• Posted 12/19/2024.
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    I am still waiting on my developer to finish up on the Classifieds Control Panel so I can use it to encourage members into becoming paying members. Google Adsense has become a real burden on the viewing of this site, but honestly it is the ONLY source of income now that keeps it afloat. I tried offering disabling the ads being viewed by paying members, but apparently that is not enough incentive. Quite frankly, Google Adsense has dropped down to where it barely brings in enough daily to match even a single paid member per day. But it still gets the bills paid. But at what cost?

    So even without the classifieds control panel being complete, I believe I am going to have to disable those Google ads completely and likely disable some options here that have been free since going to the new platform. Like classified ad bumping, member name changes, and anything else I can use to encourage this site to be supported by the members instead of the Google Adsense ads.

    But there is risk involved. I will not pay out of pocket for very long during this last ditch experimental effort. If I find that the membership does not want to support this site with memberships, then I cannot support your being able to post your classified ads here for free. No, I am not intending to start charging for your posting ads here. I will just shut the site down and that will be it. I will be done with FaunaClassifieds. I certainly don't need this, and can live the rest of my life just fine without it. If I see that no one else really wants it to survive neither, then so be it. It goes away and you all can just go elsewhere to advertise your animals and merchandise.

    Not sure when this will take place, and I don't intend to give any further warning concerning the disabling of the Google Adsense. Just as there probably won't be any warning if I decide to close down this site. You will just come here and there will be some sort of message that the site is gone, and you have a nice day.

    I have been trying to make a go of this site for a very long time. And quite frankly, I am just tired of trying. I had hoped that enough people would be willing to help me help you all have a free outlet to offer your stuff for sale. But every year I see less and less people coming to this site, much less supporting it financially. That is fine. I tried. I retired the SerpenCo business about 14 years ago, so retiring out of this business completely is not that big if a step for me, nor will it be especially painful to do. When I was in Thailand, I did not check in here for three weeks. I didn't miss it even a little bit. So if you all want it to remain, it will be in your hands. I really don't care either way.

    =====================
    Some people have indicated that finding the method to contribute is rather difficult. And I have to admit, that it is not all that obvious. So to help, here is a thread to help as a quide. How to become a contributing member of FaunaClassifieds.

    And for the record, I will be shutting down the Google Adsense ads on January 1, 2025.
  • Responding to email notices you receive.
    **************************************************
    In short, DON'T! Email notices are to ONLY alert you of a reply to your private message or your ad on this site. Replying to the email just wastes your time as it goes NOWHERE, and probably pisses off the person you thought you replied to when they think you just ignored them. So instead of complaining to me about your messages not being replied to from this site via email, please READ that email notice that plainly states what you need to do in order to reply to who you are trying to converse with.

One Who has No Beliefs and Why.......

D

Diggy415

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Well the pastors a child molester and gay, they caught some in a sex webring on the net along with other proffessionals, like teachers and boy scout leaders, and from birth till now i never believed in religion, Im a proud Atheist BUT. I do believe in signs, I mean how things work out for me when i think its time to leave earth, I get smacked up side the head after chewing my nails to the nubs and at the last possible moment, the sign(i don't ask from who) shows up for the better. Don't know how anyone can have faith in a church anymore, it will happen in your small town if it hasn't already, and you still believe in a high power. I for one don't need that and doing fine. I go into debt most months all because i want to buy the animals something and its all worth it and works out in the end. I find personnally if i fret about it long enough it 1,000% works out even if time is running out, so the stress i go through is all worth it. That is a small price to pay instead of leaving my animals behind. Animals pull me through it and it's them i believe in and them in me, because of them I will not leave! :dancer01:
 
Boy you are openning a big kettle of worms starting a post like that! I'll step out of the way when the war starts. LMAO!!

I agree...things usually do work out in the end. It's just getting there that is the hard part. ;)
 
Are you confusing belief in religious institutions (i.e., churches) with belief in God?
 
Saying that there is no God because some ministers/priests were found guilty of abusing children is about like saying that there is no U.S. Post Master General because the Mailman is a child pornographer, mailing his "product," isn't it? I mean one fact does not follow the other by means of logical progression of thought.

Are there horrible people posing as ministers for profit, for access to children, etc? Obviously so, but there are horrid people in all walks of life, and one simply cannot denounce an entire profession (let alone the concept of God's existence) merely because SOME have abused their position of influence. There are many, many more who would never even DREAM of doing such!

