Some of us will have to stop riding

[Francois_Dumas]

What with the Pope's NEW sins proclaimed yesterday:

 

"....Polluting, genetic engineering, obscene riches, taking drugs, abortion, pedophilia and causing social injustice are to join pride, envy, gluttony, greed, lust, wrath and sloth as originally defined by Pope Gregory the Sixth in the 6th Century.....".

 

Boy, am I glad I am not religious.... I can keep polluting the world with my BMW and Jeep

With that list a lot of people will have to lock themselves in their homes (errrmmm.. mansions...) never to be seen again....

 

Actually, this, added to the prohibition of smoking in coffee bars and restaurants, should stop most of Italy dead in its tracks.....

[OoPEZoO]

Boy, am I glad I am not religious.... I can keep polluting the world with my BMW and Jeep

 

I think I'm gonna go buy an old 2-stroke

[Matts_12GS]

Boy, am I glad I am not religious.... I can keep polluting the world with my BMW and Jeep

 

I think I'm gonna go buy an old 2-stroke

 

Reminds me of what I did a couple years on Earth Day.

 

We have a big river front mall similar to the inner harbor in Baltimore. On Earth Day there's usually a big shindig down there , speakers and booths, etc.

 

I used to have this checkmate ski boat that I loved to take down to the Hooters restaurant there for some beers and lunch. One year, we were leaving and as I fired up that old pre-mixed two stroke outboard I noticed the big blue cloud obscuring the big banner that read "Earth Day."

I laughed so hard I nearly fell overboard. After that, it became an event I had to plan for.

[Francois_Dumas]

You're wicked !!!

[Huzband]

I have a 2-smoke lawn mower we can take down there.

[Matts_12GS]

You're wicked !!!

 

I'm flattered that you noticed!

[Hermes]

"....Polluting, genetic engineering, obscene riches, taking drugs, abortion, pedophilia and causing social injustice are to join pride, envy, gluttony, greed, lust, wrath and sloth as originally defined by Pope Gregory the Sixth in the 6th Century.....".

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

 

Religious thread alert.

--------------------------

 

 

...obscene riches...., weeell, may he who sits in a glasshouse (or Vatican) cast the first stone, or something like that!? Talk about hypocrasy and verbose pollution.

Just saying...

[Ken H.]

Yes, I saw that too. I was thinking about using it the next time someone is advocating removing their catalytic converter or fuel vapor evaporation recovery canister/system! "SINNER!" Hee, hee.

[Francois_Dumas]

"....Polluting, genetic engineering, obscene riches, taking drugs, abortion, pedophilia and causing social injustice are to join pride, envy, gluttony, greed, lust, wrath and sloth as originally defined by Pope Gregory the Sixth in the 6th Century.....".

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

 

Religious thread alert.

--------------------------

 

 

...obscene riches...., weeell, may he who sits in a glasshouse (or Vatican) cast the first stone, or something like that!? Talk about hypocrasy and verbose pollution.

Just saying...

 

 

Oh and Jurgen, you are welcome to borrow my new 'disclaimer' text, I won't claim copyrights on it:

 

Dutch Disclaimer:

"....Oh, and before I get a lot of angry mails again... this is NOT meant to offend anyone, it is written tongue-firmly-in-cheek, although it DOES contain a large dose of truth and actual facts and the posting should be seen as informative, educational and make you smile..... If it doesn't, then don't read it. Woooops, too late..... ".

[Hermes]

'Dutch disclaimer' text'

------------------------------

 

You do know how to protect yourself.

S/b (and probably is in one form or another) standard fare for any Politician and other rascals.

It should render any text inoffensive alright..... but I defer final judgement to Les.

[Ben_Ricci]

Tongue and cheek or otherwise, this isn’t a very dignified discussion. The result of it is either mocking the Pope or faithful Roman Catholics. If you’re Catholic, you should consider better judgement. If you’re not Catholic, then it shouldn’t be of consequence to you what the Pope says or what his followers believe is sinful.

