Motivated by curiosity, fueled by obsession and empowered by the Freedom of Information Act, John Greenewald Jr. has assembled what may be the largest collection of UFO documents in the world.
And it's all online for anyone to see — which is the way the 26-year-old Californian thinks it should be.
Good man.
"I've learned specifically that the U.S. government and military cover up a lot."
Learn more.
August 7, 2007
The World's Most Advanced Bionic Arm
They seek the field's holy grail -- to build an artificial human arm that acts, looks and feels to its user like his native arm, and to do it with astonishing speed by the end of 2009.
Learn more.
Learn more.
New age therapies cause 'retreat from reason'
Known as "Darwin's rottweiler", Prof Richard Dawkins caused a furore with a stinging attack on religion. Now the evolutionary biologist has turned his wrath on "new age" alternative therapies, describing them as based on "irrational superstition".
Prof Dawkins says that alternative remedies constitute little more than a "money-spinning, multi-million pound industry that impoverishes our culture and throws up new age gurus who exhort us to run away from reality".
Read more.
Prof Dawkins says that alternative remedies constitute little more than a "money-spinning, multi-million pound industry that impoverishes our culture and throws up new age gurus who exhort us to run away from reality".
Read more.
The higher power of Addiction
The Kansas University professor’s eighth book, “When Religion is an Addiction,” may become his most controversial. He suggests that some members of the religious right have become so addicted to their church activities that they have to continue advancing their causes to get new “highs.”
“It’s like any addiction,” he says. “At some point, it doesn’t do the trick for you, so you need to strengthen it. Religion wasn’t enough for them, so they entered politics to get a stronger affirmation of righteousness.”
“A high of righteousness,” he adds, “is the same as a high of cocaine.”
Read more.
“It’s like any addiction,” he says. “At some point, it doesn’t do the trick for you, so you need to strengthen it. Religion wasn’t enough for them, so they entered politics to get a stronger affirmation of righteousness.”
“A high of righteousness,” he adds, “is the same as a high of cocaine.”
Read more.
Group to Deliver Bibles With Newspapers
Everything from detergent to computer discs is packaged with the Sunday newspaper. So why not Bibles?
A Christian ministry wants to deliver custom-designed New Testaments to newspaper subscribers around the country as part of an effort to find innovative ways to spread a Christian message. But even in the Bible Belt, not everyone thinks that's a good idea.
I'm glad I'm canceling my newspaper subscription.
Read more.
A Christian ministry wants to deliver custom-designed New Testaments to newspaper subscribers around the country as part of an effort to find innovative ways to spread a Christian message. But even in the Bible Belt, not everyone thinks that's a good idea.
I'm glad I'm canceling my newspaper subscription.
Read more.
Study: Food in McDonald's wrapper tastes better to kids
Anything made by McDonald's tastes better, preschoolers said in a study that powerfully demonstrates how advertising can trick the taste buds of young children.
And you can bet the fast-food corporations know this.
Even carrots, milk and apple juice tasted better to the kids when they were wrapped in the familiar packaging of the Golden Arches.
The study had youngsters sample identical McDonald's foods in name-brand and unmarked wrappers. The unmarked foods always lost the taste test.
Don't eat at McDonald's.
And you can bet the fast-food corporations know this.
Even carrots, milk and apple juice tasted better to the kids when they were wrapped in the familiar packaging of the Golden Arches.
The study had youngsters sample identical McDonald's foods in name-brand and unmarked wrappers. The unmarked foods always lost the taste test.
Don't eat at McDonald's.
Baby Einsteins: Not So Smart After All
The claim always seemed too good to be true: park your infant in front of a video and, in no time, he or she will be talking and getting smarter than the neighbor's kid. In the latest study on the effects of popular videos such as the "Baby Einstein" and "Brainy Baby" series, researchers find that these products may be doing more harm than good. And they may actually delay language development in toddlers.
Put the name "Einstein" on a piece of dog shit and somebody will buy it thinking it will help their kids become smarter.
Read the rest.
Put the name "Einstein" on a piece of dog shit and somebody will buy it thinking it will help their kids become smarter.
Read the rest.
Bush economics: 'Only the little people pay taxes'
This is a column about taxes, and how, unless you are one of the nation's top dogs, you are getting rooked.
...
Warren Buffett, the world's third-richest man, blasted the U.S. tax system earlier this summer because he pays a lower rate of taxes than his secretary. Buffett said, without trying to avoid taxes, that he paid 17.7 percent on the $46 million he made in 2006 while his secretary who made $60,000 was taxed at 30 percent.
Unseemly? Immoral? Outrageous? You bet! This imbalance is a consequence of decades of tax reforms that have benefited those at the top, with a marked acceleration under President Bush.
This should piss you off.
...
Warren Buffett, the world's third-richest man, blasted the U.S. tax system earlier this summer because he pays a lower rate of taxes than his secretary. Buffett said, without trying to avoid taxes, that he paid 17.7 percent on the $46 million he made in 2006 while his secretary who made $60,000 was taxed at 30 percent.
Unseemly? Immoral? Outrageous? You bet! This imbalance is a consequence of decades of tax reforms that have benefited those at the top, with a marked acceleration under President Bush.
This should piss you off.
Ron Paul Champions Internet Freedom
“I believe strongly that the internet should not be regulated by the federal government and believes even more strongly that people should be free to engage in the activities they wish, as long as they are willing to take responsibility for their actions.”
What a novel idea.
Read more.
What a novel idea.
Read more.
Iowa Straw Poll Voting Machines in Question
Yesterday, Ernest Hancock, candidate for Arizona secretary of state spoke with Mary Tiffany, communications director for the Iowa state Republican Party. During the conversation, Tiffany confirmed that there will be no manual recount for the Iowa straw poll that occurs on Saturday. This weeks Iowa straw poll is to take place using the same Diebold electronic voting machines that have come into question in recent days.
The "memory hole" gets larger.
Read more.
The "memory hole" gets larger.
Read more.
Fox News Uncovers Ron Paul's Most Shocking Skeleton in the Closet
Fox News are so desperate to dig up any dirt on Ron Paul, that one of their flagship shows last night resorted to attacking him over the amount of federal funding he requested for shrimp research.
...
If Ron Paul's biggest skeleton in the closet is the amount of money his district spends on shrimp research, then the establishment media are going to have a difficult time maintaining their assault on his credibility as they panic in fear at the Congressman's runaway popularity.
Read more.
...
If Ron Paul's biggest skeleton in the closet is the amount of money his district spends on shrimp research, then the establishment media are going to have a difficult time maintaining their assault on his credibility as they panic in fear at the Congressman's runaway popularity.
Read more.
‘Rival to Nato’ begins first military exercise
Russian and Chinese troops are joining forces this week in the first military exercises by an international organisation that is regarded in some quarters as a potential rival to Nato.
Read more.
Read more.
Saturn holds a tiny secret
Astronomers and astrobiologists, who are always looking for signs of life far from Earth, were caught by surprise — and they remain so, unable to explain how such a small celestial body (only 318 miles wide at its equator ) can pump out so much water.
Learn more.
Learn more.
New Law Gives Government Six Months to Turn Internet and Phone Systems into Permanent Spying Architecture
A new law expanding the government's spying powers gives the Bush Administration a six-month window to install possibly permanent back doors in the nation's communication networks. The legislation was passed hurriedly by Congress over the weekend and signed into law Sunday by President Bush.
