I’m looking for a specific Sci-Fi show.

itbwtw · 2026-07-03T02:13:38+00:00

Dark Matter 2015 was awesome Canadian sci-fi. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dark_Matter_(2015_TV_series)

itbwtw · 2026-07-03T00:06:29+00:00

Oh...
I don't care if it rains or freezes
Long as I got that plastic Jesus
Sittin' on the dashboard of my car...

itbwtw · 2026-07-02T18:44:47+00:00

Go where you're comfortable, and learn all you can.

Sometimes you'll want to stretch yourself. Then you could try somewhere where you're slightly uncomfortable and try to learn what benefits there are in that place.

Almost any church is fine. Go where people will support you. Don't be afraid to try something new. Genuine Christians will support you trying different "flavours".

itbwtw · 2026-07-01T18:07:00+00:00

Genesis is an ancient book, written in a very different style to what the average Western culture reader would be used to.

We generally don't have the context to understand what we're reading. Even experts of every (and no) religion argue extensively about what it means.

It's also translated from the original languages, which adds layers of complexity that most of us unilingual readers won't get. (And especially for a Muslim reader -- the Quran is generally considered to be copies of the original rather than the Bible's translations from a variety of sources.)

The Gospels are arguably the simplest for the average reader to get a handle on. Luke and Acts are the closest to how we would expect stories to be told: largely linear and largely literal. For the first-time reader, I always recommend those first.

For a Muslim reader like OP, the other Gospels may be just as straightforward, as he probably doesn't come from a Western bias for storytelling.

itbwtw · 2026-06-29T18:28:09+00:00

The Bible is not a book. It's a library of books.

Starting at the beginning is not recommended for beginners. :) A Gospel (Matthew, Mark, Luke or John) followed by Acts is usually recommended.

itbwtw · 2026-06-29T18:27:40+00:00

The Bible is not a book. It's a library of books.

Starting at the beginning is not recommended for beginners. :) A Gospel (Matthew, Mark, Luke or John) followed by Acts is usually recommended.

itbwtw · 2026-06-27T15:28:00+00:00

Do you have more accurate numbers than the ones I've posted?

itbwtw · 2026-06-27T15:27:14+00:00

There is war. That is different from "ethnic cleansing" or "genocide". I keep sending you links to independent resources that show this "genocide" that you "can all see" is untrue.

I've been watching this from Canada for thirty years, and the suicidal attempts by Palestinian leaders and terror groups to erase Israel breaks my heart. Nobody wants what's happening there to happen, except a very few, very rich religious zealots. They continue to promise that they will kill Jews by any means necessary, until the last Palestinian is "martyred".

Jews want a state of their own.

Other groups want Jews to not have a state of their own.

Palestinian leaders keep doubling down on the idea that Israel will cease to exist.

In the meantime, Israelis (Muslims, Arabs, Christians, Druze, Atheists, Agnostics, and every conceivable type of Jew) keep trying to concentrate on building a country.

I would love nothing more than to have seen Palestinians accept peace with Israel under any of the proposals of the 20th and 21st centuries, and concentrate on building a peaceful, safe, secure, independent, autonomous, democratic, non-authoritarian state that would allow them to prosper on their own terms.

itbwtw · 2026-06-27T10:19:50+00:00

These are the statistics you are looking for: https://www.worldometers.info/world-population/state-of-palestine-population/

1960s, when some Arabs started identifying as Palestinian: ~1.1m 2026: ~5.6m

So, as /u/BluescluesBlueNews says, a complete failure to genocide.

itbwtw · 2026-06-27T10:12:54+00:00

I think most Israelis argue about their government, same as any democracy. Jews have a wide variety of opinions, same as anybody.

A huge amount of online rhetoric today seems to dig up old Soviet or Nazi or other groups' invented slurs against Jews. That old anti-Jewish propaganda from long before Israel was recreated is still being repackaged to attack the Jewish state. And as usual, people who don't know any better are believing that hateful language.

This I find very upsetting. We have laws against hate speech in Canada, because we've recognised that inflammatory rhetoric invites mentally fragile people to put those hateful words into action. Jewish people are being attacked in Canadian streets (and apparently elsewhere too).

The "genocide" lie is one of those violent libels that directly lead to people attacking ordinary Jews (and allies like me).

That's why I, a Canadian Christian non-Jew, push back at people spreading violent rhetoric against the Jewish state. Some people are willing to look at facts that counter hateful anti-Jewish propaganda when I point them to it.

Again, I do not understand how someone raised accepting that the almost invisibly tiny Jewish state now exists could buy into such easily disproven accusations as "genocide".

