Weather puts on a show

Joe Xuereb

Nov 13th 2009, 21:38

@ Giov.deMartino. If in doubt, choose the safer option you are saying. Sitting on the fence to be on the safe side. This is called Pascal's Wager: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pascal's_Wager
The problem with the rationale 'what have you got to lose' is, unfortunately, flawed. That one has nothing to lose is not exactly water-tight. By opting to believe in an afterlife, hell, heaven, and so on, one's outlook on life is somehow cushioned. One's reality is distorted. This somehow diminishes one's life experience. Not believing in 'good behaviour begets reward' mindset throws one back on one's resources, no props in other words. BOTH of course are a leap in the dark. So the tough decision remains. Which leap in the dark does one opt for? It is up to the individual to decide. Some people opt for non-belief. How I arrive at my non-belief is my burden, my responsibility. It is a long and arduous trek. Many are uneasy with this so they hang in there. As they say, there is a price to pay for everything.
All this proves that setting up an untruth that affects people's lives is well nigh impossible to undo.

hanks for a wonderful photograph Frederick.

Kurt Mifsud

Nov 13th 2009, 19:49

@GiovDEMartino

Fear is the biggest factor of manipulation of mankind. I know I'm living this life and I always try to search for the truth. If there was one history book that supports the Bible I might get some doubts, but there isn't. And still, this doesn't make me a bad person at all, and people who know me sometimes call me idiot for my kindness and sincerity.

P.S. Don't take this as an offense or anything honestly. I accept that different people have a different character and different views.

GiovDEMartino@K Mifsud

Nov 13th 2009, 18:15

The literature you have may be right, but as an old conservative I wouldn't take any chances, because who knows, I may find Someone waiting for me on the other side. You can never tell! Better safe than sorry.

Kurt Mifsud

Nov 13th 2009, 09:05

@Daniel Goggi

It was just an ironic expression to say that I agree with you when you said that God's existence is a too complex subject to explain in a 200 word limit. I've got plenty of books and ebooks some over 500 pages that explain how the church founders manipulated ancient literature to create the empire they have today. Anyway I suggest www.truthbeknown.com by the famous D M Murdock (a.k.a. Acharya S) to those who want to really get some knowledge about this subject

Neville Zammit

Nov 12th 2009, 20:56

Amazing!

Daniel Goggi

Nov 12th 2009, 18:41

@ Kurt Mifsud

Excuse my French but could you kindly explain your English? "I just made you my god" doesn't make much sense to me. But from your previous comment to someone else I can see you agree with me that the argument should be on the picture not on God....

Kurt Mifsud

Nov 12th 2009, 14:57

@Daniel Goggi

I just made you my god :)

Kurt Mifsud

Nov 12th 2009, 14:43

@DeMartino

Jien jiddispjacini ghal min ma jafx jaqra jew jimmagina. Ghax jien ma tkazajt imkien b'li qed tghid int. Dan li ghedt jien:

"Hu pjacir ammira lil Alla u lili hallini niehu pjacir nammira n-natura, u hekk inkunu kuntenti t-tnejn. U jekk tahseb li jien intini f'ghajni min jemmen f'Alla sejjer zball habib ghax it-tfajla temmen u gejja minn familja konservattiva hafna, u QATT ma kelli problemi fuq dawn l-affarijiet ghax ma nippruvawx nikkonvincu jew nindahlu lil xulxin."

Vince Fabri

Nov 12th 2009, 13:09

Praiese the Lord! Praise the Lord! Clap, clap, clap, clap! Happy clappy! Happy clappy! Hurray

Christopher Debattista

Nov 12th 2009, 12:46

XI dwejjaq man kemm ghaw drama queens ghawnhekk ! Awesome photo full stop !

