violence

Lanolin, Would you dance with me? 😉

I can do that. But you asked about violence first

No, but shooting guns isn't violent unless it's something like a soldier or gangster harming another.
Sometimes I study fights to learn what I can to polish up my own combat system. If I teach a group of ladies, for instance, to fight in an effective way to stop a threat that tries to harm them, it's not a sin. God's people need protection against the evil. I do enjoy a superbly executed technique that was used to defeat the bad guys. However, I would never attend a dog fight.

You got to watch out for that type.
I learned that there are a LOT of them out there. There was a pastor who introduced me to a young adult single lady. She said that I was the first guy she dated that her dad liked. I felt pretty good about this complement coming from someone who could've been a supermodel and led the children's ministry.
I liked her parents and preacher too. Eventually she told me that "her last boyfriend was in the local mafia and still thinks he owns her, even though she broke up." The area was known for lots of Italian crime, so I took it seriously.
Then she bragged about forensic science classes she took from a class taught by the F🐝👁️, lol. Now she" knows how to get away with murder and not get caught......if she wanted to."
😦🙄
Those were enough red flags. 😄
I wasn't into violence, so we went our separate ways.

eek

Im training someone whos involved with gangs or knows gang member as shes got the tatts. Not sure I'd really trust her to look after the library in my absence but got no choice it was the Principals choice. But then. who would want to steal library books? She's not interested in reading. But she does do decals that look like gang patches...

anyway, maybe should keep an open mind. She could have reformed, and wont use the emoji cushions in a pillow fight. I have hidden them away in the cupboard.

I have to remember Im dealing with children who are offspring of burglars and drug addicts sometimes, and who's parents might be in jail doing time.

Ive come back to this thread

One of my friends who was a former teacher aide, but now working for sally army said she wtinessed a suicide. It was on the train tracks.

For months afterwards she was getting flashbacks and couldnt go that route. She cant stand horror movies or violence. I say Im the same I cant handle, like I would shut my eyes or block them and I even get jumpy around gunshots esp in movies which is why I dont really go to see a lot of them anymore. If its an american movie, they tend to have gun violence in them. (but there are warnings about that on the ratings)

im ok around fireworks though. Maybe cos I know they are for celebrating, to scare devils away etc and not to glorify terrorism.

I remmeber one boy at school was always telling me about his books he was reading and we talked about the Avengers and I asked him what if....they chose to forgive instead of avenging everyone. Would they be called the Forgivers instead?

He laughed. But it gave him something to think about. He still hasnt returned the Christmas story book he borrowed from the library a few years ago.

I used to love the Jack Reacher novels but they started getting boring
But there's definitely a satisfaction in seeing the bad guy get the beat down he deserves
Action movies would be pretty lame if the hero just sat down and had a polite conversation with the bad guy

People die of all sorts of things but its the suicides that really get to you
Like why?

In NZ men seem more vulnerable to this than women. Women tend to die more from disease while some men seem to think its a glory to die violently.

I dont know must be a male thing. But then Jesus death was cruel and violent. Flogged and then crucified.

Its women who generally have to clean up after a blood splattered mess.

I recall reading/hearing Jackie Kennedy suffering from PTSD when her husband and got shot and his brains got splattered all over her dress. At the time people asked if she wanted to change but she said 'no let them see what they have done'.

The titanic movie introduced gun violence when that actually did not happen in real life, what happened was they set off distress rockets as fireworks and whistles they did not use guns as crowd control on the ship as portrayed in the movie. Another James Cameron thing inserted as gratuitous violence.

Speaking of Suicides, One of my favourite actors, Jason David Frank passed away because of that. I followed him long after I stopped watching Power Rangers. I remember watching the Mighty Morphin Power Rangers movie when it came to the theaters in India with my father. This was in 96 I think. It was all kids talked about for a year, at least in my community then.

I got to know that He had competed in Mixed Martial Arts and even ran a Martial Arts Gym for Kids with his wife. I'm not sure if it's co-owned with his wife but she's a martial artist too. Anyway. They were going through a divorce. I heard some nasty things about his wife. Like how she sent the divorce notice while he was at a Comic con.

Anyway, He did it. God rest His Soul. He was 49.

I commented on his insta once and he liked it. I've heard that he manages his instagram himself. And what a fighter he was inside the ring. Finished all his opponents. Savage. I've seen all his fights. Now that's an actor who is also a martial artist. "Legit" like Joe Rogan would say.

He was Christian too. That's the saddest part of it all. Anyway.

Did he leave anything behind that indicated why he killed himself (and how?)

When famous people do it I'm always shocked and saddened. Like Robin Williams and Anthony Bourdain.

But then I'm shocked and saddened when anyone kills anyone I'm more of a live and let live person. However I do know that some suicides can be out of guilt (i.e person can't live with themselves, or what they have done, or don't want to face up to it) and others can be they want to be with their dead loved ones, or they get pressured into it.

