. there are NO humans that i love more than my dogs.

i thought about this for a short while before falling asleep, and i am ok with it. i am not a vegetarian, or a peta wacko, i just love my dogs as much or more than most people. i would rush into a burning building and save my dogs first, and then go back for any people inside, unless they were one of the aforementioned 5-7 people.

i am not talking about romantic love here. also, i am not asking you to validate my feelings on the issue, i am fine with myself on this issue. i just want your opinions.

do you personally feel that it is morally ok to love a non-human creature more than a human creature?

or do you feel that humanity of any sort should be loved over non-humans of any sort?

and because this is r&s, include any religious or spiritual reasons you may have for your opinion.

i was just wondering if more people are born (or conceived) in certain seasons.

even if you don't believe in souls, but you used to, what did you think it looked like? or if you never believed in a soul at all, how would you imagine them to look?

when i was a little kid i believed in souls. i thought a soul was like an internal organ. in my mind it was a large round organ that looked sort of like a liver.

i would like to get a copy of the qu'ran (or quran, maybe? which is correct?), but i don't know anything about it.

the bible has about 10 versions around and christians are always saying one is more accurate than the other. i would like to read the holy book of islam, but i would like to know if there are different versions, and if so, which is the best one?

i am an atheist who was raised christian, so i apologize if i spelled the name wrong or have been offensive in any way, it's not intentional.

i was raised as a christian and i am now an atheist, but i am interested in religions, just to gain knowledge. i don't know much about islam so i'm sorry if this question is worded wrong or offensive in any way, it's not intentional.

are you a thompsonist or a wellsian?

do you believe the world will end in your lifetime? you know, like biblical end times.

please do not quote a bunch of scripture or copy and paste a wall of text. i just wonder how many christians believe this.

if you would like to add your denomination, go ahead. it would be interesting to know if the belief is prevalent across all denominations or just in certain ones.

the reason i ask is i went to a funeral for a man of a certain denomination and his fellow church goers kept saying we would all see him soon. even the elderly people seemed to think they would still be alive to see it, like they think it's happening next month or something.

what can i do to make sure he stays in prison for the full sentence?

i don't live in that state anymore, and have had no contact with the law enforcement, court system, or prison system since the trial. i know it seems like a long way off, but i want to know if i need to start doing anything now.

i think i have a corn on my toe. i work about 40 hrs a week on my feet all day, and it hurts. i can't afford to go to the doctor and i don't have insurance. i keep digging it out but it comes back in days. is there a good home remedy for this?

i do!

i answered a question yesterday (and i wasn't even rude or sarcastic) and the asker blocked me. then today i received an email from this person:

"Message: what is the purpose of you proving a christian wrong? first of all, my relationship with God does not come from the bible. no more than your relationship with your mother comes from the bible. why would you want to convince someone who knows God, that God does not exist. how silly. God exist to me because of my life, because of my personal and real relationship with God. i don't equate the bible with God. i accept you as you are.

it does not matter to me that you are an atheist. sincerely,"

nowhere in my answer did i try to prove god doesn't exist, nor did i try to convince this person to stop believing.

is it odd that this person wants to be able to ask me questions in this email and then not give me the opportunity to respond?

if you are a christian, what do you think of this situation? is this what you do when you have an issue with a non believer?

i have a few questions about this persecution issue, and they are asked with all due respect. i just hope to gain some understanding of you by asking.:

1) can you provide even one link to a true news story (not an unsubstantiated claim from some fundamentalist source) about persecution of people -simply because they are christians- in north america?

2) is there any one of you who makes these sort of statements who has been through any sort of real terrorizing situation? any one of you who has actually faced death at the hand of another?

i have seen several of you gloating about being persecuted, and even one girl saying she can't wait to be murdered for her faith. i wonder if you know what you are really saying. i have faced death at the hand of another, and i think most of you would not just stand still and wait to be killed if faced with the same.

3) does this wish for persecution extend to your loved ones?

do you hope that your kids will get beat up at school for being christians? do you wish for your parents to get attacked for their beliefs? this seems contrary to a christian attitude.

4) what do think you get from being persecuted?

i've seen some of you say you like it when you think you are persecuted, and some of you who can't wait to be persecuted for your beliefs. so what is the purpose of this?

thanks for answering, and also, if you are not one of those christians who feel this way, what would you say to these christians who have a persecution complex?

i realize this question will most likely get deleted because most of the real questions i ask of christians do get deleted, but please don't report it just because you can't think of a good answer.

i read an article at my local shelter's website that says the county wants to take these dogs from this shelter and kill all the dogs by shooting them. i don't know if it is true or not, and was wondering if anyone else had heard of this? here's a link to the story i saw: http://www.forgottenpaws.com/GreenAcres.htm

this is a quote from part of the article:

"For over 10 years, Rainsville citizens and city officials and workers have called upon Carol to take care of all the stray animals in the area. This is not a poor town but they do not spend money on things like an animal shelter. They just call on Carol and she steps up to the plate. After her house fire, attention was drawn to Carol and her large number of dogs. Suddenly the city officials played ignorant and turned against her. The whole town that has brought her dogs over the years have turned against her.

She has been told by the courts to get rid of all the dogs. She can only have 3 dogs on her property (breeders across the street have 17 and yet more breeders at the other end of the street have more!)

Time Frame:- These dogs need out NOW! Carol and her attorney are in their second round of appeals. If and when that court order gets the official word to be enforced, the county will rush in and take all the dogs and kill them. According to people of the town and Carol, this does not mean lethal injection or gas, this means shooting them or worse!!!"

is this story for real? i don't see how it can be. isn't shooting all those dogs cruelty to animals? does the county have the legal right to do it? even if they have the right to make her get rid of the dogs, they can't just shoot them all can they?

i read an article at my local shelter's website that says the county wants to take these dogs from this shelter and kill all the dogs by shooting them. i don't know if it is true or not, and was wondering if anyone else had heard of this? here's a link to the story i saw: http://www.forgottenpaws.com/GreenAcres.htm

is this story for real? i don't see how it can be. isn't shooting all those dogs cruelty to animals? does the county have the legal right to do it?

which do you think, disney or scientology?