Daniel Goggi

Nov 12th 2009, 12:15

To All (once again)

Leave your troubled issues of whether God exists or not for serious debates (not 200 word limit comments on The Times of Malta).. Do you honestly think that you will find the answer in a 200 word statement? Well I only would need just a few words to justify God's existence but for people as frustrated and troubled as you (trying to find justification why God should NOT exist and not why God SHOULD exist) it gets complicated. Don't forget that if God were to exist (please note that I do believe in God myself) and I'm putting myself into your shoes, do you really think you have the wits to figure out God's mysterious ways? Do you really think that you can reason things out like God? Every time mankind tried to play God, we know the outcomes... and I won't go into further details.

ONCE AGAIN. Take your religious/faith/inner struggles to places of competence and let live... It’s just a photo one should enjoy and appreciate.

Chill out.. we'll all die some day. Then we see what happens. In the mean time make sure you live a good life, not a life of hypocrites.

GiovDeMartino@Kurt Mifsud

Nov 12th 2009, 11:30

Jien ma ndhalt u ma nindahal qatt lil hadd. Kulhadd affarih. Imma li titkaza li bniedem jara lil Alla fin-natura naqra stramba. Int ferhan Sur Mifsud li l-maggoranza ta' dawk li jemmnu f'Alla l-Hallieq mhix kbira daqs kemm wiehed jahseb? Jekk inhu hekk veru jiddispjacini jien.

Joe Xuereb

Nov 12th 2009, 11:28

2) I will illustrate this with a short anecdote (that happens to be true). I knew someone, a dyed-in-the-wool homophobe. He was desperate for work and only had bar work skills. I pointed him in the direction of a gay bar. He was accepted and worked and did very well. He thanked me and he said, 'Joe, this job has opened my eyes. I used to think gay people had 'green hair'. Through my work I have learned that they are perfectly ordinary people'. He'd known me a while and accepted me, always telling me that I was not like the 'others'. Which I resented. Because, although obviously different, I am 'like the rest'. Everybody's different. Gay or straight. We all experience the world differently depending on our personal experience.

Thanks for the picture Frederick. Keep chasing them man. It doesn't matter if you get electricity pylons in the frame. It's all part of the landscape. Sweat over the big things not the small one. And make sure you have enough warm clothing while you're waiting. Thanks.

Joe Xuereb

Nov 12th 2009, 11:22

1) Il-mistoqsija oht il-gherf. Loosely translated, necessity is the mother of invention. Or more literal, in our case, a question is sister to wisdom.
To all those who complain, why do we have to bring god into this, whether for or against, I can only say. In life it is at least useful to hear other people's point of view, they might come up with a better answer. I admit this feels like taking a risk. Because thinking outside the box, stepping outside the comfort zone does feel uncomfortable. That is only natural. But one gets over the initial unease. As we say, the best way out of a problem is THROUGH it, not round it.
continued

Jason Fenech

Nov 12th 2009, 10:59

@m cutajar

"You have to think outside the box...lightning passes through the hanging wires and we have electricity. Moreover we have to have a sign indicating to us that it is a danger zone...electrocution risk!!!. congrats for this nice pic."

hehe ... mine was just constructive criticism being an amateur photographer myself ... believe me you wouldn't want lightning hitting power cables unless you love the smell of burned appliances and tv sets!

@bartolo

thanks for the link but incidentally I already knew what an axiom is and if you care read the contents by you provided you'll see that;

"In traditional logic, an axiom or postulate is a proposition that is not proved or demonstrated but considered to be either self-evident, or subject to necessary decision."

if a=b then b=a, there's no need to prove it, you just accept it as fact because it always holds true!

Kurt Mifsud

Nov 12th 2009, 09:05

@DeMartino

Niehu pjacir inhalli lil kulhadd fil-liberta tieghu, basta jhallu lili. Minn sempliciment ritratt kien hawn xi hadd ried jaqla dan l-argument stupidu tas-soltu. Kieku int ghedt hekk mill-ewwel ma kont nirrispondik kif irrispondejtek.