 

Peace.

[Ron_B]

Dutch Disclaimer:

"....Oh, and before I get a lot of angry mails again... this is NOT meant to offend anyone, it is written tongue-firmly-in-cheek, although it DOES contain a large dose of truth and actual facts and the posting should be seen as informative, educational and make you smile..... If it doesn't, then don't read it. Woooops, too late..... ".

 

 

Too late Francois, you have already offended me.

 

Send me some of your obscene riches and I'll overlook it!

 

[Francois_Dumas]

If you’re not Catholic, then it shouldn’t be of consequence to you what the Pope says or what his followers believe is sinful.

 

Peace.

 

I guess it wouldn't be, Ben, were it not that it is spread all over MY tv set and shoved down my throat as 'news', while trying to glean some actual important happenings from the world news Hang on, that could well be a contradictio in termino....... forget it.

 

It is also no longer true, unfortunately, that specific groups of people are NOT having an influence on others that have nothing to do with them.... Live and let live is an increasingly rare concept these days.

 

But since someone ELSE mentioned it somewhere, come to think of it, it does seem a tad hypocrite.

 

This also goes to show that no matter what the issue or how innocent the thought behind the message, there is always someone taking offense, rightly or (IMHO mostly) wrongly.... which slowly but steadily is leading me to believe that we should either ban ALL topics here, or close the forum altogether.

 

Peace too.

[exwingnut]

This also goes to show that no matter what the issue or how innocent the thought behind the message, there is always someone taking offense, rightly or (IMHO mostly) wrongly.... which slowly but steadily is leading me to believe that we should either ban ALL topics here, or close the forum altogether.

 

Peace too.

 

Correct me if I am wrong here, but it would seem that YOU are the person who took offense first and posted this thread to express your feelings of discontent. While I am sorry that you were upset by what the media passes as news your tv is under your control; you can change the channel and watch what you please, no?

 

And, by all means, we should eventually plan to close the forum when what you feel is ok turns out to bother someone else, your need to express being paramount here. You did take a pretty big swipe at a world religious leader, you know.

 

The best way to keep conversations civil IMHO is to leave religion and politics OUT.

 

Just sayin'!

[Ben_Ricci]

It is also no longer true, unfortunately, that specific groups of people are NOT having an influence on others that have nothing to do with them.... Live and let live is an increasingly rare concept these days.

 

This also goes to show that no matter what the issue or how innocent the thought behind the message, there is always someone taking offense, rightly or (IMHO mostly) wrongly.... which slowly but steadily is leading me to believe that we should either ban ALL topics here, or close the forum altogether.

 

Peace too.

 

Francois I should first say I'm not offended.

 

I understand and had thought about your point, too: "...that specific groups of people are NOT having an influence on others that have nothing to do with them." That is a great point. It can certainly be true in a number of instances. It’s difficult to have discussions or commentary of this nature without inviting commentary on [insert other belief or cause—or lack of same]. So maybe some things are better left unsaid?

 

Speaking strictly on faith-based situations for the moment, in my opinion some comments are driven by over simplifying or misunderstanding of what those less directly involved see, hear and ultimately perceive. I understand those misunderstandings (if that makes sense).

 

And I'm not suggesting this thread be locked, and without going "deep" into the topic, I just wanted to point out a slippery slope that may be hurtful to others.

 

[Aluminum_Butt]

were it not that it is spread all over MY tv set and shoved down my throat as 'news'

 

Catholics make up 1/6 of the world's population. I don't happen to be one, but what the Pope says is newsworthy to a huge group of people.

 

But at least you know how I feel now at having near pornographic images, swear words, sexual themes not suitable for my kids to see (or me, either), and all kinds of similar crap "forced down my throat" on TV. Yes, I can change the channel, but sometimes you can't get to the remote fast enough. When we (Americans who think this swill should not be on the public airwaves) complain, we have the First Amendment thrown back at us.

 

Sorry for the rant and the hijack, but the tone of your post really set me off.

