Pete Francis

@Dirtdragonmom That’s terrific, Beth. It takes significant effort to curate a collection of friends who are good, decent, guileless people, but it’s also well worth the trouble.

@Commonconcrete I love seeing my mutuals change and grow in wisdom. I have met the most incredible friends here.

This is beautiful.

@hamzy001 @DianWChain1 @upbeat_sunshine @ArizonaNews48 @RealShahriqKhan Yeah, like 40 years. So you don’t believe anything written about 1986? There are so many Muslims who don’t really read. They just obey. Read the Hadith and the Gospels and then decide. This O.P. And Nabeel Qureshi have been down this road already.

@DianWChain1 @upbeat_sunshine @ArizonaNews48 @RealShahriqKhan It was a mistake, i wanted to say several years not centuries.

Let me be honest. I wanted to stay Muslim so badly. Not even because of God at first, but because of the life attached to it. My dad’s businesses were waiting for me. Signed and ready. My mom’s community. Doctors, lawyers, politicians. Connections everywhere. Success was laid out in front of me. There was even an arranged marriage lined up. A doctor. Beautiful future. House. Wedding. Stability. All I had to do was say one sentence: “Yeah, I still believe.” That was it. Keep the money. Keep the family approval. Keep the life. But here’s what ruined it for me: I could not unsee Jesus. Once I really read the Quran and compared it to the Gospel, I couldn’t force myself back into pretending. And honestly, knowledge becomes heavy at that point. Because I didn’t leave Islam to rebel. I left because I could not betray what I believed was true. No business opportunity, no relationship, no comfortable future was worth denying the King who gave His life for me. So yeah, my life would have been easier if I stayed. But when Jesus says, “I am the way,” you don’t answer with, “But the other path feels safer.” You pick up your cross and walk.

@Corbienest 😀😀😀

@Commonconcrete Nah that’s a secret of the algorithm

According to one self centered sad sack, I think I know the secrets of the universe. Let’s find out. Ask this oracle for her wisdom.

@Corbienest So… I guess that’s NOT one of the secrets of the universe?

@Commonconcrete I don’t know?

@Corbienest You don’t have to beg me twice. Intelligence is the ability to use your brain for something useful. Acquiring a facility for vocabulary is one of those useful things. But Michael Jordan used his brain for scoring points in basketball, which made him lots of money. So both are 👍🏻

I am begging people to stop confusing knowledge with intellect.

Greetings from Arizona.

@cecsquared Great progress! God is good.

Mowed my lawn myself for the first time since I sprained my ankle. Feels strong ✌🏻

@gatorgar If your premise is true, and if it is to be corrected, then we need to understand root cause. What is the root cause? I have my own opinion but would like to hear yours.

Success in America shouldn’t be a lottery. It should be available to everyone who puts in the work to succeed. Ideological freedom, financial freedom, bodily freedom. These things will never be known by future generations unless we push a lot harder. Don’t be distracted by shiny new things. Have faith only in doing the right thing. When I was a kid they told us if you work hard, and play by the rules, you can grow up to be anything you want. Even President of The United States. The American dream is now only a dream. A fantasy for tens if not hundreds of millions of Americans. It’s disproportionally more out of reach for every baby that’s born. We can fight about how to reverse that, revile those who oppose us, and keep spinning our wheels, OR: We can start working together again on building the type of society we can all agree we want our grandkids growing up in. A safe place. A clean place. A lawful place. Life will never be 100% fair, but it will only continue getting less fair if we don’t start striving for it now.

So many. And all for liberty. 🙏🏻

@badbake_offgrid Bravo!

It just hit me how big of a deal this bite of chicken is! This isn't just the first whole chicken I've cooked myself... This is the first animal that has come from my 'homestead' He was hatched from an egg here last year. Raised until he was of decent size and then processed. This is a bite of freedom! This is a really REALLY cool feeling! 😁

@KettlebellDan @HeireSOfLiberty Depends on the poison. Behind-the-counter medicines are all poison— that’s why they’re back there. But sometimes, if you are afflicted with illness, consuming them is better than not consuming them. Be careful of adopting absolutist positions.