Imma int ghedt: "Because he is the Almighty! And because the majority of the Maltese, in spite of our humanity, still believe that we depend completely on HIM." Jigifieri ghax il-maggoranza (li mhix maggoranza daqs kemm tahseb) tal-Maltin jahsbu hekk huwa vangelu u 100% tajjeb. Jigifieri ghax il-maggoranza tal-Germanizi kienu jahsbu li l-Lhud kellhom jinqerdu kien tajjeb?

Hu pjacir ammira lil Alla u lili hallini niehu pjacir nammira n-natura, u hekk inkunu kuntenti t-tnejn. U jekk tahseb li jien intini f'ghajni min jemmen f'Alla sejjer zball habib ghax it-tfajla temmen u gejja minn familja konservattiva hafna, u QATT ma kelli problemi fuq dawn l-affarijiet ghax ma nippruvawx nikkonvincu jew nindahlu lil xulxin.

Joe Xuereb

Nov 11th 2009, 22:53

I thought I'd heard everything. So God created the earth, a kind of floating giant cream-cracker, only round like a disc. And he mean it to be static, no upheavals, earthquakes, etc. But then the man and the woman sinned. And thereafter, they and theirs were plagued by plagues and other catastrophes. This is what we learn when we attend catechism sessions in preparation for our first Holy Communion. And yet commentators are seem to be much older than six or seven. Ahjar Alla jaghtini l-pacenzja!
Frederick, thanks again for sharing a wonderful photograph with us. It's almost frightening in its majesty. Isn't nature wonderful. It made me, and thee, and them over there. It messed me up at times but the rest of you are lovely.

Michael Gatt

Nov 11th 2009, 19:21

Kull ma ghamel il Hallieq kollu sabieh hu il bniedem li jkisser kollox mir armonija li gew mahluqin. Proset tassew ghal ritratt

Edward Camilleri

Nov 11th 2009, 18:49

People, you amaze me how you manage to make an issue out of everything!! A simply beautiful photo has trigerred another hot debate, it seems... Fred, someday submit a photo of some dog-droppings on a pavement, so we see where the discussion goes...!

estelle grech

Nov 11th 2009, 18:37

Nice pic!

yanika Anne Cassar

Nov 11th 2009, 18:27

@ all

catastrophies are sometimes caused because of massive human intervention...also because the area's location...many factors may cause catastrophies....Although EVERYTHING comes from God ..that which has been tempered with...is the result we get...

shame on you talking like that about God! Peace

Matthew Delicata

Nov 11th 2009, 18:12

Just a note about the subject of axoims.

It is true that at the very foundation of our maths there are axoims that we must base all are work on and they can't be proven, but we don't believe in them with blind faith.

We believe in them because the maths we do using them work in our world, we believe in them because when we design a plane using that maths it actually flies, and rockets launch etc.... If our machines weren't working then we would have to change the axioms all over again

J Attard

Nov 11th 2009, 17:43

Nigel,
This is all a result of sin. Before sin, the world was perfect and all was in place. When man sinned, the earth was cursed and this led to an unstable nature, not to mention diseases and other pains we go through. This is the consequence! This was not God's intention but men fell to sin. Nature became unstable & not God, so God is not responsible. When something is from God there is always a valid reason & is for our good.

Thus the good news is that even though we sin and keep sinning, Jesus Christ came to the world to save us - if we accept His Salvation!

Pity subject had to divert completely... imma kif jghidu, l-kliem bhac-cirasa :)

Chris Borg

Nov 11th 2009, 17:38

What kind of camera did you use Frederick?

GiovDeMartino@Nigel Lawrence

Nov 11th 2009, 17:26

You'd better be careful because OUR GOD is not only almighty but also rather tough. There will certainly come a time in our life, all of us, when you are helpless and you'll have to turn your eyes upwards....whether there is a God or not. Better take no chances.