[Francois_Dumas]

Heck, I keep deleting replies..... now I have nothing to say.....

[Quinn]

When I was stationed in the Azores, a group of islands off the coast of Portugal with about a 99 percent Catholic population, I got to talking with one of the civilians from the air port Control tower. We supplied their weather maps from a large format fax machine and if we had a spare channel, tuned in the soccer games from Lisbon and piped it over to them; so knew them fairly well.

Anyway. My wife and I had gone on a tour of one of the churches recently and I was explaining how obscene it seemed to me that there was all that wealth in the church when people were living in hovels with no running water or electricity. He said it only seemed that way to me because I was a selfish American. It was his Church and his wealth. Every Sunday or whenever he wanted, he could go and be surrounded by the wealth of his Church. In America, everybody wants his own stuff and therefore nobody has a guilded ceiling or gold candleholders or anything nearly as nice as everybody on the island had. You Americans would rather each have a little 3 1/2 inch television than share a big tv with anyone else.

 

Yep, he was right; just a different mindset. So when you talk about the riches of the church, just remember that they belong to the guy in the hovel as well as the Pope.

[Matts_12GS]

Tongue and cheek or otherwise, this isn’t a very dignified discussion. The result of it is either mocking the Pope or faithful Roman Catholics. If you’re Catholic, you should consider better judgement. If you’re not Catholic, then it shouldn’t be of consequence to you what the Pope says or what his followers believe is sinful.

 

Peace.

 

If religion and politics have been leading causes of war and strife on the face of the planet for millenia, there's no real reason that they shouldn't be subject to being hoisted on their own with humor.

 

Nobody was belittling anyone else's belief system here, merely expressing an opinion civilly and with some humor. Others of us (myself included) took this in a direction unintended by the OP.

 

I think that this is all a tempest in a tea cup and that maybe switching to decaf would help us all feel a little better about things this afternoon.

[steve.foote]

Yep, he was right; just a different mindset. So when you talk about the riches of the church, just remember that they belong to the guy in the hovel as well as the Pope.

 

That's a good one.

[Mister Tee]

I should link this thread to a couple sportbike forums where I moderate. They would find it very entertaining. Particularly this part:

 

>The best way to keep conversations civil IMHO is to leave religion and politics OUT.

 

Our discussions tend to be UFC cage fight style. And we like them that way!

[Ben_Ricci]

Nobody was belittling anyone else's belief system here, merely expressing an opinion civilly and with some humor. Others of us (myself included) took this in a direction unintended by the OP.

 

I think that this is all a tempest in a tea cup and that maybe switching to decaf would help us all feel a little better about things this afternoon.

 

Matt, I can't completely agree with you, but I mostly agree with you. Your post certainly had more to do with Earth Day, which probably will annoy ecologists , but my point is (in essence) each time the Pope makes a statement many outside the Catholic faith use it as an opportunity to say unfavorable things directly or indirectly about the Pope, or the faith, which by definition effects the followers. Most people wouldn't be so generous offering their opinion if it were another faith (in my opinion) and I was just raising a flag that we can all discuss this and see humor in the situation without it turning into a nastier situation.

 

This has come up before when the bishops released their guide for Catholic voters, which essentially only affects a narrow slice of humanity. I can see where others can find such situations humorous, but it's Catholics who really have to deal with the quandary.

 

Calling the Pope a hypocrite is a pretty harsh comment and as been pointed out, isn't how those in the faith see him (or the church).

 

I’m no lightweight on this topic. My wife is an atheist and I attend Mass every day, so I’m accustomed to other points of view.

 

[Francois_Dumas]

Let me try and put things in perspective for ya'll.....

 

What triggered my admittedly shameful sense of humor was the thought that occurred to me that if 'polluting' (.. and associated wasting precious energy I presume) is a 'sin', AND you believe in heaven or whatever form of award in the end, then for sure heaven is going to be a pretty lonely place from now on, devoid of any Westerners, except for maybe a handful of Greenpeace members.

