Katrina victim prays---gets $1.6 MM

Terri, I think you misunderstood what I said. I never said I believed or disbelieved whether God gave the money to the Lady. I said I dont automatically come to that conclusion just becasue she prayed. I have no way of know what God does or doesn't do for others and I will never assume to know. I only stated my belief to give insight to what this woman may have believed, so that you could see that the Reporter may not have written with a christian point of view but rather written as a reporter should : impartially - i.e. reported on what he had been told. I was not debating anything on this board. I merely answered a question and expalined my answer. It doesnt matter one way or the other to me if you "see" my point, but I presented it for the purose I just stated. I specifially stated that it was my belief but I wasn't saying it was the right belief. I never said anyone had to , should, ought to believe as I do, or that any contrary belief was not valid. As to "Unfortunately, you will never be able to have a civil or "friendly" discussion with a die hard Atheist on the subject of christianity. That is just the way it is." This is sad. I dont think I've been anything but civil here. What is sad is that we can't be tolerant inspite of the differences. I never discussed Christianity, I simply stated my belief. I have never said anything mean, rude, condescending or insulting to anyone on this board. If what I said was perceived to be such, I wholeheartedly apologize as it was never my intention to do so. Becky

Becky, this board is our place. As Terri has said, you're in our home here. This board is NOT for the discussion of diverse views. It's for the discussion of ATHEIST VIEWS. It does not matter to me how politely or respectfully you've posted, this board was requested for the EXPRESS PURPOSE of having ONE PLACE on this website where we don't have to read post*****tuated by god-talk and religious viewpoints. No member of the Atheists board, for any reason, will EVER go to the Christianity board and attempt to express atheist views --- not even respectfully, not any way. That's THEIR house. We're willing to respect their right to have it. Give us ours!

Whatever you want.

Tinker you need to let it go. End it now and don't be so rude as to insist on posting yet another "last word." If you're interested in having some kind of comparative religions/philosophies discussion, ask for a board to support that.

Dona, Now you are being rude. I just told you that I would leave as you requested. I had no desire to have the "last word" and never has any such idea on my mind. I simply responded to let you know that I heard what you said and will abide by your wishes. I thought that a response was appropriate and the polite thing to do. I sincerely hope you all the best in your life. Becky

First of all: "I believe God provides for my financial needs" "I have no way of know what God does or doesn't do for others and I will never assume to know." My question would be then, if you know God provides for you financially then you must know he would provide for every single person. What sort of a God would pick and choose who he Helps. If you assume he provides for you then you must assume he provides for all of his children. Plain and simple logic lessons dictate this would have to be true. Secondly: "As to "Unfortunately, you will never be able to have a civil or "friendly" discussion with a die hard Atheist on the subject of christianity. That is just the way it is." This is sad." Why is it sad? Christians will never understand how an Atheist thinks. That is just fact, not sad. Lastly: "I have never said anything mean, rude, condescending or insulting to anyone on this board." Did anyone say you did? I was just clarifying a few things as was Dona. You are really taking our comments as a personal attack or something. I do not even know you. My comments(and Dona's) were in no way an attack on you. I just do not see where that comes from or why you think we even think that. I am sorry this board was not able to give you whatever you felt you needed from it. There really is no hard feelings on my part. If you choose to chime on a board such as this, you open yourself up for critisism. Trust me, I belong to a yahoo group that would litereally chew you up and spit you out. I am sometimes intimidated to post there. This board is nothing compared to that. Atheists do not speak with the restraints that most people do. We are really a different breed. When discussing these sorts of issues, you have to be prepared for the heat. I really mean it when I say I have no ill feelings towards you or anything you said. They are your opinions just as these are mine. We are all entitled. Respectfully, Terri

Terri, I don't feel that I've been attacked or even criticized by anyone on this board, and I too hold no hard feelings toward anyone. May you to have the best life has to offer. Becky

Hey Dona, Thought I'd share my lottery story, although not as dramatic. It was in 94 and my 3 yr old daughter was recovering from her bone marrow transplant (for a rare form of leukemia). Neither hubby or I were working as we had just left the army shortly before she was diagnosed. We were living off unemployment and my retirement check. My mother and niece came to visit on the 4th of July and since my daughter was in Children's Hospital in D.C., after our daily visit with her, we did a little sight seeing in DC. We were going to stay for the mall activities but it was so freaking hot and humid, we decided to go home. On the way we stopped to buy some beer and wine for our own cookout and I bought 5 pick 4 tickets at the same time. I played the last four of my social security number. THEY WON!!! $25,000 when we needed it most. We were able to buy a decent car, replace our crappy bed, buy a new fridge, and pay our mounting co-pays and co-insurances for the cancer treatment. BTW, daughter is now 15, and although she has some issues with the long term effects of radiation/chemo (cataracts, growth problems, puberty problems,) she is alive and well and driving me crazy.

Wow, $25K. What a cool windfall! Wish I could say I'd ever won anything!

Yes, it was great. I call the years of my daughter's illness and my resulting depressing, "The Dark Years". We were a family of six living off of $1200 a month. Our mortgage was $1150. First we went through our savings, then the kids college fund (my oldest left to join the army once he found that out), and then we lived off credit cards. Plus, I didn't know if my child would live or die. That money was pure luck. People to this day ask me if my spirituality was strenghtened during that time. WTF?????? My child is dying and I'm supposed to think an invisible guy in the sky is in control? No, science saved her. Years and years of clinical studies in cancer research did it. Why didn't God save 80% of the children diagnosed with cancer in the 1800s, 1700s, 1600s? Didn't those mothers have faith? Why is my 20th/21th century child so special that she gets to survive childhood? Why did the child in the room next to my daughter's die? Her parents believed. They prayed like crazy. Guess it was God's will. What a crock!! She died because the genetic makeup of her cancer cells was too resistant to any known treatment and it kept coming back. Her parents might find some comfort in thinking there is some higher purpose, but the reality remains, that their child is dead and never coming back. How did I get off on that? I was talking about the lottery money.