Be spied on here.
Be spied on here.
Britain is protecting the biggest heroin crop of all time
In six years, the occupation has wrought one massive transformation in Afghanistan, a development so huge that it has increased Afghan GDP by 66 per cent and constitutes 40 per cent of the entire economy. That is a startling achievement, by any standards. Yet we are not trumpeting it. Why not?
The answer is this. The achievement is the highest harvests of opium the world has ever seen.
...
That is about the only good thing you can say about the Taliban; there are plenty of very bad things to say about them. But their suppression of the opium trade and the drug barons is undeniable fact.
Now we are occupying the country, that has changed. According to the United Nations, 2006 was the biggest opium harvest in history, smashing the previous record by 60 per cent. This year will be even bigger.
...
It now exports not opium, but heroin. Opium is converted into heroin on an industrial scale, not in kitchens but in factories. Millions of gallons of the chemicals needed for this process are shipped into Afghanistan by tanker. The tankers and bulk opium lorries on the way to the factories share the roads, improved by American aid, with Nato troops.
How can this have happened, and on this scale? The answer is simple. The four largest players in the heroin business are all senior members of the Afghan government – the government that our soldiers are fighting and dying to protect.
...
Remember this article next time you hear a politician calling for more troops to go into Afghanistan. And when you hear of another brave British life wasted there, remember you can add to the casualty figures all the young lives ruined, made miserable or ended by heroin in the UK.
They, too, are casualties of our Afghan policy.
Read it all. It should piss you off.
The answer is this. The achievement is the highest harvests of opium the world has ever seen.
...
That is about the only good thing you can say about the Taliban; there are plenty of very bad things to say about them. But their suppression of the opium trade and the drug barons is undeniable fact.
Now we are occupying the country, that has changed. According to the United Nations, 2006 was the biggest opium harvest in history, smashing the previous record by 60 per cent. This year will be even bigger.
...
It now exports not opium, but heroin. Opium is converted into heroin on an industrial scale, not in kitchens but in factories. Millions of gallons of the chemicals needed for this process are shipped into Afghanistan by tanker. The tankers and bulk opium lorries on the way to the factories share the roads, improved by American aid, with Nato troops.
How can this have happened, and on this scale? The answer is simple. The four largest players in the heroin business are all senior members of the Afghan government – the government that our soldiers are fighting and dying to protect.
...
Remember this article next time you hear a politician calling for more troops to go into Afghanistan. And when you hear of another brave British life wasted there, remember you can add to the casualty figures all the young lives ruined, made miserable or ended by heroin in the UK.
They, too, are casualties of our Afghan policy.
Read it all. It should piss you off.
Charging Anti-Semitism To Silence Dissent
But even if you assume that anti-Jewish quotes are in fact authentic: How is this relevant? This pretense that Israel is being persecuted by malevolent Arabs is easily debunked when the facts are considered: take for example kill rates (an average of 4 Palestinian civilians killed for every Israeli killed; about 8 Palestinian children for every Israeli child); house demolitions (thousands of Palestinian homes, 0 Israeli homes); checkpoints (more than 400 in the West Bank alone, 0 in Israel); prisoners (more than 9,000 Palestinian prisoners, including about 300 children; 1 Israeli soldier held prisoner, and no Israeli children). Israel's supporters must resort to a blizzard of lies, half-lies, and non-sequiturs because the facts about Israel cannot be justified by fair-minded people.
Read more.
Read more.
A bad deal with India
President George W. Bush is understandably desperate for some kind of foreign policy success. But that cannot justify sacrificing his principled stand against weapons proliferation to seal a nuclear cooperation deal with India. The accord could end up benefiting New Delhi's weapons program as much as its pursuit of nuclear power.
The deal was deeply flawed from the start. And it has been made even worse by a newly negotiated companion agreement that lays out the technical details for nuclear commerce. Congress should reject the agreement and demand that the administration, or its successor, negotiate a new one that does not undermine efforts to restrain the spread of nuclear weapons.
Read more.
The deal was deeply flawed from the start. And it has been made even worse by a newly negotiated companion agreement that lays out the technical details for nuclear commerce. Congress should reject the agreement and demand that the administration, or its successor, negotiate a new one that does not undermine efforts to restrain the spread of nuclear weapons.
Read more.
Sex scandals, terrorism, wild weather...here's the news from 1680
Enemies of the state are interrogated, a sex scandal engulfs the church and freak weather tests the nation's endurance.
Such were the issues of the day - 320 years ago.
Some things never change.
Read the rest.
Such were the issues of the day - 320 years ago.
Some things never change.
Read the rest.
Secret government 'X-Files' reveal 97 UFO sightings in Britain's skies last year
Previously, it took 30 years for classified records of UFO sightings to be released, leaving enthusiasts with a cold trail to follow up.
But details of every sighting since 1998 were released just a few months after this year's 60th anniversary of the alleged alien crash-landing in Roswell, New Mexico.
Read more.
But details of every sighting since 1998 were released just a few months after this year's 60th anniversary of the alleged alien crash-landing in Roswell, New Mexico.
Read more.
'Over the top' security sees pilots revolt
One pilot said: "When dealing with the police one has certain rights and a well-defined procedure if you are not treated correctly. This is not so with airport security who seem to be a law unto themselves using the knowledge that you are on a tight time schedule to ride roughshod over any rights that you might have."
Read more.
Read more.
The Ron Paul Saga-The Best is Yet to Come
The success of his campaign has caught many by surprise, including himself. Some of his rivals are now trying to duplicate his formula, but true spontaneous grassroots movements cannot be generated or manufactured. His support is diverse, and what is becoming increasingly clear is that before all is said and done, Ron Paul will have made a huge impact, win or lose.
Read more.
Read more.
CBS 11 News Looks At Morgellons Disease
From a Dallas station:
Those who've seen it say it’s got all the makings of a real life horror movie. The symptoms alone are scary and for the thousands who claim they’re suffering from it, the effects are even more frightening. No one knows what causes it, if it’s contagious, or even how to treat it. Many question, 'Is it real?', or is it just a delusion?
Those pictures sure don't look like a delusion.
Learn more.
Those who've seen it say it’s got all the makings of a real life horror movie. The symptoms alone are scary and for the thousands who claim they’re suffering from it, the effects are even more frightening. No one knows what causes it, if it’s contagious, or even how to treat it. Many question, 'Is it real?', or is it just a delusion?
Those pictures sure don't look like a delusion.
Learn more.
It’s a Female Dog, or Worse. Or Endearing. And Illegal?
The New York City Council, which drew national headlines when it passed a symbolic citywide ban earlier this year on the use of the so-called n-word, has turned its linguistic (and legislative) lance toward a different slur: bitch.
...
While the bill also bans the slang word “ho,” the b-word appears to have acquired more shades of meaning among various groups, ranging from a term of camaraderie to, in a gerund form, an expression of emphatic approval.
They're just words people.
Words.
Read the rest but don't say "bitch" or "ho" here.
...
While the bill also bans the slang word “ho,” the b-word appears to have acquired more shades of meaning among various groups, ranging from a term of camaraderie to, in a gerund form, an expression of emphatic approval.
They're just words people.
Words.
Read the rest but don't say "bitch" or "ho" here.
