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clipped by:AtlLiberal clippers remarks: I literally laughed out loud after reading the above statement stating how DSouza used "science" to refute Hitchens. The WND lives up to its reputation of dogma over intelligence by printing this drivel. The tired argument that DSouza puts forth relies of the argument of improbability, the stock in trade of the ID/Creationist crowd. Although I expect some mouth breathers might find this so startlingly "scientific" cause it refers to numbers and other sciencey stuff that itll go over big in the church pews. As far as people with even a rudimentary knowledge of science will discover that this is merely another pseudoscience attempt to refute evolution. Its been discredited in too many sources to list.
When Christopher Hitchens and Dinesh DSouza, two best-selling authors and intellectual heavyweights, squared off against each other in a spirited debate at The Kings College last month, many of those in attendance were probably expecting something quite different than what actually transpired.
Instead, it was DSouza, the Christian, who appealed to science and reason in his allotted time.
DSouza cited modern scientific discoveries that show we are living in a universe tailor-made for man, a universe so fine-tuned that if any one of dozens of laws governing the universe were altered by the slightest of margins it would be impossible for life to exist on Earth
clipped by:sahara clippers remarks: When a clinical social worker called the next day, Jonathan, 25, told again of his suicidal thoughts and other symptoms. And then, with his stepmother listening in, he learned that he was 26th on the waiting list for one of the 12 beds in the centers ward for post-traumatic stress disorder sufferers. Four days later, on Jan. 16, he wrapped a household extension cord around his neck, tied it to a beam in the basement, and hanged himself. In life, Jonathan Schulze didnt get nearly what he needed. But in death, this tough and troubled Marine may help get something critical done. Please, read the rest of the article, it is very disheartening. My condolences to the family, its just sad.
James Schulze walked to the grave of his son, Jonathan, an Iraq war veteran. (Bill Greene/Globe Staff)
On the morning of Jan. 11, Jonathan, an Iraq war veteran with two Purple Hearts, neatly packed his US Marine Corps duffel bag with his sharply creased clothes, a framed photo of his new baby girl, and a leather-bound Bible and headed out from the family farm for a 75-mile drive to the Veterans Affairs Medical Center in St. Cloud, Minn.
Family and friends had convinced him at last that the devastating mental wounds he brought home from war, wounds that triggered severe depression, violent outbursts, and eventually an uncontrollable desire to kill himself, could not be drowned in alcohol or treated with the array of antianxiety drugs hed been prescribed.
He wanted to be admitted to a psychiatric ward.
But, instead, he was told that the clinician who prescreened cases like his was unavailable.
WASHINGTON - After confessing to slaughtering 180,000 Kurds and plotting to build a doomsday nuke, Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein was so upset when his FBI interrogator left for home that he cried like a baby.
Saddam never used body doubles - as was widely believed - because no one could "play" him, Piro quoted Saddam as saying.
He admired Americans, particularly ex-Presidents Bill Clinton and Ronald Reagan - but loathed the two Bushes he fought wars with.
The "Butcher of Baghdad" also confessed he ordered Kurdish civilians gassed and slaughtered thousands more, their remains left in mass graves.
Until 9/11, Saddam thought UN sanctions would go away and he could make a nuclear bomb. His prewar weapons of mass destruction deceptions were a ruse to convince Iran - whom he feared - that he had an arsenal.
Ministers Louis Farrakhan, Jesse Jackson, Al Sharpton, Washington, D.C.s Mayor Anthony Williams and others recently met to discuss plans to celebrate the 10th anniversary of the October 1995 Million Man March. Whilst reading about the plans, I thought of an excellent topic for the event: how not to be poor.
Avoiding long-term poverty is not rocket science. First, graduate from high school. Second, get married before you have children, and stay married. Third, work at any kind of job, even one that starts out paying the minimum wage. And, finally, avoid engaging in criminal behavior.
Judge Who Lost a $54 Million Lawsuit Against Dry Cleaner Over Pants Loses Job
A judge who lost a $54 million lawsuit against his dry cleaner over a pair of missing pants has lost his job, District of Columbia officials confirmed.
Roy Pearsons term as an administrative law judge expired May 2 and the D.C. Commission on Selection and Tenure of Administrative Law Judges has voted not to reappoint him, Lisa Coleman, the citys general counsel, wrote Nov. 8 in response to a Freedom of Information Act request from The Associated Press.
Pearson was one of about 30 judges who worked in the Office of Administrative Hearings, which handles disputes involving city agencies. He had held his position for two years.
More than 1 million cases of chlamydia were reported in the United States last year -- the most ever reported for a sexually transmitted disease, federal health officials said
More bad news: Gonorrhea rates are jumping again after hitting a record low, and an increasing number of cases are caused by a "superbug" version resistant to common antibiotics
Syphilis is rising, too. The rate of congenital syphilis -- which can deform or kill babies -- rose for the first time in 15 years.
clipped by:MetisCougar clippers remarks: Every thing are is attached to the earth, why is it that the Aboriginals of this world understand this? Cougar
clipped by:cpltaiji clippers remarks: We certainly DO have different viewpoints! Some of the biggest racists in our country are black! Were ALL in this together. The sooner we see this fact, the sooner things will start to improve!
Blacks increasingly less certain about racial progress in America
Mario Tama / Getty Images file
Katherine Mundell, top, and Georgiana Broadneck are two of a minority of residents who returned to their housing project in New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina. According to a new study, the governments response to the storm was one of several incidents that have caused blacks to become more pessimistic about racial progress.
WASHINGTON - Growing numbers of blacks say they?re worse off than five years ago and don?t expect their lives to improve, a study released Tuesday shows. Black pessimism about racial progress in America, according to the study, is the worst it?s been in more than two decades.
The survey by the Pew Research Center, a Washington-based research organization, paints a mixed picture of race relations following Hurricane Katrina and the Jena Six case, in which six black teens were charged with beating a white student at a high school in the town of Jena, La.
This is a picture of a rock formation near a lake in Burma. The photo can only be taken on a specific day once a year when the sun rays touch the rocks at a certain angle.
clipped by:wiccantexan clippers remarks: A state task force wants to repeal no-fault divorce and "encourage" mothers to stay home. At least one member of said task force publicly proclaimed that divorce is a way for Satan to undermine society.
The Emmett Republican sees the breakdown of the traditional family structure as the root of societal ills such as drug abuse, crime and domestic violence.
Thats why, as chairman of the Idaho House of Representatives Family Task Force, he and others are considering controversial solutions such as repealing no-fault divorce laws and finding ways to encourage mothers to stay home with their children.
Hagler, 26, spoke at a task force meeting in Boise, but doesnt think the task force listened. She thinks Thayn and others on the task force, trying to define what a family should look like, are pegging families like hers as part of the problem.
Thayn believes that reducing divorces could save the state $200 million because the crime rate would drop if divorces dropped. He thinks making it more difficult to get divorced would help families avoid what he sees as the pitfalls of non-traditional families.
The chestnut tree that comforted Anne Frank while she hid from the Nazis during World War II will be cut down Nov. 21 because it is too diseased to be saved, the city said Tuesday.
The 150-year-old chestnut, familiar to the many readers of ?The Diary of Anne Frank,? suffers from fungus and moths that have caused more than half its trunk to rot.
The Jewish teenager made several references to the tree in the diary that she kept during the 25 months she remained indoors until the family was arrested by the Nazis in August 1944.
The Anne Frank Museum, where the tiny apartment has been preserved, said grafts have already been taken, and a sapling from the original will eventually replace it.
The Justice Department has reopened a long-dormant inquiry into the governments warrantless wiretapping program
Hinchey and other Democrats have long sought an investigation into the spying program to see if it complies with the law. Efforts to investigate the program have been rebuffed by the Bush administration
The OPR investigation was begun in February 2006 but was shut down a few months later when the National Security Agency refused to grant Justice Department lawyers the security clearances to ask questions about the program. Justice Department officials said Gonzales recommended Bush approve the clearances, but the president said no
Bushs decision to authorize the spy agency to monitor people inside the United States, without warrants, generated a host of questions about the programs legal justification
The administration has vehemently defended the eavesdropping,
clipped by:BobbyRutan clippers remarks: Among whites, about two-thirds of the children from middle-income families grew up to have higher incomes than their parents, she said
Isaacs compiled the reports for the Economic Mobility Project, a collaboration of senior economists and researchers from four Washington think tanks that span the ideological spectrum. The project is funded and managed by the Pew Charitable Trusts.
Isaacs used survey data from the Panel Study of Income Dynamics, which is conducted at the University of Michigan.
Decades after the civil rights movement, the income gap between black and white families has grown, says a study that tracked the incomes of 2,300 families for more than 30 years
One reason for the growing disparity: Incomes among black men have declined in the last three decades, when adjusted for inflation. They were offset only by gains among black women
Incomes among white men, meanwhile, were relatively stagnant, while those of white women increased more than fivefold
In 2004, a typical black family had an income that was only 58% of a typical white familys. In 1974, median black incomes were 63% those of whites
Perhaps most disturbing, middle-income black families do not appear to be passing on higher incomes to their children in the same way that white families have, Isaacs said
only one in three black children from middle-income families grew up to have higher incomes than their parents
Too many Americans, whites and even some blacks, think that the playing field has indeed leveled
In the past, obtaining information about the regions waters, especially about winter temperatures, has proved extremely difficult. Its costly and sometimes impossible to send ships through the ice-filled waters, and each ship covers only a thin stretch of ocean. Now a small navy of seals has collected data inexpensively where no ship has gone before.
In their two-year study, the scientists recruited 85 elephant seals from four points around the Antarctic region: South Georgia, the Kerguelen Islands, Macquarie Island, and Livingston Island. As the seals migrated and foraged for food during their winter journey, they circumnavigated the Antarctic continent and its continental shelf, diving down to 2,000 feet more than 60 times a day.
Once the seals returned home from their journey, they molted, shedding the equipment from their heads.
clipped by:BartendingBear clippers remarks: More power to these fellas. They sacrifice again in defense of the honor of their country. I can see it no other way.
More than a dozen members of an antiwar veterans group were arrested yesterday as they protested the exclusion of their message from Boston?s Veterans Day parade.Members of Veterans for Peace lined up in front of a podium at City Hall Plaza holding antiwar placards, as color guards from Massachusetts military units and JROTC bands from across the state filed into Government Center for a ceremony, sponsored by the American Legion, to honor veterans after the parade. Some protesters wore gags, which they later said symbolized the fact that, while they were permitted to march in the parade, they were prevented from carrying signs opposing the war in Iraq.
