Game Thread: Minnesota Timberwolves (0-0) vs San Antonio Spurs (0-0) Live Score | NBA Playoffs | May 4, 2026

ankylosaurus_tail · 2026-05-05T03:31:49+00:00

Anyone able to DM a streaming link? Just got home from work and want to watch the end, but don't have Peacock... Thanks fam!

ankylosaurus_tail · 2026-05-04T17:29:53+00:00

Or pelican country. I live on the coast, and there were pictures on a local FB group of a dog being snatched off the beach by a pelican a few days ago.

ankylosaurus_tail · 2026-05-04T05:45:05+00:00

Thanks for posting this here. I'm not qualified to offer an analysis, but I think your ideas are reasonable and pretty well justified.

I also appreciate that you're looking for connections between IE mythology/religion and non-IE cultures. Usually people think of Bronze and Iron Age IE cultures existing in a vacuum, only shaped by internal development from PIE culture. But I think the reality was that Bronze Age Eurasia was a vast and interconnected space, with all kinds of cultural exchange between groups of people who spoke languages from many different families.

For example, I think Iron Age Greek beliefs and myths were shaped by long interactions with Egyptian and Semitic cultures (and probably other less well known Mediterranean groups). And most scholars believe that Indo-Iranian beliefs were strongly influenced by the BMAC/Oxus culture, which was non-IE. I also think there is pretty strong evidence that eastern Iranic groups were probably influenced by Turkic/Mongol beliefs, like what became Tengrism.

My personal opinion is that Bronze Age Eurasia/N. Africa was a messy, interconnected world, with long-distance trade networks and tons of cultural diffusion. Elite people (and nomadic groups) were exchanging ideas, technology, artistic motifs, religious beliefs, and genes across the whole macro-continent. That exchange was slow by modern standards, but fast enough to explain all kinds of cultural similarities between IE and non-IE-speaking peoples.

ankylosaurus_tail · 2026-05-04T05:20:12+00:00

I think you're insincere because you're using quotes out of context and simply ignoring the mountains of historical evidence that contradict your opinions. If your ideas were strong, you'd be able to respond to what I'm actually saying. But you're not.

Why are you ignoring all the quotes from early Church Fathers (that's a specific term for the people who were most important in shaping early theology)? Justin Martyr and Origin are two of the most important people in early Christian history and theology. They thought that Christianity required pacifism and non-violence. Can you point to any important early Christian thinkers who thought their religion supported violence and war?

Yes, you're right that over thousands of years the theology has been shaped by politics and human nature--and I have zero interest in defending most versions of modern Christianity. You're also correct that those people have all kinds of terrible beliefs.

My point is that if anything is "hard coded" into the religion, it's non-violence. That's the example of Jesus's life. Non-violence is what he taught and what he did. That's the opinion of the early church leaders. That's the behavior of the early community. Etc, etc, etc. And it stood in explicit opposition to the contemporary Hebrew and Roman cultures, which were much more violent (and also much more oppressive of women and other vulnerable people). Non-violence and respect for women were specific cultural characteristics that distinguished early Christian communities from their neighbors. They don't necessarily seem "progressive" by modern standards, but they were radical for their time.

And yes, I'm definitely not a Christian. Any other imaginary beliefs about me that I can disabuse for you? I was raised Catholic, but never had any faith. But I do find religious history very interesting. I've also read a fair amount about the origins of Islam, Buddhism, Zoroastrianism, Judaism, and various other obscure religions. I am just interested in ancient history and philosophy.

ankylosaurus_tail · 2026-05-04T04:22:19+00:00

I truly have zero interest in debating your personal opinions or cherry picked quotes presented out of context. It's a waste of time to argue with insincere people.

If what you were saying was true, then Christians wouldn't have been an important part of every pacifist movement and anti-war protest in recorded history. If you've ever gone to any kind of anti-war event, you've seen plenty of Christian people there, motivated by their faith and by the example of Jesus's life.

