C T

No idea what those neat looking characters mean, nor what your intention is in using them. That hallmark pink rolling head is quite entertaining lol

I think both can be harmonised to great effect because these two traditions share a lot in common, although each have their own way of expressing the ineffable. So, its a question of resonance, or, better yet, affinity. The end goal of both is similar but expressed differently. This similarity, I believe, gets more refined and the convergence clarifies as the practice matures towards fruition. Of course some would disagree, and thats quite understandable. Many lay Buddhists that I know incorporate Taoist as well as Confucian wisdoms into their daily lives, and vice versa. But where I am is quite unique in terms of intertwined traditions among the Asian populace. Its just a quirk of this multi-racial country. Its quite common here for Buddhists to venerate/worship/accept teachings at Taoist temples, and for Taoists to do the same at Buddhist ones. Maybe my view is very much informed (and perhaps even biased) by this wonderful melting pot of cross-tradition admixture.

Whats the degree of his fakeness, in your opinion? And whats the criteria you're using to qualify your opinion? Which guru have you personally certified as authentic? This is important to know, for obvious reasons. Lol

Amazing! Lol

So now that you've answered for both Walker & yourself and found the exchange amusing, perhaps even feeling a bit chuffed and self-congratulatory (as per the tone in the above post indicates) at your smug comebacks and strong winning attitude, there's little left to be said. Thanks for affirming that being right is extremely vital to you. You'd wrestle this position at any expense, regardless of opinions. Whereas my approach to life has in the main been one where nothing is what it seems, and there's no positions that will be absolutely right or wrong, and I have tried to carry this into my exchanges with others as much as I can, but sometimes there's bound to be unavoidable situations where this can be misunderstood as a weakness. Being aware of this, I will know well to steer clear of future dialogues here and elsewhere. I have more urgent matters to attend to. Thanks for the insight all the same.

Lol I was wondering when you couldn't resist to poke your nosey self in here

Running out of patience then? Or is it your sense of self-righteousness coming to the fore now? How many times in exchanges with others here where you passed the tipping point in discussions in the past only to calm down later and offer to mitigate perceived misunderstandings? Before that potential is actualised, let me assure you there's no necessity for such a move in this case because you and I don't have any history of conflict (as far as I recall), and over the years, I have been mainly appreciative of your views, and you know this too, i hope. I have made my position clear, but it seems from this latest retort you prefer to skew it to fit your own narrative. So be it. The difference between our positions are quite clear: I engage with you and Walker to understand where both of you are coming from, but you mistook my questions as platitudes, and accuse me of dodging unnecessary and mistaken premises that the both of you had presented, and when I asked to for verification as to where China's foreign policy is as atrocious as alleged, you then cited anecdotes as if these were all there was available to help you make your mind up regarding the CCP's failings in this matter. And when I wanted to get you to see a wider perspective by alluding to the foreign policies of the US as a comparison, you again took offence that I can only deem is a result of feeling that I had slighted your unassailable anecdotal evidence. Despite this, there's no ill will on my part because I know this is not your real nature. I could be wrong of course, but so what. You see this as a contest of wills, and there's no way you'd give an inch as evidenced by your increasingly emotional comebacks, whereas for me, I don't really care to win since I never intended to argue that I'm right and you're wrong to begin with. Hence, I am not able to accept your gracious words intending to portray me as a condescending adult out to discipline unruly kids. Thats simply your own projection... which is:

Yeah, facts can be quite funny things, ain't it. Depends on who's presenting them, I guess. You even take offence to a video being posted? Isn't that a bit reactionary? Or was it because there was substance to what he said? I don't know, I mean, Walker took offence to his eyebrows, so maybe you concur with such a heroically flippant tendency.

If I had not gone with my initial but now evaporated inclination to pay attention to your views based on what I had gleaned from your posts in the past, I wouldn't have bothered to try and understand where you're coming from wrt the CCP. But after the first few exchanges, its clear that all you can offer are platitudes and put-downs, and you wonder why the discussion veered off the way it did, albeit in the main because your mind's already made up, whereas I was being open in questioning some of the things you mentioned. Evidently this did not/does not sit well with you, so you may carry on with that trajectory. Woe be it for such a lofty mind to even entertain the possibility that you may not be absolutely correct in all the assessments made. I could be wrong, but this is how you come across in this conversation thus far, which, btw I have no interest to 'win' anything, let alone what you insist on perceiving as a debate, which it is not (as clarified above). Despite this being further attempt to make my position clearer, Im sure you're already prepared for more snarky remarks, so really, this is not going anywhere, something which was already in plain sight when I bade you goodbye earlier.

