This is my rifle

[Phaeton80]

This is my rifle. There are many like it, but this one is mine. It is my life. I must master it as I must master my life. Without me my rifle is useless. Without my rifle, I am useless. I must fire my rifle true. I must shoot straighter than the enemy who is trying to kill me. I must shoot him before he shoots me. I will. My rifle and I know that what counts in war is not the rounds we fire, the noise of our burst, or the smoke we make. We know that it is the hits that count. We will hit.

My rifle is human, even as I am human, because it is my life. Thus, I will learn it as a brother. I will learn its weaknesses, its strengths, its parts, its accessories, its sights and its barrel. I will keep my rifle clean and ready, even as I am clean and ready. We will become part of each other.

Before God I swear this creed. My rifle and I are the defenders of my country. We are the masters of our enemy. We are the saviors of my life.

There is nothing wrong with appreciating the value of a weapon for self defence. But to venerate your weapon, to equate your personal value, even your savior with said weapon in the name of G*d seems a bit paradoxal, unstable, unhealthy.

You seem to have no trouble at all accepting your senate acting like little schoolgirls finally seeing their idol Netanyahu, showering him in standing ovations in response to his warmongering deceitful rhetoric. You have no trouble at all reconciling the immense influence the Israeli State wields over your nation. No problem at all the White House admin lied their way into Iraq murdering thousands of Americans and maming a tenfold of innocent civilians - feeding hundreds of millions of US taxpayers money into the MIC. The ties between the White House and the House of Saud, the Bin Laden Family.. no issue whatsoever. The fact the Federal Reserve, having a monopoly over the US money supply, is privately owned.. demanding interest for every dollar created, holding the US in a financial stangle hold causing endless debt and increasing poverty for countless Americans.. Hey, no problem there.

Yet when elements of the Marine Core relinquish their personal weapons before entering a commercial flight you find it apt to scream bloody murder, claiming treason to whomever greenlighted this event (implicating Obama). It seems to me you are simply furthering the 'Obama = bad leadership', 'Netanyahu = good leadership' meme. The 'This President has done everything he can to destroy American Hegemony and worldwide prestige' line underwrites this conclusion. What you are in fact implying is that the USA should continue their interventionist policy, entering into another war - this time with Iran - as desired by your unAmerican hero Netanyahu (who ONLY has Israel's best interests at heart) and the Neocons within your government. I think it is quite clear you and those like you are in fact the treasonous ones in calling for such a new US led war (to 'maintain American Hegemony') based on emotion/fear instead of facts, sending even more US citizens into their early graves.. while talking of your weapon as your savior, before Almighty G*d.

Confusion.

[+joc]

There is nothing wrong with appreciating the value of a weapon for self defence. But to venerate your weapon, to equate your personal value, even your savior with said weapon in the name of G*d seems a bit paradoxal, unstable, unhealthy.

You seem to have no trouble at all accepting your senate acting like little schoolgirls finally seeing their idol Netanyahu, showering him in standing ovations in response to his warmongering deceitful rhetoric. You have no trouble at all reconciling the immense influence the Israeli State wields over your nation. No problem at all the White House admin lied their way into Iraq murdering thousands of Americans and maming a tenfold of innocent civilians - feeding hundreds of millions of US taxpayers money into the MIC. The ties between the White House and the House of Saud, the Bin Laden Family.. no issue whatsoever. The fact the Federal Reserve, having a monopoly over the US money supply, is privately owned.. demanding interest for every dollar created, holding the US in a financial stangle hold causing endless debt and increasing poverty for countless Americans.. Hey, no problem there.

Yet when elements of the Marine Core relinquish their personal weapons before entering a commercial flight you find it apt to scream bloody murder, claiming treason to whomever greenlighted this event (implicating Obama). It seems to me you are simply furthering the 'Obama = bad leadership', 'Netanyahu = good leadership' meme. The 'This President has done everything he can to destroy American Hegemony and worldwide prestige' line underwrites this conclusion. What you are in fact implying is that the USA should continue their interventionist policy, entering into another war - this time with Iran - as desired by your unAmerican hero Netanyahu (who ONLY has Israel's best interests at heart) and the Neocons within your government. I think it is quite clear you and those like you are in fact the treasonous ones in calling for such a new US led war (to 'maintain American Hegemony') based on emotion/fear instead of facts, sending even more US citizens into their early graves.. while talking of your weapon as your savior, before Almighty G*d.

Confusion.

Let me un confuse you...

[+joc]

Most of us dont see such a dim view of the world. Just because all we hear from media is mostly negative doesnt mean we have to be the same. As for the bolded i couldnt care less if your version of the end times is real or not, im not gonna let something that may or may not happen stop me from living a free life. Id rather die on my feet then live on my knees.