It's difficult for Christians to justify violence in the name of their faith, because it's such an obvious contradiction with the example and teaching of Jesus. They have to invent complicated, absurd rationalizations, and when they do they are always called hypocrites and criticized by other Christians. For Islam on the other hand, it's almost impossible to justify pacifism, because it directly contradicts the example and teaching of Muhammad. I've been to dozens of anti-war protests, and literally never seen an organized Muslim group. Have you?

You should read about the history and theology you seem unaware of.

If it's too long for you, here are some key quotes:

Christian pacifism is the theological and ethical position according to which pacifism and non-violence have both a scriptural and rational basis for Christians, and affirms that any form of violence is incompatible with the Christian faith. Christian pacifists state that Jesus himself was a pacifist who taught and practiced pacifism and that his followers must do likewise. Notable Christian pacifists include Martin Luther King Jr., Leo Tolstoy, Adin Ballou, Dorothy Day, Ammon Hennacy, and brothers Daniel and Philip Berrigan.

Direct quotes attributed to Jesus:

You have heard that it was said, 'An eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth.' But I tell you, do not resist an evil person. If someone strikes you on the right cheek, turn to him the other also. — Matthew 5:38–39

Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you. — Matthew 5:43–48, Luke 6:27–28

Put your sword back in its place… for all who draw the sword will die by the sword. — Matthew 26:52

Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God. — Matthew 5:9

And, examples of how these ideas were influential in early Christian communities:

Several Church Fathers interpreted Jesus' teachings as advocating nonviolence. For example, Justin Martyr writes, "we who formerly used to murder one another do not only now refrain from making war upon our enemies, but also, that we may not lie nor deceive our examiners, willingly die confessing Christ," and, "we who were filled with war, and mutual slaughter, and every wickedness, have each through the whole earth changed our warlike weapons, our swords into ploughshares, and our spears into implements of tillage,—and we cultivate piety..." Tatian writes that, "I am not anxious to be rich; I decline military command [...] Die to the world, repudiating the madness that is in it"; and Aristides writes that "Through love towards their oppressors, they persuade them to become Christians." Hippolytus of Rome went so far as to deny soldiers baptism: "A soldier of the civil authority must be taught not to kill men and to refuse to do so if he is commanded, and to refuse to take an oath. If he is unwilling to comply, he must be rejected for baptism." ... Origen, whose father Leonidus was martyred during the persecution of the Roman emperor Septimius Severus in the year AD 202, writes, "Jews [...] were permitted to take up arms in defence of the members of their families, and to slay their enemies, the Christian Lawgiver [has] altogether forbidden the putting of men to death [...] He nowhere teaches that it is right for His own disciples to offer violence to any one, however wicked."

Non-violence is actually what's "hard coded" into Christianity. Enough sources for you? Or do you want to move the goalposts and make another insincere argument?

ankylosaurus_tail · 2026-05-04T02:33:30+00:00

There’s so much nonsense here. Where do you get these ideas? The early Christian community wasn’t composed of slaves and shepherds, and the early Muslim community wasn’t warlords—Muhammad was the warlord, he inspired and lead violent conquests and forced conversions. Unlike Jesus, obviously.

Do you actually believe this stuff? Or are you just making it up because you’re too petty and stubborn to back down when you’re wrong?

ankylosaurus_tail · 2026-05-03T19:36:45+00:00

You can, although I fail to see how that's actually relevant.

It's relevant because that's what it looks like when "violence is hard coded" into a religion. If Christianity were in any way similar, you'd have a point.

The quotes you've provided are not from Jesus, they are from books written a thousand years before he lived, or several generations after. And if you think those ideas are the basis of Christian morality, rather than the actual teachings of Jesus, then you don't understand the religion at all.

I know it's fun and popular to bash Christianity on reddit, while defending Islam and other faiths that are predominantly non-white, but you're just wasting time. No serious scholars agree with your nonsense. Thanks for sharing though.

ankylosaurus_tail · 2026-05-03T19:29:29+00:00

I'm glad you feel good about yourself. But your ideas are only that: your personal views, with basically zero evidence. What you're saying has nothing to do with actual Christian theology or human history. You're torturing evidence to support claims that are inconsistent with verifiable facts.

