But modern Russia is not authoritarian, and therefore it's better.
Haha, Putin.
To be fair... Vladimir was the former head of the KGB. And several people who have spoken out against him publicly have been unalived with poisons... whether that's a coincidence or not is the issue.
Me personally -- I am opposed to US intervention. Like it or not -- other countries have sovereighnty.
I mean, Venezuela might be experiencing a famine -- but the government is literally dysfunctional, and is only concerned with the issue of whether or not Maduro finishes his term, an annoying tug-of-war which has left the government doing nothing for its people.
Mexico is doing the best it can considering it is faced with not only gang violence: but also with a broken economy brought on by trade of cheap corn from the US, which ran Mexico's corn farmers out of business just in time for the US to suddenly switch to trading corn oil with Mexico, instead of corn. Thusly: the price of corn has gone up to absurd levels.
Cuba at the moment is an oppressive regime. However -- Diplomacy with the US will probably change the country for the better (I wouldn't call that intervention).
I'm... PRETTY sure Argentina is decent
I mean -- the best thing to do with these countries is to just talk to them, and give them politics lessons most of them are either suffering from dysfunctional government, a brutalized economy, or an overly-functional government.
Lets go 1 by 1 through all 12 countries of South America Bolivia - Super poor, but environmentally friendly Venezuela- massive oil reserves, super broke, people have no food. Paraguay- Bolivia 2.0 but more envioromental Guyana- super poor, but the fond oil they will probs become Venezuela 2.0 Argentina- corruption, too much debt Uruguay- only thing I know is there president is super cheap, he lives in a shack (no joke)
Colombia- 2 decade civil war Ecuador- I know nothing about it except Assange is hiding in their embassy Chille- Us overthrew the democratic goernement here put Pinochet in power. Now it has one of the worlds worst income inequalitys. Peru- I know they are becoming rich. Brazil- Oh boy where do we start, from 2nd largest brics economy to bankruptcy. Massive corruption. Huge government wastage in the Olympics and fifa world cup. There economy shrunk by 800 billion dollars over 4 years, the only country that tops them by this massive economy destruction is Russia. (Atleast we are no.1 in something )
I think that for any of these given countries you really do need to trace its political and economic history to see what really went wrong. In Venezuela's case: they're losing a lot of tourism due to the fact that the people from the right wing are mucking about on the streets constantly, and even forming roadblocks in some cases (Yeah. That's gonna help the economy. Keep people from going to work! Brilliant!) They are also trying to fund a ton of welfare projects, therefore, the government's spending too much on people who do not contribute to the economy (not a bad thing in of itself, but it's being overdone, and it's hurting the people who DO participate in the economy).
Long story short: the government there is useless, and not doing anything.
If they're not evil outside worship, why should they be evil in worship? Music can do wonders to enhance what would otherwise be an ordinary worship ceremony.
She is a Christian... but plenty of Christians don't like her writing because of the "magic," so I understand. (Sort of.)
I don't think she's a christian.
Don't judge her just because she wrote a book that revolves around 'witchcraft and wizardry'. She wrote a fictional tale to entertain us. What her personal beliefs are is her own business.
I would also like to point out that fictional magic has nothing to do with actual witchcraft -- which is practiced by delusional people (this doesn't make it any less wrong, but still).
If they truly did become Christian, then it was worth it.
It would get you a better job if you were christian in 320AD, so what do you think people did?
"You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good to accomplish what is now being done, the saving of many lives." -Genesis 50:20
God often is able to cause what was intended for evil to be turned into something good. And besides -- any given culture is going to want to retain some of their old traditions as they suddenly convert to a new religion -- thus, instead of the tree being a symbol of paganism, the tree became a very Christian thing for them to do around the time of the holidays.
Thank you. There is obviously nothing wrong with singing, as this verse shows, and the fact that Jesus and the Apostles sang a hymn the night of the last supper, and Paul and Silas sang hymns in the jail and Philippi, and in Ephesians 5:19, which is very similar to the verse in Colossians.
Now, neither verse mentions musical instruments, but since we can clearly sing, what's wrong with instruments?
Well were told to eta the Lords Supper every week so what's wrong with adding cheese into it?
