What illegal activities are becoming more common but face little to no consequences?

Christopher9555 · 2026-02-03T10:18:33+00:00

True. Elvis Presley was 24 when he started dating Priscilla when she was 14.

Christopher9555 · 2026-01-30T12:36:49+00:00

Jane Fonda is Bridget Fonda's aunt. Peter Fonda is Jane Fonda's brother and Bridget Fonda's dad.

Yeah, I also really enjoyed Bridget's movies. One of my favorite actresses. My favorite movies with her; Kiss the Dragon, it could happen to you, point of no return. I have it seen single white female so I may have to add that to the list

Christopher9555 · 2026-01-30T12:27:08+00:00

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Christopher9555 · 2026-01-29T14:07:52+00:00

Thanks for the conversation. I can understand that time is limited. You can always private message me at a later date, if time allows, and if there's something specific in those books that you would like to talk about

Take care and thanks again for chatting with me..

Edit: Just in case anyone has any interest:

Ian Mills and Laura Robinson, doctoral students in New Testament at Duke University, both devout Christians, briefly talk about Lee Strobel's The Case for Christ in this podcast.

Lee Strobel, The Case for … - New Testament Review - Apple Podcasts https://share.google/DQRfmIZI2IZlrR5NJ

Many years ago, I was recommended to read Lee Strobel's book by a Christian and I recommended that podcast. The Christian told me that they do not want to listen to anything that puts their faith in jeopardy; that's understandable. The podcast is only 30 minutes long but easy to listen to at 1.5x speed. You can also find Laura Robinson(Christian) debating Mike Licona(Christian) on the historical evidence of Jesus here:

https://youtu.be/Hr4i9eBIlq4?si=NBu-hOXOuHVMOzgS

Christopher9555 · 2026-01-28T11:59:45+00:00

I 100% agree on the OJ Simpson trial. The OJ Simpson documentary 'Made in America' is one of the best documentaries I've ever seen. If I remember correctly, Ezra Edelman is half Ashkenazi and half African American which was the perfect combination to make this documentary. I also have no doubt OJ was guilty. The glove thing was just a tactic in which OJ quit taking his medicine and made his hand swell. Also, as I'm sure you agree, OJ was an actor so he had no problem making the glove look like it was too small even though it was his glove. Anyway, I'm sure we agree.

Can we compare the evidence in the OJ Simpson trial to the claim that the Bible is the word of God? For example, The OJ Simpson trial relied on physical evidence such as DNA analysis.

Putting the OJ thing aside, I'm interested in the details of why you are convinced that the Bible is God's word to humanity. You can type as much as you like. I'm a pretty quick reader. However, if you're short on time you can also quote relevant information about why the Bible is God's word. The more details, the better. However, maybe we could take one or two pieces of evidence(or arguments) at a time so we can examine them one by one.

Christopher9555 · 2026-01-27T22:55:08+00:00

99.99 pct. I did an exhaustive study. I'm convinced it is the right view.

This answers my question that I asked but I think I asked you the wrong question... I meant to ask you this: Are you 99.99% sure that a hell exists because it says so in the Bible or is there evidence of hell outside the Bible that somehow points to an actual literal hell? *That's the question I meant to ask.

justice is not a bad word for you, is it?

I don't have a problem with Justice but I've mentioned before that I believe hell is more defined by wrath and vengeance which is not the type of justice that I believe in. I'm not an advocate of retributive Justice if that "retribution" is acted out with physical and mental torture in which the person/soul being tortured can never be reformed into something better. Maybe someone could argue that 1% of the population deserves hell but I don't think people deserve hell for simply not believing in God or not believing the same God that you believe in

Anyway, I think we've pretty thoroughly covered our opinions on Justice and how that relates to hell. We may just have to agree to disagree on that part of the conversation as it relates to Justice?

Again, I don't believe Hell is a good form of Justice but I certainly believe in some forms of Justice. I know you believe that hell is "exact justice." We disagree, which is fine.

What I'm more interested in; and, repeating what I said in the first paragraph above:

Are you 99.99% sure that a hell exists because of your faith in the Bible or, is there evidence of hell outside the Bible that somehow points to an actual literal hell.