D. Gatt

Nov 11th 2009, 17:00

@James De Giorgio
Brilliant joke as per Mr. Bean, but why would we atheists not be allowed in if we almost never broke anyone of the ten commandments? It's not like we go to Sunday mass and then start gossiping on everyone and everything? What if when you die you just see blackness infront of you and you say "Oh! Duh!! should have made better use of my time than staring at a statue and believing a 2,000 year old fairy tale based on previous religions / sects."

D. Gatt

Nov 11th 2009, 16:51

@Nigel Lawrence

No Nigel it is not God's fault it is as per Attard's answer, from the enemy down below. Geez if only Mr. Dawkins could see this thread he would probably need to change his pants after rolling over a couple of times on the floor with laughter.

Btw just cause there is no proof it exists it doesn't mean that it exists! Give me one simple concrete proof of a maker's existence (and please no faith this and faith that) and we'll talk as adults then.

Any other people agree with me on this subject or am I alone on this?

Nigel Lawrence

Nov 11th 2009, 15:11

@J Attard

Is not this wonderful God of yours also responsible for catastrophic typhoons, hurricanes, flooding around the globe; the ongoing droughts in sub-Saharan Africa, etc., or is that someone else's God is to blame?

Joss Galea

Nov 11th 2009, 12:44

OH COME ON PEOPLE! ARE YOU FOR REAL???!!!!! By the way....great shot Frederick., loved the pic very much!

J Attard

Nov 11th 2009, 12:34

@D.Gatt
It might be the religious ignorance around us that has put many afar from God - the creator. God is in no religion, God is not an opinion, God is not a Sunday event - God IS the actual creator, the marvelous designer behind all this. God exists! Some might disagree, but that doesn't prove this false! Pity some think that God's followers are closed-minded. In reality they have opened their eyes & realised the beauty life holds.Our hectic lives and 'high intelligence' is making humanity so superior that one has forgotten his originance and the real scope behind this life!

With regards to the questions you posed, if one truly believes in God then he won't go round firing shots, be unfaithful or stab people....... yes it's from the enemy down below!

Well done for this beautiful shot Frederick!! Amazing!

Joseph Brincat

Nov 11th 2009, 12:16

Stop discussing nonsense ....
Enjoy this beautiful Picture.

Weldone to the photographer

GiovDeMartino@ Kurt Mifsud

Nov 11th 2009, 11:47

Int ma tihux pjacir, Sur Mifsud, li ghadna naraw lil Alla fil-gmiel tan-Natura?

Daniel Goggi

Nov 11th 2009, 11:30

@ TO ALL Moralists

Could you please just appreciate a photo and leave your ethical and spiritual dilemmas out of the picture for once... God, evil, always the same stories.. Always complaining too.. It’s a photo portraying lightning next to the most imposing building in a village (the village church which also happens to be the House of God). Oh! and by the way, sorry to let you down, but more often than not, this happens all over the world be it a mosque or a church or a temple. Only large cities have high rising massive buildings (and by the way those are all modern buildings). So in this picture you can compare the force of nature with something our forefathers were able to build.

Now, the photo looks great. I would have however avoided those horizontal power cables running across the picture. I would also have avoided over exposing the grass at the bottom. But hey, over all it’s still a good shot. It takes plenty of skill, practice and patience to capture lightning. Keep it up you're on the right track. Prosit

Tony Keepers

Nov 11th 2009, 09:12

Great Photo...And
@ A.Buttigieg; I fully agree with you.

ToNic.

edward bartolo

Nov 11th 2009, 08:40

Quote: "Thus my reason is that we should never assume that a being or whatever s responsible for this, cause as history has proven alot of times over and over, in the end there is always a scientific explanation."

However, a supernatural being can act in a way completely explicable through science. In other words, that science can explain nature most of the time, is no proof against the existence of a supernatural being.

@ Jason Fenech
"May I suggest you read - or perhaps talk if you're ever so lucky - to people like Stephen Hawking, Steven Weinberg, Stephen Jay Gould and Richard Dawkins. I am positive you will get an answer to any question regarding physics, biology or mathematics though I suggest you first abandon your misconception that science somehow relies on faith."

