blackbird

Nonsense. Bible belief is based on sound evidence and reason. Atheists are an ignorant lot who are completely irrational. The reason is twofold: 1. The existence of God is based on logic. The complex universe had a beginning and could not create itself. Every effect has a cause. The material universe could not create itself. It is simple logic that there had to have been an intelligent designer. 2. The truth of the Bible is shown by the contents of the Bible itself. Eye witnesses of the miraculous reported many things such as the miracles that Jesus performed and his resurrection from the dead. These two facts really are at the crux of the matter. They reveal why atheists and anti-Christians do not have a leg to stand on.

We can thank the BC NDP, federal Liberals and the perverse justice system for this attack. Man arrested following stabbing spree in Vancouver park (msn.com)

The Bible is God's inspired word. You think God cannot preserve his written revelation to mankind. Only blasphemous atheists deny God and his word.

Not true. Conspiracy theories are believed by a cross section of society. Conspiracy theories have nothing to do with biblical truth. Bible believers believe the Bible, not conspiracy theories. Biblical faith is based on evidence which is overwhelming. Atheists are blasphemous enemies of God and on the way to hell according to biblical revelation. The fact is there is a conspiracy by Satan to control the world and establish his kingdom. There is a conspiracy of the U.N. and other international groups to control the world. That is no theory. It is an obvious fact. A one-world system of the anti-Christ is also prophesied in the Bible thousands of years ago and we see the world heading that way.

No, it means 47% preferred a different leader during the process, but after the vote they accept the decision of the majority.

quote Does the Bible support communism? Communism is an economic system where the means of production are owned by society and the governing body is tasked with distributing the wealth to all so that each person presumably receives equally or in accordance with their needs. This means that all property and businesses are owned by the government and not private citizens. This economic system is intended to eliminate inequality between rich (the "bourgeoisie") and poor (the "proletariat"). As an ideology, it is highly influenced by the ideas of Karl Marx and also related to the socialist movement. In theory some of the ideas of communism appear to be compatible with the Bible. However, in practice, communism has been shown to lead to very negative outcomes. Rather than a gap between rich and poor, a gap is created between those with power and those without. Generally a governing body without much public accountability takes control, corruption ensues, and the population at large suffers. Even assuming a case where the governing body were not corrupt, when an equal outcome is guaranteed, the impetus for innovation or hard work is removed, and with it the positive results of those traits. Rather than truly help the poor, communism has a tendency to make all equally impoverished. unquote For the rest of the article go to: Does the Bible support communism? (compellingtruth.org) quote Capitalism is actually a better system when it comes to giving because it has proven to increase individual wealth, which allows its citizens to give out of their increase. Communism has proven to simply make all its citizens poor, except the very few in power who decide where the wealth goes. But even capitalism won’t work, by itself, as a system for aiding the poor. It depends on its citizens to be diligent (Proverbs 10:4) and generous with the fruits of their labor (1 Timothy 6:18) and to give out of love for God and neighbor. Thus, we see that God has designed for the physical and financial needs of the poor to be met by Christian individuals, rather than by any system of government. unquote For more info: Does the Bible support Communism? | GotQuestions.org quote But we do have something to fear, and even Christians, intelligent in the Word of God, do not always understand the implications of Communism. Our real enemy is not Russia, and neither is our real enemy Communism. Our real enemy is the atheistic blasphemy that is behind it. It is the unbelief in God and in Christ, and a turning away from belief in the God of the Scripture. Here in America it is necessary for us to fight Communism. It is necessary for us to arm in order to protect ourselves as a nation. Nevertheless, our real enemy is not Communism, nor a political theory. Our real danger is the godlessness and the atheism of our day. Some will say there are not very many people who are atheists. Perhaps not, at least they are not the kind who stand on soap boxes and proclaim atheism. But there are many today who are living in practical atheism; living as if God did not exist; living as if there were no heaven, no hell, no judgment, and no divine reckoning with human sin. Yes, America’s real enemy is not Communism. It is the blasphemous unbelief in God behind Communism that is our true enemy. unquote For more information: 10. The Future of Communism According to The Bible | Bible.org Note: The real enemy is behind Communism which is the blasphemous atheism or anti-God ideology.