?We were exercising our First Amendment rights,? said Winston Warfield of Dorchester, a member of the group. ?The First Amendment protects free speech, even when you don?t agree with what?s being said.?
Actress Candis Cayne heats up primetime TV in her role as Carmelita in the hit show drama "Dirty Sexy Money."
The sultry actress, who plays the transgendered mistress of a New York attorney general and senatorial candidate on the show, has made headlines as one of the few transgendered characters on television. She is also transgendered in real life.
Long before her groundbreaking role, Cayne was born Brendan McDaniel, half of a fraternal twin set. Her twin brothers name is Dylan and he is not transgendered.
Cayne began her transition process during her early 20s and at first questioned how it would impact her career.
"I spent years [wondering] Is it ever going to work out? This is my dream to act," she said.
Today she has reached her goal and shares her life with her fiance, Marco McDermott.
The group of "Call My Name" volunteers is at Clark Atlanta University in Georgia to create panels for the national AIDS quilt. Their goal is to make 100 new panels memorializing African-Americans who have died from AIDS by World AIDS Day on December 1.
For though nearly half of new American AIDS cases are black, fewer than 400 of 47,000 quilt panels honor African-Americans, the quilts curator says.
The U.S. population is about 13 percent African-American, but blacks accounted for nearly half -- or 49 percent -- of the people diagnosed with HIV/AIDS in the United States in 2005, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
The "Call My Name" project is organized by the NAMES Project Foundation, which is located in Atlanta and is the caretaker of the quilt. The panels will be stitched together into displays, or blocks, that will travel for exhibitions in schools, corporations, places of worship and community centers.
A rally took place in the Baytree Plaza at UC Santa Cruz on November 7th to protest UCSCs Long Range Development Plan (LRDP) and to announce the newly launched tree-sit on Science Hill. Following the rally, people marched to Science Hill to show resistance to the LRDP and support the tree-sit.
Speaking for the trees
For more information, see:
Standoff with Police as Activists Occupy Redwoods to Oppose UCSC Expansion
In Fresno, California, city workers were wrapping up final preparations for the big Veteran?s Day celebrations and many of those arriving early to celebrate the day were veterans from WWII, the Korean War, the Vietnam War and both Iraq Wars and Afghanistan. Many of the veterans stood along the sidewalk proudly wearing there brushed off military uniforms.
Only a few blocks away there were hundreds of homeless people, including veterans that were roaming the streets with their possessions in a shopping carts or hauling their few possessions in plastic bags being carried on their backs.
A recent report by the National Alliance to End Homelessness notes that veterans make up one in four homeless people in the United States; the N.A.E.H. also estimates that in 2006 there were 495,400 veterans homeless at some time during that year.
a veteran collecting donations from drivers
ign that read, ?Veteran needs food and shelter, please help.? In his face one could see the scars of war
Police shoot, kill man holding hairbrush, witnesses say
The story
Officers shot and killed an 18-year-old man who they believed to be armed, New York police said, but witnesses said Tuesday he was only holding a hairbrush.
The Monday night shooting followed a 911 call from the mans mother. Police described the situation as "a family dispute with a gun." After officers arrived, the teen refused to halt as he approached police, prompting them to open fire, The Associated Press reported.
Police told The New York Times they believed the teen, Khiel Coppin, had a gun, but after five officers fired 20 shots they realized he was holding only a hairbrush. Read full article »
Majority believe Bush has committeed impeachable offenses.
A new American Research Group poll finds that 55 percent of voters believe President Bush has ?abused his powers? in a manner that rises ?to the level of impeachable offenses under the Constitution,? yet just 34 percent believe he should actually be impeached. Fifty-two percent say that Vice President Cheney has similarly abused his powers, with 43 percent supporting impeachment. 7:10 pm | Comment (18)
This is a practice stripper poll, that was yanked from toy store shelves in the U.K. last year when some fussy killjoys questioned whether it was a good idea to market stripper poles toward children.
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Marvel is putting some of its older comics online, hoping to reintroduce young people to the X-Men and Fantastic Four by showcasing the original issues in which such characters appeared
Comics can only be viewed in a Web browser, not downloaded
"You dont have that spinner rack of comic books sitting in the local five-and-dime any more," said Dan Buckley, president of Marvel Publishing. "We dont have our product intersecting kids in their lifestyle space as much as we used to
Though most comic fans are collectors, some simply want to catch up on the backstory of their favorite characters and would no longer have to pay top dollar to do so
The publisher is hoping fans will be intrigued enough about the origins of those characters to shell out $9.99 (euro6.8) a month, or $4.99 (euro3.4) monthly with a yearlong commitment
About 2,500 issues will be available at launch of Marvel Digital Comics, with 20 more being released each week
Like many iTunes users, you may have started out with a basic iTunes library storing all of your media content on your primary internal hard drive. However, over time, with the addition of new content and video capabilities, your iTunes library may now be threatening to overtake what little storage you have left.
This tutorial is intended for both the average and slightly advanced iTunes user and will provide the necessary information that you need to know about moving your iTunes library onto an external hard drive, or even a secondary internal hard drive.
The most important point to keep in mind is that once a media file is listed in the iTunes library, it is referenced by iTunes by the specific location (ie, full pathname) of where this file is located. Therefore, if you move a file, iTunes will almost certainly lose track of that file, and the result will be a broken link in the iTunes library.
clipped by:sahara clippers remarks: Now, here in the land of the free, home of the brave, the very ones who were sent to foreign lands to fight for our country are having to fight for their freedoms here at home!
-- 18 protesters were arrested during yesterdays Veterans Day ceremony at City Hall Plaza. They were members of Veterans for Peace, an organization of former soldiers opposed to the Iraq War.
The American Legion had placed the group in the rear of the Veterans Day parade and told them that they could not carry signs protesting the war. The Veterans for Peace responded by blocking the official ceremony podium with gags in their mouths and anti-war posters. They claimed that their rights to free speech had been violated.
Police charged all 18 (15 men and 3 women) with Disturbing a Lawful Assembly of People.
As humans we yearn for unity and for individuation at the same time.
first we are learning whether we can trust this other person. There is a lot of body contact, eating together, sleeping together, dancing, and walking. Then we move into the need for space and autonomy. We find out if this relationship can withstand closeness and allow us to be ourselves at the same time.
This is the key... We are not victims. Much of the pain we experience is due not the action of others but on how we see the world.
And none of these issues would cause the problems if people took responsibility and said something like this: "Honey, I just became aware that I have a deep fear of abandonment that is coming up now in our relationship. I hereby commit myself to taking full responsibility for clearing it up"
Most people worry about how divorce will affect the kids. Researchers say they may have to worry about the grandkids, too?even those who havent yet been born.
The data show that the grandchildren of divorced couples end up with less education, more turbulent marriages and more distant relationships with their parents. These troubles occurred most often when the middle generation suffered similar divorce-related consequences.
The good news? Divorce isnt uniformly harmful to children, nor does it necessarily result in long-term psychological distress. Studies show most children whose parents divorce go on to develop into well-adjusted adults.
For people with chronic insomnia, studies show that simple behavioral and psychological treatments work just as well, and sometimes better, than popular medications
The medical journal Sleep last year reported on five high-quality trials that showed cognitive behavioral therapy helped people suffering from insomnia fall asleep sooner and stay asleep longer.
The behavioral strategies for better sleep are deceptively simple, and that?s one reason why many people don?t believe they can make a difference. One of the most effective methods is stimulus control.
So-called sleep hygiene is also part of sleep therapy.
Finally, don?t try too hard to fall asleep, and turn the clock around so you can?t see it. Watching time pass is one of the worst things to do when you?re trying to fall asleep.
It may be hard to believe, but studies show these simple steps really do make a meaningful difference for people with sleep problems.
Gudia, an eight-year-old oil scavenger, collects engine oil at an auto workshop in Jammu November 13, 2007. The government said on Tuesday it would not raise prices of petrol and diesel for now as the government is compensating retailers for selling cheap fuel at a time when global crude prices have soared, and it had to protect the poor. (Xinhua/Reuters Photo)
A Pastafarian depiction of the creation of the universe sent in an open letter to the Kansas School Board. It includes the Monster, a tree-covered mountain, and a midgit.[sic]
Chart comparing Number of Pirates versus Global Warming. The labels on the x-axis are deliberately misleading.
Eight cows escaped from a trailer when the rear gate opened as the driver pulled into a McDonalds. It took about two hours to round them up Monday.
"Maybe they were going to ... hop in the freezer, save the middleman," Weber County sheriffs Sgt. Dave Creager said.
Lt. Kevin Burns had another theory: "They didnt like their future."
The roundup was called "Operation Hamburger Helper." A nearby resident even hopped on his horse.
"I thought my eyes were lying," said Wayne Sanders, who was at a truck stop next door. "I dont know where they came from, but Id say theyd have to weigh 800 pounds apiece and they were on a pretty good trot."
Extremists and Democracy: Pakistan, Jordan and New Hampshire
clipped by:ouyangwulong clippers remarks: Its interesting to compare these perspectives from Pakistan, Jordan, and New Hampshire. The use of the word "extremism" is noteworthy. I just got back from a conference on Chinese-Middle-Eastern relations, and the diplomats from Israel, Egypt, Turkey, and Sudan all phrased their ideologies in terms of "moderates" battling "extremists."
But doesnt this raise the question: does democracy inherently empower extremism? Consider not just New Hampshire and Iowa, but the general trend in American electoral politics? The party that becomes the most radicalized, the most extreme, normally is the one that succeeds in asserting its agenda, and the party willing to compromise gets steam-rolled. Think of the Republican Revolution in the 1990s, or the current Democratic surge, or even the New Deal!
Is it possible that democracy not only empowers extremists, but needs them in order to work? Is the centrist-democracy a myth?
ISLAMABAD: The president of Pakistan, General Pervez Musharraf, vigorously defended his declaration of emergency rule in a 40-minute interview Tuesday, insisting that it was the best way to fight rising militancy and to ensure free and fair elections.
2 U.S. states voters still not settled on favorite presidential candidates
Large majorities of Republicans in New Hampshire and Iowa said they wanted the next president to be as conservative or more conservative than President George W. Bush.