August 6, 2007
The Rising Tide of Popular Discontent in America
I keep hearing the same sentiment expressed in conversations between ordinary Americans: "things in this country are only going to continue getting worse until we have an armed insurrection."
And it isn't just progressives and liberals. I have heard some conservatives say the same thing. Everyone is thinking the same thing; Are we headed toward another civil war?
Rise up here.
And it isn't just progressives and liberals. I have heard some conservatives say the same thing. Everyone is thinking the same thing; Are we headed toward another civil war?
Rise up here.
In Bush we trust - or else
This far-reaching order of July 17 may be Bush's most brazen defiance of the Constitution, which is no small feat for an administration that thinks it can set its own rules on electronic surveillance, torture, kidnapping, rendition, and the designation of "enemy combatants" who can be arrested on U.S. soil and held indefinitely without judicial review.
This one is a frontal assault on the Fifth Amendment, which decrees that the government cannot seize an individual's property without due process.
Under Bush's executive order, the U.S. government has endowed itself with the authority to freeze the American assets of anyone who directly or indirectly assists someone who poses "a significant risk" of committing a violent act that has the purpose or effect of threatening the Iraqi government, the "peace and stability" of the country or the reconstruction effort.
Read the rest.
This one is a frontal assault on the Fifth Amendment, which decrees that the government cannot seize an individual's property without due process.
Under Bush's executive order, the U.S. government has endowed itself with the authority to freeze the American assets of anyone who directly or indirectly assists someone who poses "a significant risk" of committing a violent act that has the purpose or effect of threatening the Iraqi government, the "peace and stability" of the country or the reconstruction effort.
Read the rest.
Ron Paul speak *unvarnished truth* while Mitt Romney scoffs and rolls his eyes
Ron Paul tells what faction is behind the disastrous "War on Terror" . . . .
and Mitt Romney reacts at 2:18.
...
Admittedly, when I saw Mitt's behavior on C-SPAN, I instinctively shouted at the television - "Fuck you, Mitt!" with the middle finger held.
Check out the video.
and Mitt Romney reacts at 2:18.
...
Admittedly, when I saw Mitt's behavior on C-SPAN, I instinctively shouted at the television - "Fuck you, Mitt!" with the middle finger held.
Check out the video.
Bloggers consider forming labor union
In a move that might make some people scratch their heads, a loosely formed coalition of left-leaning bloggers are trying to band together to form a labor union they hope will help them receive health insurance, conduct collective bargaining or even set professional standards.
Read more.
Read more.
SoundExchange, Caught Lobbying, Says Lobbying Bar Does Not Apply
A federal appeals court recently rejected a plea from webcasters to postpone the deadline for a new royalty scheme that sets the stage for SoundExchange to begin levying billions of dollars from internet radio stations in the coming decades. It already collects a tidy sum from satellite radio and now it has set its sights on U.S. terrestrial radio stations, which currently pay no broadcast performance royalties. If it wins there, its power could grow exponentially.
This reflects a well-known law of any bureaucracy: Once authority is created, it works inevitably to expand its sphere of influence, grabbing for more power and bigger budgets. With each success, its appetite only grows.
I won't rant about this today.
Read more.
This reflects a well-known law of any bureaucracy: Once authority is created, it works inevitably to expand its sphere of influence, grabbing for more power and bigger budgets. With each success, its appetite only grows.
I won't rant about this today.
Read more.
Religions more safe in ‘secular’ nations, U.S. nun says
"In a secular state, all religions are safe," Sister Chittister responded to a group at St. Matthew-in-the-City, an Anglican church here, at which she preached on July 15. "In a religious state, few religions are safe,” she said.
Read more.
Read more.
Ron Paul: The Internet's favorite candidate
For his part, Paul attributes his online popularity to a set of beliefs that resonates with a younger crowd. "The whole message seems to be very attractive to young people," he said in a recent interview. "I think they like to be left alone. When I talk about Internet privacy and no taxes, I think they understand it."
Another factor is Paul's vote against the war in Iraq and his opposition to military action against Iran, making him unique among Republican candidates (and a rarity even among Democrats, after Obama reiterated during a debate that he would not rule out a nuclear strike against Iran). "Young people I think very naturally are opposed to the war that's going on," Paul said. "Soon they're going to turn 18."
This is not a new position: Paul also opposed the United States' first war against Iraq, and the war in Kosovo as well. His political views are broadly libertarian, which means supporting ideas like free markets (less regulation), individual rights (junk the Patriot Act), lower taxes (eliminate the IRS), and civil libertarianism (legalize marijuana).
Read more.
Another factor is Paul's vote against the war in Iraq and his opposition to military action against Iran, making him unique among Republican candidates (and a rarity even among Democrats, after Obama reiterated during a debate that he would not rule out a nuclear strike against Iran). "Young people I think very naturally are opposed to the war that's going on," Paul said. "Soon they're going to turn 18."
This is not a new position: Paul also opposed the United States' first war against Iraq, and the war in Kosovo as well. His political views are broadly libertarian, which means supporting ideas like free markets (less regulation), individual rights (junk the Patriot Act), lower taxes (eliminate the IRS), and civil libertarianism (legalize marijuana).
Read more.
Why Senator Stevens Needs Internet Censorship
Now did you get the key words in that proposed attack on free speech and free access to information that the establishment mass media is depriving US of? The Internet must be “filtered,” meaning it needs a Hillaroid-approved government stooge to monitor what is allowable for public consumption and what is not. And just like Hillaroid’s false front, it is , of course, “for the children.” That authorizes deprivation of truth and fact to adults that wish to think as opposed to turning in their belly buttons. And also startling, is the point made by Thomas that civil liberties groups weren’t invited. They obviously weren’t wanted and were considered by these fine examples of American government officialdom as threats to their clandestine political maneuvers.
Here’s the “it’s-for-the-children fraud” offered by Inouye: “‘While filtering and monitoring technologies help parents to screen out offensive content and to monitor their child’s online activities, the use of these technologies is far from universal and may not be fool-proof in keeping kids away from adult material,’ Sen. Inouye said. ‘In that context, we must evaluate our current efforts to combat child pornography and consider what further measures may be needed to stop the spread of such illegal material over high-speed broadband connections.’” Then Internet genius Stevens chimes in: “‘Given the increasingly important role of the Internet in education and commerce, it differs from other media like TV and cable because parents cannot prevent their children from using the Internet altogether,’ Sen. Stevens said. ‘The headlines continue to tell us of children who are victimized online. While the issues are difficult, I believe Congress has an important role to play to ensure that the protections available in other parts of our society find their way to the Internet.’” In other words, parents need help raising their children from these two morons!
...
So there you have it. More secret government operations, abuse of power, and lobbying arrangements depriving the American people of both representative government and justice. Yet these holier-than-you-and-me “honorables” feel qualified to write laws to govern our behavior, what we see, what we read, and what we think. And does it matter to which party they belong? Only if you are a political party loyalist and simpleton.
Read the rest.