I was referring to scientific extrapolation which is the basic assumption employed in every quantitative scientific hypothesis. This, notwithstanding the fact, that it is unjustified logically to claim it. However, there is no workaround to avoid it.

Math also has axioms, that cannot be reduced into simpler formulations disallowing strict analytical proof.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Axiom

D. Gatt

Nov 11th 2009, 08:02

@ K. Pullicino & rest,
Of course we'll take the issue against someone who has to mention that it is God work and what not. If you haven't yet grasped the idea we are not in the dark ages anymore, we have free speech and frankly it sickens me that every time something is shown the subject of God has to be mentioned. Know what for me that is the work of the flying spaghetti monster, try and counter act that for a change. Yes I believe in a plate of spaghetti with meatballs for eyes who watches everyone and created everyone.

@ Tiziana Attard
It's people like you with your closed mind on the subject that really bugs me, just why is it that every breath I take comes from God? Is it every stab I take, every bullet I fire, every time I am unfaithful comes from God? Or is that from the one down below us?

Etienne Pavia

Nov 11th 2009, 03:06

So...for the people who mention God for this picture. Does it occur to you that there's a reason for things to happen? In this case it is a natural cause - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lightning

So conclusion- for all things we don't understand why they happen - we say it's GOD! or it's a miracle... So many miracles happen in Malta then :-)

and by d way it's a great picture. Well done Frederick! forget the cropping, it's natural as is...

m cutajar

Nov 10th 2009, 23:39

@Jason Fenech
@Joe Xuereb

You have to think outside the box...lightning passes through the hanging wires and we have electricity. Moreover we have to have a sign indicating to us that it is a danger zone...electrocution risk!!!. congrats for this nice pic.

James De Giorgio

Nov 10th 2009, 22:45

This shot is wonderful, well done to the photographer.

The photo also affirms God as the greatest artist! He provides new skies continuously.

To all the atheists in this blog, when you die and face judgement, someone might snicker and tell you "you must be feeling a right bunch of nitwits!!"

Apologies to Rowan Atkinson in his excellent sketch "Welcome to Hell". It's found freely on the internet.

Joe Xuereb

Nov 10th 2009, 21:25

Beautiful photograph Frederick. You could crop the sign in the lefthand corner and the electricity wires at the top and lose nothing of the drama of this beautiful picture.
God. Mm! I can just about understand the creation of the human race and its freedom to exercise will. But why would a god set up a very necessary procreating system that, our religion at least, comes down on like a thunderbolt? I am not a scientist, nor a meteorologist but, in conjunction with the beauty of lightning and thunder (storm-chasers they are called in USA I believe, photographers who delight in taking pictures of these wondrous natural phenomena, one has to marvel at the beauty of mountains and the earth movements that created them. And the millions that have died in the process. So, I can just accept, maybe the creation of Man. But the unnecessary destructive nature of the planet - what is that about?
Elsewhere, a comment on miracles. The Church is wise to be cautious about jubilation at miraculous events. Experience and time have shown that these are, subsequently, scientifically explainable. Finally, there is faith, there is science and, there is plausibility.

K. Pullicino

Nov 10th 2009, 21:09

@A. Buttigieg: And why is it always that there has to be someone who takes issue with a person mentioning God?

Lawrence Zahra

Nov 10th 2009, 21:06

What a magnificent photo, well done Fredrick !

Kurt Mifsud

Nov 10th 2009, 20:28

@GiovDeMartino

X'ghandu x'jaqsam??? Allura kulhad isir musulman ax il-musulmani qedin f'maggoranza fid-dinja?

Tiziana Attard

Nov 10th 2009, 20:26

Dear Mr/Ms. A.Buttigieg,

Please note that everything around you including the breathe you take comes from God, even if you don't like the idea!

Prosit Fredrick!!