By contrast, 50 percent of New Hampshire Democrats said they would not be prepared to vote for a candidate who wanted to keep troops in Iraq "longer than you would like,"
Learn to Play Acoustic Guitar - Acoustic Guitar Tips For The Beginner
So you want to learn how to play acoustic guitar? Do you have hopes and dreams of one day becoming a professional guitarist in a popular band? Perhaps you just want to play for the purpose of entertaining yourself, family, and friends. Whatever the case may be, I do hope the following article will help you achieve your goals as an acoustic guitar player.
More than 50 years since they appeared on Londons streets, the Routemasters are still running - but not everyone is delighted.
The veteran vehicle with its curvy design and its open platform has been called "the last bus to be a proper bus".
Many Londoners remember fondly how they used to hop on and off them and pull the string to ring the bell.
But a Disability Rights Commission spokesman says it is "a bashed-up old relic from a bygone age" and the fact that it is still running on two central London heritage routes is "a disappointment".
What remained was the heritage routes - though only in the hours from 0930 to 1800 and only on the central part of two routes, the 9 (Albert Hall to Aldwych) and 15 (Tower of London to Trafalgar Square).
So if you want to get a bus along Piccadilly or Knightsbridge, what comes along may well be a Routemaster - painted in its original livery inside and out. Still rolling along in the age of the bendy-bus and the Oystercard.
As early as tomorrow, House Democrats are expected to introduce a war funding bill that only approves money for bringing our troops home. Heres a sample of what we hear its going to say: "Within 30 days after enactment of this Act, the President shall commence an immediate and orderly redeployment of United States Armed Forces from Iraq."1
Shortage of beer ingredients may mean higher prices
Small brewers from Australia to Oregon face the daunting prospect of tweaking their recipes or experimenting less with new brews thanks to a worldwide shortage of one key beer ingredient and rising prices for others.
Oh, and one other thing: Beer prices are likely to climb. How high is anybodys guess. Craft brewers dont have the means to hedge against rising prices, like their industrial rivals.
"Im guessing, at a minimum, at least a 10 percent jump in beer prices for the average consumer before the end of the year," said Terry Butler, brewmaster at central Washingtons Snipes Mountain.
The craft brewing industry experienced a 12 percent increase by volume in 2006, with 6.7 million barrels of beer. Sales among microbreweries, which produce less than 15,000 barrels per year, grew 16 percent in 2006.
clipped by:blueridge clippers remarks: The British MPs book "The Strange Death of Dr. Kelly" claims their was foul play in the suicide, that he was in fact murdered. Of course the Downing Street Memos prove that the "intelligence was fixed around the policy" to go to war, by the U.S. neoconservatives and Cheney, in league with Tony Blair. After BBC reported the intelligence about WMD had been "sexed-up" (exaggerated and fraudulent) Dr. Kelly was found dead in the woods, reportedly "suicide". Immediately the coincidence was considered suspicious by many.
The story also says this:
He said it was virtually impossible to kill yourself in the manner Kelly had, by cutting his ulnar artery, there was a lack of blood at the scene, and no fingerprints were found on the knife used.
Kelly had also booked a flight to Iraq for the following week, his wife was unwell, his daughter was shortly to be married and he left no suicide note, all factors that appeared to contradict the official verdict, Baker argues.[/quot
LONDON (Reuters) - A former U.N. weapons inspector, whose death caused one of the biggest crises of Tony Blairs premiership, did not commit suicide as official accounts state, an MP claims in a new book.
David Kelly was found dead in woods near his home in July 2003, just days after it was revealed that he was the source for a BBC report that said Blairs government had deliberately "sexed-up" intelligence to justify the invasion of Iraq.
However, Norman Baker, a Liberal Democrat MP who has spent a year investigating the case for his book "The Strange death of David Kelly", says he believes the scientist did not kill himself.
"The key question is whether the actions of the Iraqi group were self-generated, and subsequently covered up by the government, or whether a tiny cabal within the British establishment commissioned the assassins to undertake this," he wrote in the book.
A cartoonist and a writer were found guilty yesterday of "attacking the honour" of Crown Prince Felipe in a ruling many Spaniards saw as a setback for freedom of expression in post-Franco Spain.
The two men, whose cartoon of the heir to the throne and his wife making love was published on the front of a satirical magazine, were fined ?3,000 (£2,115) each.
Judge José María Vázquez Honrubia ruled that the two men "vilified the Crown in the most gratuitous and unnecessary way". He said that they could serve 10 months house arrest if they refused to pay.
The public prosecutor, Miguel Angel Carballo, had demanded a fine of ?6,000 each.
The cartoonists skill in poking fun at the ruling classes was perhaps nowhere better expressed than during their golden age in Britain between about 1780 and 1820.
The greatest exponents were James Gillray and Thomas Rowlandson, whose main target was Napoleon Bonaparte.
Sleeping up to 10 people, this spacious Twain Harte Vacation Rental Cabin in Twain Harte, CA has two rooms each with one queen bed, and two rooms with two twin beds each. Well provide the blankets and pillows, but please be sure to bring your own sheets, pillow cases, soap/shampoo and towels to use when you hop out of one of the two bathrooms with standing showers. One of which is in the basement, off the complementary laundry room. Just think of all the warm towels right out of the dryer! Note: We do not have a bathtub in the vacation rental cabin.
Hi, my name is Nancy Mullins. I?ve been watching people?s children for the last 28 years, 18 of which I have been a State Licensed Pleasanton Child Care Facility serving the Dublin, Livermore & Pleasanton area. I have two of my own children, now ages 28 and 17. I continue to work in childcare because above all else, it?s about the kids and their futures.
My daycare is for children as young as 6 weeks old. Every family has their own needs, so I am as accommodating as I can be, and care for their children for as long as I am needed. On average, children leave my childcare program around preschool or kindergarten age.
A cat is baffling his owner by wandering off at night before expecting to be collected by car every morning at exactly the same time and place.
Sgt Podge, a Norwegian Forest Cat, disappears from his owners home in Talbot Woods, Bournemouth, every night.
The next morning, the 12-year-old cat can always be found in exactly the same place, on a pavement about one and a half miles (2.4km) away.
His owner, Liz Bullard, takes her son to school before collecting Sgt Podge.
She said the routine began earlier this year, when Sgt Podge disappeared one day.
It is thought Sgt Podge walks across Meyrick Park Golf Course every night to reach his destination.
She does not know why, after 12 years, Sgt Podge has begun the routine but explained that another woman who lived nearby used to feed him sardines, and that he may be on the look-out for more treats.
Back at home, Sgt Podge has breakfast before going to sleep by a warm radiator.
Owner Liz Bullard thinks Sgt Podge crosses a golf course every night
Fucking became the subject of congressional debate in 2003, after NBC broadcast the Golden Globe Awards. Bono, lead singer of the mega-band U2, was accepting a prize on behalf of the group and in his euphoria exclaimed, "This is really, really, fucking brilliant" on the air. The Federal Communications Commission (FCC), which is charged with monitoring the nations airwaves for indecency, decided somewhat surprisingly not to sanction the network for failing to bleep out the word. Explaining its decision, the FCC noted that its guidelines define "indecency" as "material that describes or depicts sexual or excretory organs or activities" and Bono had used fucking as "an adjective or expletive to emphasize an exclamation."
clipped by:David M Ewalt clippers remarks: Representatives for Ebbsfleet United have yet to comment on rumors that matches will now be interrupted every five minutes by ads for Viagra, or that the Star Wars Kid will be their new goalie.
LONDON - When the fans speak to the coach of Ebbsfleet United, he just might have to listen to them.
An Internet-based collective of soccer fans from more than 70 countries agreed in principle Tuesday to buy a controlling interest in the lower-league English soccer club.
The deal will give them a vote on everything from team lineup selections to which players should be transferred.
The pro club said it was overjoyed by the deal with MyFootballClub, calling it a world first and the start of a new age in soccer club ownership.
clipped by:DouglasDirk clippers remarks: Amazingly this driver survived! Truck was traveling down road and hit the guardrail. He then flipped over culvert, landing on his wheels.
The fundamental creative force behind life on Earth?
clipped by:wildcat clippers remarks: Because modularity begets complexity, the more modular genetic information becomes, the more complex the web of life becomes..
What is the fundamental creative force behind life on Earth? Its a question that has vexed mankind for millennia, and thanks to theory and almost a years worth of number-crunching on a supercomputer, Rice University physicist and bioengineer Michael Deem thinks he has the answer: A changing environment may organize the structure of genetic information itself.
Our results suggest that the beautiful, intricate and interrelated structures observed in nature may be the generic result of evolution in a changing environment," Deem said. "The existence of such structure need not necessarily rest on intelligent design or the anthropic principle."
The information that allows all living things to survive and reproduce is encoded in genes. Deems theory probed the structure of this genetic information, looking for patterns that were created over time.
Modularity and hierarchy are prevalent in biology, from the way atoms are arranged in molecules
clipped by:pokkets clippers remarks: Australias rarest marsupial, 80% of the wild population which is fewer than forty. are infected with a form of syphilis similar to the one found in rabbits. Antibiotics are being trialled on its nearest relative.
further threatening the wild population, which is believed to number fewer than 40
Australias most endangered marsupial, the Gilberts potoroo, is suffering from a severe case of syphilis, according to a long-term study.
A baby Gilberts potoroo in its mothers pouch
Murdoch University veterinarian Dr Rebecca Vaughan is now undertaking a penicillin-based trial on a long-nosed potoroo, the nearest relative to the Gilberts potoroo.
Vaughan, a PhD candidate with the School of Veterinary and Biomedical Sciences, says if the trial at Perth Zoo is successful, researchers will evaluate the feasibility of similar treatment for the Gilberts potoroo.
Gilberts potoroo was thought to be extinct for more than 100 years until a small population of about 30 animals was discovered in 1994
80% of the Gilberts potoroo population is infected with a form of the bacteria treponema, which is similar to the microbe that causes syphilis in rabbits
Coloured MRI scans through a human head showing a healthy brain. The home tests would check the health of every organ. Photograph: Simon Fraser/Science Photo Library
A home testing kit that spots early signs of disease anywhere in the body could be available within 10 years, according to a leading scientist.
The simple blood test is being developed to allow people to screen themselves for life-threatening diseases, including a variety of cancers and dementias, before they develop any symptoms.
In many cases, a quick diagnosis significantly improves a patients chances of recovering from an illness.
The test is expected to be the first major advance to emerge from a new field of biology called "proteomic fingerprinting", which promises tests that can assess the health of each organ in the body one by one.