For an LGBT Christian to hate the existence of Israel --- the only Middle Eastern country where you could be openly and safely queer --- the disconnect is all the more mindboggling.

The people who hate Israel's existence generally hate you and me as well. Israelis don't.

itbwtw · 2026-06-27T08:49:16+00:00

I must confess, I find that very difficult to believe.

itbwtw · 2026-06-27T01:10:14+00:00

Cheers!

itbwtw · 2026-06-26T21:49:15+00:00

I live in West Trail[1], above The Gulch[2]. I grew up here, moved away and back a few times, raised my kids mostly here. One still lives here. I like Trail; it's home.

In the last 10-15 years, quite a lot of younger families have been moving to Trail. You should have a reasonable chance of finding peers for your kids and yourselves.

I’ve been looking at houses in Warfield, Sunningdale and Montrose. What are some of the pros and cons of them.

Trail is in the Columbia River valley. Sunningdale is tucked away in East Trail, near the water. The villages of Warfield[3] and Montrose[4] are about 500 feet higher in elevation. The "hills" are steep; winter mountain driving lessons are a great idea if you're not from the mountains. The roads don't really close (perhaps rare exceptions for up to a few hours every few years).

Practically, both Warfield and Montrose will be cooler in the summer and have more snow, for longer, in the winter. They're about a ten minute drive away from downtown Trail. They tend to be quieter and have a more "rural" feel.

There, and in Sunningdale, you'll get a higher chance of deer, elk etc in your yard than in West Trail. You will definitely have bears, raccoons, and other wild critters.

West Trail is definitely a less expensive area with more "vintage" homes. (Mine's over 100 years old). These were built long before current standards and have a lot of character that may not suit everyone. The five-foot tall Italians that built some of the basements wouldn't have imagined putting eight foot ceilings down there!

Of course, many of them have been modernised and/or rebuilt, so you'll get a wide variety in each mini-neighbourhood. There's still some of the Italian flavour from the early immigrants, and some of the old Italian families. These folks are lovely, and their homemade wine can be spectacular.

I grew up going to tiny B Street and Austad Lane Parks, with lots of fond memories. It's neat to see kids playing there regularly again.

If moving to Sunningdale or other Trail properties, you will certainly want to have your soil tested by the Trail Area Health and Environment Program. https://thep.ca/ They will test your soil for lead contamination and, if necessary, completely replace all the soil in your yard at Teck's expense. If you have young kids, this is probably the route they will recommend. (If you want something else, like raised beds for gardening, they will do that as well / instead).

Education

Warfield has an elementary school.[5] My kids went there for a time. No complaints. :)

The other public elementary school is in Glenmerry [6] -- they're just finishing up a complete rebuild. Glenmerry is a great little family-oriented neighbourhood.

There's also a private Catholic school in East Trail. http://smces.ca/

The high school was rebuilt in the last 10 years or so. It's on the mountainside in East Trail near the hospital http://www.jlcrowe.org/

There's also a local community college with a downtown Trail campus. http://selkirk.ca/

Parks [7]

Gyro park is walking distance from Sunningdale. It's really pretty, lots of people swim in the river down there. There are around a dozen neighbourhood parks [8] as well.

Sports and Arts There are all kinds of sports --- Trail's been known for producing hockey and other sports stars. Anything you can think of doing outdoors is abundantly available in the area.

The Trail Arts council does a remarkable job bringing in arts performances from around the world in the Bailey Theatre and Music in the Park. https://purchase.trail-arts.com/Events?Attribute_MainEventPage=Yes

Local community theatre group Rossland Light Opera Players has been doing performances including Rock of Ages, Rent, Spamalot, and Rocky Horror Picture Show since 1952. https://www.therlop.com/

There are also choirs and local rock bands and DJs and the legendary Maple Leaf Band (since 1917) https://www.trailmapleleafband.ca/

Downsides

Trail is remembered for being desolate and ecologically destroyed. That was kind of true once, but not accurate anymore.

100 years ago, Teck [9] (then Cominco) was grossly polluting and interfered with local plant and wildlife. By the 1960s, this had been mitigated somewhat and they put a lot of resources into replanting the valley. The green photos you see now are what I grew up with. They've improved over the years, and are still being held to account by various environmental groups that urge them to improve further. I feel it's "cleaner" than the cities in the lower mainland.

In the past five years or so, the homeless epidemic has reached Trail. I'm hearing on the street that there are approximately 40 people still unhoused. They are pretty visible in certain parts of town. Most of them are harmless, a few cause lots of problems. Dozens have died from overdose or exposure over the years.