There are several causes behind these statistics. One is multiculturalism, i.e. bringing people in from the third world that have a different culture than our inherited western, European culture. Crime and poverty is a major problem in many third world countries, lack of education, lack of law and order and little or no morals. Many of the third world countries are run by criminal and violent gangs. Violence is the go-to for many. If you look at some of the TV programs of home renovations in Caribbean countries, you will often see bars on all the windows of the homes. The complete anarchy in places like Haiti, Nigeria, Somalia, etc. should also be a warning. That should tell you something. A second contributing factor is the soft-on-crime approach of the liberals in Canada, both federal and provincial governments and the legal system. At one point not long ago, I read there were about 300 people in the Toronto area who had been arrested for gun-related crime and released on bail by the courts. The system is completely dysfunctional and is not protecting society. BC cities such as Vancouver are reporting assaults daily now and when people are arrested the courts/judges simply release them. No is no rationale to releasing repeat offenders time after time. There is also a debate in the BC legislature over this issue and the BC Liberals have been begging the NDP government to do something. And of course the other factor is the prevalence or easy availability of handguns. Authorities seem unable to stop the spread of handguns. When have we ever heard of the police doing a complete search of apartments, homes, and the city? Never.

53% when a party chooses a leader from a number of contenders by ranked ballot is not the same as Kenney being affirmed as Premier with 51.4%. You are comparing apples and oranges. Choosing a party leader by ranked ballot is often done that way because there were many candidates running, something like six or so candidates and the ballots are weighted depending on the riding they came from. She was chosen on the sixth ballot. Because the system of ranked ballots is used and there were a large number of contenders, the outcome is no indication that she has low support. Also once the voting is done and the winner is chosen, the party will unite around her. Kenney should have had 65% or 70% to continue. He was the only one on the ballot. It was a yes or no choice. So it is a totally different situation.

The photo I see of the forested mountains near Vancouver looks entirely different. I am not sure where your picture was taken because you cannot see anything like that from the Vancouver area or lower mainland. But there could be a clearcut somewhere in the area. There are obviously some clearcuts scattered around the province. Nothing wrong with that. How else does anyone log? But it is not excessive. Check how many parks there are in BC If you fly over the coastal region you will see most of it is untouched wilderness. The Ministry of Forests does a good job managing the forest industry. This photo is looking north from Vancouver where the mountains and forests are located. No mountains or forest to the west, east or south because those are cities and farms or the ocean. So where exactly was your photo taken?

That is an area that was logged which is a very tiny part of the forests in BC. The forest industry is the main industry in BC and provides jobs for hundreds and thousands of people and makes homes and salaries possible for countless people. Many towns would not even exist in BC if not for the forest industry. Here is a typical photo of a forest in BC. If you fly over the coast of BC as I have done a number of times from Vancouver to northwest BC you will see it is all forested and mountainous. The clear cut you showed is actually a very tiny remote area and not the rule. BC also has many preserved parks and preserved old growth forest areas. Strathcona Park on Vancouver Island is a very large forested mountainous area which covers hundreds of square kilometres. If man is to exist on earth and have any kind of life with all the conveniences, homes, cars, trucks, and raise families, he must have good paying jobs in the resource industry. In BC, forestry is that industry. If you want to live without the resource industry, you might try living in Pakistan or many other places in world. You will be in abject poverty. Your life span will probably not be very long and you will be in misery. The forest industry in BC is one of those industries that pays for the health care system, old age pensions, and all the other the services we have.