Satan comes only to steal, kill and destroy, so he's inherently violent. Jesus comes to give us life, and life more abundantly.

The other thing I'm interested in is learning non-violent communication.
The Bible says Death and life are in the power of the tongue. But so many people use words to hurt others instead of lifting each other up.

I don't know about anyone else, but even before I was a Christian I wouldn't ever use swear words or curse others. I understand when you are frustrated you may want to use an expletive. But I just never needed to. Some people say after they become Christians they find they don't need to swear/curse anymore when they used to do it all the time.

I think it comes from that many give too much weight on what other people think of themselves which too greatly influences their own regard for themselves. When a girl told me about how much she hated someone, I told her that she places too much importance on anyone that affects your emotions so easily. This is how you, that can separate people from their opinions of them, can still care for someone that doesn't care for you, i.e., love your enemies.

The Bible has a lot of violence, even a graphic description of Judas meeting his end, but it’s all part of a larger instructive and descriptive narrative.

Watching violence for entertainment value probably isn’t healthy, but I don’t think it’s a major problem for adults. For children, if I had any, I wouldn’t let them find entertainment in violence even though it’s everywhere in video games and movies.

Can you explain that one a bit more..especially relating to the two examples I'd given...? Robin Williams and Anthony Bourdain..
Are you saying they had problems with public opinions or fans?

really, so you can you explain PTSD.
Watching it and actually experiencing violence may be two different things.

that's true they might be.

PTSD can come from violence for sure. It can come from anything traumatic. I had PTSD for over 10 years. It eventually just went away for me, but I remember there being triggers.

That is my speculation, yes. Public figures make themselves susceptible to public opinion, that is opinion outside of themselves, considering their profit is dependent on public reception of worth whatever specialty they may be employed in. It isn't necessary that they had problems directly with fans though. It could be the case, as was suggested in the case of the white ranger, he was going through a divorce, and it would not be a stretch to think his feelings of self-worth rose and fell depending on one other person, in this case his wife's, acceptance or rejection of him. And that isn't a healthy perspective to take considering man(kind)s' love is so fickle.

His daughter died. His wife's daughter from a previous marriage. And this caused a rift in the family to the point they wanted to divorce but then. they reconciled. And He was with his wife at a hotel and she went down to get some snacks and when she went back to the room, it was locked and they broke in and found him hanging. It's all over the internet. He's the green ranger/white ranger. The main character in the Power Ranger movies. If you're a kid that watched power rangers back then, you would remember him more than any other ranger.

Robin Williams, Anthony Bourdain, Chester Bennington, guys who are all accomplished and successful. Guys who made it. I don't know of many Indian celebrities who took their own life who were famous. But there have been some mysterious deaths among our celebrities like Sri Devi dead in her bath tub. Not many suicides or maybe it's not something that happens in India yet as much as in other countries. So these are the ones. And they're famous. Anthony Bourdain was a very nice man people say. A man who loved food and He even got his BJJ blue belt. And Robin Williams. Now he could make people laugh in real life too. I loved watching him on movies.

I know of at least one colleague who took his own life. We didn't know why. They hide it with their smile. But they will show you signs through body language, etc. Sometimes the fact that they're depressed would be apparent. Sometimes, you can't say. We all wear our masks don't we. And we keep skeletons in our cupboards.

I just know that I don't have any authority over my own life anymore than I have on another person's life. God gives every life and God alone has that power to take back what is given us. Life is a gift. Sometimes it's hard. Sometimes blissful. It can be hard all the time. Still life must go on. In the Bible it is said, "Don't worry about what shall we eat, what shall we drink, what shall we wear. Only the pagans do that. Consider the lilies of the field, the birds of the air. They neither toil nor sow. You are worth more than sparrows." Somewhere along those lines. You can look it up on the Bible.

Life is simply to be lived. And as Christians, we recognize God in us and others and all creation.

Matt Hughes is a former UFC fighter. He was run over by a train while he was in his car. The man now has slurred speech and lost his ability to fight. But after all that, He still walks. And he opened up that after that incident that he wanted to kill himself but he didn't because he thought then that would make other people feel that it's right and it's not. That's a good example. That's a great example. That's a stud.

My Sensei says this often. "Whatever happens in life, you have to face it." He's 80+ now. So, that's a man that knows what he's talking about.

And God gives us that assurance in the Bible. "Fear Not, for I am with you". "I will be with you till the end of time."

Anyway. Famous people dying like that set a very bad example. It is not okay. Very irresponsible on their part towards themselves and for those who look up to them. What a let down it would be for other people who like them or follow them. Nothing could hurt God more than this. Not worth thinking much of it either because it isn't our life. It's theirs.

I for one would always listen to anyone who has a problem. People who speak just want to get rid of their problems and unburden themselves. Yes. Mental health is important and it takes work and a lot of attention. Our relationship with God is very important where our lives are concerned too.