As an athiest, and forgive me for the philosophical sidetrack for a moment, do you not find it interesting that in order for you to say that there is no God, you are, of necessity, claiming nearly god-like status in the process? I mean, in order to make the claim of an absolute negative like "There is no God," one is basically saying, "I know everything there is to know, and in all of that, I know that God does not exist." If one is not omniscient (the capacity to know all things), then there may be SOMETHING that he/she does not know, and that ONE THING may very well be that God does indeed exist. It's just a philosophical inconsistancy in the thought process for atheism that I have always found intriguing, and I was wondering what a "proud atheist" had to say on the subject.
 
I guess if you want to judge the actions of few and blame all. You are no better then the few who ruin the good names of the majority.
As for there being a god. Does anyone really know? Many people think many diffrent things. Maybe thats why we go to war over religion, because no really knows. And thats what makes the debate go on forever and ever.
Just my thougts
 
The problem with religion is that almost every institution that is in power uses the excuse "in the name of god" or "it is gods will" to do what they wish. For one, the majority of die hard religious people I know will go to great ends to force upon you the views they hold dear. The history of religion, and religious laws that are held as "factually based can be traced back to the current powers at the time of the introduction of that particular law. For example the sin of masturbation came about and was twisted over the years. The original sin was written as this "it is better to cast thy seed into the belly of a whore then on a rock" the belief by many researchers is this was a religious law brought about by a military based society, and what better way to keep young strong soldiers from wasting "potential future soldiers" on a rock, then to make it a sin, and make it better to sleep with a prostitute who he may inpregnate, thus resulting in future soldier "stock". Another example of the twisting that has occured is the Roman Catholic religion, which was created by the ROMANS. It was brought about during the early beginning of Christianity and the Roman ruler saw many of his followers and surrounding regions converting and losing people to this new "fad" religion. So he created the Roman Catholic "christian" religion. In my opinion for a diehard religious person to claim without doubt that God does exist is as pompous and arrogant as an athiest to say he doesn't.

Another twisting of laws/rules was in the bible it says for a woman to marry her dead husbands brother was forbidden, but in other sections of the bible, it is not only acceptable but REQUIRED.. The bible is a great book to read, but for someone to claim that it is all accurate and right, or inaccurate and wrong is trivial, pointless, and a waste of key strokes on the keyboard, or breathes you take.

Later
 
Another twisting of laws/rules was in the bible it says for a woman to marry her dead husbands brother was forbidden, but in other sections of the bible, it is not only acceptable but REQUIRED.. The bible is a great book to read, but for someone to claim that it is all accurate and right, or inaccurate and wrong is trivial, pointless, and a waste of key strokes on the keyboard, or breathes you take.
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Isn't that the truth! They're are unicorns in the bible too. ;)
 
I'm not sure anyone really wants to get into this, but any referrences you might have to support your assertions might be good, especially in light of biblical contradictions.

I think that you'll find that the Bible never addresses a "sin" of masturbation, per se, but that Onan was guilty of spilling his seed on the ground, thereby refusing to impregnate his dead brothers' wife. It was for his failure to follow the law in regard to his duty to his dead brothers that he was punished. Incorrectly then, the act of masturbation is sometimes called Onanism.

The Romans did not create the Roman Catholic Church, but the Roman societal considerations certainly did shape the formation of that religion. There was no single emperor, though, who decided that he would create a church to keep his subjects close to him. Constantine did become a "christian" and legalize "christianity," but that was well after the Catholic Church was established in form and function.

Also, for the Atheist to say that there is no God, he must by reason of thought, say that he knows all and from this complete knowledge he can know that there is no God. For the theist to assert God's existence, he need only have one proof of His existence and no more. Proving a negative is INFINITELY more difficult (if indeed not impossible) than is proving a positive assertion.

Also, to what were you referring (Randy, I mean) when you stated that the Bible specifically forbids the marrying of a woman to her dead husband's brother? I want to make certain I understand you correctly.

Thanks!
 
Geez, guys, if I wanted to hear this I'd go to my brother in law's. And at least he gives me food!

Erin Benner
 
(Quote Darrin Chappel)

Also, for the Atheist to say that there is no God, he must by reason of thought, say that he knows all and from this complete knowledge he can know that there is no God. For the theist to assert God's existence, he need only have one proof of His existence and no more. Proving a negative is INFINITELY more difficult (if indeed not impossible) than is proving a positive assertion.

I understand to prove the existance of something only takes one instance, but I have yet to see,hear,read of any such instance anywhere other then religious text.

Also, to what were you referring (Randy, I mean) when you stated that the Bible specifically forbids the marrying of a woman to her dead husband's brother? I want to make certain I understand you correctly.