When in the forum have you ever paid attention to "salient facts"? You are just playing a slight of hands with words.

quote Federal Bill to ban ‘Conversion Therapy’ It seems that many of these steps, steadily eroding Christian freedom, may now be coming to a head at the federal level with an ideologically motivated effort to actually criminalise services and practices that the government believes are rooted in ‘myths’ about the human person. Proposed legislation originally called “Bill C-8”, An Act to amend the Criminal Code, had proposed to brandish criminal law against so-called ‘conversion therapy’ and is now expected to reappear this Fall unchanged but under a different number. Bill C-8 states clearly in its preamble: “conversion therapy … is based on and propagates myths and stereotypes about sexual orientation and gender identity, including the myth that a person’s sexual orientation and gender identity can and ought to be changed.” Clearly here, Biblical truth (cf. 1 Cor. 6: 9-11) and the historic teaching of the church concerning human sexuality are condemned as myth and Christ’s call to repentance from sexual sin is overtly rejected. Justice Minister David Lametti explained his rationale for the ban, saying: “Conversion therapy is premised on a lie, that being homosexual, lesbian, bisexual or trans is wrong and in need of fixing. Not only is that false, it sends a demeaning and a degrading message that undermines the dignity of individuals.” So, on the authority of Mr. Lametti, God’s Word, the authority of Christ, the teaching of the universal Church and centuries of normative understandings of the human person are dismissed as lies to be overthrown, with resisters cast into prison. With the seriousness of this threat in mind, it would be important to know how ‘conversion therapy’ is actually being defined. The bill’s definition is as follows: Conversion therapy means a practice, treatment or service designed to change a person’s sexual orientation to heterosexual or gender identity to cisgender, or to repress or reduce non-heterosexual attraction or sexual behaviour. The language of the bill already presupposes the validity of fictive ideological concepts in queer theory by using terms like ‘cisgender’ for the biological binary norm of male and female. It seems incredible that such a bill could be coming before the House of Commons from the government, but this is the reality facing Christians in Canada. The Justice Centre for Constitutional Freedoms, in a paper entitled ‘Unconscionable and Unconstitutional (May 12, 2020)’, has warned Canadians that: What the bill in fact does is remove meaningful personal choice by imposing the affirmation and promotion of homosexuality and/or gender transition as the only acceptable form of counsel, guidance or treatment – especially for children experiencing gender identity distress. Under the cover of outlawing barbaric and harmful ‘treatments’ that no-one actually practices, a radical and ideologically pagan view of sexuality and gender is enforced by making the definition of ‘conversion therapy’ so wide (including spiritual, medical and psychological supports) that youth with unwanted feelings or addictions would have no choice but to have ‘treatments’ that either reinforce these unwanted feelings and addictions, or permanently alter their bodies. It does this by banning alternative supports with the threat of imprisonment, violating the Charter rights and freedoms of children, their parents, church communities and health care professionals. unquote On the brink: the criminalisation of Christianity in Canada - Christian Concern