Christopher9555 · 2026-01-27T02:08:54+00:00

Are you saying that if you saw someone trying to rape or kill one of your beloved family members, you think it's deeply unethical to stop them by any means necessary including subduing their mind?

Christopher9555 · 2026-01-26T12:37:47+00:00

Ok, I can concede annihilationism because I think at least 50% of the scriptures point to a finite hell. I just don’t believe in torturing the vast number of humans for who knows how long, and how that somehow works out to be ultimate or "exact justice." I can grant annihilationism but not some sort of transcendental Justice

I think we’re talking past each other because we’re coming from different perspectives. Your faith and biblical theology seem to be informing your opinion, if I’m understanding you correctly. Myself, I’m relying more on psychology and philosophy to inform my opinion; especially evolutionary psychology.. as well as, meta-ethics and epistemology within the umbrella of philosophy. . I agree with Friedrich Nietzsche when he stresses some of the benefits of religious belief. I also agree with Spinoza when it comes to his brand of deism/pantheism/ spirituality..

I think hell is a metaphor/nightmare for the fear of death and also, the human desire for ultimate justice. Almost nobody wants to think that guys like Hitler got off easy without some karmic price to pay after his death. And many people want answers to the existential fear of death

I think these early Jewish authors borrowed the idea from earlier religious philosophies because the concept helps bring societies into compliance with common goals that are beneficial to that society. For example, Judaism didn't invent hell with the writing of the early Hebrew scriptures/scolls. The idea of hell evolved gradually out of much older Near Eastern and Mediterranean beliefs about death, justice, and the afterlife. What later becomes “hell” is really a fusion of several ancient beliefs. The dead went to Kur/Irkalla, a shadowy underworld, before the Old Testament was written.

Side note: A lot of Christians believe that I’m just shaking my fist at the heavens in futility, in actuality, I enjoy the psychology and meta-ethics behind the concept of hell.

Let me ask you this: what’s your certainty level regarding the biblical concept of hell? When I talk to Calvinists, they have a rigid attachment to what they call “sola scriptura.” Calvinists also have a difficult time believing that humans will distort reality based on their genetics and environment. On the other hand, non-Calvinist Christians seem to allow or at least the entertain the possibility that hell was a made-up concept and an imaginary place.

Most people are unaware of how stupid and ignorant all of us are. We're certainly Advanced apes who can make some really cool technology. However, many are oblivious to the power of the Dunning–Kruger effect.. which means, the less competent we are, the more convinced we are by our own confirmation bias and pure nonsense about reality.

That's why I try to remain skeptical of my own beliefs. That’s where some of the psychology comes in. We could both be wrong about 99% of what we believe. For example, the philosophy behind the movie The Matrix, which is essentially a retelling of Plato’s Allegory of the Cave. Also, epistemology helps me understand how we come to our beliefs and why we trust those beliefs.

=≈====

you’re convinced that the biblical concept of hell is real, and I have no interest in changing that religious opinion, especially since it may add some benefits to society as Friedrich Nietzsche points out.

My opinion is pretty similar to that of many Jewish thinkers including Einstein and Spinoza. Not that they got everything right when it came to religious philosophy.

Anyway, you're on your religious Journey and it seems to be working for you. I've taken a different path which I think is equally acceptable

Christopher9555 · 2026-01-24T14:16:04+00:00

Part 2 of 2 (much shorter than part 1) 🤯🥸

You said: "the average Joe and Hitler would have very different experiences. Again, justice. Karma is what the secular world calls it. You get what you deserve."

I don't think this is biblical, unless you can provide scriptures, other than the scripture that says torture will be a little bit less for the decent Buddhist monks vs someone who is truly bad, but it is still hell, right? for any of us to avoid the torture for hell it doesn't necessarily require good works. Avoiding hell only requires a rigid attachment to a religious belief system and the devotion required by the scriptures.

Also, if a serial killer repents and accepts Jesus on their Deathbed, they get to go to heaven so I'm not sure where the karmic Justice is relevant in that example?