Here’s the “it’s-for-the-children fraud” offered by Inouye: “‘While filtering and monitoring technologies help parents to screen out offensive content and to monitor their child’s online activities, the use of these technologies is far from universal and may not be fool-proof in keeping kids away from adult material,’ Sen. Inouye said. ‘In that context, we must evaluate our current efforts to combat child pornography and consider what further measures may be needed to stop the spread of such illegal material over high-speed broadband connections.’” Then Internet genius Stevens chimes in: “‘Given the increasingly important role of the Internet in education and commerce, it differs from other media like TV and cable because parents cannot prevent their children from using the Internet altogether,’ Sen. Stevens said. ‘The headlines continue to tell us of children who are victimized online. While the issues are difficult, I believe Congress has an important role to play to ensure that the protections available in other parts of our society find their way to the Internet.’” In other words, parents need help raising their children from these two morons!
...
So there you have it. More secret government operations, abuse of power, and lobbying arrangements depriving the American people of both representative government and justice. Yet these holier-than-you-and-me “honorables” feel qualified to write laws to govern our behavior, what we see, what we read, and what we think. And does it matter to which party they belong? Only if you are a political party loyalist and simpleton.
Read the rest.
The U.S. is unlikely to ever regain its broadband leadership.
In 1996 I had 384-kilobit-per-second (kbps) symmetrical DSL while my TV production partners in the UK had nothing at home and 128-kbps ISDN at the office. America was the top broadband country in the world. But now we're in the middle of the pack among developed countries and there are nine DEVELOPING countries that have more and better broadband service than does America according to the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD). To those who say this is BS and that we're actually ahead of the world if you control for rural populations, family size, the effect of Wi-Fi hotspots, etc., I say that is simply wrong: we are behind and losing ground. And the countries ahead of us, a diverse lot including France, Iceland, Japan, Korea, Switzerland, the UK, and even Canada, are for the most part growing faster than we are in large part because of this IT advantage.
Read more.
Read more.
A Simple Solution – Secession
I do not understand how it is that the majority of Americans understand that their government is lying, stealing, torturing and killing in their name, and yet few people act on their convictions. They continue to pay taxes, they continue to support the corrupt system, they continue to deploy to Iraq, and they allow fraudulent elections repeatedly.
...
In my view, the only peaceful way to end this tyranny is if all the states secede from the US. We alleviate ourselves from federal debt, localize the economies, and get rid of federal control. No more Patriot Act, no more dismantling of habeas corpus, and no more bodies in Iraq. Yes, some of the welfare states will be forced to actually contribute to their own welfare. No more farm subsidies, no more handouts. If I want to help someone, it is my choice. The states can ally themselves regionally (which seems much more efficient given our shared utilities and resources) or not. It's all about local control. Sure, there would be a few horror stories along the way, but it's still better than citizen internment camps.
...
At present, we are conditioned to demand the government solve our problems. With bailout after bailout, it's easy to understand why the masses aren't worried. The Knight in Shining Armor is at the gates of the fortress because Hollywood tells us it is so.
Read the rest.
...
In my view, the only peaceful way to end this tyranny is if all the states secede from the US. We alleviate ourselves from federal debt, localize the economies, and get rid of federal control. No more Patriot Act, no more dismantling of habeas corpus, and no more bodies in Iraq. Yes, some of the welfare states will be forced to actually contribute to their own welfare. No more farm subsidies, no more handouts. If I want to help someone, it is my choice. The states can ally themselves regionally (which seems much more efficient given our shared utilities and resources) or not. It's all about local control. Sure, there would be a few horror stories along the way, but it's still better than citizen internment camps.
...
At present, we are conditioned to demand the government solve our problems. With bailout after bailout, it's easy to understand why the masses aren't worried. The Knight in Shining Armor is at the gates of the fortress because Hollywood tells us it is so.
Read the rest.
Did weak-kneed Dems sign our party's death warrant for `08?
See, Karl has long dreamed of a "permanent Republican majority." And anyone who thinks that this abusive White House and its vile puppetmasters (Cheney and Rove) won't use these revived "privileges" to spy on -- and derail -- their political enemies hasn't been paying attention.
Read more.
Read more.
Now Cheney chimes in: Ain't no superhighways
Despite evidence to the contrary, Vice President Dick Cheney says there is no "secret plan" to create a continent-crossing superhighway to help facilitate a merger of the United States, Mexico and Canada.
Read more.
Read more.
Congressman Ron Paul's Secret Revealed
While speaking to a woman the other day that had never heard of Ron Paul, she stated "My goodness, he is amazing. He is the best kept secret of this presidential campaign." She could not believe there was a contender who represented everything she wanted in a presidential candidate and more. (For those of you who have not yet heard, Ron Paul is running for President.)
...
Dr. Paul offers us all hope. Hope that things can actually change in this country and we will not get another 4 years of the same.
Read more.
...
Dr. Paul offers us all hope. Hope that things can actually change in this country and we will not get another 4 years of the same.
Read more.
Bush's Secret Spying on Americans
The dispute over whether Attorney General Alberto Gonzales committed perjury when he parsed words about George W. Bush’s warrantless surveillance program misses a larger point: the extraordinary secrecy surrounding these spying operations is not aimed at al-Qaeda, but at the American people.
We're all terrorists here.
We're all terrorists here.
U.S. Court involved in evidence disposal in Omaha Franklin Cover-Up
In another sign that Bush's unitary executive is engulfing the judicial branch of the government, the records of what became a huge embarrassment for the Bush senior administration, with reports of child prostitutes linked to the Franklin financial and reported sex scandal being taken on midnight tours of the Bush White House (as reported on the front page of the Washington Times), are now fair game for destruction.
Read more.
Read more.
The Myth of 'Executive Privilege'
In fact, Executive Privilege is itself a myth unfounded in the language or original understanding of the Constitution. The Constitution was not supposed to give presidents power to withhold information from Congress.
When a president invokes Executive Privilege, he is saying that despite a congressional request for information, or even despite a congressional subpoena, he is not going to let Congress learn what it wants to know. He, in other words, knows better than Congress what matters Congress should investigate.
Learn more.
When a president invokes Executive Privilege, he is saying that despite a congressional request for information, or even despite a congressional subpoena, he is not going to let Congress learn what it wants to know. He, in other words, knows better than Congress what matters Congress should investigate.
Learn more.
The End Of Cheap Food
It looks like the era of cheap food is over. The price of maize has doubled in a year, and wheat futures are at their highest in a decade. The food price index in India has risen 11%, and in Mexico in January there were riots after the price of corn flour went up fourfold. The floods in England and India have devastated crops. In nearly every country food prices are going up, and they are probably not going to come down again.
Read more but eat less here.
Read more but eat less here.
Iran detains scores at "satanic" rock gig
Iran, which has launched an annual summer crackdown on "immoral behavior", bans alcohol, narcotics and parties with unrelated men and women dancing, drinking and mixing. Western popular music is frowned upon.
Read more, but don't dance, drink, or mingle with anyone you don't know.
Read more, but don't dance, drink, or mingle with anyone you don't know.
Bush Signs Law to Widen Legal Reach for Wiretapping
Congressional aides and others familiar with the details of the law said that its impact went far beyond the small fixes that administration officials had said were needed to gather information about foreign terrorists. They said seemingly subtle changes in legislative language would sharply alter the legal limits on the government’s ability to monitor millions of phone calls and e-mail messages going in and out of the United States.
They also said that the new law for the first time provided a legal framework for much of the surveillance without warrants that was being conducted in secret by the National Security Agency and outside the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act, the 1978 law that is supposed to regulate the way the government can listen to the private communications of American citizens.