What you dont know might kill you?and cost the nation a bundle.
More than one-third of American adults have only basic or below-basic literacy in health matters, which costs the United States upwards of $238 billion in healthcare expenditures, according to a government- and industry-funded study.
And by basic literacy, were talking about merely being able to read a label to determine if a product is for a head cold or diarrhea, or administer a proper dose to oneself or a child.
The cost of not understanding
Adults with low health literacy are less likely to comply with prescribed treatment and self-care regimens, make more medication or treatment errors, are less likely to use preventive care, and they lack the skills needed to navigate the healthcare system.
Low functional literacy may be responsible for $32 billion to $58 billion in healthcare spending, a substantial part of expenditures financed by Medicaid and Medicare.
After 250 Years of Classifying Life, 90 Percent Remains Unknown
BRONX, NEW YORK--Most people can tell the difference between some types of berries, or bugs or trees, but much of the planets life remains unnamed and unseen.
A stunningly egotistical Swedish naturalist, Carl Linnaeus, tried long ago to set humanity on track to remedy that.
His book, "Systema Naturae," first published in 1735 at 13 pages long, proposed a hierarchical system for classifying plants, animals and minerals (we later chipped away minerals into the domain of geology) and launched an effort to identify and inventory all the worlds living things.
Now 250 years after publication of the books latter editions, scientists still have discovered as few as 10 percent of the species now living on Earth, said Harvard biologist Edward O. Wilson, who spoke here last week at an event at the New York Botanical Garden to celebrate a visit of Linnaeus personal copy of the books first edition.
Amnesty International brought the men together in New York before a hearing of the human rights committee of the UN tomorrow that will call for a moratorium on executions around the world as a first step towards abolishing the death penalty.
In 2002 Ray Krone became the 100th death row prisoner to be freed in the US. He was your model citizen at the time of his arrest on New Years Eve, 1991, aged 35. He had served in the US Air Force for six years and had a spotless criminal record. "I was the kind of guy who, if you had broken down in your car in the middle of the night, you could call up and I would come."
Then it all went wrong. A barmaid was stabbed to death in the CBS Lounge where he used to drink near his home in Phoenix, Arizona. Someone said that he had been having a relationship with the woman, which was not true, and a medical examiner matched his teeth to a bite mark found on the victims arm.
The last, best hope for averting a war with Iran lies with the United States military. The Democratic Congress, cowed by the Israel lobby and terrified of appearing weak on defense before the presidential elections, will do nothing to halt an attack. The media, especially the electronic press, is working overtime to whip up fear of a nuclear Iran and tar Tehran with abetting attacks against American troops in Iraq. The American public is complacent, unsure of what to believe, knocked off balance by fear and passive. We will be saved or doomed by our generals.
The last wall of defense that prevents the Bush administration from targeting Iran
runs through the offices of Secretary of Defense Robert Gates; Adm. William Fallon ,
have told George W. Bush and the Congress how depleted the U.S. military has become, that it cannot manage another conflict, and that a war with Iran would make the war with Iraq look like an act of prudence and common sense.
Nanoparticle ink is a proprietary ink developed by Nanosolar that makes it possible to simply print the semiconductor of a high-performance solar cell on highly conductive yet low-cost foil.
clipped by:BobbyRutan clippers remarks: More: Grammar and syntax aside, Japanese men generally speak in shortened huffs, while women tend to speak in artificially high octaves, elongating their word endings in an almost coquettish attempt to flatter the listener.
I wasnt alone. I had friends who sounded like average American guys in English but whose voices, once they broke into Japanese, took on the girly tones of the high-heeled Asian fashionistas they were dating.
Because the Japanese tend to avoid any form of confrontation, my girlfriend would never correct me. That is, until one day in an ice-cream shop when she couldnt take it anymore. She snapped, "Dont say it that way ? you sound like a girl!" referring to my choice of words to describe the ice cream we were sharing.
Wherever you go, men and women tend to speak differently. But in Japan, those differences are more pronounced than in many places. Among the multilayered rules of grammar and usage governing spoken Japanese, there also exist underlying concepts of "mens Japanese" and "womens Japanese." By the end of my 2-1/2-year stay there, I had unwittingly become conversant in the latter form
Like many Western men who spend more than a year in Japan, I learned most of my intonation, expressions, and slang ? the things not taught in the classroom ? by mimicking a Japanese girlfriend
I thought my Japanese was fine, while in reality the effeminate, almost childish twang I had been learning made me sound very much like a 20-something, pink miniskirted Japanese woman
Japanese acquaintances, eager to compliment anyone who can say a few words in their language, would constantly say "Josu dane!" or "Your Japanese is really good!"
what I didnt know was that people around me were actually laughing
Hidden costs will boost the price of the US wars in Iraq and Afghanistan to $3.5 trillion within the next decade, according to a new report.
About $1.6 trillion will have been spent by the end of next year - double the $800bn so far requested by the Bush administration, a report by Democrats on the Joint Economic Committee said on Tuesday.
"The report says the wars have so far cost the average American family nearly $21,000.
"The Democrats say that by 2017 that price will rise, costing a family more than $46,000."
The White House has rejected the JEC report.
"This committee is known for being partisan and political.
"partisan attempt to overshadow positive developments in Iraq".
Diverting away from one of my favorite topics (mustard), the introduction of Grey Poupon Savory Honey Mustard begs the question?how is honey made? Taking a trip back to science class is deliciously enlightening.
Honey, of course, is produced by honey bees and is derived from the nectar of flowers. The bees produce the honey as a food source to sustain them as their source of energy. In each hive there are three kinds of bees: the queen bee, 50,000-70,000 worker bees and 2,000 drones. Needless to say, the worker bees are the busiest. It is their job to raise the larvae and to collect the nectar. In a lifespan that averages only three to six weeks, the worker bees each collect about one teaspoon of nectar. It takes four pounds of nectar?two million flowers?to make one pound of honey!
clipped by:sahara clippers remarks: Now that is just wrong! They should not have been arrested, I find it hard to believe this occurred in Boston of all places!
BOSTON --Several anti-war veterans were arrested Sunday when they protested their exclusion from a Veterans Day event outside Boston City Hall.
The Boston chapter of a group called Veterans for Peace estimated that 15 of its members and supporters were arrested when they refused to move away from the podium at an event sponsored by the American Legion. Boston Police said several arrests were made, but did not have an exact number. The detainees were later released on bail.
"Were opposed to the U.S. invasion of Iraq, were opposed to the planned invasion of Iran," said Winston Warfield, a Vietnam War veteran and member of the group. "A lot of veterans view us as traitors."
Warfield said the American Legion rejected their request to have a speaker at the event on City Hall Plaza.
"From our point of view, its a public affair," Warfield said, despite U.S. Supreme Court precedent that allows private groups that obtain proper permits to choose who can participate in their events.
clipped by:AtlLiberal clippers remarks: For all the Liberals out there who have fallen in love with Mr. Paul, I suggest they take another look at the real Ron Paul. Sure hes against the war in Iraq but thats not his entire agenda. This quy is more of a nut than most think.
One of Ron Paul?s selling points as a presidential candidate is his willingness to reject Republican orthodoxy.
But what I did not realize is that when it comes to the religious right?s theocratic worldview, Paul is surprisingly in line with TV preachers like Pat Robertson. An alert reader emailed me this Ron Paul commentary from December 2003, in which the Texas Republican laments ?the ongoing war against religion? in general, and Christianity in specific.
Through perverse court decisions and years of cultural indoctrination, the elitist, secular Left has managed to convince many in our nation that religion must be driven from public view. The justification is always that someone, somewhere, might possibly be offended or feel uncomfortable living in the midst of a largely Christian society
Photoshop: How To Make Digital Photos Look Like Lomo Photography
clipped by:rainfever clippers remarks: I already clipped this once but just spent like 20 minutes looking for it and i cant locate it. Its the best one Ive used.
From the first time I saw a photo that looked like this, I wanted to shoot one of my own. But, for the longest time I couldn?t figure it out how people took photos look like this. Then one day searching the web, I realized I needed a Lomo LC-A camera. This is a Russian made camera that was a knock off of another camera. It is poorly made and by Japanese camera standards, a bad picture taker too. As the legend goes, somewhere in the 1990?s a cult following developed and hasn?t stop since.
Getting Started - Creating a Vignette
The first thing you want to do is create the classic vignette that the Lomos are well known for and I achieve this by doing a freehand lasso of a circle around the photo. It doesn?t need to be perfect and to prevent hard edges, I set the feather to 80-90px before creating the circle.
As Bobby Kennedy said in a speech at the University of Kansas in March 1968, the nation?s gross national product measures everything ?except that which makes life worthwhile.?
Men are unhappiest at almost 50, and women at just after 45. Paraplegics are not unhappier than healthy people. People who live with teenagers are the unhappiest of all.
Happiness seems fairly cheap to manipulate. In one experiment, subjects were asked to answer a questionnaire about personal satisfaction after Xeroxing a sheet of paper. Those who found a dime lying on the Xerox machine reported substantially higher satisfaction with their lives.
Happiness, it appears, adapts. It?s true that the rich are happier, on average, than the poor. But while money boosts happiness, the effect doesn?t last. We just become envious of a new, richer set of people than before. Satisfaction soon settles back to its prior level, as we adapt to changed circumstances and set our expectations to a higher level.
In case you missed it, some bombshell news came out of the personal finance arena last week. No, Im not referring to the Federal Reserves rate cut or the record-breaking price of oil.
Im talking about Britney Spears: She isnt saving for retirement.
Though the 25-year old pop star is hauling in some $737,000 a month (yes, per month), the Associated Press reported last Thursday that according to court documents, shes not saving or investing a penny of it.
More than $100,000 each month is going to entertainment, gifts and vacations alone.
While most of us may be shocked by this excess, Ms. Spears saving habits are actually pretty normal.
The truth is, the overwhelming majority of American 20-somethings arent saving anything for retirement, either. Research from Vanguard shows that two-thirds of all 25-year-olds who have access to a 401(k) plan arent contributing.