1. He never says to eat the Lord's supper every week.
2. Nothing, obviously. The Lord's supper was a meal, where they happened to have bread and wine. Quite possibly they also had cheese, who knows?
But my point is we shouldn't be ridiculous, we should be reasonable. You act as if there are two extremes 1. Not do anything that isn't specifically mentioned in the Bible, or 2. Add whatever we want.
That's a false dilemma fallacy. What should we do? Be wise. Judging and weighing everything to see if it meets the Bibles standards. While we should do exactly what the Bible says, that doesn't mean not
doing anything it doesn't say to do. Why? Because there are so many things that aren't addressed! It would be ridiculous and impossible to do so. Obviously, the Bible doesn't deal with every single issue. It
physically can't, it's a book with a limited number of pages. You could come up with all sorts of issues the Bible doesn't mention doing while worshiping: Wearing modern clothes, wearing glasses, sneezing,
etc. It can't. The Bible is not a "Guide to every single issue no matter how inconsequential."
So, the Bible sets Moral standards against which we can weigh everything. So, even though it doesn't specifically deal with every issue, we can reach a decision.
So, bringing us back to music, what could possibly be wrong with musical instruments? Music is one of the most beautiful things in existence, and instruments greatly add to that beauty. And since we are supposed to praise God, and singing is clearly endorsed throughout the entire Bible, what could be wrong with musical instruments? They do not violate any moral standard in the Bible, but merely add to our praise.
Lets go 1 by 1 through all 12 countries of South America Bolivia - Super poor, but environmentally friendly Venezuela- massive oil reserves, super broke, people have no food. Paraguay- Bolivia 2.0 but more envioromental Guyana- super poor, but the fond oil they will probs become Venezuela 2.0 Argentina- corruption, too much debt Uruguay- only thing I know is there president is super cheap, he lives in a shack (no joke)
Colombia- 2 decade civil war Ecuador- I know nothing about it except Assange is hiding in their embassy Chille- Us overthrew the democratic goernement here put Pinochet in power. Now it has one of the worlds worst income inequalitys. Peru- I know they are becoming rich. Brazil- Oh boy where do we start, from 2nd largest brics economy to bankruptcy. Massive corruption. Huge government wastage in the Olympics and fifa world cup. There economy shrunk by 800 billion dollars over 4 years, the only country that tops them by this massive economy destruction is Russia. (Atleast we are no.1 in something )
I think that for any of these given countries you really do need to trace its political and economic history to see what really went wrong. In Venezuela's case: they're losing a lot of tourism due to the fact that the people from the right wing are mucking about on the streets constantly, and even forming roadblocks in some cases (Yeah. That's gonna help the economy. Keep people from going to work! Brilliant!) They are also trying to fund a ton of welfare projects, therefore, the government's spending too much on people who do not contribute to the economy (not a bad thing in of itself, but it's being overdone, and it's hurting the people who DO participate in the economy).
Long story short: the government there is useless, and not doing anything.
Peru had a similar problem is the 90s they lowered tariffs and removed like 100 taxes and then sold off the government, oil, communications and electric comanpies. With Venezuelas assets they could do the same.
Me personally -- I am opposed to US intervention. Like it or not -- other countries have sovereighnty.
I mean, Venezuela might be experiencing a famine -- but the government is literally dysfunctional, and is only concerned with the issue of whether or not Maduro finishes his term, an annoying tug-of-war which has left the government doing nothing for its people.
Mexico is doing the best it can considering it is faced with not only gang violence: but also with a broken economy brought on by trade of cheap corn from the US, which ran Mexico's corn farmers out of business just in time for the US to suddenly switch to trading corn oil with Mexico, instead of corn. Thusly: the price of corn has gone up to absurd levels.
Cuba at the moment is an oppressive regime. However -- Diplomacy with the US will probably change the country for the better (I wouldn't call that intervention).
I'm... PRETTY sure Argentina is decent
I mean -- the best thing to do with these countries is to just talk to them, and give them politics lessons most of them are either suffering from dysfunctional government, a brutalized economy, or an overly-functional government.