“This more or less legalizes the N.S.A. program,” said Kate Martin, director of the Center for National Security Studies in Washington, who has studied the new legislation.
This is America?
Read more.
They also said that the new law for the first time provided a legal framework for much of the surveillance without warrants that was being conducted in secret by the National Security Agency and outside the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act, the 1978 law that is supposed to regulate the way the government can listen to the private communications of American citizens.
“This more or less legalizes the N.S.A. program,” said Kate Martin, director of the Center for National Security Studies in Washington, who has studied the new legislation.
This is America?
Read more.
August 4, 2007
Senate Passes Bush Spy Bill
The Senate, in a high-stakes showdown over national security, voted late Friday to temporarily give President Bush expanded authority to eavesdrop on suspected foreign terrorists without court warrants.
Too pissed off to comment.
Read the rest.
Too pissed off to comment.
Read the rest.
British woman watches in shock as Israeli bulldozers raze her home west of Occupied Jerusalem
Six months pregnant and exhausted, British mother Jessica Barhoum is still shocked that Israeli authorities ordered her, her husband and their baby out of bed at daybreak and pulverized their home. "I can't believe that it's lawful, that this law exists. I'm from England. Do you know what I mean?" asked Jessica, 32, who grew up in the southern city of Salisbury but moved to Israel after marrying Moussa, her Arab Israeli husband. "You can't believe a country like this would make a law against its own citizens," she added.
For the last four decades, Israeli legislation has permitted the demolition of homes built without a construction permit, the case for the Barhoums' home in the village of Ein Rafa, west of Occupied Jerusalem, although a permit was pending.
Critics say the law is disproportionately used against Arab Israelis rather than Jewish Israelis. Permits can take years to acquire, particularly for Palestinians wanting to build in Israeli-occupied and annexed East Jerusalem.
Memo: Don't move to Britain or Israel. Check.
Read the rest.
For the last four decades, Israeli legislation has permitted the demolition of homes built without a construction permit, the case for the Barhoums' home in the village of Ein Rafa, west of Occupied Jerusalem, although a permit was pending.
Critics say the law is disproportionately used against Arab Israelis rather than Jewish Israelis. Permits can take years to acquire, particularly for Palestinians wanting to build in Israeli-occupied and annexed East Jerusalem.
Memo: Don't move to Britain or Israel. Check.
Read the rest.
Terrorist caused Deaths vs. "Reality"
Interesting, isn't it? But then they are spending over a trillion dollars and molding policy to combat terrorism, or as known by another phrase that more closely describes what they are truly doing; the incremental staging in of forced population control. They better make it interesting on the nightly news because the numbers just don’t add up to justify the expense or the front-line promoted term of terrorism. NOT EVEN CLOSE!
What would a trillion dollars buy to prevent death from auto accidents, stop medical malpractice, hamper animal attacks, and stair safety? Probably allot and in deaths prevented by a factor of 500 to 1, or more bang for the buck, but then; Throwing stacks of money after the promoted key word term of terrorism is all so much easier to do and the accountability for the dollars spent and used is wide open with virtually no accountability. Hey, the word has been used to take over a few countries and get away with the killing of a few hundreds of thousands of people. That word of terrorism has to be the number one word in the money making marketer’s handbook for getting the most open-ended money with no need to show any hard results.
Read the rest.
What would a trillion dollars buy to prevent death from auto accidents, stop medical malpractice, hamper animal attacks, and stair safety? Probably allot and in deaths prevented by a factor of 500 to 1, or more bang for the buck, but then; Throwing stacks of money after the promoted key word term of terrorism is all so much easier to do and the accountability for the dollars spent and used is wide open with virtually no accountability. Hey, the word has been used to take over a few countries and get away with the killing of a few hundreds of thousands of people. That word of terrorism has to be the number one word in the money making marketer’s handbook for getting the most open-ended money with no need to show any hard results.
Read the rest.
Arkansas Couple Has 17th Child, Still Want More
Jennifer joins siblings: Joshua, 19; John David, 17; Janna, 17; Jill, 16; Jessa, 14; Jinger, 13; Joseph, 12; Josiah, 11; Joy-Anna, 9; Jedidiah, 8; Jeremiah, 8; Jason 7; James 6; Justin, 4; Jackson, 3; Johannah, almost 2.
From the "No Comment But God Damn Is There Is A Lot To Say" department.
Read more.
From the "No Comment But God Damn Is There Is A Lot To Say" department.
Read more.
The Forged Origins of The New Testament
It has often been emphasised that Christianity is unlike any other religion, for it stands or falls by certain events which are alleged to have occurred during a short period of time some 20 centuries ago. Those stories are presented in the New Testament, and as new evidence is revealed it will become clear that they do not represent historical realities. The Church agrees, saying:"Our documentary sources of knowledge about the origins of Christianity and its earliest development are chiefly the New Testament Scriptures, the authenticity of which we must, to a great extent, take for granted."(Catholic Encyclopedia, Farley ed., vol. iii, p. 712)
Luis, this one's for you. ;-)
Read the rest.
Luis, this one's for you. ;-)
Read the rest.
Florida Opens First Hebrew Public School
Simple question - how is it that Jewish schools can be financed by taxpayer moneys but Christian schools can't?
...
"But with charter schools like Ben Gamla, we are opening the door for public money to be used to support all sorts of religious ideologies across America," he warned. "What will we say to the imam down the street who says he wants to teach Arabic within an Islamic cultural setting? Or the fundamentalist Christian group that wants to start a school to teach Christian culture?"
By definition, charter schools are publicly financed elementary or secondary schools that are managed privately, with minimal input from local school boards, and whose innovative teaching methods are expected to produce higher academic results.
This doesn't seem like a good idea.
Read more.
...
"But with charter schools like Ben Gamla, we are opening the door for public money to be used to support all sorts of religious ideologies across America," he warned. "What will we say to the imam down the street who says he wants to teach Arabic within an Islamic cultural setting? Or the fundamentalist Christian group that wants to start a school to teach Christian culture?"
By definition, charter schools are publicly financed elementary or secondary schools that are managed privately, with minimal input from local school boards, and whose innovative teaching methods are expected to produce higher academic results.
This doesn't seem like a good idea.
Read more.
Is anybody out there?
But despite these concerns, for the moment, the plans for deliberate transmissions from Earth go ahead and there is nothing anyone can do to stop them - or even demand a discussion beforehand.
One thing is clear from our searches for ET - there is nobody transmitting strong interstellar beacons in our local vicinity. If "they" are out there, they are keeping quiet, prompting the question that they might know something we don't.
Perhaps the aliens already know about us and are on their way. Or perhaps not. Intelligences - possibly vast, cool and unsympathetic - could be sweeping their skies looking for us. At the moment when they point their instruments in the direction of our sun - a commonplace yellow-dwarf star - they may well find nothing unusual, if no one's sending messages in the other direction. Should we keep it that way?
Read the rest.
One thing is clear from our searches for ET - there is nobody transmitting strong interstellar beacons in our local vicinity. If "they" are out there, they are keeping quiet, prompting the question that they might know something we don't.
Perhaps the aliens already know about us and are on their way. Or perhaps not. Intelligences - possibly vast, cool and unsympathetic - could be sweeping their skies looking for us. At the moment when they point their instruments in the direction of our sun - a commonplace yellow-dwarf star - they may well find nothing unusual, if no one's sending messages in the other direction. Should we keep it that way?