And the worst part is, they arent taking advantage of their biggest asset: time.
clipped by:jellyH clippers remarks: Heres all 3 of my furry little monsters on their bed, - no wait, thats supposed to be MY bed! couple of photos of my little man with 2 of the cats - Milo & Mog as well
Recycle: There are a number of charities that send your used sneakers to impoverished places with little access to athletic shoes. Shoe4Africa collects running shoes, cleans them up and ships them to East Africa to encourage sport. The first pair of Shoe4Africa shoes to be donated back in 1995 went to Mark Wendot Yatich, then an unknown runner?he went on to win the Los Angeles Marathon. Another runner to get shoes that year was Japheth Kimutai, who three years later won the Commonwealth Games 800m gold medal.
"Question with boldness even the existence of God; because, if there be one, he must more approve of the homage of reason than that of blindfolded fear."
"I do not fear death, in view of the fact that I had been dead for billions and billions of years before I was born, and had not suffered the slightest inconvenience from it."
Mark Twain
"During many ages there were witches. The Bible said so. The Bible commanded that they should not be allowed to live.
during nine centuries and imprisoned, tortured, hanged, and burned whole hordes and armies of witches, and washed the Christian world clean with their foul blood.
Then it was discovered that there was no such thing as witches, and never had been. One does not know whether to laugh or to cry."
Crucial parts of brains of children with attention deficit disorder develop more slowly than other youngsters? brains, a phenomenon that earlier brain-imaging research missed, a new study says
the lag can be as much as three years ? are brain regions that suppress inappropriate actions and thoughts, focus attention, remember things from moment to moment, work for reward and control movement
But not all children do outgrow the disorder
researchers are working to determine the differences between those that have a good outcome and those who do not
?what is really important about this study is it shows us there is clearly something biologically driven for children with ADHD.?
The only part of the brain that matured faster in the ADHD children was the motor cortex, a finding that the researchers said might account for the restlessness and fidgety symptoms
Norways largest erotic chain store was forced to change the labeling on products such as penis pasta, candy cuffs and chocolate body painting, to comply with Norwegian food regulations.
The Norwegian food safety authority, whose goal it is to make sure consumers have healthy and safe food, conducted a surprise inspection at one of the chains stores and found that several products violated food labeling regulations, top-selling tabloid VG reported on Tuesday.
"We were a bit surprised to have the food safety authority on inspection. Food is not really our core product," Kjersti Antonsen, a sexual adviser in the store, told VG.
Products containing food must be marked with a Norwegian label, listing all ingredients.
"We have panties, bras, handcuffs and suspender belts made out of candy," Antonsen said, adding that the store will comply with the regulations and label all its food products.
clipped by:ljsdesign clippers remarks: "However, at Senate confirmation hearings last month, then-attorney general nominee Michael Mukasey repeatedly refused to say whether he considers waterboarding a form of torture, as claimed by an unlikely coalition of military officials, doctors and humans rights groups" Who listens to doctors anyway?
With Congress? approval of a new attorney general who refused to describe waterboarding as torture, the U.S. Army has sent out a message to its leaders repeating that the interrogation technique is prohibited in the military
The service issued the Nov. 6 message ?to eliminate any confusion that may have arisen as a result of recent public discourse on the subject
The U.S. military formally banned waterboarding as an interrogation technique in September 2006
It is specifically prohibited by Field Manual 2-22.3 and is not a sanctioned interrogation technique in any training manual
If Mukasey confirmed that waterboarding is torture, it could put the CIA interrogators and possibly the chain of command above them in legal peril. Torture is illegal both under U.S. and international law
This November 23rd, environmentalists, social activists and concerned citizens in as many as 65 countries will hit the streets for a 24-hour consumer fast in celebration of the 15th annual Buy Nothing Day, a global cultural phenomenon that originated in Vancouver, Canada. Read more.
clipped by:dewitte clippers remarks: This story captivates me! The city is threatening to turn off peoples water for not paying their $1300 water bills. They said one family used like eighty thousand gallons of water in a month. Another guy installed his OWN water meter just to compare and it is WAY off. Yet, the city has been saying that there numbers are right. It wasnt until Wavy 10 got involved that the city really started changing their attitude. I cant wait to see how this turns out.
Dish washing in the Bass home means shutting off the water - a lot. Theyre trying to conserve after the bill tripled since June says Michael Bass.
"This one with water and sewage was 375.78 and then the one after that was double was 653.69 and this latest bill is 939.00," says Bass.
Bass noticed the hike after the city of Suffolk changed its billing to Hampton Roads Utility Billing Service or HRUBS. The new bill reflects more than 12-hundred gallons per day.
No way, says Bass. "Its 88,264 of water."
We asked Suffolk Spokesperson Dennis Craff for answers. "Well I think were doing something right now as a matter of fact. I think we were doing something before you called us. I think once it appeared on the air, whoa okay Ill give them a call too so I think were getting more calls thanks to WAVY-TV. Were getting to be aware theres a bigger problem out there. Were contacting the people, Im serious, Im encouraging everybody to call."
Chickens roost indoors on a farm in Suffolk, England, near four premises where 24,000 birds are being culled as a precaution after the virulent H5N1 strain of bird flu was found.
CNNs Wolf Blitzer has been warned not to focus Thursdays Dem debate on Hillary. This campaign is about issues, not on who we can bring down and destroy, top Clinton insider explains. Blitzer should not go down to the levels of character attack and pull a Russert. Blitzer is set to moderate debate from Vegas, with questions also being posed by Suzanne Malveaux... Developing...
clipped by:AtlLiberal clippers remarks: Look for new lies from Creationism/ID as it adapts to criticism and unveiling of its distortions and frauds. Make no mistake, these people at the Discovery Institute are ruthless in their quest to insinuate religion into the curriculum. They will use any method to accomplish this goal. These are not simply people gathered together to "give another perspective". They are organized to force their agenda to teach religious myths to our children.
The last sentence of the clip is chilling considering High Priest Bush has used the same language. No one considers Bush to be versed in science, given his record. The dangerous part is that he does hold the power to cause real harm to education and that is a problem that will last long past his failed administration.
After their notorious legal defeat, intelligent design proponents are resurfacing with insidious new assaults on science.
Nov. 13, 2007 | Two years ago, Pennsylvania federal Judge John Jones III handed down a stunning decision that many said would take down the intelligent design movement. But American creationism doesnt die. It just adapts.
But like bacteria adapting to antibiotics, creationism has slimmed down once again, this time shedding even a mention of an intelligent designer. A new textbook put out by the Discovery Institute, the Seattle think tank that promotes I.D., doesnt even have the words "intelligent design" in its index. Instead of pushing I.D. explicitly, "Explore Evolution: The Arguments for and Against Darwinism," promoted as a high school- or college-level biology text, "teaches the controversy." Teach the controversy is the new mantra of the I.D. movement.
"Men who uh-huh arent trying to multitask -- their goal in life is to monotask,"
"You guys just want to sit there with your mouths open like inflatable dolls. If you ever see a woman sitting perfectly still saying uh-huh, call the doctor. She may be having a stroke."
As long as its not egregious, and I occasionally look over and make eye contact, she will continue talking as if we are actually having a conversation. But then Ill go one uh-huh too far.
Please God, no -- not the pop quiz!
If Im lucky -- and I havent been inching the TV volume up too much during the "conversation" -- I might know the basic subject Ive been uh-huh-ing through and be able to eke out a passing grade.
clipped by:pokkets clippers remarks: A family of four would be paying $16,500 to fund the war from 2002 to 2008, and the report speculates on the war continuing until 2017, where it estimates the expenditure to be $3.5 Trillion, at 46,400, per family. The Bush budget figures are likely to be specific spending allocations, without as much accounting for "co-lateral damage", even when the damage is to US Citizens.
The economic costs of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan are estimated to total $1.6 trillion -- roughly double the amount the White House has requested thus far, according to a new report by Democrats
The report
attempted to put a price tag on the two conflicts, including "hidden" costs such as interest payments on the money borrowed to pay for the wars, lost investment, the expense of long-term health care for injured veterans and the cost of oil market disruptions
The $1.6 trillion figure, for the period from 2002 to 2008, translates into a cost of $20,900 for a family
of four
The Bush administration has requested $804 billion for the Iraq and Afghanistan wars combined
For the Iraq war only, total economic costs were estimated at $1.3 trillion for the period from 2002 to 2008. That would cost a family of four $16,500
The report estimated that both wars would cost $3.5 trillion between 2003 and 2017. Under that scenario, it would cost a family of four $46,400
Nov. 12 (Bloomberg) -- American officials are planning to back a new United Nations document that says governments and businesses will have to spend billions of dollars a year to reduce global warming and adapt to its effects.
By agreeing with the draft document, a copy of which was obtained by Bloomberg, the U.S. is indicating a need for faster action to slow climate change. As the largest emitter of gases blamed for global warming, the U.S. is seen by other nations as critical to the creation of a new worldwide response when the Kyoto agreement expires in 2012.
Former pilots and officials call for new U.S. UFO probe
An international panel of two dozen former pilots and government officials called on the U.S. government on Monday to reopen its generation-old UFO investigation as a matter of safety and security given continuing reports about flying discs, glowing spheres and other strange sightings.
"Especially after the attacks of 9/11, it is no longer satisfactory to ignore radar returns ... which cannot be associated with performances of existing aircraft and helicopters," they said in a statement released at a news conference.
The subject of UFOs grabbed the spotlight in the U.S. presidential race last month when Kucinich, a member of Congress from Ohio, said during a televised debate with other Democratic candidates that he had seen one.
The uninvited guest: Chinese sub pops up in middle of U.S. Navy exercise, leaving military chiefs red-faced
American military chiefs have been left dumbstruck by an undetected Chinese submarine popping up at the heart of a recent Pacific exercise and close to the vast U.S.S. Kitty Hawk - a 1,000ft supercarrier with 4,500 personnel on board.
According to senior Nato officials the incident caused consternation in the U.S. Navy.
One Nato figure said the effect was "as big a shock as the Russians launching Sputnik" - a reference to the Soviet Unions first orbiting satellite in 1957 which marked the start of the space age.
Uninvited guest: A Chinese Song Class submarine, like the one that sufaced by the U.S.S. Kitty Hawk
The lone Chinese vessel slipped past at least a dozen other American warships which were supposed to protect the carrier from hostile aircraft or submarines.
Battle stations: The Kitty Hawk carries 4,500 personnel
clipped by:merrie clippers remarks: Battered by stories about Bills mistresses and financial dealings, Hillary seethed at the press and resolved to control their coverage. In January 1993, she and her friend Susan Thomases proposed to move the White House press room next door, to the sleepy Old Executive Office Building. When that scheme was deemed untenable, aides closed off a hallway connecting the press room to the West Wing. Outraged reporters pounced on press secretary George Stephanopoulos, who later recalled thinking, "Im not your problem; Hillary is. ... [Bill] Clinton seems to be on my side."