Lets go 1 by 1 through all 12 countries of South America Bolivia - Super poor, but environmentally friendly Venezuela- massive oil reserves, super broke, people have no food. Paraguay- Bolivia 2.0 but more envioromental Guyana- super poor, but the fond oil they will probs become Venezuela 2.0 Argentina- corruption, too much debt Uruguay- only thing I know is there president is super cheap, he lives in a shack (no joke)
Colombia- 2 decade civil war Ecuador- I know nothing about it except Assange is hiding in their embassy Chille- Us overthrew the democratic goernement here put Pinochet in power. Now it has one of the worlds worst income inequalitys. Peru- I know they are becoming rich. Brazil- Oh boy where do we start, from 2nd largest brics economy to bankruptcy. Massive corruption. Huge government wastage in the Olympics and fifa world cup. There economy shrunk by 800 billion dollars over 4 years, the only country that tops them by this massive economy destruction is Russia. (Atleast we are no.1 in something )
We should note that none of those countries are the capitalist paradise America envisioned. Pinochet left power and the country self-transitioned to a more free one. You forget that a lot of these countries, like Argentina, were ruled by socialist dictatorships that collapsed only recently. It's natural that these countries aren't doing too well right now -- they're trying to pick up the pieces of an economy that was never good, a government that was always corrupt, and a history filled with violence and uprising. It will take a lot to change those countries and the fault cannot be squarely laid on one country or point in history.
I also note that, since I didn't believe what you said about Uruguay, I looked it up myself.
"Uruguay is ranked first in Latin America in democracy, peace, lack of corruption, e-government, and is first in South America when it comes to press freedom, size of the middle class and prosperity. On a per-capita basis, Uruguay contributes more troops to United Nations peace-keeping missions than any other country. It ranks second in the region on economic freedom, income equality, per-capita income and inflows of FDI."
And no, the President of Uruguay does not "live in a shack." The previous president, however... "has been described as 'the world's humblest president' due to his austere lifestyle and his donation of around 90 percent of his $12,000 monthly salary to charities that benefit poor people and small entrepreneurs."
Since I only have time to research Uruguay, however, I can't confirm or deny the rest of what you said. Let me just say I don't totally believe what you say.
✠✙ What once was old doth fade away/But Former Glory stays the same ✙✠ •••Unity•••Duty•••DESTINY••• ***EST. 2006*** • 9/11/01 • BCC: 2010-2014 • EX-TER-MIN-ATE! –Dalek
We don't really have any influence over South America. I wish we did, because most Latin American countries are either violent anarchies or have very low quality of living, but as it is we don't.
The reason we didn't care as much about Africa is because they didn't possess a direct threat to the US. The reason we attempted to make South America align with US interests is because at the time a lot of communist regimes backed by the USSR were emerging down there -- in some cases, even being provided with weapons by the USSR to strike against America. While similar regimes came about in Africa and we did try to stop them, they were not as high-priority as in South America.
I don't think we're actively working to change any regimes in Asia. With the naval force we have, we could easily overtake Asia or force a regime change if we wanted to.
We helped put in those anarchies, we got rid of Dilma Rouseff, the president of Argentina andtried to get rid of Ecuadors leader. Africa is kind of a racist view, they won't go becuase their not white and that's pretty much the truth.
Asia, we want the oil and are fighting for it.
What do you want us to do in Africa, intervene? That's sort of illegal and it's why people are so angry at us about South America. It's not because "they're not white."
It's not a good thing to be fighting for another country's oil. Just saying.
✠✙ What once was old doth fade away/But Former Glory stays the same ✙✠ •••Unity•••Duty•••DESTINY••• ***EST. 2006*** • 9/11/01 • BCC: 2010-2014 • EX-TER-MIN-ATE! –Dalek
The Orthodox churches do liturgical services, so we actually are doing spiritual songs. Mine, the Coptic church, uses cymbals in addition to that.
I never said Psalms were instruments.
its the error of adding on to worship, something not to be done.
How are we adding to the worship, and please enlighten me on how we are to worship, since the Bible apparently details that exactly.
✠✙ What once was old doth fade away/But Former Glory stays the same ✙✠ •••Unity•••Duty•••DESTINY••• ***EST. 2006*** • 9/11/01 • BCC: 2010-2014 • EX-TER-MIN-ATE! –Dalek