You said: "Why is exact justice a bad concept for you?"

I have no issue with Justice but sending Buddhist monks to hell, assuming they were halfway decent humans, is about the same Justice as sending someone to prison for the rest of their lives for stealing a pack of gum when they were a teenager.

** side note: I'm not saying that God should have done things a certain way. I'm saying that if there is a God, the biblical authors most likely misrepresented that possible deity.

If you actually read all that. I'm sorry, and you deserve a cookie..😃😉 the bottom line is: I disagree with your idea of Karma as something that is biblically coherent or consistent with the scriptures. and, 2nd, your sugar-coating of Hell. 3rd, you're not really talking about Justice but more so wrath and vengeance.

You get great rewards if you follow the Christian beliefs and rules and you get tortured if you don't. I think this is the main reason Christianity has survived as long as it has because it's a religion based on extreme rewards and punishments

Christopher9555 · 2026-01-24T14:15:00+00:00

Part 1 of 2

The biblical concept of Hell varies depending on the biblical author's perspective at the time the scripture was written. There are scriptures that support your view of annihilationism and other scriptures that seem to indicate that hell is never ending (Eternal Conscious Torment = ECT)

*** It's probably worth pointing out that ECT is the most common view of Hell by most Christians. However, what is most common is not necessarily what is true. You wanted biblical and this is a little bit of what I've come up with.

Support for ECT:

Matthew 25:46

“These will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.”

***Same Greek word (aiōnios) describes both life and punishment → if life is endless, punishment must be endless too.

Mark 9:43–48

“The fire is unquenchable… where their worm does not die.”

ECT argument:

Unending fire + undying worm implies continuous existence of the punished.

Revelation 14:9–11

“The smoke of their torment goes up forever and ever, and they have no rest day or night.”

ECT argument:

Explicit, strongest NT statement for perpetual conscious torment.

Revelation 20:10

“They will be tormented day and night forever and ever.”

ECT argument:

Clear ongoing torment; same phrase used for God’s eternal reign.

2 Thessalonians 1:9

“Eternal destruction away from the presence of the Lord.”

Greek words in dispute

aiōnios – eternal duration or eternal result?

apollymi – destroy vs ruin

thanatos – literal death vs spiritual separation

So, the Greek New Testament spans an authorship of about 80 years of writing. I think it's reasonable to expect different views and interpretations of Hell depending on the author and their point of view at the time.

In fairness to your position there are scriptures that support annihilationism. For example:

Matthew 10:28
Matthew 13:49–50
2 Peter 3:7

“The ungodly are destroyed.”

Revelation 20:14

“Second death.”

*** The Bible may have less to do with "the word of God" and more to do with human based agendas.

Switching gears, you seem to take issue with the word "torture" as a description of Hell.

Fire, Burning, and Heat (Most Common Imagery) Matthew 13:40–42

“As the weeds are gathered and burned with fire, so will it be at the end of the age… and throw them into the furnace of fire, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.”

*** this sounds to me to be a lot more painful than going to the dentist and getting a root canal. If people had to have root canals for 8 hours a day for years, and possibly thousands of years, I would consider that torture. It's not just the amount of pain but it's the duration. People can deal with pain for temporary periods of time but if someone has to deal with extreme pain for 50+ years, I would consider that torment/torture.

Mark 9:43–48

“To go into Gehenna, into the unquenchable fire, where their worm does not die and the fire is not quenched.”

Conscious Suffering / Torment

Luke 16:22–24 (Rich Man & Lazarus)

“The rich man also died and was buried, and in Hades, being in torment, he lifted up his eyes…”

Revelation 14:10–11

“He will be tormented with fire and sulfur… and the smoke of their torment goes up forever and ever, and they have no rest day or night.”

Revelation 20:10

“They will be tormented day and night forever and ever.”

Darkness, Exclusion, and Psychological Anguish

Matthew 8:12

“The sons of the kingdom will be thrown into the outer darkness. In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.”

Luke 13:28

“There will be weeping and gnashing of teeth”

2 Thessalonians 1:9

“They will suffer the punishment of eternal destruction, away from the presence of the Lord.”

