[Buddha-l] Will this be on the final exam?

[R B Basham]

Denizens, or not,

First, another tangent: Has anyone else noticed that the lines per inch
(vertical) hasn't changed while the fonts are smaller and the whitespace
larger at most of the 'updated' websites? If the trend continues,
web-pages will appear to be blank except for irregularly dashed line-art
(alledged text content in very, very small font).  

Now back to Curt's divergence:

>Curt Steinmetz: Like all tests the Beliefomatic has a very clear
cultural bias. In fact, the very idea that "religions" are correlated
with "beliefs" is rooted in European Christianity (which has always been
obsessed with creeds and "beliefs").
>

The survey seems to have changed from several years ago. 

BN is provincial, as some would naturally suspect from its shared roots
with a right-center-right political think-tank. Unlike buddha-l which is
worldly and insightful (with an exception or two), Abrahamic chauvinists
abound in the BN habitat; I speculate that RH's nightmare would be
hosting/teaching a Buddhists Only forum there. 

PollingPoint, a right-wing ideology affiliated survey outfit, exhibits
similar blinders. Imagine having a forced choice answer of 1, 3, or 7 to
the question "How many times a week do you gather to sing hymns with
like-mindeds?" as part of a political, marketing, or economic survey.
Sometimes conforming to the basic Precepts is more difficult than
others. 


Richard Basham