"In Canada, Persecution of Christians Escalates" "In this interview with The New American magazine’s Senior Editor Alex Newman, Canadian commentator and Christian evangelist Laura-Lynn Tyler Thompson explains that persecution against Christians and those who resist the transgender/LGBT agenda. It has now reached the point where parents can be jailed for not supporting their children’s delusions about being the other gender and trying to resist irreversible medical “treatments.” Meanwhile, pastors are being arrested, jailed, and threatened for continuing to hold services in the face of COVID19 restrictions put in place by government. This will be coming soon to America if Americans are not careful, the two warned." In Canada, Persecution of Christians Escalates - The New American "Yes, Christians are being persecuted in America. Here’s how we can respond" " A small selection of abundant examples What counts as persecution then? Any number of different things. It could be being slandered and mocked for your faith. Or being passed over for a promotion at your consulting firm because you refused to fly the Pride flag from your cupholder during June. It’s anything and everything from suffering social ostracization to getting put on trains and taken to death camps. Christians would do well to recover a robust understanding of this, and prepare for it, rather than sticking their heads in the sands of the cultural pablum about how the real threat is a “rising theocracy” or “Christo-fascism.” Consider that churches were forced to close, with no solid scientific evidence supporting that decision at the time (nor provided since) for months in 2020 and into 2021, even as casinos and strip clubs were allowed to stay open. For years, private Christian business owners have been dragged to court, targeted for destruction by the LGBTQ+ movement. The IRS has been caught targeting Christian non-profits. Don’t forget about how, under the Obama Administration, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) relentlessly prosecuted the Christian charity Little Sisters of the Poor over their religious beliefs against paying to provide for abortifacient contraceptives. It took almost a decade for the Little Sisters to finally prevail at the Supreme Court. Let’s keep listing examples: Jack Phillips, the baker, has been harassed for over a decade, bombarded with requests to make the most profane cakes, and dragged in and out of court simply for trying to run his business as a Christian (persecution that continues despite his having prevailed at the Supreme Court). Barronelle Stutzman, a florist, was eventually forced into retirement because she also refused to compromise on her traditional Christian faith commitments and participate in the celebration of sin. Coach Joe Kennedy was fired for exercising his First Amendment rights to pray to God in public. It took him almost seven years to fight to undo this unjust persecution, prevailing only when the Supreme Court ruled that “a government entity sought to punish an individual for engaging in a brief, quiet, personal religious observance doubly protected by the Free Exercise and Free Speech Clauses of the First Amendment…the Constitution neither mandates nor tolerates that kind of discrimination.” Legally we might call this “discrimination,” but make no mistake, it is also persecution: persecution against Christians because of their faith in Jesus Christ as King and their refusal to compromise on the basic teachings of the Bible. I’ve heard from Christians who know they are unlikely to ever get promoted past a certain point at major corporations and consulting firms for holding to their sexual ethics. What do you call it when a Christian is fired for believing that, according to God’s Word, God made men as men and women as women and only those two genders? Or for refusing to tell lies by using she/her or they/them to describe he/him? It’s persecution. I would also use that word to describe the recent slew of attacks on churches across the country, including, most recently, in Maryland. The Catholic Courier reports that “A Catholic church in the Washington suburb of Bethesda was one of three houses of worship along the same road to be victimized by vandalism the weekend of July 9-10.” One of those buildings was set on fire. Even crisis pregnancy centers, many of them run by Christians, are under attack because they promote life, rather than death. Since early May, when the Dobbs decision was leaked suggesting that Roe v. Wade would be overturned, they have been threatened, vandalized, and firebombed. And Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass, another one of the more outspoken progressive politicians in our country, is angrily encouraging even more of such violence. I could go on." Yes, Christians are being persecuted in America | Voice (christianpost.com) Also, how many churches, including different denominations, have been burned or vandalized after the so-called "unmarked graves" began being broadcast across Canada? Then there is the federal liberal decree where they refused to give funding to organizations for student summer jobs if the organization was in any way connected to any church or group that supported pro life or opposed abortion.

I just drove to Walmart and near there, a mentally-deranged, panhandler, jumped out almost in front of my car in order to freak me out. He didn't make it out far enough to get hit, but I get the message; he was trying to shock me. This is the kind of guy I am talking about who is likely involved in crime and law-breaking and should be locked up. If the courts deem him mentally-ill, then he should be placed in a mental institution, no if's and's and but's. Just put him and all the rest who are deemed as suffering mental illness. If they can't put them in prison for crimes they commit because they are mentally ill, then they should be in an institution. Stop the ongoing assaults, vandalism, robberies, etc. Leaving these people on the streets in towns and cities across BC is causing a lot of grief, stress, and lost revenue for businesses and harm to people.

I have already said many times, many laws and human rights are based on Judeo-Christian civilization and historical biblical beliefs. Nobody is planning to impose a religious government. That is fiction. Christians in north America are already persecuted, just not to the extent of other counties. But since you are an atheist or non-believer, it is almost impossible to have a rational discussion or agree on anything. Your world view is totally alien to normal Christianity or Judeo-Christianity.