I will try and pull up the text where it shows this, it may take awhile. (work too many hours..lol)
Later
 
Also, for the Atheist to say that there is no God, he must by reason of thought, say that he knows all and from this complete knowledge he can know that there is no God. For the theist to assert God's existence, he need only have one proof of His existence and no more.
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So are you saying that because more than one piece of proof has been offered that:

1) Darwin was correct about evolution.

2) Jesus is god.

3) Allah is god.

3) Vishnu is god,

4) Thor is god.

5) Baal is god.

6) Frea is god.

7) Zeus is the head of all gods.

8) Santa Claus and the Easter Bunny really exist.

9) Bill Clinton had very good morals and was faithful to his wife.

To say any of them is false would be to mean that you know everything. To say they are true only requires only one proof????????? I think I could offer proof for everyone of the above with the possible exception of a single one - you guess which.

Of course the theologian or theist needs only one proof of god, and then says oh man we have proven it to the heathens. Of course I have yet to see proof positive, let alone one proof of any sort, so I doubt. Then again, is it not true that the religious needs no proof - that being the essence of faith? This is the big problem with religion and religious beliefs as I see it: No matter how many times someone offers proof to a religious person, the religious person blatantly says in essence 'oh no you are wrong, it was god who did this'; and no matter how many times a nonreligious person asks a religious person for some hard cold evidence, the religious person always seems to fall back on faith. Then again it is a problem with the scientist too. In the end when it comes down to the big bang (or whatever theory you choose) if you ask the scientist what came before, or why does it worjk that way, he can only go so far before admitting that he does not know (or saying it requires more research). I tend to think it is better to admit that one does not know than to assume it must be that it comes down to a supreme being.

Of course this is my opinion, and it is subject to change when someone, anyone offers up proof positive for either case. Until that time, I will be blissfully ignorant and doubtful......

All the best,
Glenn B;)
 
Religiously speaking, how old is this planet? 2500, 3500, 5500 years old? Yet, there is scientific PROOf of HUMAN life 30,000+ years ago. (We'll just leave dinosaurs out of this, since "GOD" must have placed their bones in the earths crust.)

How can something so popular, (religion) which is based on fear, have such a following? Fear of commiting a sin. Fear of going to Hell. Fear of eternal damnation. Fear of not going to your "happy place". Since when is fear a good thing? I thought fear made you weak? Wait, it does. That explains it. Shouldn't people just be happy, without the "fear of God" over their head? To many weak minds.

Why do some need a "book", church, or religous leader to tell them whats right from wrong? Stealing=Bad, Murder=Bad, Rape=Bad, Polite=Good, Generous=Good, Caring=Good. Lying=Depends on the moment :). Is this really that dificult to grasp? Sounds like something that should be taught by parents or in kindergarten.

Why do most religions want your money? Does "God" need a new Mercedes? A beach house on the moon? Pay off alter boys family? Or is "He" in debt? Why do they need a new church or temple? Did "God" tell them to redecorate? Where does the money go? I know, legal funds!

How many different types of insects are known to exist? 6 million? 8? 10? Maybe even 30 million since new ones are discovered almost everyday. Was there a pair of each of these on Noahs little boat? Wonder how many he was not able to take with him, or how many alllll the lizards and birds ate along the way?

Who wrote the "Book"? Meer mortal men, thats who. Story tellers. Liars. When was the last time you saw a sea part, or a burning bush? (Well, I've seen some pretty hot bush, but none that were burning!) :) Everyday I hope to see a "miracle", but I guess I shouldn't hold my breath. Doodoodoodoo,doot, da doodoo "Only a miracle can save us now."

Bigfoot, Loch Ness, Champ, Aliens, or the Lizard man have more proof of existence than "God". Atleast we have hair samples, footprints, photos, sightings and crop circles from them. PROOF is there of no "God". When FACTS can prove otherwise, maybe I'll change my veiws. (Like that will happen!)

"Out of the ooze, and born to cruise!!"

Don
 
Well, fundamentalist Christians being wrong doesn't negate the exsistence of some sort of higher power, not that I'm saying that there necessarily IS one. We just should keep the two concepts seperate. I'm imagining how funny it would be if... say... there were fundamentalists for the ancient Egyptian religion trying to affect school policy. "We don't want to say evolution is wrong, we just want to leave room for an alternate theory with an Intelligent Designer, who most likely created the earth from a formless ocean by having relations with himself."

Erin B.
 
I believe that the so called Wesrern religions-Judaism, Xn and Islam are Evil. Anyone who belives in one of these ideologies should be viewed with pity. Furthermore, anyone who belives in one of these revolting belief systems should not own herps because they have proven themselves,by the mere fact of their lunacy, to be irresponsilble. Who knows maybe tommorow they will start to think god told them to destroy all reptiles.
 