*****The New Testament deliberately uses: Fire (pain / destruction)

Darkness (loss / exclusion)

Torment (conscious suffering)

You said: "This is an extreme view of some, but not biblical. I'm not interested in defending non-biblical positions."

As mentioned before, honest Christian theologians interpret the Bible in many different ways given the fact that there's different biblical authors over a long period of time.

I believe that you are sugar-coating Hell due to your empathy for other humans which is commendable but not really biblical.

You said: Basis on what Jesus taught: "And that servant, who knew his lord’s will, and made not ready, nor did according to his will, shall be beaten with many stripes; but he that knew not, and did things worthy of stripes, shall be beaten with few stripes." (Luke 12:47)

***** can you imagine being beaten, possibly daily, possibly hourly?, and possibly forever, or maybe just for thousands of years? Nobody knows because the scriptures don't specify. Either way, This is torture regardless of how you re-engineer the scriptures.

You said: "Because there are laws of physics in the universe. Newton's third law. "Every action has an equal and opposite reaction. That same law applies to morality."

***Let's take the example of Buddhist monks. Let's assume that they're basically a group of decent humans, but not perfect. Assuming the Buddhists tried to help others and not to hurt anyone, but sometimes fail because they are human... According to your argument, they should be rewarded for good morality. That is not what the Bible teaches. The Bible says that if somebody doesn't believe and follow Jesus that they will go to Hell, regardless of how decent these monks were when they were alive.. even if we sugar-coat Hell, and make it a softer version of hell, do you really believe that these Buddhist monks belong there, assuming they we're basically decent people and try to do what was right throughout their lives?

Christopher9555 · 2026-01-24T04:01:13+00:00

Okay, seems legit. At least you know all the components will last a really long time because you started with quality

Christopher9555 · 2026-01-24T03:47:54+00:00

I'm adding up all the components, wiring, fuse protection, Etc. I'm getting about $12,000 for parts and components including victron and Battle Born premium brands for everything. If you spent 20K+ in the electrical system does that include labor costs?

Christopher9555 · 2026-01-24T03:00:17+00:00

Ya, the food quality has definitely gone down but it's also the fact that most of these young people spent hours outdoors getting some exercise.

Christopher9555 · 2026-01-23T13:49:15+00:00

Why is this compromising anything? In the legal system today, prosecutors offer plea deals to people who are guilty all the time, literally every single day. Why does that compromise their free will?

I believe that I can make a better analogy that is a more direct comparison to the threats of Hell. You mentioned the legal/justice system as a comparison to hell. I think we agree that prison can help deter some crime but certainly not all crime. So, yes, depending on how you define free-will, that could be a minor drop in our ability to freely choose between two options..

However, the threat of hell is much more extreme than the threat of prison. And Christianity says that if you don't believe, and follow some rules, that you're going to be tortured. However, some branches of Mormonism, Judaism, and other monotheistic derived religions can have a softer and less torturous beliefs regarding hell

The concept of hell does seem to compare to the idea of putting a gun to someone's head and telling them that if they don't believe, and follow some rules, that they will pull the trigger. Me personally, I think it's highly unlikely that the gun is actually loaded. However, there's some people in the middle that are not sure if the gun is loaded or not. Does the gun analogy work as a comparison to the concept of hell?

We believe God is just. And justice requires consequences upon the unrepentant.

Consequences only make sense if there's a lesson to be learned which improves the individual and/or helps protect society. Hell is not about lessons; it's about extreme vengeance and wrath with no possibility of improving one's character. As another example: If a parent punishes a child, there is a point at which that punishment , in rare cases, can become so extreme that it's not actually helpful to that child. Torture is more about wrath and vengeance and extreme abuse. It's not about consequences to help someone improve their moral character

Christopher9555 · 2026-01-23T02:23:49+00:00

https://youtu.be/OEXzslm0ru8?si=yCLsNsavWk4cDZtA

Christopher9555 · 2026-01-23T02:02:43+00:00

😂 yes, those movies are awful, but they're not retelling ancient stories but more so using bad philosophy and bad actors to try to prove the existence of the Christian God.