Alfred J Zammit

Nov 10th 2009, 19:58

Frederick. Proset! A truly amazing photograph! It's perfect, and I understand that it is no easy task to get this done. The weather, the rain, setting up your gear, finding the right location, timing your exposure in conjunction with the lighting strikes (no human is fast enough to hit the shutter when seeing the lighting), framing and hoping to get a lighting strike in the frame etc. Anyone who is into photography realises that this image is truly splendid, and the photographer has produced excellent artwork. Best regards. ajzammit

Christopher Grainger

Nov 10th 2009, 19:13

Great photo ... I tried and failed to achieve the same last night !

As religion has reared it's ugly head once more : there is plenty that separates an appreciation of the universe and it's complexities, from the man made dogmatic set of institutions that has hijacked that appreciation, surrounded it with plagiarized tales and called it their own !.

GiovDeMartino@A Buttigieg

Nov 10th 2009, 18:25

Because he is the Almighty! And because the majority of the Maltese, in spite of our humanity, still believe that we depend completely on HIM.

ABORG

Nov 10th 2009, 18:07

@ William Flynn: good one:)

@ T Gauci: 'religious fanatics' -naaaaa!

Eileen Scanlon

Nov 10th 2009, 17:27

Beautiful picture, well done and congratulations

Jason Fenech

Nov 10th 2009, 17:25

It takes patience, persistence and a little bit of luck to capture lightning on camera. 10 points for that. Pity for the over hanging wires and the traffic sign at the bottom, otherwise it's a great shot.

@Bartolo

May I suggest you read - or perhaps talk if you're ever so lucky - to people like Stephen Hawking, Steven Weinberg, Stephen Jay Gould and Richard Dawkins. I am positive you will get an answer to any question regarding physics, biology or mathematics though I suggest you first abandon your misconception that science somehow relies on faith.

If you will -> http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/badastronomy/2008/02/18/is-science-faith-based/

@Erich Ghan

At the end of the day, you put forward a perfectly legit question to which no answer was given. I'm sure that if life or limb was lost to lightning we'd see no mention of God hence why I'm always left dumbstruck by religious double standards.

Interestingly enough the gentlemen above mentioned, besides being some of best minds around, happen to be either atheist or agnostic.

Food for thought anyone?

Kurt Mifsud

Nov 10th 2009, 16:58

@ABORG

I was going to ask you some questions but seems other people thought of them as well, asked them even before me, and yet we're waiting for your answer.

Anyway I don't want to ruin this chat furthermore, well done to the photographer as it was for a beautiful photo that I was looking for

Kenneth Galea

Nov 10th 2009, 16:57

Well done Frederick, like the photo very much.
What a relief that the cooler weather kicked in. The only way to forget the horrid summer of 2009, it was hell on earth. I struggled with it and I think it was the worst ever!
Frederick you make a professional photographer. It is awesome!

U. D'Amico

Nov 10th 2009, 16:34

@ HENRY GALEA SOUCHET

Technically, there is enough electrical energy from lightning bolts across the U.S. such that only about 30% of that energy would need to be harnessed to power the entire U.S. continually (assuming there was a way to store excess energy). So, whoever determines an efficient way to utilize lightning will be extremely rich and famous. Presumably, though, it would take an enormous amount of experimentation and effort to achieve anything practical.

If even 10% efficiency could be achieved, the world would be changed radically.

lilian azzopardi

Nov 10th 2009, 16:02

prosit Fred. What an amazing photo!!!

