Thanks for the reply to my tetrad. And no, I actually didn't intend on out-doing your language skills. But if you see it that way. Guess you feel threatened by me and my esseistic skills? hehe ;-) -- or let's better call it abnormally long pieces of written down thoughts captured by me typing them into a great technological innovation of the XXth century and pushing them through the cable all the way to you.. hehe. Anyways, I'll reply to the senses thread later.

But now, I'll finally share my thoughts with you on the topic of sacrifice, the idea of which did not appeal to you (at least that's what you thought the last time we talked.. hehe) So, let's just go through my definition of sacrifice (the first part of which btw was close to Jim's own:<<I think of sacrifice as to give up something that means something to you. So that you don't face the wrath of someone else that is in power over you.>>) Now coming to my definition. I define sacrifice as an deliberate act of giving up something that means something to you because of the love you have for people you're making this sacrifice for. So I guess (as you've already mentioned), it must've been the word and the associations that this word evoked in your mind that sorta made you think of sacrifice as of something negative. And I am fully aware of the fact that this word also possesses a negative connotation: (to quote you) the "sacrifice-yourself-for-the-community" aspect or "this-sacrific-must-be-made-for-the-people" idea which I totally disapprove of, btw. But there is a positive aspect to sacrifice (especially in my definition). And that would be the unselfishness about it. I don't think I need to be pointing to a certain religious reference in this context because it seems too obvious. But for the clarity of it: Jesus is the most perfect example for a sacrifice made out of absolute and pure love for humankind. To make another reference (from a slightly different source) I quote: "Freedom carries sacrifice" (3 doors down - 'Life of my own'). I guess, sacrifice (in this context) gets a whole different meaning, doesn't it? I mean, different to your association with totalitarianism and communism.

Jim wrote: <<I think that all of the moral laws and laws that limit others actions fit that description. Laws
that protect others equally I see as respect.>> hmm.. now what do I make out of this? You say moral laws limit you. All I can answer to that is again: "Freedom carries sacrifice". I do not think that moral laws are there to imprison us in a way. Btw, Nieztsche had the same idea of moral laws being unnecessary limits. I don't think that freedom can be defined as "do whatever you want to do" because otherwise the world would turn to a totally chaotic place. I think that limiting this formula to "do whatever you want to do unless it is harmful to others (including yourself)" is the only reasonable way to enable a peaceful interaction between humans.
And coming back to yet another issue mentioned some time ago, I do think that there exists a certain contrary between true happiness and a solely materialistic (i.e. physical) pleasure. First of all, let me define those two for you. When I say pleasure (in this context) I mean the type of pleasure that is just satisfying your physical desires and which can be alright to a certain point where it completely takes over and you either get addicted to it or you make it your most important goal in life - forgetting the essential values. Pleasure as such is not bad, but it is not a goal in itself. Things that bring pleasure (in my definition) are not long lasting and they still your desires only for an instant leaving your emotional and spiritual side empty. Let me be more precise here. What I consider being a pleasure is for example sitting infront of the TV-set all day long, taking drugs, being a sex-maniac, being food-obssesive etc. - so as you can see, these are all superficial things that in the long run are deprived of a deeper meaning and a positive impact on our lifes. True happiness, on the other hand consists of having fun with your true friends, doing sports, being creative as in leaving a mark in this world etc. So, these things also bring you satisfaction but a deeper satisfaction. And this is really all I meant by this "happiness-vs-pleasure" issue. What do you say to it now?