Technically the "give something up for Lent" thing isn't a requirement. It's encouraged, as long as it's actually leading you to be a better Christian, but it isn't needed. The only requirements, in the US, are:

1. On Ash Wednesday and Good Friday, you fast from food. The minimum that counts is, basically, one meal and two snacks.
2. On every Friday of Lent and also Ash Wednesday, you abstain from eating the meat of land-dwelling animals. In the US, the bishops have said it's alright to substitute this penance with something else for the rest of the year; but during Lent, it's a requirement.

No, I just don't find much point in the "no human is illegal" thing. Nobody is saying that being a human is illegal, or that they are innately illegal. But people can be criminals. Do you prefer the term "criminal foreigner" rather than "illegal foreigner"?

Lobotomies are no longer practiced, and I am extremely thankful for that. I'd rather be in a mental hospital today than 50 years ago. 100 years ago, I'd probably be dead.

Technically, nothing. In the same way that "person who committed thievery" is a correct term for "thief." People may not be illegal, but we call them criminals all the time.

Do you prefer the term "criminal foreigners"?

Friendly reminder that Tim Walz set up a hotline for Minnesotans to report COVID violations to the government.

I have schizophrenia. It's a touchy subject, but I agree. Some of us just can't help ourselves.

A major problem is availability of care. It's common for people to have to wait months to see a psychiatrist here in the US, and it's a problem in other areas too. There just aren't enough psychiatrists to go around. But schizophrenia is the kind of illness that demands immediate treatment. It's dangerous not primarily because its subjects are violent, but because it just takes, and takes, and takes, everything it can from someone's mind until they can basically do nothing.

Medication helps, it absolutely does. But many of us refuse to take it, because of the side effects - they can make us drowsy, lethargic, dizzy, even suicidal. I once took Risperidone and it made me so unsteady on my feet that I had to walk with a cane, in my early 20s. For many the choice of whether to take meds is extremely difficult for these reasons. Not to mention the fact that many will think they're cured after taking antipsychotics for a while, stop taking them, and end up in bad situations because the illness wasn't actually cured.

It doesn't help that mental hospitals have a terrible reputation in our community. Many are scared to go to the emergency room because they think that they'll simply be drugged up by a careless doctor who isn't interested in what his "insane" patients have to say about their treatment. In some places, this is true, and that's the worst part. Nobody should have to be treated this way.

Many of us can function without living in a hospital forever. I am one such individual - I hold a good job and live on my own - and I know plenty of other people who can do the same. Some people can't, though, and that's okay. We shouldn't count all people with schizophrenia as demons to be purged, but we also shouldn't lie and say we're all perfectly independent people. We all need help, some more than others.

I highly doubt JD Vance's mother is responsible for the fentanyl crisis. /s

Dark mode activated, so...

https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/putrefaction

Have you ever opened a sack of rotten potatoes?

Fruits, vegetables, etc. are all rotting too.

From what I understand, those who research religion prefer the term "high-control group" to describe what are colloquially known as "cults." That's partly due to people calling anything they don't like a cult.

Picture two Christian denominations. One only asks its members to show up to church when they like, donate to keep the place running, and express Christ's love to each other in whatever way they see fit without placing unnecessary burdens on them. The other demands, under pain of exile, that all members spend 40 hours per month on door-to-door evangelization regardless of social disposition, only receive theology that is dictated by one specific organization, tithe 20% of their income to that organization, only allows members to be friends with others in that particular denomination, and does not allow them to drink alcohol, smoke cigarettes, use any "hard" drugs, get tattoos, or receive blood transfusions.

Most people would probably agree that the second denomination is a cult/high-control group, but using that descriptor for the first denomination would dilute the term so much that it would basically become meaningless.

A small sample of the content in Hazbin Hotel:

• There are multiple blatant sex jokes and innuendos.
• Angel Dust's pimp is physically, emotionally and sexually abusive to him.
• Sex is discussed and sometimes shown, including brief mentions/moments involving: furries, bondage, sex toys, ball gags, blindfolds, collars and chains, and other kinks.
• Gang rape is featured as is a character being chained and choked.
• Episode 4 is the most sexual. Angel Dust is shown having sex multiple times but no genitalia is shown.

How old should a person be before they're exposed to stuff like this? Because I'd sooner throw my kid's computer out the window than let him watch HH.

When I actually need to concentrate, I usually stop listening to music. When I want to get into a flow state and it isn't 100% critical I focus, it could be just about anything. This remix of the Call of Duty World at War Black Cats theme is awesome for that purpose.

This sounded more like a rhetorical question. People totally do jump the gun supporting causes they don't fully understand and use slogans simply because they're catchy. Besides, when was the last time you heard an American praised for their knowledge of geography?

If Russia doesn't want the war, they can leave. lol

I mean, if a guy posted the same stuff about Joe Biden, tried to break into the White House with a pistol, but was stopped before he could pull the trigger, would you call that an assassination attempt? I sure would - he wanted to kill the guy so he went there to do the deed. What other reason would someone have to hide in the bushes on someone else's property with a gun for 12 hours?

Dude was apparently waiting in the bushes for 12 hours. You don't do that if you're not waiting for someone or something. The Second Amendment doesn't give you the right to camp out on someone else's property with a gun.

AOC's original tweet is replying to one about Jill Stein.