Read the rest.
August 3, 2007
Nightmare on Main Street: More on Bush's Anti-Dissent Order
However, a person so designated by this Order could be rendered into a non-person literally instantaneously. They could be stripped of every asset, have every financial or commercial opportunity denied to them. Worse, this literally creates a power to shun. Anyone who employs this person, who hires them, who pays them for work, lends them money to tide them over, who rents them an apartment, or allows them to sleep on the couch, who drops them a few coins as they panhandle would be liable to becoming subject to this order. The only protection would be to fire this person, to not hire them, to not pay them, to not lend them money, evict them from your apartment, kick them off the couch, and look away if you see them begging on the street.
If the potential implications of this make you think of Jews in Nazi Germany, think again. The Jews pre-war had it good compared to the potential of this.
Learn more.
If the potential implications of this make you think of Jews in Nazi Germany, think again. The Jews pre-war had it good compared to the potential of this.
Learn more.
Ron Paul Supporters Denounce Iowa Diebold Use
Despite a study from computer scientists at the University of California paid for by the Secretary of State of California - publicized in the New York Times and the Los Angeles Times LAST SATURDAY (July 28, 2007) - the Iowa GOP is STILL planning to use the easily rigged Diebold computers to "count" the vote at the Straw poll!
This could be interesting.
Read more.
This could be interesting.
Read more.
The Elephant in The Room
Ron Paul’s rivals for the Republican presidential nomination sayhis opposition to the Iraq war makes him a traitor to his party.He says it makes him the only genuine Republican in the race.
Read more.
Read more.
Record Industry Woes Aggravated by Years of Bad PR
Over the past several years MP3 Newswire has made numerous comments regarding the growing consumer enmity against the major labels and its Washington lobby the Record Industry Association of America (RIAA). An acrimonious disjoint between that industry and the consumer over advances in content distribution has arisen, one that I argue is having a devastating effect on the major labels. Yet the actions of this industry, unlike that of the NFL, are harshly confrontational to the feelings and opinions of the consumer.
...
Today the major record labels don't have a positive brand image and the very public actions they have taken to control the rise of digital media and the Internet over the last several years is at the very heart of their fall from grace. To some the big labels are an anachronism. To others they are anti-consumer. The erosion of their image is dramatic and while we have seen plenty of polls attempting to gauge consumer thought, any attempt to apply sales figures to such measurements is elusive.
...
The major labels have taken to blaming file sharing for all ills. In reality, file sharing is just one piece of a more complex puzzle that is still shaping itself as new technologies and digital strategies reshape the media landscape as a whole. To rely on file sharing as the universal scapegoat may have only served to distract label management from a much larger schism that hits at the heart of the traditional label/artist/ model. This includes the rise of tools that have empowered the artist directly like MySpace and YouTube.
...
Whether one public event is enough to deter that impulse buy is highly debatable, but over the last several years the record industry has had numerous public confrontations and business miscues that in combination offer an insightful and ominous clue to the fading fortunes of Sony BMG, EMI, Warner Music Group, and Universal Music Group. Here is a recap of some of them.
Read them all, as they are definitely worth the read.
Is the record industry even necessary any more? I mean, CDs are on their way out, it's relatively easy for artists to make their music, and artists can sell their music to the consumer right from their own personal websites.
So, why do we still have the middleman? Why do we still pay exhorbitant fees that the artists never see?
Seems to me the record industry is not needed.
Unfortunately, music is not the high priority for the labels, profit it is. There is so much good music that the public never gets to hear because the record industry is constantly promoting what they believe is a high profit artist (usually bubblegum music).
I am a member of emusic and have found some fantastis songs and artists that I will never hear on the radio (except maybe internet radio, but wait, oh yeah, the RIAA is trying to squash that, too!). In reality, most good music is found by word of mouth.
So, I say to hell with the RIAA and the labels. I encourage artists to keep making great music because of your love of music (not for the love of money). If the music is good, the money will come.
...
Today the major record labels don't have a positive brand image and the very public actions they have taken to control the rise of digital media and the Internet over the last several years is at the very heart of their fall from grace. To some the big labels are an anachronism. To others they are anti-consumer. The erosion of their image is dramatic and while we have seen plenty of polls attempting to gauge consumer thought, any attempt to apply sales figures to such measurements is elusive.
...
The major labels have taken to blaming file sharing for all ills. In reality, file sharing is just one piece of a more complex puzzle that is still shaping itself as new technologies and digital strategies reshape the media landscape as a whole. To rely on file sharing as the universal scapegoat may have only served to distract label management from a much larger schism that hits at the heart of the traditional label/artist/ model. This includes the rise of tools that have empowered the artist directly like MySpace and YouTube.
...
Whether one public event is enough to deter that impulse buy is highly debatable, but over the last several years the record industry has had numerous public confrontations and business miscues that in combination offer an insightful and ominous clue to the fading fortunes of Sony BMG, EMI, Warner Music Group, and Universal Music Group. Here is a recap of some of them.
Read them all, as they are definitely worth the read.
Is the record industry even necessary any more? I mean, CDs are on their way out, it's relatively easy for artists to make their music, and artists can sell their music to the consumer right from their own personal websites.
So, why do we still have the middleman? Why do we still pay exhorbitant fees that the artists never see?
Seems to me the record industry is not needed.
Unfortunately, music is not the high priority for the labels, profit it is. There is so much good music that the public never gets to hear because the record industry is constantly promoting what they believe is a high profit artist (usually bubblegum music).
I am a member of emusic and have found some fantastis songs and artists that I will never hear on the radio (except maybe internet radio, but wait, oh yeah, the RIAA is trying to squash that, too!). In reality, most good music is found by word of mouth.
So, I say to hell with the RIAA and the labels. I encourage artists to keep making great music because of your love of music (not for the love of money). If the music is good, the money will come.
New risks discovered for HPV
Controversy continues to plague efforts to protect young women against cervical cancer by vaccinating them against HPV, the human papillomavirus, but one leading scientist's discovery could throw a monkey wrench into the debate.
"We found HPV under the fingernails of young men," said Dr. Laura Koutsky, a University of Washington epidemiologist.
Learn more.
"We found HPV under the fingernails of young men," said Dr. Laura Koutsky, a University of Washington epidemiologist.
Learn more.
Bush signs homeland security bill
President Bush signed legislation Friday that intensifies the anti-terrorism effort at home, shifting money to high-risk states and cities and expanding scrutiny of air and sea cargo.
...
Bush called it "the largest restructuring of our government since World War II" as he signed the bill into law before going to the FBI to meet and have lunch with counterterrorism advisers and then talk with members of his homeland security team.
Stay scared people!
Read more.
...
Bush called it "the largest restructuring of our government since World War II" as he signed the bill into law before going to the FBI to meet and have lunch with counterterrorism advisers and then talk with members of his homeland security team.
Stay scared people!
Read more.
Court Ruling that NSA Wiretapping is Illegal Drives Emergency Push for New Spy Powers, Newsweek Reports
In short, prior to the Patriot Act passage, the Administration launched a series of secret, warrantless wiretapping operations, which included snooping on Americans and wholesale data mining of innocent Americans' communications records (the latter only according to press reports). The Administration believes it can do this surveillance since it is a King in wartime and thus never asked Congress to make any of this legal in the Patriot Act for fear it would be turned down.