Hillarys first instinct was to stonewall the press. When reporter Jeff Gerth was first reporting on Whitewater in early 1992, Hillary insisted on giving him the figurative finger. Likewise, Hillary balked when The Washington Post asked to see private Whitewater documents in 1993. Bill Clinton favored compliance with the Post--but was overruled by Hillary, who implied she would rather "throw them all in the Potomac."
Reporters who have covered the hyper-vigilant campaign say that no detail or editorial spin is too minor to draw a rebuke. Even seasoned political journalists describe reporting on Hillary as a torturous experience.
Innocent queries are met with deep suspicion. Only surgically precise questioning yields relevant answers. Hillarys aides dont hesitate to use access as a blunt instrument, as when they killed off a negative GQ story on the campaign by threatening to stop cooperating with a separate Bill Clinton story the magazine had in the works.
Reporters jabs and errors are long remembered, and no hour is too odd for an angry phone call. Clinton aides are especially swift to bypass reporters and complain to top editors. "Theyre frightening!" says one reporter who has covered Clinton. "They dont see [reporting] as a healthy part of the process. They view this as a ruthless kill-or-be-killed game."
"Her ground-zero assumption is that [a reporter is] an asshole," a senior Hillary aide
Ray Kurzweil has plenty of titles already: inventor, author, futurist, techno-optimist, artificial intelligence expert. Now hes adding a Hollywood gloss to that list by writing, directing, producing and acting in his first feature film. Hes adapting his latest book to make a movie titled The Singularity Is Near: A True Story About The Future.
The "technological singularity" is a concept thats enchanting to some, like Kurzweil, and terrifying to others. As a result of the exponential progress of technology, Kurzweil believes, were racing towards a day when the power of the artificially intelligent machines we create will exceed human brainpower. Our computers will then carry on fashioning a new world -- with luck, theyll keep our best interests in mind.
Yes, theres Bill McKibben -- have you ever heard about this phenomenon called global warming? Well, he coined the term
He has a book called Enough, where he says we should not pursue more GNR
More surprises from the institute of "didnt see that one coming." Eight out of ten kids between the ages of 4 and 17 play computer or video games according to new poll data from AOL Games and The Association Press.
81% of kids play at least occasionally compared with 38% of adults who admit to playing computer or video games in any capacity, and 45% of those adult gamers are female. Lest you assume that means half the Halo 3 crowd, remember that "computer games" include everything from online versions of Tic Tac Toe to Solitaire and Texas Hold Em.
Actually, a few surprises in the following stats culled from the press release:
Nearly half of all adult gamers are under 40 years old.
one third of adult gamers are married with children
A majority of kids play video games, but not with their parents, and younger parents are more likely to play games with their kids than older parents.
A majority cited price as the deciding factor in whether theyll purchase a video game console this holiday.
Some Grocery Stores Have Banned Carbon Monoxide-Treated Beef and Pork
Meat manufacturers has used a process to keep meat look fresh longer with carbon monoxide. Some want the practice banned. (PhotoDisc)
For many meat eaters the proof is in the pink. They use the meats color as a guideline to determine the foods freshness. But, many meat manufacturers actually inject the food with carbon monoxide to give it that fresh, reddish-pink look.
Many other countries like Europe, Canada and Japan have banned the use of carbon monoxide in meat. Lawmakers in congressional hearings this week are debating whether the producers should be allowed to continue the process in the United States.
While the Food and Drug Administration has said the practice isnt dangerous, some consumers disagree.
"At worst, its dangerous. At best, its a consumer rip-off," said Wenonah Hauter, of Food and Water Watch.
Researchers from Carnegie Mellon University have developed a series of robots capable of climbing walls. Inspired by geckos that use tiny fibers located on their feet to adhere to almost any surface, the Waalbot is capable of simple surface locomotion. The Tri-Leg Waalbot can be used for inspection and surveillance in hazardous environments or hard to reach areas, as well as for spacecraft inspection and repair.
clipped by:Jorjor clippers remarks: The article goes on to say:
The United States in 2007? No, Wilhelmine Germany in 1917 and 1918, as its military dictators, Field Marshal Paul von Hindenburg and his loyal second, General Erich Ludendorff, pushed Germany toward defeat and revolution in a relentless pursuit of victory in World War I. Having failed with their surge strategy on the Western Front in 1918, they nevertheless succeeded in deploying a stab-in-the-back myth, or Dolchstoßlegende, that shifted blame for defeat from themselves and Rightist politicians to Social Democrats and others allegedly responsible for losing the war by their failure to support the troops at home.
The worlds finest military launches a highly coordinated shock-and-awe attack that shows enormous initial progress. Theres talk of the victorious troops being home for Christmas. But the war unexpectedly drags on. As fighting persists into a third, and then a fourth year, voices are heard calling for negotiations, even "peace without victory." Dismissing such peaceniks and critics as defeatists, a conservative and expansionist regime -- led by a figurehead who often resorts to simplistic slogans and his Machiavellian sidekick who is considered the brains behind the throne -- calls for one last surge to victory. Unbeknownst to the people on the home front, however, this duo has already prepared a seductive and self-exculpatory myth in case the surge fails.
Researchers found that teens that have sex at an early age may be less inclined to exhibit delinquent behavior in early adulthood than their peers who waited until they were older to have sex.
University of Virginia clinical psychologists also report that early sex may play a role in helping these teens develop better social relationships in early adulthood.
The researchers analyzed data on 534 same-sex twin pairs in the United States gathered at three time points over a seven-year period. By examining surveys of twins, the investigators were able to eliminate the genetic and socio-economic variables that otherwise might influence the behaviors of adolescents.
Harden says she plans further investigations that will look closely at the contexts of early teen sexual activity, such as the types of relationships, whether they were casual or intimate, how old the partners were, where the sex occurred and why, and how long the relationships lasted.
Swedish Feminists Petition For Right To Swim Topless.
Theyre "just breasts"! This is the rallying cry of a network of women who have launched a campaign for the right to bathe topless at Swedens swimming pools.
A new wave of feminists have been angered by an incident in September in which two bare-breasted young women were called ashore by a lifeguard at a swimming pool in Uppsala. When they refused to cover up, they were asked to leave the premises.
Dont wake up one morning and say, "Well, Im feeling much stronger now, I think I can handle it from here." Why do you think you are feeling stronger now? Its simple. You gave me your burdens and Im taking care of them. I also renew your strength and cover you in my peace. Dont you know that if I give you these problems back, you will be right back where you started? Leave them with me and forget about them. Just let me do my job.
5. TALK TO ME
6. HAVE FAITH
7. SHARE
8. BE PATIENT
9. BE KIND
10. LOVE YOURSELF
As much as I love you, how can you not love yourself? You were created by me for one reason only - to be loved, and to love in return. I am a God of Love. Love me. Love your neighbors. But also love yourself. It makes my heart ache when I see you so angry with yourself when things go wrong. You are very precious to me. Dont ever forget that
clipped by:pokkets clippers remarks: Australia is gong to send a rocket to the Sun, and two satellites to monitor climate change. If youre going to join a race, it helps if there is no one else in the race. Everyone else seems to be aiming for the Moon or Mars.l
Australia may gain a National Space Science Institute and send a spacecraft to a fiery death into the sun during the next 10 years, under a proposal by the nations space scientists.
Australian space scientists plan to send a spacecraft to a fiery death to learn about the suns corona and the origin of solar winds
The A$100 million national plan also includes the launch of two satellites and a network of measuring instruments to predict and monitor space weather and climate change phenomena in the region
Decadal Plan for Space Science is being drafted for the national space science committee of the Australian Academy of Science and is intended "to build a true presence as a nation for Australia in space for less than A$100 million"
Aurora Australis, the southern lights, are seen during strong geomagnetic events
research into the cosmos and the earths surface is relatively well funded in Australia
But he says the "science of our solar system" needs to be made a funding priority.
clipped by:Mohir clippers remarks: Inspired by Jules Vernes wildly popular 1873 novel, Around the World in 80 Days, Bly proposed to her editors at the New York World that she undertake the same trip to try and break the fictional record. Traveling by steamer, train, rickshaw and any number of other conveyances, she did -- by eight days.
She left Hoboken, New Jersey, on the German liner Augusta Victoria and returned to New York on Jan. 25, 1890. Bly received a tumultuous welcome, including a parade, and became a national figure. Her account of the journey, Around the World in 72 Days, sold exceptionally well.
1889: Journalist Nellie Bly, who made her name as a reporter by exposing the inhumane conditions inside a New York insane asylum, leaves on a Jules Verne-inspired trip around the world. She completes the 24,899-mile journey in 72 days, a record.
Bly, born Elizabeth Jane Cochran, was the prototype of the independent woman: "one tough broad" in newspaper parlance. She came to the business after the editor of the Pittsburgh Dispatch read her angry rebuttal to what would today be called a sexist editorial by one of the papers columnists. The editor was duly impressed and, after tracking her down, offered her a reporting job. It was there she acquired her pen name, Nellie Bly, which she carried with her for the rest of her life.
THE THOUGHT SCREEN HELMET STOPS ALIENS FROM ABDUCTING HUMANS. ITS A TESTED DEVICE THAT WORKS.
THIS WEBSITE TELLS YOU HOW TO MAKE A THOUGHT SCREEN HELMET, THE MATERIALS AND TOOLS YOU NEED TO MAKE ONE, AND WHERE YOU CAN OBTAIN THE MATERIALS
HERE is proof that the helmet receives MICROWAVE signals WHICH MAY BE from aliens.
A Fluke Multimeter shows a voltage which proves that the thought screen helmet intercepts a microwave signal although the source of the signal cannot be determined. It also demonstrates that aliens are neither paranormal nor supernatural. Test made by a man with two helmets who was being abducted.
How The Thought Screen Helmet Works
The thought screen helmet blocks telepathic communication between aliens and humans.
Aliens cannot immobilize people wearing thought screens nor can they control their minds or communicate with them using their telepathy.
Only two failures from standard thought screen helmets have been reported since 1998.
Excited astronomers have discovered a new planet that could be home to alien life, they revealed tonight. The world is orbiting a nearby star like the Sun in its so-called "habitable zone" - just the right distance for liquid water to exist.