Anthony Roberts

Nov 10th 2009, 14:35

This is an amazing photo. Well done Frederick. I am going to email this to my family in the UK

D. Gatt

Nov 10th 2009, 14:12

@ edward bartolo
I am quite pleased that my observation was taken with a pinch of salt. Usually in this country people tend to gang up & drown you in incoherent words and quotes from this and that and don't usually let you have your say.
To say the plain truth I'm not a scientist myself but there is a deep appreciation of science from my side and above all respect to all opinions. I do get your argument though that nothing should be self-evident as is usually attributable (if I'm not mistaken) to and axiom.
From my own point of view is this: if you look back a couple of centuries most of the discoveries we have made would be met with a gaping mouth if you were to tell this to a Medieval person. Thus my reason is that we should never assume that a being or whatever s responsible for this, cause as history has proven alot of times over and over, in the end there is always a scientific explanation.
Above all apologies if you felt I was mocking you in any way that is just my character to be a tad sarcastic.

Mat Borg

Nov 10th 2009, 13:24

1st things first: Great picture (Whether God did it or particles in the air did it - whoever created them - still remains a great picture)

2nd. The God existance/non existance is really getting interesting. Maybe we should open a blog on this. Brought up as a catholic like most of you, I have my doubts like most of you! What I am sure of is none of us are certain either way. At least that is the situation todayWe tend to be certain that the other is wrong though as usual!

The interesting thing this time round is that the believer (Bartolo) is talking science and the atheist (Gatt) is talking based on faith in science. Science people wake up, science needs help in this argument today as the axiom of Maths (Which I hardly know what it is) seems to be rocking the science ground.

edward bartolo

Nov 10th 2009, 13:01

@ D. Gatt

You do not thank me for the good laugh?! How rude of you... naughty boy!

Joking apart, what I intended to say, is that science, although based on evidence, requires some axioms for its foundations and these, like religion, are based solely on faith. One such central axiom is that math formulae can model nature. My question is: why should nature follow numerical behaviour?

Quote: "It's a very simple answer: the one and only god is the answer to this!"
It is immature to consider God like an all powerful wizard. Observation proves that this is not the case, and that how everthing came into existence is not an easy question. I give you hundred percent credit to laugh at me if I say that God acted like a magician. Simple observation shows that nature is capable of modifying itself and of evolving. However, both Judaism and Christianity do not claim that their purpose is to explain how it all happened. Both of these religions focus on a personal relationship with God and that is what is important.

At the end, even math is based on axioms.

T.gauci

Nov 10th 2009, 12:44

Natural hazards are God's work according to these religious fanatics below - the IQ of some people is very disappointing

D. Gatt

Nov 10th 2009, 12:33

@ edward bartolo
It's a very simple answer: the one and only god is the answer to this!
No seriously before I crack a rib laughing at you all if you want all those answers go enroll yourself in a quantum physics course.
I mean geez mate you sounded like one of those fellas back in the dark ages when they would go on the heretics and ask them to explain to them why it rains and why the sun does not burn the horizon....Are you one of those people that would tie me to a pole and set me on fire if I declare myself openly atheist?!

William P Flynn

Nov 10th 2009, 12:16

It's the devil leaning on his pitchfork. Oooh...he's coming to get you...

edward bartolo

Nov 10th 2009, 12:07

@ Eric Gahn

Could you please, explain what is Dark Matter and why dynamics fails to account for the rotation of galaxies? And, by the way, what causes matter to have mass?

Also, please, can you explain what is energy, and go deeper than simply saying, that it is the ability to do work? Can you also explain why matter behaves differently at the atomic level, and why behaviour can only be accounted to statistically?

Finally, one last question for someone who understands better than most of us: how does a single cell is capable of growing into a whole complex organism? I want a step by step explanation as to what happens at every cell division, and how different genes are switched on and off. Moreover, could you please explain to my humble mind, how non-protein encoding genes work and what is their purpose?

I associate all this to nature and that is what makes God so magnificent, exactly because nature is capable of creation and evolution. In other words, one needs more capability to create an autonomous creation. By rejecting God, you are saying that a cart is more complex than a computer!

