The Musings Of The Consensus

 Today, I had to make the incredibly painful but necessary decision to cease, now and in the future, having anything to do with contributing to the website Nexus Mods. I have broken no rules there, I had no posted any comment in any fora there that was the slightest bit mean, cruel, inflammatory, or hateful. In fact, I made a point to avoid causing trouble there. Unfortunately, it seems certain people from there (whose names and identities I will not reveal out of respect for them) found my blog here, and took severe umbrage to a certain blog post I made and my comments, particularly my opinions on transgenderism and being nonbinary. This, to be exact: https://gethn7.blogspot.com/2021/06/i-was-recently-globally-banned-from.html The party in question contacted me via private message about their offense to what I wrote OFF the Nexus and revealed they considered it a personal attack (it was never intended as such, that was their choice). I told them yes, I wrote it, and would not reca...

 These days, if anyone asks what political affiliation I am, I generally reply "The popcorn affiliation". I of course have actual political stances, but I find it less stressful to get into political arguments than I do to munch popcorn as other people get flustered over the same, the drama is rather amusing. On a serious note, however, a recent discussion I was in about monarchy and its being bound to the same law it enforces had me thinking hard about my ideal political leader. The 'Code of Hammurabi" the oldest known legal code, has this in its lede as to why Hammurabi considered it his duty to make sure there was a legal code; When Anu the sublime, the King of the Annunaki and Bêl, the lord of heaven and earth, who fixed the destiny of the country, had committed the whole of mankind to Marduk, the son of Ea, the god of right, when they made him great among the Egigi, had pronounced the sublime name of Babylon, made it great upon earth, had established in it an et...

 This post is going to be a combination of three things. Commentary about a game I played, some history of professional wrestling, and what the Bible says about proper effort. As strange a combination as it sounds, the first two will be relevant to the third. To start things off, when it comes to game series, I'v always been a longtime fan of the Dragon Quest series. It's a turn-based series that has always pleased me due to the fact it's remained charmingly old school even as technology and other games have done new and exciting things. The last game in the mainline series I enjoyed was the PC version of DQXI S, which was a port based on the added content from the Switch port. That game was super long and rewarding, and I rather warmly appreciated how the developers bent every effort to use their talent to make something amazing. More recently, I was intensely and bitterly disappointed when I played Infinity Strash Dragon Quest: The Adventures of Dai. Infinity Strash was a...

 I'm writing this because I just reflected recently on why I plan to die single. I have neither the means, ability, or emotional and mental maturity for having kids. I came to this conclusion long ago and have reconciled myself to never having a child of my own, whether via siring one myself or adoption. That said if anyone out there is a parent. I'd like to pass on advice to give your kids if you are interested. 1. Teach them how to survive without high technology As much as I love computers and the convenience of technology, there are far too many people who probably starve to death without modern tech. As much as preppers and people who shun tech for low tech from days gone by get stereotyped as Luddites, let's face it, if the power ever goes out, a computer is just a paperweight and a cell phone is meaningless. At the end of the day, people need to remember how to survive without them. Our ancestors had to do it, no reason why we shouldn't, and I advise you to teach...

 Since both conservatives and the LGBT lobby (really just the T the first three letters are an afterthought, more on that below) have some really idiot assumptions about each other, I want to thump noses on both sides and clear the air since I've had feet in both camps to hear their side of the story and have both things I concur on and disagree with myself. Regardless, I have striven to keep my personal takes to myself and this post will simply be about objective facts. I warn both sides, I will certainly offend you, and if the mere thought of having your world view challenged, criticized, or denounced bothers you, then leave now, you will reject what I have to say out of hand, call me a bigot or a shill for deviance, and your mind is made up. If you are still here, let me clear the air on a few things. 1. Conservatives: You have the right idea what to oppose, but some of your strategies are totally backward. Conservatives, I really need to level with you, some of your backlash to...

 Modern-day politics has become the refuge of the fanatic. Agreeing to disagree is nigh extinct. Coming together and admitting while you don't always agree, you should at least hear each other out is now completely unheard of. And as a political moderate, that galls me. I prefer that title to "centrist", because, like most people, I too see centrism as a refusal to take a stand for something or instead I did, until I came to the conclusion I thought both sides kinda suck and that means I'm a centrist by virtue of contempt for both. For example, I think the LGBT lobby trying to argue kids should be exposed to sexual cosplay (drag) is twenty different kinds of depraved, but I do think their enemies are just as depraved for attempting unironic book banning. I think reparations to black people is a cynical, venal, stupid, and dishonest ploy by liberals to keep black "on the plantation" by waving the bloody shirt about slavery, though conservatives who are total ...

 This guide has been written for two reasons. First, it was originally to help my own mother, who has commenced a study of ancient cultures as an adjunct to her Bible study, in order to get a more well-rounded historical picture of the cultures mentioned in the Old and New Testaments. Second, believing this could be useful for other history students, I have edited this into a study guide for others interested in doing research in this vein, for both secular and religious study of the Bible. It is my hope this proves valuable in that regard. Aside from public domain documents, this guide will recommend no particular secular historical books. Most general world history texts and many secular studies of particular geographic areas mentioned below will be more than adequate for this purpose. I do not wish to prejudice anyone into believing only certain texts are ideal. I have outlined certain topics to do more in-depth study on for clarification of certain topics only touched on in the...

