Re: Carson. She and I agreed it was a factor of zero.

Please nominate him, morons.

and there was nothing loony about her...

stone people to death, etc., they are free to be loony as far as I am concerned.

that is one thing they are. They create the only longevity zone in USA

Adventist on average, men lived 7.3 years longer and women 4.4 years longer than their fellow Californians. Researchers identified five behaviors embraced by Adventists for more than 100 years, that could increase life span by up to 10 years: not smoking, eating a plant-based diet, eating nuts several times a week, regular exercise and maintaining normal body weight.
http://www.oregonlive.com/living/index.ssf/2012/05/seventh-day_adventists_health.html

that doesn't necessarily mean that Carson is peaceful and reasonable, but I think as a group, they're not like the Fundy lunatics we are used to dealing with

because it is in the Bible and who are also pacifists. Not a really radical group although it all depends like in most religions who their local leader is. They also go to church on Saturday like OT Jews.

Many I have known are pretty liberal.

and they do abortions. Not sure if all do, but at least some do.

and general beliefs can vary just as they do between political party doctrine and members at home. I particularly remember that lot of them have a real problem with Catholics. Apparently a lot of them believe the Pope is the Antichrist, or at least doing the work of Satan.

A lot of their lives tend to revolve around their religion -- not just the Friday night through Saturday observance, which puts them out of synch with many around them and, like food restrictions, encourages socializing among themselves. They are pretty fundamentalist, very creationist, tend to homeschool and believe in traditional roles for women, and mostly believe their bible is the word of god. And there are different sects with different behaviors.

Overall they sounded to me like they probably lived a healthier lifestyle and maybe were a bit less rigid than many of the fundamentalist sects around here in the South but otherwise weren't all that different. No speaking in voices. Overall, if I were forced to squeeze myself into a fundamentalist sect, I might choose this one.

Much as Warren Jeffs was the leader of a splinter group of Mormons.

Last edited Fri Nov 6, 2015, 11:06 AM - Edit history (2)

The town is still less than 800 people and is predominantly American Indian now (and was only AI prior to California's gold rush of the 1850s).

There was a logging industry based upon National Forest timber but federal harvest were curtailed over the Spotted Owl, AI issues, and politics in the early 1990s.

The SDA folks came here in the 1950s as part of the timber industry. They had at one time there own church, school, gas station (only gas station now but no longer SDA), sawmill, and logging company. Most have left but maybe 10-15% of the locals are SDA. The church is still active and mostly they home school.

Most SDA people are good, hard working, and thoughtfully generous people but there are some very redneck exceptions that have the GOP/Faux News disease. They are vegetarians. The SDA church was organized in Battle Creek, MI and Kellogg's Cereal was started by SDA members. They have a number of medical schools around the world (Loma Linda in the USA). SDA is very (and internationally successful) evangelical. They go to church on Saturdays. They started in the mid 1800s and believed in a fixed end time that did not occur and adapted their theology to this fact. Red Emmerson, the founder and CEO of Sierra Pacific Industries, was schooled and raised as SDA but is no longer at least a public or strong follower (SPI is largest private landowner in California - 1.7 million acres - and second largest producer of lumber in the USA).

Most SDA here still live on a pioneer ranch that was subdivided in the 1950s to be "Madrone Acres". Locals used to call the area "Cabbage Snapper Hill". Growing up, the SDA kids were conservative and did not dance nor wear makeup but the exceptions tended to get quite wild

SDA used to have (or still has?) automatic status as pacifist conscientious objectors regards to military service. However, the military is now second only to becoming a pastor and spreading the SDA word as a way into the world for the few remaining young people. There is a contingent of local SDA that are Obama haters and liberal haters and so on - those that would not fit in at DU at all - but they are the exception.

There is a SDA man here, xxxxx yyyyyyy, in his 80s, that sells fresh produce and other staples out of his truck on Tuesdays and Fridays across from the post office. He is a saint if there is such a thing. One of the finest and kindest human beings I have ever met. xxxxx tells me he supports Carson and seems intrigued by the SDA man being a candidate for POTUS. I respect xxxxx so much I listen and would never beg to differ.

More so than most of the Christian people most I have known, the SDA folks walk their faith and are less judgmental towards others. However, most SDA are politically and culturally conservative.

edit to remove name.

Nixson was a Quaker.

Some do think the RAPTURE is coming any second now, and you'll never get them to understand that their leaders keep them in a state of panic to bring in more $$$$$$$.

Their leaders are pedantic and they spend an inordinate amount of time methodically and erroneously "parsin' the bobble" to keep the sheep in line.

As neighbors, friends, and just citizens, people don't come any better. Most I know are kind, caring, gentle and good to people even outside of their faith.

One neighbor (male authoritarian sort) who is SDA did accuse me and my kids of stealing his stuff, just because we were poor I guess. So much for being non-judgmental. When he found out it was delivered to another neighbor, I don't believe he even apologized, and I don't speak to that asshole any more. But his wife is a lovely, sweet and kind woman.

Ben Carson, on the other hand, is a hot mess. I doubt most SDA's are proud of that one.