Years later, a part of this secret surveillance is revealed by the New York Times. After a year of criticism and revelations, the Administration agrees to let a super-secret and very compliant court oversee the program using some very super secret, and legally dubious program warrants. A few months later, a judge from this court finds portions of the program illegal. The administration refuses to make this decision public. Instead, it goes on offense and says it needs the power to wiretap anyone overseas including Americans.
Just read the entire article.
Years later, a part of this secret surveillance is revealed by the New York Times. After a year of criticism and revelations, the Administration agrees to let a super-secret and very compliant court oversee the program using some very super secret, and legally dubious program warrants. A few months later, a judge from this court finds portions of the program illegal. The administration refuses to make this decision public. Instead, it goes on offense and says it needs the power to wiretap anyone overseas including Americans.
Just read the entire article.
Bush invokes executive privilege for Rove in attorney firings
Ratcheting up the stakes in a legal battle with Congress, President Bush on Wednesday ordered White House adviser Karl Rove and a senior political aide to refuse on grounds of executive privilege to testify before the Senate on the firings of nine U.S. attorneys.
Don't be distracted by the bridge collapse people.
Read more.
Don't be distracted by the bridge collapse people.
Read more.
Bush Abolishes Fourth Amendment
This new executive order is similar in nature and uses broad language to allow the government to seize the property of anybody who they believe is attempting to undermine the sovereignty of Lebanon or its democratic processes and institutions. This executive order essentially makes both the Fourth and Fifth Amendments null and void.
Learn more.
Learn more.
Newfound Planet Has Earth-Like Orbit
A planet outside our solar system with a year roughly equal to Earth's has been discovered around a dying, red giant star.
Read more.
Read more.
The $63 Billion Sham
Having destroyed Iraq to save us from horrors that did not exist, Rice now wants to save us from Iran’s future nukes by selling American weapons of mass destruction. Over the next decade, the Bush administration wants to give Israel $30 billion in military aid, a nearly 43 percent increase over what that nation received over the last 10 years, according to The New York Times. We want to give $20 billion to Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, and the United Arab Emirates. We want to give Egypt $13 billion.
Do you feel safe?
Think of the good things humanity could do with that money.
Read more.
Do you feel safe?
Think of the good things humanity could do with that money.
Read more.
Iran Makes Major Nuclear Concessions
In major concessions to international demands, Iran has agreed to answer lingering questions about its nuclear experiments and will let U.N. inspectors return to a plutonium-producing reactor it is building, the International Atomic Energy Agency said Friday.
Well that should piss off Cheney.
Read more.
Well that should piss off Cheney.
Read more.
Diebold Voting Machines Vulnerable to Virus Attack
Diebold Election Systems Inc. voting machines are not secure enough to guarantee a trustworthy election, and an attacker with access to a single machine could disrupt or change the outcome of an election using viruses, according to a review of Diebold's source code.
Since Diebold machines have already been used in elections, this could have already happened.
Learn more.
Since Diebold machines have already been used in elections, this could have already happened.
Learn more.
An Open Letter: No More Power to the Executive, Ms. Pelosi, No More!
I know you are eager to get to your month long, paid vacation - something our soldiers do not get and something the voting public does not get either. But if you are going to leave the country unsupervised while you are gone, the least you can do is not pass something as serious as an expansion of surveillance powers for the Decider as you head off to get your last tan of the summer.
Read the rest.
Read the rest.
TSA checks IndyGo bus passengers
From the "You Will Not Be Able To Just Come And Go" department, we have this:
"It's called Visual Intermodal Prevention Response. We have plainclothes inspectors, blue-gloved uniformed security officers who are checking baggage, the behavior detection officers, and federal air marshals, which are the law enforcement arm of TSA."
...
Some passengers were patted down or submitted to having bags checked.
TSA said the searches were “by-permission,” meaning patrons could decline to be checked. Those who did would not be turned away, an official said, unless they otherwise appeared to be a security threat.
Freedom is free, as we continue to just give it away.
Read the rest.
"It's called Visual Intermodal Prevention Response. We have plainclothes inspectors, blue-gloved uniformed security officers who are checking baggage, the behavior detection officers, and federal air marshals, which are the law enforcement arm of TSA."
...
Some passengers were patted down or submitted to having bags checked.
TSA said the searches were “by-permission,” meaning patrons could decline to be checked. Those who did would not be turned away, an official said, unless they otherwise appeared to be a security threat.
Freedom is free, as we continue to just give it away.
Read the rest.
Scientists pick sex and eating habits from a drop of sweat and fingerprint
Soon, police could have such technology at their fingertips, with the development of a technique that allows them to build up a profile of a suspect from nothing more than a fingerprint.
Scientists at Imperial College London have shown that fingerprints contain vital information about a person's habits.
...
With the analysis carried out on lab equipment that is already available, the scientists behind the technique believe it could be ready for use at crime scenes in as little as a year.
The future ain't what it used to be.
Learn more, but don't leave your fingerprint here.
Scientists at Imperial College London have shown that fingerprints contain vital information about a person's habits.
...
With the analysis carried out on lab equipment that is already available, the scientists behind the technique believe it could be ready for use at crime scenes in as little as a year.
The future ain't what it used to be.
Learn more, but don't leave your fingerprint here.
Iraqis acquire a taste for American-brand products
When Steve Yelda, a 17-year-old Iraqi high school student, visits the Al-Ameer market, he heads straight for the Pringles display case.
"The taste," Yelda said, "is incredible."
Many Iraqis are developing a taste for American-brand products, which were banned under Saddam Hussein and are becoming increasingly popular.
That's what big American businesses want to hear. How convenient for them.
Read the rest.
"The taste," Yelda said, "is incredible."
Many Iraqis are developing a taste for American-brand products, which were banned under Saddam Hussein and are becoming increasingly popular.
That's what big American businesses want to hear. How convenient for them.
Read the rest.
August 2, 2007
Moms too quick to reach for baby bottle
A government survey found that only about 30 percent of new moms are feeding their babies breast milk alone three months after birth. At six months, only 11 percent are breast-feeding exclusively.
...
The CDC study found that rates of exclusive breast-feeding were lowest among black women and among those who are unmarried, poor, rural, younger than 20, and have a high school education or less. Those findings are consistent with earlier studies.
This year, the government announced goals for 2010: getting 60 percent of women to breast-feed exclusively for the first three months and 25 percent through six months.
I don't understand why this is even a topic of conversation or why "goals" have to be set to increase the number of breast-feeding women.
Whether you like it or not, women have breasts for one thing: to feed their offspring. That's it.
I'm sorry, but women do not have breasts for a man's (or woman's) sexual pleasure. That is just a side benefit.
The human species, as ugly as it is sometimes, only survived because our ancestors breast-fed. It's amazing we're still around.
Read more.
...
The CDC study found that rates of exclusive breast-feeding were lowest among black women and among those who are unmarried, poor, rural, younger than 20, and have a high school education or less. Those findings are consistent with earlier studies.
This year, the government announced goals for 2010: getting 60 percent of women to breast-feed exclusively for the first three months and 25 percent through six months.
I don't understand why this is even a topic of conversation or why "goals" have to be set to increase the number of breast-feeding women.