 Recently, an alliance of gays, lesbians, and bisexuals have come out in opposition to what they see as the excesses and depravity of the transgender movement lobby, specifically, against the "grooming" by the transgender lobby of impressionable minors into getting body-altering drugs and surgery to become transgender themselves. Given said lobby advocates against parental consent and often want to separate children from proper supervision by their legal guardians to involve children in discussions of sexual activity and the permanent alteration of their minds and bodies with surgeries and hormones as an apparent panacea for the stresses and rigors of adolescence, this alliance of the LGB have come to view the transgender lobby as a threat and believes such things should be legally barred from anyone who is not a consenting adult or at least such activities should only take place with the active knowledge and participation of parents, with the parents having veto power over t...

Recently, TheGamer covered a controversy where a modder replaced some instances of rainbow flags appearing in a Spiderman game with the American flag. https://archive.ph/dpMAf As expected, the thin-skinned LGBT crowd shrieked about this being homophobia and hateful and raised the trumpets of flatulence over something someone with more sense, less ego, and a thicker skin would not care about. Now, the article above takes the side of the LGBT up in arms crying about how this is hateful to them and all, and I just have this rebuttal. How does a mod you do not have to endorse, look at, or download for your own game accomplish this? Now, to be fair, the modder in question decided, in their infinite stupidity, to try uploading this on Nexus Mods, where they had to ban modders causing a stink about IRL politics before, so this was just begging for trouble and should have been uploaded elsewhere, so in that regard, the modder was not very bright. But that said, and I say this as a person who g...

Before I go on with this post, let me be clear I'm a non-denominational Christian who is neither anti nor pro-Catholic. I have Catholic, Protestant, non-Christian, and so on as friends. However, since I figured it would be wise to remind non-Catholic Christians why Catholics deserve some praise even if you have no desire to BE Catholic, here goes. --- 1. Without Catholics, Non-Catholic Christians would not exist. That sounds obvious, but I've encountered some weirdo fundamentalist types who want to damnatio memoriae any hint of recognition that Catholics are legit Christians and want to pretend they were defiling the concept of being like Christ since day one. First off, Catholics base everything they do on the fact Jesus told Peter he would be the rock upon which his Church was built. The early Church's first significant leader and the one Catholics consider their first Pope is Peter. All Catholic Popes can be traced back to Peter in terms of descent by process of decision...

 As many know, the term "Christian" means to be "Christ-like", but if you ask me, that only scratches the surface. In fact, the game "The Elder Scrolls III Morrowind" has an interesting philosophical point to make about being like a messiah figure that is worth consideration. The premise of the game is that you are a random member of the Empire of Tamriel, released from prison on a nebulous charge by order of Emperor Uriel Septim VII, and sent to the isle Vvardenfell. There, you learn you are considered the reincarnation of a sainted figure named Indoril Nerevar, aka the Nerevarine. The game, however, has fun with the concept and points out that while you do most of the same things the original did, act in the same ways, and for all intents and purposes are assumed to be just like the original, you may NOT actually be their spiritual successor. In fact, evidence in the game indicates you may in fact be someone roleplaying so well you could be such a succes...

 In my last post, I address how a Christian on a personal basis can decide, from a moral standpoint, what media would be considered detrimental to their moral health. However, when you are someone with moral responsibility for others, the rules change somewhat. For starters, parents and legal guardians have both legal and moral authority over minors. They can and should use that power wisely to decide if their child until they reach the lawful age of majority, is fit to consume certain media. In my own life, I was just shy of the age of majority when it came time to play Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater. I remember the Walmart I wanted to purchase it from requiring my parents' assent before I was allowed to get it. They assented, thankfully, because they knew I was mature enough to handle the themes. Of course, parents, in this case, have veto power, and they should exercise it accordingly if they do not believe their children are mature enough to handle certain media. The same rule...

 A common canard among atheists is that Christians are uptight, cannot have fun, are terrified of nigh all things that can lead them astray, and live like monks afraid of all outside influence. As a Christian, I can safely say this above canard is hogwash, but to a point they aren't entirely off. I find a lot of Christians have a huge fear that cannot look at certain things or even entertain the thought of looking at them without being led astray. First off, let me just say I admire such willingness to not be led astray. You who are wary of this follow the admonition of 1 Peter 5:8 well: 8  Be  [ a ] sober, be  [ b ] vigilant;  [ c ] because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour. That said, let me break something to my more paranoid Christian brethren. The only one who can break your faith in God is YOU. You can be tempted by so many things you see, hear, and experience to take that fateful step, but the only one wh...

 I know, this likely would have been better said at the beginning of the month, but I needed to time to organize my thoughts on the subject, so here goes: 1. I want to cover more FOSS (free and open-source gaming) for ChristCenteredGamer. Used to be, Linux was the backfoot in gaming, but in recent years has been fighting hard to remedy that, and some FOSS games have turned out to be just as good if not better than their commercial counterparts. I intend to try covering more and more of these FOSS gems because I'm genuinely pleased with the strides that the community has taken to stand alongside the profit-based games developers. 2. I want to continue to evangelize for Christ If you read this blog, a few years ago, I was quite the heathen. Won't lie, my past still weighs heavily on me, and while I cannot escape it, nor will I shy from admitting it. Sin is my shackle like it is for everyone else on the planet, and while I still struggle against my own chains, I hope to help other...