I personally don't view the End of Time as a religious belief. It's very pragmatic with me. The truth is that our entire economy is Globally Leveraged. The way I see the world is like a spinning top...it can only hold that momentum for so long...and then it starts to wobble...once it is wobbling, it is only a matter of time until it skids out of control and slams into the wall. I see us wobbling Degen. Maybe you don't but I do. The question is...how long are we going to wobble before we suddenly skid out of control?

[Phaeton80]

Let me un confuse you...

What a comical human being you are. Youre just blessed with an inconceivable myriad of impressive personal traits, arent you. If youre ever in Amsterdam, or the Netherlands in general for that matter, give me a holler.. keyboard warrior.

[Degen]

I personally don't view the End of Time as a religious belief. It's very pragmatic with me. The truth is that our entire economy is Globally Leveraged. The way I see the world is like a spinning top...it can only hold that momentum for so long...and then it starts to wobble...once it is wobbling, it is only a matter of time until it skids out of control and slams into the wall. I see us wobbling Degen. Maybe you don't but I do. The question is...how long are we going to wobble before we suddenly skid out of control?

Im not sure I follow. So do you see it as more a survival of the fittest end of days scenario as opposed to the religious rapture style where people just up and disappear?

[Sir Wearer of Hats]

How is what you said and what I said different?

Except that "everyone else" isn't minions of the Anti-Christ.

ONLY those who actively side against God will end up in the Fiery Pit for all time.

[+and-then]

I hate to say it, but you do share a lot of similar ideology with ISIS. Both of you believe in end times being relatively soon if not now, both believe in Jesus (or Issa) coming back and leading the faithful to exterminate the minions of the antichrist (everyone else), both believe in a holy state for the chosen people, and both believe that the path of the sword is the only way. That's why I was saying that the root ideology behind ISIS was contagious and could infect the US.

You left out a pretty crucial distinction Gromdor. My service to my belief is to share it in hopes that some will find hope. ISIS expresses theirs a bit more forcefully, wouldn't you say? And in the final analysis I think many who are non believers tend to be angry and want to throw all believers into the same group. We really are NOT all the same. As to believing that the sword is the only way - I believe that because my scripture SAYS that in essence. I don't make it up, nor do I long for the hell soon to be visited on this planet. Only a crazy person would want to be put through that.

[ellapenella]

I have always showed a display of support and honor for our troops, because I felt bad for all they go through . They go through so much and they get mistreated by people in the end for all they do and gave .

I've seen some of the most horrible and hateful things said about them and my country here around the forum as well as in public and well it's upsetting to read and hear all that . And yeah, I went over board with all the praising of our troops and America too.

Because of the much heated debates i took it upon myself to look into things a bit more and in doing so I've learned what I haven't known of before, and well it's even more upsetting now in comparison to the other I thought was bad .

Like , such as all the occupation and of Palestine, and the reason why there are so many people that really harbor hate towards our Nation and other nations that are allies with us. I kind of get it now in a sense that I haven't before.

I can't say that i'm embarrassed for expressing praise and honor ,because I always will care about our troops ,but I'm embarrassed for what my country does to them and to others . I see that people are in denial of it.

When I have the alloted time I will adress the hypercrtical stance of chrristianity in all this as well. You all who claim Christianity in this are wrong in how you're viewing certain people that were actually being ethnically cleansed of their place on earth and of their culture .You're really not right to include God in any of it.

[Space Commander Travis]

I have always showed a display of support and honor for our troops, because I felt bad for all they go through . They go through so much and they get mistreated by people in the end for all they do and gave .

I've seen some of the most horrible and hateful things said about them and my country here around the forum as well as in public and well it's upsetting to read and hear all that . And yeah, I went over board with all the praising of our troops and America too.

Because of the much heated debates i took it upon myself to look into things a bit more and in doing so I've learned what I haven't known of before, and well it's even more upsetting now in comparison to the other I thought was bad .

Like , such as all the occupation and of Palestine, and the reason why there are so many people that really harbor hate towards our Nation and other nations that are allies with us. I kind of get it now in a sense that I haven't before.

I can't say that i'm embarrassed for expressing praise and honor ,because I always will care about our troops ,but I'm embarrassed for what my country does to them and to others . I see that people are in denial of it.

When I have the alloted time I will adress the hypercrtical stance of chrristianity in all this as well. You all who claim Christianity in this are wrong in how you're viewing certain people that were actually being ethnically cleansed of their place on earth and of their culture .You're really not right to include God in any of it.

A very commendable position, it's important to remember that the current or any other recent Government is not the country as a whole and the principles it's based on, and if you love the country it doesn't mean that you have to support everything the Government does. Governments and Presidents, fortunately, come and go, and it's often more patriotic to criticise them if you think they're doing wrong that it is to just go along with it. And exactly the same goes for other countries; criticizing (for instance) the Israeli government isn't the same as hating the Jewish people, or even the nation of Israel.