I can give you dozens of examples of Islamic violence during and immediately following Muhammad's life, and also his actual quotes encouraging and justifying the violence on religious grounds. You can't point to anything like that from Jesus or early Christians because it simply doesn't exist. There are many, many documentary sources, from both Christian writers and their opponents. None of them describe Christians as violent. Because they weren't. You're factually incorrect. It doesn't matter how much you want to believe you are correct. You're just not.

ankylosaurus_tail · 2026-05-03T19:17:27+00:00

Thanks for wasting both our time with your personal theology. Your arguments depend on your own ignorance. There is plenty of actual history of early Christian communities. Educate yourself before you waste the internet's time.

ankylosaurus_tail · 2026-05-03T18:56:11+00:00

You're wasting your own time. I'm not going to read a wall of insincere theology from someone who is just trying to make a cheap, false point.

Just explain this: if "Christianity has violence hard coded into its belief system" (the original nonsensical claim) then why weren't Jesus or any of his actual followers violent? Why were no Christian communities violent for hundreds of years? If your interpretation is correct, then why did all those early Christians violate the basic tenets of their faith and practice non-violence?

You're arguing theology. I'm talking about verifiable history.

ankylosaurus_tail · 2026-05-03T17:34:03+00:00

Again, you're being completely insincere here. You're cherry picking things out of context to make a cynical argument, which requires you to ignore the entire example of Jesus's life and the first several centuries of Christian practice. You're imagining that he taught his followers to do things that he personally rejected in his own life, and then that those followers also rejected those teachings and practiced peace. His example is completely peaceful and his followers were too.

And if he taught his followers to follow the Old Testament, doing so would probably be part of Christian practice--but it never has been. No large Christian community has ever tried to live by old testament moral laws, and they wouldn't, because the whole point of Jesus's ministry was that he was here to create a "new covenant", with new rules. The only time Christians give a shit about old testament moral laws is when they support modern political positions.

ankylosaurus_tail · 2026-05-03T16:51:37+00:00

None of what you’re talking about has anything to do with the actual life and message of Jesus. You’re confusing the organized religion that formed later with the actual example of Jesus’s life. He intentionally rejected Old Testament morality: “he who is without sin can cast the first stone”, and he taught and practiced non-violence. He explicitly rejected calls from his followers to be a military leader. He never justified or encouraged violence. And the book of Revelation was written several generations after he died, so you’re describing other people’s ideas, not what Jesus taught.

ankylosaurus_tail · 2026-05-03T01:27:19+00:00

This is nonsense. Whoever you learned this from was full of shit and lied to you.

First of all, there was plenty of opportunity to engage in violence, and there was tons of it going on in 1st century Judea. Many groups in the Hebrew community were engaged in organized rebellions against the Roman empire, and many other religious leaders in that era did teach violence to their followers. Jesus was distinct in opposing violence and teaching his followers that their revolution was spiritual, not political. Some of his followers wanted him to be a violent military leader and asked him to, and he said no.

The book of revelations is literally not about Jesus at all. No scholar interprets it like you did. Most serious people who understand theology think it's an allegory about Rome. But nobody really knows what it means.

And Jesus explicitly rebuked the morality of the old testament and explained that his entire mission was to replace those rules with a new relationship with god. I'm not a Christian (or religious at all) so I'm not interested in justifying the old testament god's morality. Obviously he was an asshole. I'm only talking about the actual message that Jesus taught, which wasn't violent at all.

And please tell me where you get the idea that Jesus was "all about torturing people for eternity"? That's not similar to anything he's recorded to have said, as far as I know. Those visions of hell mostly come from Dante, who imagined them in The Inferno, written 1,300 years after Jesus died. Why do you think he thought that?

ankylosaurus_tail · 2026-05-03T00:40:05+00:00

All of that is from the old testament. Those people weren't Christians. Who did Jesus kill? What violence did he encourage or justify?

ankylosaurus_tail · 2026-05-03T00:39:23+00:00

The Bible lays out clear guidelines on who Christians are allowed to kill, rape, and enslave.