It is the fifth planet to be identified in orbit around the star 55 Cancri, a star very similar in type and age to our own Sun, making it a virtual twin of our own solar system.
The star, which is dimly visible to the naked eye in the constellation of Cancer, now holds the record for the number of worlds in orbit, after our own Sun. It lies just 41 light-years away - right on our cosmic doorstep.
Geoff Marcy, of the University of California, said last night: "The discovery has me jumping out of my socks. We now know that our own Sun and its family of planets is not unusual."
This works great !!! Good for when all your family is together. The best part is that no one has to wait for their special omelet !!! Have guests write their name on a quart-size Ziploc freezer bag with permanent marker. Crack 2 eggs (large or extra-large) into the bag (not more than 2) shake to combine them. Put out a variety of ingredients such as: cheeses, ham, onion, green pepper, tomato, hash browns, salsa, etc.
Each guest adds prepared ingredients of choice to their bag and shake.
Make sure to get the air out of the bag and zip it up. Place the bags into rolling, boiling water for exactly 13 minutes. You can usually cook 6-8 omelets in a large pot. For more, make another pot of boiling water. Open the bags and the omelet will roll out easily. Be prepared for everyone to be amazed.
Nice to serve with fresh fruit and coffee cake; everyone gets involved in the process and its a great conversation piece.
At this time, I cannot say that we will be rejecting Mr. Black?s contribution, but I will bring the matter to the attention of our campaign director again, and expect some sort of decision to be made in coming days.
A three-peat lotto win investigated by the Atlantic Lottery Corp. has been cleared for a Fredericton convenience store clerk.
Riverside Quick Mart employee Carl Hallet, 49, won $100,000 in October in Atlantic TAG, but it wasnt his only time cashing in. Hallet also won $50,000 in 2005 and $5,000 in 2006.
Under Atlantic Lotterys new security rules, Hallet had to wait 30 days for his latest prize money as the corporation examined his claim.
The rules were adopted in March after studies showed retailers in Atlantic Canada were winning 10 times more often than statistically probable over the last six years.
"I knew it was a good ticket to start with and so I had nothing to worry about, so I figured 30 days, nothing to it," Hallet told CBC News.
Hallet said hes happy to finally have the cheque in his hands. Hes bought a house and is getting married on Dec. 1.
The Health Blog remembers none too fondly having to eat nothing but mush after getting our braces tightened by the orthodontist oh so many years ago. Now imagine getting magnets adjusted to pull your chest out. Sound appealing? Well, compared with surgery to crack the chest open, it just might be a less painful way to go.
A teenage boy recently became the first patient to try the new approach to repair a sunken chest, called pectus excavatum in medical lingo. His experience was featured in the San Francisco Chronicle. Pectus excavatum, described in more detail here, can arise when children grow up and their sternums and ribs fold in. It?s a problem in about 1 in 800 births.
A surgeon at UCSF Children?s Hospital attached a magnet the size of a hockey puck to Richard?s sternum, which is now slowly being pulled outward by a second magnet stuck to a brace the boy wears on his chest.
Michael Harrison, told the Chronicle, ?I was doing these brutal surgeries on kids, and I hated it.?
Used condoms are being recycled into hair bands in southern China, threatening to spread sexually-transmittable diseases they were originally meant to prevent, state media reported Tuesday.
Chinese-made products, rubber hair bands have been found in local markets and beauty salons in Dongguan and Guangzhou cities in southern Guangdong province, China Daily newspaper said.
"These cheap and colourful rubber bands and hair ties sell well ... threatening the health of local people," it said.
Despite being recycled, the hair bands could still contain bacteria and viruses, it said.
"People could be infected with AIDS, (genital) warts or other diseases if they hold the rubber bands or strings in their mouths while waving their hair into plaits or buns," the paper quoted a local dermatologist who gave only his surname, Dong, as saying.
A bag of ten of the recycled bands sells for just 25 fen (three cents), much cheaper than others on the market, accounting for their popularity, the paper said.
FRIDAY, Nov. 9 (HealthDay News) -- Two widely used treatments for acute low back pain -- nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) and spinal manipulation -- did not help patients in a carefully controlled study, Australian researchers report.
The potential side effects of NSAIDs make avoiding them advisable if possible, Albert said. But one or another of them may still be used in individual cases, since different people may get some relief from one NSAID but not another, he said.
New guidelines just issued by the American College of Physicians and the American Pain Society already advise against general use of the two therapies, noted Dr. Daniel Mazanec, associate director of the Cleveland Clinic Center for Spinal Health.
anticipated drowning in a torrent of accusations of research grants turned down, membership of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) denied, scientific papers refused by journals, job applications refused, and invitations to speak at conferences drying up.
The sum total of evidence obtained through this open invitation, then, is one first-hand claim of bias in scientific journals, not backed up by documentary evidence; and three second-hand claims, two well-known and one that the scientist in question does not consider evidence of anti-sceptic feeling.
In February 2007, depending on what newspaper you read, you might have seen an article detailing a "controversial new theory" of global warming.
The idea was that variations in cosmic rays penetrating the Earths atmosphere would change the amount of cloud cover, in turn changing our planets reflectivity, and so the temperature at its surface.
This, it was said, could be the reason why temperatures have been seen to be varying so much over the Earths history, and why they are rising now.
observations suggest that the Suns output may have started to wane from its "grand maximum".
But if the Sun wanes and temperatures on our planet continue to rise, as the vast majority of scientists in the field believe, the solar-cosmic ray concept of global warming can be laid to eternal rest.
And if humankind has done nothing to stem the rise in greenhouse gas emissions by then, it will be even harder to begin the task.
theyre creating an electromagnetic system that can quickly bring a vehicle to a stop. The system, which can be attached to an automobile or aircraft carrier, sends out pulses of microwave radiation to disable the microprocessors that control the central engine functions in a car. Such a device could be used by law enforcement to stop fleeing and noncooperative vehicles at security checkpoints, or as perimeter protection for military bases, communication centers, and oil platforms in the open seas.
To bring an opposing vehicle to a halt, the 200-pound device is attached to the roof of a car.
a specially designed antenna beams the microwave energy toward an opposing vehicle through a part of the car, such as the windshield, window, grill, or spacing between the hood and main body, that is not made of metal.
The radiated microwave energy will upset or damage the vehicles electronic systems, particularly the microprocessors that control important engine functions,
clipped by:winterface clippers remarks: This is a really cool site I came across that is like a portal for all things South Carolina, all their domain names end in ".SC" which is completly awesome.
Its a great resource if you live in South Carolina or are going to relocate there.
Our goal is to provide you with all the information you want relating to South Carolina while promoting the South Carolina Internet Community. You will find many useful FREE services including FREEClassifieds, Local News, Local Weather, and our Statewide Business Directory.
South Carolina - At Your Fingertips:
Let us help you get more visitors from your local area. Our web sites are targeted to South Carolina Buyers that are interested in the products and services you offer. For more information email Info@Only.sc to find out how we can help you.
Do you have a website and want to join the South Carolina Internet Community?
Browse through our exclusive South Carolina Business Directory of over 134,000 listings, in more than 250 categories that ensure you find exactly what you are looking for with our "Easy to Search Directory".
clipped by:apple white clippers remarks: From the Atlantic Monthlys article "The American Idea" - Scholars, novelists, politicians, artists, and others look ahead to the future of the American idea. I thought the juxtaposition of these two pieces in particular was interesting. Sam Harris is the author of The End of Faith (2004) and Letter to a Christian Nation (2006). Tim LaHaye is a minister and the author of more than 50 books, including the best-selling Left Behind series.
I have clipped both pieces below because Atlantic Monthly wont let you view the entire article.
America is now a nation of 300 million souls, wielding more influence than any people in human history?and yet 240 million of these souls apparently believe that Jesus will return someday and orchestrate the end of the world with his magic powers. This hankering for a denominational, spiritual oblivion is not a good bet, much less a useful idea.
America?s uniqueness is based in the Christian consensus of the Founding Fathers, who penned documents guaranteeing religious and personal freedom for all. This nation was not founded by atheists, secularizers, or monarchists who thought the elite educated class should rule over the common people. America?s founding was based more on biblical principles than any other nation?s on Earth?and that?s the main reason this country has been more blessed by God than any other nation in history.
clipped by:shancypants clippers remarks: By 2015 the MDGs are supposed to be accomplished- these include improving the basic rights of the child. I think we are so far away from that as a reality, and it does not need to be this way.
West Africa: Regions Children Worse Off Despite Legislation
Children in West Africa are as likely to be raped, trafficked, beaten or abused and less likely to go to school, receive proper healthcare or be properly nourished, compared to 15 years ago, despite binding legislation meant to improve childrens situation.
Governments were asked again to specifically tackle child trafficking and labour, which Plan International says has quadrupled in the last 30 years.
clipped by:kmakice clippers remarks: Im anxious to see what constitutes a jury of peers, if lawyers manage to get this case moved to the venue where the alleged crimes took place.
The question of who has metaphysical jurisdiction in virtual worlds is not one so carefully addressed in Amsterdam as police have arrested a virtual criminal. In the Netherlands, at least, theft is theft and has real-world consequences.
In this case, its the arrest of a 17-year-old and the questioning of four 15-year-old accomplices.
Theyre crime: Stealing virtual furniture and putting it in their own virtual pads at the Habbo Hotel.
Just like in Second Life, Habbo has its own virtual economy, and the furniture was worth nearly $6,000, according to a Reuters report.
And teenagers being teenagers are especially likely to misunderstand the concept of consequences, real world or virtual. Sulake, the parent company of Habbo Hotel boasts 80 million users, all trading in virtual currency that can be traded for "real" money.
But one things for certain, the Dutch police arent wasting time debating lofty concepts like metaphysical jurisdiction. These teenagers are facing real penalties.
clipped by:Mohir clippers remarks: A recent study may have found what kind of process goes awry in schizophrenic brains. Researchers found that DISC1 regulates the migration of new neurons in the adult brain. When the levels of DISC1 were reduced in mice during adult neurogenesis, the newborn neurons sped up and overshot their intended targets within the hippocampus, When the neurons finally reached their destinations, they forged an unusual number of connections with neighboring cells, a series of events that might give rise to the abnormal?and quite crippling?brain functions associated with schizophrenia, according to Hongjun Song, a Johns Hopkins neurologist who also worked on the study. It is possible, Song says, that further research will lead to a drug that treats schizophrenia by restoring normal neurogenesis.