R Spiteri

Nov 10th 2009, 11:52

@ Gerard Cassar

If that is Mosta Dome, I'm Brad Pitt. That's Mgarr Parish Church, much smaller and oval in shape. :)

G. Portelli

Nov 10th 2009, 11:50

Hi Gerard

Read the caption first. That is not the Mosta dome but the church at Mgarr. Great photo and nice surroundings. If it had been Mosta there would be those 4 storey buildings all around trying to reach for the sky and obscure the sight od the dome.

M. Vella

Nov 10th 2009, 11:28

D. MANGION

God's own fireworks noise lasts for a split of a second, while traditional Maltese village festa fireworks produce 125db noise level for 25 minutes (the duration of a kaxxa nfernali).

At that sound level Maltese traditional village festas are a TORTURE!!!!!!!!

Sandro Agius

Nov 10th 2009, 11:28

You can take His sign of Salvation - the crucifix - but for sure you will not take away his glory. Great shot....it was a spectacular scene....God still reigns

Lorraine Vella

Nov 10th 2009, 11:16

Beautiful pic. It shows God's greatness... & the greatness of this photographer!

Gerard Cassar

Nov 10th 2009, 11:10

There is nothing beautiul in this picture except the illumination of the Mosta dome.
The lightnings are a frightening spectale and nobody would like to be in their way.
Lightning start on the ground and rise to the clouds so it seems, not the oposite.
God forbid that a plane is in their midst, though like cars it could act as a Faraday cage
A nice terrifying instant photo but not beautiful except the sight of the curch

Eric Gahn

Nov 10th 2009, 11:05

So I ask, if this picture is God @ work. What was hurricane Katrina, and hurricane Andrew, etc.... Hurricanes put on much more beuatiful shows than this beautiful image shows. Yet they leave distruction when they are gone. Is that God's handiwork too?

J Farrugia

Nov 10th 2009, 10:41

Where are those mystified with the EU noise directive? Let's tell the Almighty that He is not allowed to make noises on our island. There are already many protests about the local fireworks, so we dont need to add any more noise, otherwise they will wake up some good for nothing fellow and organise a protest against THUNDER.

Maria Fleri Soler

Nov 10th 2009, 10:26

Prosit! very nice picture, well done.

HENRY GALEA SOUCHET

Nov 10th 2009, 10:26

Would be interesting to calculate the amount of energy which nature shunted to earth ! What if this volume were to be diverted to the national grid ? Maybe we are still in time to start thinking of placing tall antennas amongst the units of the contemplated wind farms thereby attracting such a discharge whilst serving as a protection to the actual units.

ABORG

Nov 10th 2009, 10:21

@A Burttigieg

it;s very simple - when u see such a beautful scene, such symmetry and lovely contrasting colours, which are very clearly visible in the pic, you realise that you are not alone out there.....there is a superior 'force' allowing you to witness all this,....and that is God for the majority of us...for others it may be another god they may beleive in:)

carm callus

Nov 10th 2009, 10:11

Beautiful picture! Would be interesting to know which camera has been used to take such a picture!

ABORG

Nov 10th 2009, 10:10

lovely....nature at its best! may we see many more of these spectacular scenes...well done to the photographer!

A. Buttigieg

Nov 10th 2009, 09:57

Great shot. But why has God got to be included in everything on this island?

Joseph Brincat

Nov 10th 2009, 09:24

OOOHHHH !!!!
Weldone Frederick, awesome !!

Roger Boyle

Nov 10th 2009, 09:19

Well done on this pic. The best local thunderstorm shot I have seen so far.

Darren Mizzi

Nov 10th 2009, 08:56

That is a very nice shot. Keep it up and keep them coming :)

K. Abela

Nov 10th 2009, 08:45

Wow! amazing shot Fredrick!!
Keep it up

Claudia Pecorella

Nov 10th 2009, 08:31

God at his best.....beautiful photo prosit!

James Spiteri

Nov 10th 2009, 08:15

If only we could find a means how to store that energy !

D.MANGION

Nov 10th 2009, 08:11

WOW

God's own fireworks ! Complete with loud noises !
Spectacular and awesome.

Any complaints anybody ?