I'm glad to see that there are people here who can have a discussion on such highly charged issues without resorting to sweeping generalizations and derogatory comments. :rolleyes:
 
I bailed on this thread a while back. However, I do check on it from time to time to see what's being written. Both of those appear to have been good decisions, I think.
 
you can't blame the actions of a few on the whole. there have been a few bad presidents, is america bad now? everyone is human and makes mistakes are you so much better that you can judge someone else? if you are so unforgiving to anyone who makes a mistake then you're going to get pretty lonely. being an atheist is unfortunate because there is alot of good things going on that you would refuse to see because of your beliefs. there is a creator, just look at the perfection of your own pets. that just didn't happen or evolve over time, they wouldn't survive.
this is a wicked world we live in and some people get sucked into it but there are alot of good people out there. are they bad because of everybody else?
 
All religions have one thing in common. Faith, plain and simple. You can make all the arguments you want regarding the Bible or God but the fact is Faith is what keeps people coming back.

It is ridiculous to say that religion is evil, or that people who believe in God shouldn't have pets. You are making sweeping generaliztions about people you don't know. Millions in fact!
So you don't believe in God, well that's your right, or rather your lack of faith but that doesn't mean the people that do are wrong because they don't agree with you. I am not saying that you are wrong, but you don't KNOW He doesn't exist for a FACT either. You are making assumptions based on your beliefs but they aren't necessarily true either.

Truth is that belief in GOD does not take away from your existance here, so where's the harm in it? Faith keeps some people going, is that wrong? If I have faith in a higher power does that mean that I'm right? NO but what if I am? Then I guess my faith helped, and If i'm wrong does my life suddenly lose all meaning? NO again, because of my belief I was kind and looked out for others and maybe I've made someone else's life better for my actions. Again I'm not saying that the disbelief makes someone unfriendly or unkind or evil, but if GOD is out there you are going to pay the price. I'm betting HE is. What do I have to lose?

This is the way I live, if you don't that's fine too. I am not here to judge anyone, I don't have that right and neither do you.

Thanks for listening...

Chris Marston
 
Faith keeps some people going, is that wrong?
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Well yes it can be quite bad when that faith is used as it often has been throughout history to persecute others who are not of that faith. Let's see, for a few current examples we can use the Muslim Extremists who have faith in Allah, and who believe that when they kill Christians or Jews they will go to a heavenly reward. Then we have regular Muslims and regular Hindus and regular Sikhs, and regular Christians all in India who regularly massacre one another in the name of their faith. They all believe
G(g)od is on their side as they hack each other to death. You remember those new items that appeared on the nightly news before they were overshadowed by the news of the war in Iraq. Then we just recently had the Taliban and their religious beliefs in Afghanistan, wherein they destroyed some fine treasures of the past, and also basically enslaved women, and executed those who were not of the faith - all in the name of their faith. Then closer to home we have the KKK which often proclaims its righteousness in the name of faith while this group routinely targets blacks, Catholics of all colors and Jews of all colors.

Further back in history we also have had the nazi party members, who had faith in Adolph Hitler. Maybe it was not faith in God but I think you may see the faith based analogy and the ruin to which it led. A bit further back into the past and we have the Salem Witch trials here in America based upon strict religious faith in god. There also was, close to that same time, many witch trials in Europe all based upon the right of the Christian faith. Go a bit further back and we can find the Italian and Spanish Inquisitions, all faith based moments that were just wonderful in their effect on the world. There were also the Crusades, another faith based movement whereby one group rode off under God's banner to kill another group under the banner of their own god.

Today we pray for our soldiers. We pray that God protects them and helps them in battle. This is ludicrous if you want to say that faith does not do wrong. Do you, or anyone else, really believe that God is on our side in this war? I am pretty sure many American believe this, as many over on the other side believe god is on their side.

There is also plenty of intolerance within religion - and my guess is that this leads to much of the evils above. Just the bickering among all the different sects of Christianity is enough proof of that. There is also plenty of evil, as in the examples above, that has been bred by faith and belief in G(g)od. To deny this makes no sense, these are incontrovertible facts; that is unless of course you think those things were good.

Now all of this may actually be G(g)ods will, if there is a god. Well if this is G(g)ods will, then you can have him, or is it her, or is it them, all for yourself and I will remain a heathen by the free will that some believe G(g)od granted to me.

Now don't get me wrong, I am not sure if there is a G(g)od or not. maybe I will never decide; but I am certain of what I said above about religion breeding evil. Remember G(g)od is not religion, religion is man's attempt at reckoning with alleged his creator; being created by man it sure as hell can be evil. Then again, if G(g)od created everything, did he not also create evil?
 
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