So what evolutionary advantage could schizophrenia-related genes bring to people who have some of the genes but not the disease? For now, this remains one of the many open questions.
The disease may be the twisted flipside of an evolutionary boost.
For years, scientists struggled to identify an adaptive advantage that might explain schizophrenia?s persistence. Researchers from various disciplines volleyed ideas back and forth. Some argued that the genes implicated in the disease promoted creativity; others believed that schizophrenics were frustrated cult leaders?unorthodox thinkers constitutionally ?engineered? to lead segments of humanity to break off from the herd, but who lacked the charisma to effect much change. None of the theories gained much traction.
And today on Blue Peter were going to show you how to make your own television receiver with a mirrored drum, a couple of old lamp stands, an electric fan, a squeezy liquid bottle, and a great deal of fuming and cursing.
This is just creepy. What is going on here? Is the television of tomorrow so realistic youll reach out to touch it? Will women fall so hopelessly in love with men on television that theyll wish to caress them through the screen
?
Will television allow men
to jump out of the set with a string of pearls which they hold out in either a gesture of giving? or as a prelude to some twisted homicidal episode?
Okay, Arthur. Thats the 500th autograph youve faxed out this programme. Yes, I know theyre your public. Yes, I know thats what makes two-way telly so great. Look, Arty, weve been here for three hours, you havent sung a single song, and our total audience has dropped to forty.
While admitting to being disappointed by the results, Americans said they would continue to pursue lasting social change, whether by working overtime shifts in order to make education more affordable for their children, or by selling some of their belongings in order to provide medical coverage for aging family members
WASHINGTON?Citing exhaustion, an overcrowded field of candidates, and little hope of making a difference in 2008, roughly 300 million Americans announced Tuesday that they will be leaving the presidential race behind
victories by both Sen. Hillary Clinton (D-NY) and former New York City mayor Rudolph Giuliani in regional straw polls, left them with no real choice.
every citizen in every state realized they would have to compromise their core values in order to remain in the race
"As the obvious underdogs, we knew that the chance of Americans winning in 2008 was slim to none,
"I guess theres just no room at the table for the vast majority of this countrys citizens."
Once Law & Order star Fred Thompson declared his candidacy and Barack Obama started using religion to win votes, you could tell Americas heart wasnt in it anymore
"American men and women
were the only ones who seemed to have the publics best interest truly in mind
Zeitgeist : The Movie covers it all from religion to the RFID chip..
clipped by:TJColatrella clippers remarks: This covers everything it starts with religion but takes us through all the lies they have been telling us from banking to 9/11 to the SPP everything watch this flick it is really great...
Kids who eat lower-calorie meals won?t snack more later, as long as they are eating about the same amounts they are accustomed to.
The researchers wanted to know if the kids would naturally compensate for the reduced-calorie menus by eating extra amounts later in the day or the following day. But they didn?t. Instead, they ate about the same amount they had previously, consuming 400 fewer calories over the two days they were served the lower-calorie foods. ?People tend to eat the same weight of food from day to day, and that?s what these kids did,? Penn State nutritionist Barbara Rolls told the newspaper.
He had just saved her from a fire in her house, rescuing her by carrying her out of the house into her front yard, while he continued to fight the fire.
She is pregnant.
When he finally got done putting the fire out, he sat down to catch his breath and rest.
A photographer from the Charlotte, North Carolina newspaper, "The Observer," noticed her in the distance looking at the fireman.
He saw her walking straight toward the fireman and wondered what she was going to do.
As he raised his camera, she came up to the tired man who had saved her life and the lives of her babies, and kissed him, just as the photographer snapped this photograph.
In a Nov. 13 story, The Associated Press incorrectly reported that Paris Hilton was praised by conservationists for highlighting the problem of binge-drinking elephants in northeastern India. Lori Berk, a publicist for Hilton, said she never made any comments about helping drunken elephants in India.
Consumers haven?t fallen off of the proverbial cliff, but they appear to be hanging on for dear life? Indeed, the August through October period marks the worst three-month performance for core retail sales since July through September 2002
Richard Moody, Mission Residential
The consumer is facing the twin headwinds associated with high energy costs and a negative wealth effect tied to lower housing prices. One of the keys going forward will be whether the labor market continues to provide sufficient income support to prevent too much of a slide in consumer demand. ?Morgan Stanley Research
Looking ahead, the sluggish start to the fourth quarter points to a marked slowdown in consumer spending ? and in GDP growth. ?David Resler, Nomura Securities
Today?s data supports our view that the holiday shopping season could see one of the weakest gains in spending in years. ?Drew Matus, Lehman Brothers
And the full impacts from the rise in energy costs have yet to be seen. ?Naroff Economic Advisors
Iran has handed over to the UNs nuclear watchdog a blueprint long sought by inspectors, which shows how to mould uranium metal into spheres for nuclear warheads.
The handover came ahead of an International Atomic Energy Agency report due this week, which could lead to a third round of UN sanctions against Tehran.
Some diplomats said the IAEA report due this week was likely to say Iran has improved co-operation with a long-running inquiry into its nuclear programme.
The timing and toughness of any further UN sanctions against Iran will hinge on world powers interpretation of the report and a parallel report by Javier Solana, the EUs chief diplomat, on recent dialogue with Tehran.
Solana is expected to confirm that Iran remains unwilling to suspend uranium enrichment, which it says is to generate electricity but Western leaders claim is to make atom bombs.
clipped by:pokkets clippers remarks: The virus eats the bacteria in the hot springs. Known as a bacteriophage, or phage from a group of viruses that eats only bacteria, researchers, are intrigued as to how they evolved to be able to survive in the hot springs. They can travel in steam. Bacteriophages are considered to be the most widely distributed and diverse entities in the biosphere. It is also believed they infect up to 70% of marine bacteria. They have been used as an alternative to antibiotics in what was the Soviet Union and Eastern Europe, and have been seen as a hope against some drug resistant bacteria. So far tests with MRSA have not been promising, as the virus that attacks MRSA, also contains the same toxin.
Researchers who study the wilderness of heat-loving bacteria that thrives in Yellowstones hot springs are starting to pay more attention to the even smaller organisms that keep those bacteria populations in check: viruses.
A study by researchers at Montana State University and the Idaho National Laboratory concludes that certain viruses appear to migrate around Yellowstone on steam droplets.
"To me, the big question is what do these viruses do in these hot springs?" said Frank Roberto, a microbiologist at the Idaho National Laboratory who sequenced and analyzed the DNA of Yellowstone viruses.
Researchers have been eager to find industrial uses for Yellowstones bacteria. Cleaning smokestacks at coal-fired power plants is one possible application.
But to do that sort of thing, scientists are discovering that the relationships between hot springs bacteria and the viruses that infect them could be very important.
The scientists
discovered that viruses can indeed travel by steam
CHILO, Ohio (AP) -- Village council members get paid $5 per meeting, while the winner of a wrestling match staged in a wading pool filled with pie filling gets $100. Is it any wonder that more people signed up to wrestle than to run for mayor?
Last weeks election in this Ohio River village, population 97, didnt attract any candidates for mayor. There were no names on the ballot for clerk/treasurer, either, or two open spots on village council.
However, seven women have signed up for a Nov. 21 wrestling match in pie filling at Everybodys Sports Lounge, one of three businesses in the village about 25 miles southeast of Cincinnati.
Its Clermont Countys smallest incorporated community, although it was a bustling port community of about 500 in the 19th century.
She said one of the best things about Chilo is that there arent many people.
"Its peaceful and everybodys real nice," Berry said.
A strange blue cloud seen floating and darting around customers, freezing for 30 minutes and then speeding from an Ohio gas station, remains unexplained even though it was caught on security cams.
The ghostly image was seen moving near and over cars at a Marathon gas station located near the corner of State Road and Pleasant Valley in Parma on Sunday.
Witness: It Gives Me Chills
"It gives me the chills," a witness said.Security video then shows it coming back and resting on a car window before floating away.Several people said they believe the image is a ghost or an angel."It was an angel," a witness said. "There was an angel here."The owner of the gas station said he was happy the image went away and has not come back.
Kids in Winchester were supposed to go on a field trip to see "Miracle on 34th Street,? until parents called and complained, according to newspaper reports
McCall Middle School Principal Evander French told the Boston Herald "the people who complained were concerned about the very narrow focus on Santa Claus
Students planning to go to the show at the Stoneham Theater have been reimbursed, according to the Herald, but some parents are still angry about the decision. A parent told the paper that the people who thought the show was inappropriate should have kept their kids home instead of ?ruin(ing) it for the rest of us
parents complained the ?Miracle on 34th Street? show was not tied to the school?s curriculum
According to French, he wants to make sure the school?s curriculum is ?appropriate for everybody
the school will continue its annual trip to see "A Christmas Carol? at the North Shore Theatre, saying the show is about a season and the human condition
Scientists have created cloned embryos from adult monkeys and extracted stem cells from them ? a potential breakthrough that could bring human cloning nearer, it has been claimed.
The success at the Oregon National Primate Research Centre in Portland could shed light on how to create human transplant tissue that is genetically matched to an ailing patient.
Because stem cells can form all types of tissue, the approach might one day help treat conditions such as diabetes and spinal cord injury without fear of tissue rejection by the patients body.
The research has not been published yet, nor confirmed by other scientists. The claim of a similar breakthro
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![A Pastafarian depiction of the creation of the universe sent in an open letter to the Kansas School Board. It includes the Monster, a tree-covered mountain, and a midgit.[sic]](http://clipmarks.com/image_cache/darkf00t/512/A37FB667-99B0-4471-9614-BFFBE6BB9894.jpg)
Cabin in Twain Harte, CA has two rooms each with one queen bed, and two rooms with two twin beds each. Well provide the blankets and pillows, but please be sure to bring your own sheets, pillow cases, soap/shampoo and towels to use when you hop out of one of the two bathrooms with standing showers. One of which is in the basement, off the complementary laundry room. Just think of all the warm towels right out of the dryer! Note: We do not have a bathtub in the vacation rental cabin.
My daycare is for children as young as 6 weeks old. Every family has their own needs, so I am as accommodating as I can be, and care for their children for as long as I am needed. On average, children leave my childcare program around preschool or kindergarten age.
More surprises from the institute of "didnt see that one coming." Eight out of ten kids between the ages of 4 and 17 play computer or video games 
The video wouldnt clip, so you have to go to the source to see it. Its cute. 
Earthquake aftermath 