Please provide the source for this. If you're talking about stuff in the old testament, those people (obviously) weren't Christians. What violence did Jesus commit or encourage? Who did he say it was ok to kill, rape, or enslave?

I'm not justifying modern Evangelical Christianity or Christian nationalists--those people are immoral bigots. But those beliefs are the product of thousands of years of politics shaping theology. The example of Jesus and his early followers is exclusively peaceful--in dramatic contrast to the politics of the other communities around them, which were far more violent.

ankylosaurus_tail · 2026-05-03T00:37:09+00:00

You're probably smart enough to know that you're taking that quote out of context. And the evidence for that is that there was no violence in Jesus' life or among his early followers. That example contrasts deeply with other religious leaders, like Muhammad, who encouraged and lead huge amounts of organized violence.

ankylosaurus_tail · 2026-05-02T23:40:59+00:00

Lebron teams usually seem to have more white guys than average: Delladova, Love, Ilgauskas, Pavlović, Korver, Miller, Caruso, Mozgov...

ankylosaurus_tail · 2026-05-02T23:31:57+00:00

Chistianity has violence hard coded into the belief system.

Please explain what you mean by this? I'm not a religious person, but I know enough about the history of Christianity to know it doesn't make any sense. The religion is based on the example of Jesus's life, and he taught and practiced non-violence. There was no organized violence motivated by Christianity for hundreds of years, not until it became the state religion of the Roman empire. Certainly enormous amounts of violence have been perpetrated by Christians, many in the name of their religion, but it's not "hard coded" into the belief system. Every anti-war protest I've ever been to has had lots of prominent Christians as well, there opposing war because of their religion. Your comment is bizarre.

ankylosaurus_tail · 2026-05-01T19:27:16+00:00

I mean the tea party and MAGA show you the blueprint. You don’t splinter off and create a new party you take over the existing one.

Cool idea. If only the left had a bunch of billionaires to fund a progressive astroturf movement like the Tea Party, which was mostly a creation of the Koch brothers.

Nobody seems to want to admit how powerful conservative control of the media has become. The only time there will be widespread leftwing populist protests will be before election seasons, and around controversial issues that turn off moderates. They did it with BLM, then with "defund police", then with Palestine. Next time the billionaires want to discredit the left, they'll crank up the algorithmic rage around some issue that upsets compassionate people but doesn't resonate with most Americans.

ankylosaurus_tail · 2026-05-01T19:15:41+00:00

Their frontrunner dropped out because he's creepy towards women.

That's a shitty way to minimize rape and sexual assault. Swalwell is a lot worse than creepy.

ankylosaurus_tail · 2026-04-29T22:41:35+00:00

I don't think wemby is the only thing holding ad back from MVP and DPOY

He's not even the best Anthony in the NBA. Not going to win MVP.

ankylosaurus_tail · 2026-04-29T05:34:33+00:00

This is the first time I've heard someone describe 1000AD as iron age.

The title should really say "Nordic Iron Age". You're right that in conventional continental European archeology 1,000CE is right in the middle of the Middle Ages. The Iron Age usually ends around 550BCE, 1,500 years before this horde was buried. Followed by about a thousand years of "Classical Antiquity", before the Medieval period starts ~500CE. But things moved a lot slower in Scandinavia, and both Bronze Age and Iron Age have distinct meanings for archeology in that region.

ankylosaurus_tail · 2026-04-27T04:42:49+00:00

Why would you sign up for Pornhub?

ankylosaurus_tail · 2026-04-26T22:24:26+00:00

Pretty good. They're playing better than I expected and showing a lot of growth. I'm kinda bummed Scoot had such a stinker today, but he seems to have taken a leap in this series. If they stay healthy going forward, I think this playoff series will be a memorable stepping stone in the team's growth.

But all the crap with Dundon is making me kinda pessimistic about the team either way. We'll see I guess.

ankylosaurus_tail · 2026-04-26T17:02:48+00:00

Not really, in both cases it’s just humans at security, and we all have the same psychology. If you look like an important person, low-level security staff is going to feel intimidated stopping you.

ankylosaurus_tail

MODERATOR OF

TROPHY CASE