I love the people that seriously argue that you’re better off consuming some poison rather than no poison 🤣

@cecsquared I recommend “The Accidental President”, A. J. Baime, 2018

@cecsquared Harry Truman. He began in humble circumstances, and circumstances kept him humble. He was grateful and gracious.

Is it possible for people to be in power and not abuse it?

@ItsGoneAwry Ignorant and terrified, lacking in any semblance of resourcefulness.

If you went through life without challenges, what kind of person would you be?

@Corbienest Oh, you won’t prostitute yourself for a meal? Sorry, my mistake… I mistakenly took you for a camp tramp. 🤷‍♂️

She should have paid the whole thing immediately and told him the expense of paying for his dinner was worth it because she learned what a loser he was on the first date.

@Corbienest I still have recordings of my youngest son reading Calvin and Hobbes at bedtime when he was six, giggling all the time. Both my boys loved the Hank the Cowdog series too. Read to them every night until they learn, then take turns every other page.

This is the answer to getting boys interested in reading. Especially if they are graphically illustrated versions of books they can read when they are older.

@badbake_offgrid Good for you! The thing you turned to for comfort was killing you. Turning away for good is something most people can’t do, even with help. Thank God you had people to support you. What a great achievement, and it has given you a whole new way to see yourself and your life!

HAPPY 5 YEARS OF BEING ALCOHOL FREE TO ME! 🥳🥳🥳 Today marks 5 WHOLE YEARS since I went on an all night drinking bender alone at my house, and at 3 in the morning realized I was going to end up dead in a ditch somewhere if I didn't change something. I made the choice right then. I was done. I dumped out anything that was left in my house. Thankfully two good friends took me out for breakfast that morning and told me they had my back. Then my parents had my back. Then my Captain had my back. Then everyone around me. SO MANY PEOPLE supported me and helped me kick the hold that Alcohol held over my life. I was drinking a 12 pack daily, AT A MINIMUM, EVERY, SINGLE, DAY. Most likely with a whole sleeve of Nips thrown in the mix too. I would get a ride to town daily to pickup a fresh 12 pack, sometimes a 24-rack. I was a high-functioning alcoholic. It was costing me big $ too. If you are struggling, either internally with yourself about it or externally with others, because you have this problem too. Take it from me, you can still take back your power. YOU have the control! YOU have the ability! You may need help and that is FINE! Reach out to someone! So many people will help you! (Anyone who doesn't is helping you in another way) I quit drinking cold turkey, no AA, no 12-step programs, just by being a stubborn fisherman. I had support to help me and I deff had moments along the way where I struggled or wanted to give in and just have a drink. I knew it wasn't worth it though. I write this behind tears of joy. My life may not be perfect or glamorous or the envy of many, and that is just fine by me! Because I know I am only still alive today because I finally saw the mistakes I myself was making, so this is indeed MY life. It all starts with first admitting to yourself you have a problem that you need to fix and having the balls to realize it is not a bad thing to reach out and ASK FOR HELP! I hope anyone out there struggling with alcohol knows they are not alone. One day at a time. You got this!

@bigburgerbelly @Le__Joo @ItsGoneAwry Your “luxury market” citation is apocryphal. Most new drugs fail, leaving their creators holding the bag. So the successful ones have an offsetting markup. Generics margins are similar to other industries. The innovators earn more, akin to Google or Microsoft.

@Commonconcrete @Le__Joo @ItsGoneAwry Profit-driven innovation creates the drug, then patent monopolies restrict access to maximize returns. The moral failing is treating human survival as a luxury market. Publicly funded research with open licensing could achieve the same breakthroughs without gatekeeping who lives.

“Capitalism creates so many things I want to buy, but I can’t afford them all and some people have more stuff than me, therefore Capitalism is EVIL” said people living in the most prosperous nation in the history of the world.