 

And now, my dear friends, Nina and I will pack the 'mule' and head for the mountains...... have fun while we're gone!

[Huzband]

.....except for maybe a handful of Greenpeace members.

 

Nope, they use outboard-powered inflatables for their protesting.

 

Maybe the Amish will be okay, though.

[exwingnut]

I should link this thread to a couple sportbike forums where I moderate. They would find it very entertaining. Particularly this part:

 

>The best way to keep conversations civil IMHO is to leave religion and politics OUT.

 

Our discussions tend to be UFC cage fight style. And we like them that way!

 

And your point is?

[Mister Tee]

I should link this thread to a couple sportbike forums where I moderate. They would find it very entertaining. Particularly this part:

 

>The best way to keep conversations civil IMHO is to leave religion and politics OUT.

 

Our discussions tend to be UFC cage fight style. And we like them that way!

 

And your point is?

 

It's one of those things that if you have to ask, I couldn't explain it to you. Just take it as a random comment.

[Ben_Ricci]

.....except for maybe a handful of Greenpeace members.

 

Nope, they use outboard-powered inflatables for their protesting.

 

Maybe the Amish will be okay, though.

 

Only if they clean up behind their buggies!

[exwingnut]

I should link this thread to a couple sportbike forums where I moderate. They would find it very entertaining. Particularly this part:

 

>The best way to keep conversations civil IMHO is to leave religion and politics OUT.

 

Our discussions tend to be UFC cage fight style. And we like them that way!

 

And your point is?

 

It's one of those things that if you have to ask, I couldn't explain it to you. Just take it as a random comment.

 

Actually, I do understand and that is why I post here, not on some other forums; been there, done that.

[Hermes]

Quote:

 

... but sometimes you can't get to the remote fast enough

----------------------------------------------------------------

 

never, never give up control of the remote!

 

Quote:

 

So when you talk about the riches of the church, just remember that they belong to the guy in the hovel as well as the Pope

 

It ain't so much about the riches as such (although try to ask if you could borrow some, to impress your girlfriend ), it's more about life's necessaties for those in the hovel, like food and shelter. The riches the churches are holding would house and feed a lot of the hungries.

 

And since nobody has picked up on the Pope's tabu on genetic engineering, it kinda reminds me of the blindness expressed in the tabu of decentralizing planet earth in the Solar system. Had it not been for the insistence of enlightened people who discussed the new found science at their peril, we would still be in the dark ages.

 

And while I am at it, would it not be for the enlightened people of this board who, at their own peril, dare to bring forward for discussion challenging subjects, this board may become too narrowly focussed, retrograde, obsolete and in todays global society, irrelevant. We need to prevent that, the members of this board are way too sophisticated, in my opinion.

 

Chat boards such as ours are made up of people of many different convictions, From time to time the subjects is taken away from the boards main interest, and while we can all see eye to eye as long as the subject is about motorcycling (with the exception of oil and tires, of course ), we need to grow and allow ourselves now and then to venture into somewhat more challenging subjects, without fear.

 

As long as the discussion stay impersonal and just express an opinion, I feel, that I can always learn from and reflect on the opinion of others.

 

Oh yeah, and if I don't like what I hear, I just reach for the remote ahh, the mouse.

 

Jurgen

[Ben_Ricci]

Hermes your point is well taken. Religion, politics, and life itself are each impossibly complex non-linear equations, particularly when viewed in the integrated fashion imposed on us, especially given the unique observations each of us can apply to any one aspect of each equation. In summary, it isn’t easy to always get along.

 

[PRC]

In summary, it isn’t easy to always get along

 

If it was easy, everyone could do it! Sorry, just trying add some levity here.

[leikam]

 

To paraphrase St. Augustine, give me virtue, but not yet.

[tallman]

Michael,

nice pic, did you get a new bike?

[leikam]

No, that's my RT. But the boots are new. If you really like the pic, you can buy the t-shirt

[Ben_Ricci]

That is quite a clever t-shirt. Interesting double entendre.