Likewise, so why are you being insistent that my read on China is skewed? Just because its not aligned with yours? I don't attempt to impose my perspectives on anyone, nor arrogant enough to insult other's informed opinions. Im just asking questions and trying to understand why you and others view the CCP in a particular light.

And Trump was playing golf throughout Jan, Feb and early March. Whats your point again?

It's only possible to see people when one is able to see the world as others see it. Rings a bell, Earl Grey?

Lets have a CCP bashfest then. lol

Whatever...

But then, how are we to talk about the apparent misdeeds of the CCP without at least some sort of comparison being made? If your preference is to simply mock the CCP's human rights and economic policies, then yes, I agree with you fully they're far from ideal. That ends the debate conveniently, yes? This then raises other questions, but when doing so, you resort to the above stance. So the difficulty is not arising from this side, it seems.

Are you arguing for no-strings-attached economic deals between nations as opposed to common practice, or are you arguing for strong-arm takeovers that the US is famous for? The former, unfortunately, only happens in utopian world ideals. Thats not even worth contemplation at this juncture, is it?

Which country have been subjected to Chinese aggression in modern history? Alternatively, which country(s) have experienced progress by reliance on Chinese technology and the might of the Yuan? How much have the US borrowed from China? Despite this, they continue to rain on the parade, much to China's amusement, I think. Lets be objective instead of relying on anecdotes and emotional table tennis.

Its a fact that China buys favours instead of resorting to covert tactics for establishing power grabs. This doesn't mean they are wrong, because to consider wrong, then we need to ask, What/who sets the standard for what is right? Certainly not you nor I. Maybe Walker can? I don't know.

Lets not engage in idealisms, which is an endless tunnel. Instead, it may be more helpful to have some sort of reference points to compare the atrocities of CCP, with say, the US, since they are both currently occupying for pole positions on the world stage.

Clearly we will not agree as the fundamental premise have been ignored. Your stubborn refusal to accept that Im not a CCP supporter/sympathiser prevents further engagement. This is what I meant when I alluded to what imo constitutes a 'hero' as per Earl Grey's post.

You've taken my comment out of context, so, in the hope of some objectivity, let me clarify: The small blip was in reference to China's modern record of diplomacy in engaging with other nations. Comparatively, the relentless record of on-going, prolonged oppressive manipulation by the US far exceeds the severity of that one aggressive undertaking from China. I shouldn't need to quote the past atrocities of the US to put things into proper perspective, but when considering the bigger picture, such perspectives do matter.

Why's that, Earl Grey? Is that because he's glib in his words, or what? Here's a highly intelligent individual who seems to know all about the oppressive nature of the CCP, but refuses to acknowledge the possibility that there's currently a greater evil in the world that requires vigilant scrutiny. If effort to bring this to light is rendered as being sympathetic to the CCP, then such a view can only be deemed narrow and dysfunctional. And btw, shouldn't the true spirit of the hero be one of total openness, acuity and to have an underlying preparedness and unfathomable acceptance for welcoming different views? In today's world, the definition of a hero is one who delights in cheap-ish insults to carry across his or her opinions? Is this what defines a hero in your book? I'm sincerely curious.

One heartening thing I've observed in Europe is that, in many conservative Buddhist sanghas and less formal communities, many of the senior teaching positions are filled by women. Overall, they have a much more prominent profile, and personally, I think they possess certain instinctive wisdoms and vulnerabilities that allow them to feel deeper into the teachings they are presenting, and as a result, are able to transmit the Dharma to a wider audience. Some of these teachers are quite powerful in their presence. Unfortunately, this is not being replicated in SE Asia's mainstream sanghas at the moment. The reason is that patriarchy is deeply entrenched into the mindsets of Asians, and does not seem to be any budging of that for the time being. Would love to see some progressive alteration or modification to such an archaic attitude here.

So be it. Bye