You are. That's not how the Bible is interpreted. If you don't believe me, Google it or ask any minister of a church.

OTTAWA – Chief of Defence Staff, Gen. Wayne Eyre, told MPs that Russia and China consider themselves to be at war with the West and Canada must rise to meet this challenge. Eyre was meeting with MPs at the Commons standing committee on national security to talk about the threat Russia poses to Canada. Eyre said Russia and China don’t differentiate between peace and war and are actively seeking to challenge the West. “Russia and China are not just looking at regime survival but regime expansion. They consider themselves to be at war with the West,” he said. “They strive to destroy the social cohesion of liberal democracies and the credibility of our own institutions to ensure our model of government is seen as a failure.” Eyre said the threat is broader than the war in Ukraine, but a systemic effort to change the way the world has been structured. “The rules based international order, which has underpinned world stability, and indeed our national prosperity for generations is faltering. It needs to be defended, the gravity of these times, should be apparent to all.” Eyre said this is all happening as the military faces a recruitment challenge. The forces estimate they’re 10,000 people short right now. He said that is now a top priority. “I am very worried about our numbers and that’s why we’re putting as a priority effort, the reconstitution of our military.” unquote Canada's military chief warns China and Russia are 'at war with the West' (msn.com) This comes at a time when Trudeau is allowing China to have three police stations in Toronto under the guise of a different name and at a time when the Liberals are attacking and demoralizing our military with their gender ideology and progressivism. No wonder people don't want to join the Canadian Forces. These outposts in Canada can be used as operations centres to manipulate and intimate their diaspora who they consider as under the authority of the CCP to expand their influence and control in the west. This extends into politics and society at all levels. In China, any foreign actor would be arrested and charged with espionage immediately and given a long sentence. Our justice system is different and it does not operate that way.

The confusing of crime with mental health issues has become one of the greatest problems in the justice system. As a result people who should be locked up are not and society is not being protected. A criminal is a criminal is a criminal and cannot be confused with a mentally ill person. If you want to look at it in that way, all criminals are mentally ill. But that won't in and of itself protect society. It is no reason to set these people free or refuse to lock them up. But that is the ideology of the liberals and left. Repeat offenders in towns and cities across B.C. have been constantly released by the courts to the chagrin of the RCMP, mayors, councils, business owners, and citizens. These are offenders of assaults, break and enter, robbery, vandalism, etc. They have been arrested and taken before a judge. But because of ideology that these people are drug addicts, homeless, or people with mental issues, judges simply release them and they repeatedly go on to repeat their crimes. The opposition party, the BC Liberals has lately been raising this issue with the BC NDP government to no avail. The NDP says they appointed a committee to study the issue and the report came back that this is a complex issue involving drugs, and mental problems of these people. Of course the committee the NDP appointed must be the same ideology as the leftist progressives and liberals who believe the criminals in society are all troubled individuals with mental issues and therefore should not be jailed. As as result the NDP is refusing to take action such as telling prosecutors to keep these people locked up because the protection of society is foremost.

This is a sad example of the extremist idealism of many young people in schools and outside schools. They have not been taught a realistic view of the world and our own province. Some kind of false religion I would call mother earthism prevails in their mind. Once their mind gets to that point, there is no amount of reasoning with them that will convince them of reality. That is why we have the Greta Thunbergs and their massive followings by younger people. Perhaps some will change their mind as they grow older and learn how the real world operates. Others will cling to their radical ideas and oppose things which most of the world realize are essential and normal, like the energy oil and gas industry, forestry, etc. The problem arises when enough of these extremists get into positions of power such as in the Trudeau government where Trudeau actually appointed an environmental extremist who climbed buildings or towers for Greenpeace. This is the danger. This is costing Canada billions in losses by the destruction of the oil and gas industry. And costing Canadians billions of dollars with carbon taxes and radical environmental regulations. This lowers the standard of living of all Canadians as we are now paying about $2.25 per litre for gas in B.C., the highest price in north America. We should have had more refineries and pipelines in B.C. long ago. The demand is there but the supply is not.

