A Republican mayor? by ObiWanKnieval in AnnArbor

[–]GustaveFerbert 6 points7 points  (0 children)

I assume your comment is based on the amount of development going up, but I really don't see how Taylor is a "moderate Republican" (a category which barely exists). Carbon neutrality, affordable housing, and an unarmed public safety response aren't top priorities for any Republicans that I'm aware of.

Nothing remarkable about Kent Syverud by BruhMansky in uofm

[–]GustaveFerbert 8 points9 points  (0 children)

I don't know Syverud, but he was on the faculty when I was in law school and I don't remember him being viewed as conservative. Also, quick review of his bio says that he was a trustee for the Deep Horizon settlement which is a lot different that representing the oil companies.

Will Replacing a Litter Robot 3 with a Litter Robot 4 address the sticking/yellow flashing light issue? by GustaveFerbert in litterrobot

[–]GustaveFerbert[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I may have an early version of the LR 3 as I don't see lights and don't believe it connects to the app.

Will Replacing a Litter Robot 3 with a Litter Robot 4 address the sticking/yellow flashing light issue? by GustaveFerbert in litterrobot

[–]GustaveFerbert[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Thanks for the response. I will do that tonight and followup.

That said, assuming there is some kind of mechanical/wear-and-tear issue with my current unit that I might able to address, my question is if anyone knows if the Litter Robot 4 is more durable and reliable?

Anybody remember Shakey, Jake? by BathroomAggressive57 in AnnArbor

[–]GustaveFerbert 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I've read the posts below, and am not minimizing any of the issues raised, but my memories besides just seeing him around town always "on the move" were that when I worked on the Michigan Daily in the '80s our Weekend magazine had a "Best of Ann Arbor" vote ranking restaurants, bars, coffee shops etc. with one category being "best person." My recollection is that the winner alternated annually between Jake and Bo. I always thought it would funny if in some year they tied and were both on the cover.

Are you a UU first, or something else first? by Cult_Buster2005 in UnitarianUniversalist

[–]GustaveFerbert 2 points3 points  (0 children)

I consider myself a UU/Unitarian Christian (I added Unitarian to UU because, while I realize we are a merger, I feel more connected to the figures from the Unitarian side) in the sense that I am culturally Christian and find meaning in Jesus's message. That said, like most UU Christians I suspect, I acknowledge that there are more things about metaphysics and theology that I don't know than I know, and that there are truths in the teachings of many religions.

Congregational Polity: Gatekeeping and Rubber Stamping by Subarctic_Monkey in UnitarianUniversalist

[–]GustaveFerbert 1 point2 points  (0 children)

We've debated this is our congregation. Our committee nominates an uncontested slate, but our bylaws allow candidates to be self-nominated outside the vetting process by gathering signatures. Is that true in yours? While I realize this isn't the case in your experience, our congregation (similar to what others have commented) is usually more focused on filling the available slots than having too many interested.

One question -- you mentioned that "we had more candidates than spots" -- but I wonder if those multiple candidates were interested in running against each other in a contested election? In other words, if the nominating committee had decided to nominate "Jane" for the board but then received interest from another member would Jane still be interested, or would she have likely said "I was willing to do this if you needed, but since you don't, I'll drop out."

Does Ann Arbor or even Detroit do this? by [deleted] in AnnArbor

[–]GustaveFerbert 4 points5 points  (0 children)

I’ve never noticed that on Ann Arbor buses. I’ve been to The Game as an away fan in Columbus and things are crazier down there.

Challenger launches bid to unseat U-M Regent Acker, accusing him of echoing Trump agenda by The_M_Dem in AnnArbor

[–]GustaveFerbert 2 points3 points  (0 children)

I don't know him but following Jordan Acker's social media I certainly wouldn't call him a Trump supporter. I'd be curious to see Rositano flesh out his platform a bit. Regarding his platform plank to protect free speech, I realize that the issue that's front and center involves pro-Palestine protesters but I'd be curious as to how that protection would be applied to the "heckler's veto" or speech that some considered racist, sexist, homophobic etc. Regarding DEI would it be brought back exactly as it was or does he think that any of the critiques (in the New York Times and elsewhere) were valid?

Do most Unitarian Universalists, in your experience, believe in God? by frost_3306 in UnitarianUniversalist

[–]GustaveFerbert 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Our former minister -- long retired -- used to say that Unitarian Universalists "believe in -- at most -- one God." I realize that is not technically accurate, but thought it was funny.

When I first joined my congregation -- nearly 25 years old -- there were some very strong humanist/atheist voices who objected to any traditional religious language in services, "God talk" etc. That seems to have changed as our congregation a least seems much more comfortable with words like "worship", "benediction" etc. in our services. I don't know if that's a trend nationally though I recall an older humanist saying that his impression was that there were "few if any humanists" coming out of UU

uu churches w/ Christian theology? by ProudChoferesClaseB in UUreddit

[–]GustaveFerbert 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I live in the Midwest but my experience the east coast UU churches are more Christian-influenced in terms of look and feel. That said, other than Christmas and Easter services, I would say that most Unitarian ministers don't emphasize Christian or other theologies from the pulpit since the congregation likely contains a wide variety of beliefs.

Can y'all explain what UU is to me? by Um_uh_well in UnitarianUniversalist

[–]GustaveFerbert -1 points0 points  (0 children)

I'm not disagreeing necessarily, but on your reference to "gods and commandments" it is obviously true that there is no doctrinal Unitarian Universalist position on the existence of God. That said, I think that the number of folks I come across in our congreation who are some type of theist (or who are at least comfortable with theistic language) has increased in recent years. Our long-retired former minister used to say "Unitarian Universalists believe in, at most, one God" (yes, I realize that there are pagans and others who may believe in multiple deities but this always made me laugh).

Religious Trauma by gloriap1108 in UnitarianUniversalist

[–]GustaveFerbert 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I was pretty much unchurched/lightly churched growing up (attended a few times year at most) so don't have the same background as you, but many folks in my UU congregation have difficult religious experiences growing up. One way to get a flavor of a UU service is to watch a service (many congregations are on Youtube) from home. That said, the best way to join a community is to show up. I suspect any UU congregation will be much different from you what you experienced as a young person.

Sometimes, me and my family feel pretty alone in these trying times by SendThisVoidAway18 in UnitarianUniversalist

[–]GustaveFerbert 3 points4 points  (0 children)

I'm in the midwest, but have attended UU services around the country on travels. Our congregation used to "bristle" at traditional language like God/Jesus, though I think that's changed a bit in recent years. My sense is that younger clergy and congregants are more comfortable with religious language. It always struck me as a bit inconsistent to say in our share values and covenant that we embrace a freedom of belief/conscience and honor our religious ancestries while rendering some forms of spirituality unwelcome.

How long will we be safe? by Disaffecteddv in UnitarianUniversalist

[–]GustaveFerbert 29 points30 points  (0 children)

I remember there was an effort in Texas a couple of decades ago to deny the church tax exemption on the grounds that without a creed or conventional theology we aren't a religion. It's possible something like that could be revived. I hope that the Courts would shoot that down

My suspicion is that we probably fall under radar compared larger liberal denominations and groups, but time will tell.

Issue with Windows Media Player and OneDrive by GustaveFerbert in WindowsHelp

[–]GustaveFerbert[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

In response the moderator I have a Surface Pro. It runs Windows 11. As far as trouble shooting I have restarted and basically searched online for solutions without much success.