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 61 
 on: May 13, 2016, 01:13:56 AM 
Started by Crystal Dragon - Last post by Crystal Dragon
Geese are smart.

Very smart.  :) 

My mother had a pair of Toulouse Geese and the male was more than a little obnoxious.  I was one of a few people who weren't afraid of him so I'd get roped in to help out.  The little bugger liked to nip at you to get a reaction so I'd grab him at the top of his neck so he couldn't get to me and lead him off ... he really hated it so it got to the point (after maybe 5 or 6 times) where all I had to do was hold my hand over his head.  He'd look at me, then up at my hand, and I'd say something like "if you leave me alone then I don't need to".  He'd look at my hand again, then walk off. 

They are absolutely capable of thinking things through and making a decision.   :D

 62 
 on: May 12, 2016, 09:53:30 PM 
Started by Crystal Dragon - Last post by Ghost Wolf
Geese are smart. Hanging around a park in the city, the goose observed humans going to the police for help.

 63 
 on: May 12, 2016, 10:22:41 AM 
Started by DragonsFriend - Last post by VisionFromAfar
Okay, I am a bit confused here. If you cannot justify your thoughts or actions, how do you figure out if they were just as they should have been?

I can give you a concrete example.
I've been trying to eat healthier for years. It's been a slow, aggravating process, but over the last five years, I've managed to cut what was a 3-soda-per-day habit down to maybe one a month, if that. I've started packing lunches, focusing on fruit and veggies. Lately I've started working on portion sizes. But my problem remains: candy. Specifically Reese's.

I'm fully convinced I'm addicted to sugar, and that the highly processed forms found in candy and commercial ice cream muck about with my gut now (discovered through trial and error in precisely this example). This past Easter, there was the after-holiday sale at the local grocers. Guess who bought several pounds of Reese's Easter Eggs? Now, I told myself when I was buying them that I could pop them in the freezer and just eat one or two a day for an after-supper desert. That was a Shallow Justification number 1. Because based on my own knowledge of my past behavior, I knew damn well how hard it was going to be to keep to that. Sure enough, I was soon eating 4-5 pieces a day. Any moment when I would get the munchies was fair game for another sugar hit. My intestines hated me for a full month, until I had successfully worked through three bags worth of candy. I told myself I was addicted, and I would just keep up this pace until they were all gone, then not buy any more. Simple, right? Shallow Justification number 2. Every time I would finish a piece, I would wonder why I even ate them, because I couldn't honestly say if I liked the taste after the fact, and by mid-month, I was certain they were the cause of my gut problems. But it was a habit now, and I had no problem with this kind of diet in college... Shallow Justification number 3.

We can find justifications for almost anything. The real test comes when we look to where those come from and how much weight we want to give them, based on those principles we follow. It's not about not finding a justification, but rather which ones we use. I decided for an extended period of time to suppress some of my principles, namely self-control and long-term views on health decisions, and accept my own justifications. I've still got one bag left in the deep freeze, and I see it every time I open the chest. I've got a couple pints of ice cream too. I pass those handy-dandy, super-convenient resealable bags of little Reese's every week in the grocery store ("Hey, I'll just grab one or two, just enough to satisfy the cravings, I can handle it, right?").

Now, however, my craving has moved from a bad justification to a factor for consideration. I've learned from this mistake, but it's not exactly a lesson I wanted to learn. It's harder to keep to my principles than it would have been had I not backslid, but they're winning and I'm down to twice a week, a single candy or one scoop of ice cream, and a "no, you don't even like it, much less need it" mantra at the grocery store. I also have a strong complex about throwing away perfectly good food that constantly wars with my portion control principles (but that's slowly finding a balance, too), so I'm still going to "work through" what sweets I have, but strictly regimented.

We'll see come October if I'm strong enough to resist the siren call of Reese's Pumpkins. I certainly hope so. :faint:

 64 
 on: May 12, 2016, 05:15:16 AM 
Started by DragonsFriend - Last post by Athena
Yes, we may try and "justify" our behavior but if we're honest with ourselves and others, such justification (or perhaps an outright attempt to blame others) is just an attempt to feel better about doing something we know at our core that we shouldn't have done in the first place.

Okay, I am a bit confused here. If you cannot justify your thoughts or actions, how do you figure out if they were just as they should have been?

Like fr me, there is a set of principles which I follow, or rather, try to follow. If I can check all those, I am certain that I did what was required of me. If not, I'd try to see a reason behind my wayward behaviour.

 65 
 on: May 12, 2016, 04:16:11 AM 
Started by Crystal Dragon - Last post by Crystal Dragon
I've heard stories about dolphins and other mammals seeking help from people or providing help to people but a bird?

Not just a bird, but one known for chasing humans, cats, dogs, and other animals away from their territory (let alone their young)!  My mother kept geese for a while and they can be nasty when they want to ... and Canada Geese are some of the most temperamental.  I too was very surprised to see the parent standing a little ways off but not making a move to attack the woman officer removing the string from the gosling ... it clearly understood that she wasn't hurting the little one even though it was making a fuss.


Nice story! happy ending and good feelings all around.

I love stories like this!  And the cops deserve some kudos for acting rather than assuming the bird was just being a nuisance when it pecked the car door ... I think most people would have either ignored it or shooed it off.

 66 
 on: May 12, 2016, 04:07:53 AM 
Started by DragonsFriend - Last post by Crystal Dragon
... for me, the personal responsibilities and ethics (I find both mutually inclusive) vary from person to person or rather, situation to situation ...

I'm trying hard to imagine a situation that would necessitate an alternative stance and cannot come up with anything that might apply ... either you take responsibility for your actions or you don't.  IMHO it's really that simple.

Yes, we may try and "justify" our behavior but if we're honest with ourselves and others, such justification (or perhaps an outright attempt to blame others) is just an attempt to feel better about doing something we know at our core that we shouldn't have done in the first place.

 67 
 on: May 11, 2016, 10:05:33 PM 
Started by Crystal Dragon - Last post by DragonsFriend
It certainly sounds like the Goose was indeed trying to get help...
It surprises me that the goose knew that the officer was helping and not endangering its young.
I've heard stories about dolphins and other mammals seeking help from people or providing help to people but a bird?
Nice story! happy ending and good feelings all around.

 68 
 on: May 11, 2016, 09:58:31 PM 
Started by DragonsFriend - Last post by DragonsFriend
Do we apply the same standard to others that we do to ourselves?
If a person habitually loses jobs or destroys relationships because of their actions or lack thereof how do we respond to giving them help that never seems to work?

Sorry to be so vague but I am trying to evaluate my "first response" to people who continually ask for help and then end up in the same situation over and over. I tend to believe that they are avoiding a lesson that is being presented in increasing intensity until they either must learn it or just change the way they make decisions.

 69 
 on: May 11, 2016, 03:28:26 PM 
Started by Crystal Dragon - Last post by Crystal Dragon
Goose asking for help to save gosling:   :wuv:

http://abc13.com/news/mama-goose-hails-police-to-help-free-gosling/1332952/

 70 
 on: May 11, 2016, 04:08:26 AM 
Started by DragonsFriend - Last post by Athena
This is one topic on which I am seeking other PJ members' opinions. While I fully agree on what CD just said, personally, for me, the personal responsibilities and ethics (I find both mutually inclusive) vary from person to person or rather, situation to situation. I try and do / think / act as much as I can, but certain limitations play in to each situation, which would be hard to describe here.

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