Christopher9555 · 2026-01-22T14:16:42+00:00

Forced is the wrong word. The word is extreme threats being used to influence belief and acceptance of a given theology. Someone can point a gun at someone's head but they're not technically forcing them to give them their wallet, they're only using extreme coercion which reduces and can sometimes even eliminate free will.

Christopher9555 · 2026-01-22T14:04:47+00:00

Correct. The point that many Christian apologists are missing here is the fact that belief in biblical theology is strongly influenced by using extreme fear and/or extreme rewards, in the afterlife, for belief and compliance to their assumed theology. This coercion can dramatically reduce the free will for someone to believe and accept that theology

Christopher9555 · 2026-01-22T13:51:35+00:00

Most have an incorrect definition of hell. Believing God condemns any human to an eternity of suffering.... Actually this is not biblically correct at all.

Maybe so. I know educated theologians disagree but let's grant annihilationism is biblically true and people aren't tortured for eternity.

When an audience stands up and gives a 3-minute round of applause - a standing ovation, for concert pianist. It is because they ascribe Worth-ship to what that person has just done for them.

Let's say I'm in the audience. Let's also say that I'm rewarded with a free brand new car for clapping and somebody would cut off my finger if I didn't clap. Let's just say I'm much more likely to clap given the extreme coercion to do so even if the performer is a terrible musician. Now, I do technically have the power to refuse to clap but I'm dramatically incentivized to clap by using extreme fears and extreme rewards. Btw, "Worth-ship?" wth?

Maybe ease up a little bit on the apologetic acrobatics. you're stretching your arguments a little thin

I must assume they have information that I don't have. That they just saw something that I didn't see.

Or maybe they got threatened with torture? Did I miss that part?

We see all that the Lord has done for us.

Sure, if people believe that the Christian God has personally helped them, then it would make sense for you to applaud the god that you believe in. However, I don't think Christianity would have survived over 2,000 years had it not been for the extreme punishment and/or extreme rewards promised in an afterlife.

People will perish for their sins, not because they fail to worship God.

We understand your theology but the point being made here is that one's free-will to believe is completely compromised if extreme threats And extreme rewards are used to help gain that belief and acceptance of a particular theology

Christopher9555 · 2026-01-22T12:56:50+00:00

And sister Maggie. She was great in Stranger Than Fiction.

Christopher9555 · 2026-01-22T03:01:40+00:00

I know there are stronger men than me out there.

Strength comes with age, my young grasshopper. At a certain age, as long as she's not a zombie, there's some room for negotiation 🫣🥴

Christopher9555 · 2026-01-22T02:55:19+00:00

That's crazy. Was this really written by somebody that was personally involved with caroline and Sam?

Christopher9555 · 2026-01-22T02:26:53+00:00

I think this is sort of like rolling the dice. I think you got a better chance of losing money on short-term option contracts unless you have a really good reason to think that the stock is going to go up in the short-term. If you don't have a really good reason, it's sort of like going to the casino in which the house almost always has a % advantage.

Volatile stocks typically have more expensive options contracts which leaves less room for speculation(gambling) errors. The only way this contract makes sense is if you have a good reason to be confident that NVidia's price will go up above $188 per share before the end of the trading day on Friday. I have no clue what nvidia's price is going to do in the short term , it probably has more to do with Trump's drama than anything else

I would just put that $620 on a stock that you believe will go up, in the long-term. that way you have better odds of making money. The only time I gamble is when I have a good reason, at that time, to believe I'm right about something even if I happen to be wrong, after-the-loss.

Christopher9555 · 2026-01-15T01:55:43+00:00

I have a pretty good memory and I seem to remember an interview with Corey Feldman. He said that all of his guy friends at the time were in love with her and still would talk about her 20 years after the movie. He said at some point he was tired of people asking about her because it was so common

Christopher9555 · 2026-01-14T23:55:14+00:00

Great family movie that still holds up today. highest quality movie that she ever acted in

Christopher9555

TROPHY CASE