Repeat offenders in towns and cities across B.C. have been constantly released by the courts to the chagrin of the RCMP, mayors, councils, business owners, and citizens. These are offenders of assaults, break and enter, robbery, vandalism, etc. They have been arrested and taken before a judge. But because of ideology that these people are drug addicts, homeless, or people with mental issues, judges simply release them and they repeatedly go on to repeat their crimes. The opposition party, the BC Liberals has lately been raising this issue with the BC NDP government to no avail. The NDP says they appointed a committee to study the issue and the report came back that this is a complex issue involving drugs, and mental problems of these people. Of course the committee the NDP appointed must be the same ideology as the leftist progressives and liberals who believe the criminals in society are all troubled individuals with mental issues and therefore should not be jailed. As as result the NDP is refusing to take action such as telling prosecutors to keep these people locked up because the protection of society is foremost. NDP ideology is twisted and anti-justice and places the freedom of criminals ahead of the good of society. This is a heinous ideology and needs to be condemned from every quarter. It is not justice. The main purpose of government is law and order of society, the protection of honest law-abiding citizens, not the protection of the freedom of criminals who are not respecting the law but harming society and the citizens. This problem is a glaring revelation of the problem with atheism, anti-God, people who hold positions of power in government and who are driven by a perverse secular human ideology. They sincerely believe their ideology is the moral way. They are dead wrong. People who commit criminal acts are a threat to the rest of us and have no "right" to continue doing so. They lose the right to freedom and must be incarcerated for the protection of everyone else. There is no other solution. It is not complex as they claim.

There is a lot of fiction in that one. A small number of trees are used to make pellets for pellet stoves, which is a fairly clean fuel. It burns nicely. I had a pellet stove for a number of years up north and loved it. Just had to clean the stove every week. Of course the number of pellet stoves is relatively small in the province. Most people use natural gas, oil, or electricity to heat their home. I'm sure they are not cutting excessive numbers of trees down in BC. There is already a certain percentage of the old growth forests that are preserved where no logging is permitted. Most logging is for lumber. The world needs homes and that is the main industry in BC. Most of Canada is built with lumber. It is a sustainable industry and is not in danger of running out as you and environmental radicals claim. It is well-managed by the Ministry of Forests in BC.

We are liable for nothing done back in history by previous governments. If we were, how far back do you want to go? How about the Inquisition in the middle ages? Should the Catholic Church be forced to pay compensation to all the descendants of the victims of the Holy Roman Inquisition. More recently what about the wars in the 20th century? Should the descendants of the soldiers who fought in WW2 receive compensation from Germany today? I think you get the point. The idea of liability does not apply to historic events which people today had nothing to do with but which some activists want to claim compensation for. Activists constantly claim "inter-generational trauma", the phoniest excuse imaginable. Everyone has suffered trauma in their lives of one kind or another. Just get over it and move on. Don't expect to live off other people or get rich on it.

MANDEL: Son who killed mom with eight blasts to head now free on parole (msn.com) Liberals and left continue to bend over backwards to attempt to rehabilitate dangerous criminals by releasing them instead of giving priority to the protection Canadians. We recently saw the consequences of this in Saskatchewan where ten people were murdered and twelve more injured on the Cree nation when a prolific violent offender was released.

Complete nonsense. This is a waste of time.

My belief is not just what I want. My belief is what God wants me to believe and I try to share it because that is what he wants me to do. Everyone falls short and nobody is perfect in this world. It is mistake to determine truth or falsehood of something by examining other people. Ultimately truth only comes from God's word, the Bible. I am talking about God's revelation to mankind and what he wants. When he says thou shalt not kill, I believe it and accept it as absolute truth. When he says thou shalt have no false gods, I believe it and accept it. I don't make the environment or mother earth a god as many environmentalists do.