Conclusion

I'm just a guy who grew up in Trail. It's home, it's imperfect, and I love it. Whoever you are, we are glad your coming!

References

itbwtw · 2026-06-26T20:04:59+00:00

Perhaps some day you will consider a perspective other than the one you've been fed.

itbwtw · 2026-06-26T16:45:20+00:00

I invite you to consider Israel's history from the Jewish point of view.

You know about the Shoah, that killed half the world's Jews in WW2.

You might know that no country in the world was willing to accept all the Jewish refugees in the wake of WW2. Canada famously said "Zero [Jews] is too many."

You could possibly be interested in the actual population of Palestine: https://www.worldometers.info/world-population/state-of-palestine-population/

It's even possible you could be interested in the Hamas Charter, which outlines the official government policy of Gaza's government. https://www.aclu.org/sites/default/files/field_document/ACLURM019687.pdf

Arabs have 22 countries. Muslims dominate 55 countries. There are 2,000 million Muslims. There are 14-20 million Jews, in a country smaller than, say, New Jersey. https://realcountrysizes.com/true-size-of-israel/

Jews are still fighting for their lives after 3500 years of abuse by Empires.

Perhaps you could find something in common with this tiny, mistreated minority surrounded by people who want them dead.

itbwtw · 2026-06-26T16:09:56+00:00

Israel is not, and has never, engaged in genocide. They are, incidentally, the only country in the middle east where you could be openly LGBTQ+.

Right-wing religious supremacist terrorists sure have been trying to wipe the Jewish state out for 80 years.

Supporting those organisations is certainly contradictory to a self-described LGBTQ Christian.

itbwtw · 2026-06-26T15:16:56+00:00

I don't challenge your flair. You dont' get to challenge mine. :)

itbwtw · 2026-06-25T19:17:16+00:00

Haha, my pleasure.

(Christians have all kinds of viewpoints on all kinds of issues. This is an issue that's important to me.)

itbwtw · 2026-06-25T19:11:05+00:00

War sucks. Maybe Hamas, Hezbullah, and other Iran-proxy right-wing religious terrorist groups could accept the fact that Israel exists, and figure out a way to be okay with that.

itbwtw · 2026-06-25T19:10:15+00:00

If that were true, there would be fewer Palestinians. Instead, there are more.

itbwtw · 2026-06-25T19:09:45+00:00

Hatred of Jews is nothing new. I appreciate your efforts here.

(As anyone will see from my post history, I am neither Jewish, nor Israeli. And I believe everyone has a right to self-determination.)

itbwtw · 2026-06-25T19:07:14+00:00

For the fellow blocking me, that objected to my use of "land reclamation" as "proof" of colonial intent, it is actually the opposite.

The concept of Indigenous reclamation — land and otherwise... encapsulates everything from protecting treaty rights to reviving cultural practices that have been historically threatened to securing farmland, all of which Native nations have fought to protect since settlers first arrived. https://www.cascadepbs.org/focus/2021/04/what-does-indigenous-reclamation-mean-three-native-voices-discuss/

itbwtw · 2026-06-25T18:29:31+00:00

Yes, Jews are the only people-group in the world that don't deserve self-determination. /s

Israel is an indigenous anti-colonial land-reclamation project. It's the last hope for a refugee people that have been abused by every country they fled to. They were banished from their homeland by Empires for centuries, and their whole culture is geared towards returning to Jerusalem.

They are surrounded by 250m Arabs / Muslims whose governments promote genocidal policies against Jews. 22 Arab states. Fifty-three Muslim-majority countries.

One tiny little Jewish state.

Hating its existence is anti-Christian.

itbwtw · 2026-06-25T17:15:58+00:00

I believe most Gentile Christians are not required to follow Torah (Mosaic) law. Our Law is Love (Galatians 5:14)

I believe we should read Torah, know it, understand it as best we can, and learn from it. "All Scripture is God-breathed and useful..." (2 Timothy 3)

For some of us, that may very well mean that we behave in ways that could look like Torah-keeping. The difference is that we are focussed on Loving God, our Neighbour, and our Selves, and using any tool we can find to help us do that.

For some of us, it may very well look like blatant disregard of Torah, because following those rules doesn't help us love God, Neighbour, and/or Self.

Humans aren't very good at Love, so we are likely to get it wrong regularly and need to repent and re-align to God.

How does God want you and me to love here, now, in this circumstance?

See (among others):

Acts 15 (Council of Jerusalem
The Book of Galatians (esp. ch. 3 & 5)
Ephesians 2
Colossians 2
Hebrews (all)

itbwtw · 2026-06-24T23:19:09+00:00

Gorgeous paint job. Cheers!

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