Whether you like it or not, women have breasts for one thing: to feed their offspring. That's it.
I'm sorry, but women do not have breasts for a man's (or woman's) sexual pleasure. That is just a side benefit.
The human species, as ugly as it is sometimes, only survived because our ancestors breast-fed. It's amazing we're still around.
Read more.
Self-service economy arrives gradually
As digital kiosks become more user-friendly and capable of handling more complicated tasks, health care providers, fast-food chains and other businesses say trading face-to-face encounters for face-to-monitor transactions improves service and saves money.
Yet the complexity of human decision-making and service expectations in different industries means any possible self-serve revolution is more likely to be a gradual transition.
Read more, but don't interact with another human being, here.
Yet the complexity of human decision-making and service expectations in different industries means any possible self-serve revolution is more likely to be a gradual transition.
Read more, but don't interact with another human being, here.
How baby babbles become talking tsunami
New research offers a decidedly un-magical explanation: Babies start really jabbering after they've mastered enough easy words to tackle more of the harder ones. It's essentially a snowball effect.
That explanation, published in Friday's edition of the journal Science, is far simpler than scientists' assumptions that some special brain mechanisms must click to trigger the word boom.
Read and speak more here.
That explanation, published in Friday's edition of the journal Science, is far simpler than scientists' assumptions that some special brain mechanisms must click to trigger the word boom.
Read and speak more here.
Coming Soon: The Mother Of All 9/11 Truth Hit Pieces
An upcoming documentary entitled The 9/11 Conspiracies, to be aired on the History Channel, may represent the biggest hit piece to date on the 9/11 truth movement and is rife with bias, cronyism and conflicts of interest.
The so-called documentary promises not to look at the flaws in the official story from a neutral perspective but to start out by suggesting that any deviation from the official line is "outrageous".
The program also features so called independent "experts" who are actually in the employ of the program makers themselves who in turn rely on scores of multi-million dollar contracts with the government and the military-industrial complex.
Read more.
The so-called documentary promises not to look at the flaws in the official story from a neutral perspective but to start out by suggesting that any deviation from the official line is "outrageous".
The program also features so called independent "experts" who are actually in the employ of the program makers themselves who in turn rely on scores of multi-million dollar contracts with the government and the military-industrial complex.
Read more.
Children being used as 'guinea pigs' in mass Wi-Fi experiment, warn teachers
The use of wireless computer networks in classrooms should be immediately suspended until an inquiry has fully investigated the health threat to millions of pupils, a teachers' chief urged yesterday.
Read more.
Read more.
Obama says use of nuclear weapons to fight al-Qaida 'not on the table,'
Democratic presidential hopeful Barack Obama said Thursday he would not use nuclear weapons «in any circumstance.«I think it would be a profound mistake for us to use nuclear weapons in any circumstance,» Obama said, with a pause, «involving civilians.» Then he quickly added, «Let me scratch that. There's been no discussion of nuclear weapons. That's not on the table.
Read more.
Read more.
Brain electrodes help man speak again
But researchers chose him for an experimental attempt to rev up his brain by placing electrodes in it. And here's how his mother describes the change in her son, now 38:
"My son can now eat, speak, watch a movie without falling asleep," she said Wednesday while choking back tears during a telephone news conference. "He can drink from a cup. He can express pain. He can cry and he can laugh.
"The most important part is he can say, `Mommy' and `Pop.' He can say, `I love you, Mommy' ... I still cry every time I see my son, but it's tears of joy."
The progress of the patient, who remains unidentified at the family's request, is described more formally in a report in Thursday's issue of the journal Nature.
Read more.
"My son can now eat, speak, watch a movie without falling asleep," she said Wednesday while choking back tears during a telephone news conference. "He can drink from a cup. He can express pain. He can cry and he can laugh.
"The most important part is he can say, `Mommy' and `Pop.' He can say, `I love you, Mommy' ... I still cry every time I see my son, but it's tears of joy."
The progress of the patient, who remains unidentified at the family's request, is described more formally in a report in Thursday's issue of the journal Nature.
Read more.
Gates: Iraq political reform difficult
U.S. officials underestimated how difficult it would be for the Iraqi government to pass political reforms, Defense Secretary Robert Gates said Thursday, adding that the "depth of mistrust" among the factions is greater than anticipated.
Another "misunderestimation". ;-)
Read more.
Another "misunderestimation". ;-)
Read more.
This is your brain on love
The pictures were a revelation, and others have followed, showing that romantic love is a lot like addiction to alcohol or drugs. The brain is playing a trick, necessary for evolution, by associating something that just happened with pleasure and attributing the feeling to that magnificent specimen right before your eyes.
Learn more.
Learn more.
Math Book Helps Girls Embrace Their Inner Mathematician
The actress who played Winnie Cooper on The Wonder Years, Danica McKellar, is a self-proclaimed math advocate for girls who might otherwise shy away from a subject that Barbie once famously described as "hard."
McKellar's math book for junior high girls, called Math Doesn't Suck: How to Survive Middle-School Math and not Break a Nail, will be at bookstores Thursday. It has the look and feel of a teen magazine, but puts heavy emphasis on fractions and pre-algebra.
Add 'em up here.
McKellar's math book for junior high girls, called Math Doesn't Suck: How to Survive Middle-School Math and not Break a Nail, will be at bookstores Thursday. It has the look and feel of a teen magazine, but puts heavy emphasis on fractions and pre-algebra.
Add 'em up here.
Police may be given power to take DNA samples in the street
From the constantly growing file of reasons not to move to Britain, we have this:
The Home Office is considering giving the police the power to take a DNA sample on the street, without taking the suspect to a police station, as well as taking samples from suspects in relatively minor offences such as littering, speeding or not wearing a seat belt.
WTF?
Read more.
The Home Office is considering giving the police the power to take a DNA sample on the street, without taking the suspect to a police station, as well as taking samples from suspects in relatively minor offences such as littering, speeding or not wearing a seat belt.
WTF?
Read more.
Bush wants freedom to tap calls from overseas into US
THE Bush Administration is pressing the US Congress for the authority to intercept, without a court order, any international phone call or email between a surveillance target outside the United States and any person inside the US.
And the defintion of "surveillance target" will no doubt evolve throughout the years.
Be under constant surveillance here.
And the defintion of "surveillance target" will no doubt evolve throughout the years.
Be under constant surveillance here.
Rabbi Ovadia: 'Women should stick to cooking, sewing'
Yosef made the statement in the context of a major Halachic campaign he is currently engaged in as to when women should recite the blessing over the Shabbat candles.
Read more, unless you're a woman which, in that case, I guess you should click the pretty pictures. Didn't you read The Handmaid's Tale? If not, then you should.
Read more, unless you're a woman which, in that case, I guess you should click the pretty pictures. Didn't you read The Handmaid's Tale? If not, then you should.
AC/DC to shake Verizon all night long
AC/DC is finally selling its music digitally, but not on iTunes.
...
However, the deal is limited to full-album downloads, one of the reason's AC/DC's music has not appeared in digital form to date.
$12 an album? Why not just buy the CD (they're $8 - $11 on Amazon) and rip mp3s?
Ride the Highway to Hell here.
...
However, the deal is limited to full-album downloads, one of the reason's AC/DC's music has not appeared in digital form to date.
$12 an album? Why not just buy the CD (they're $8 - $11 on Amazon) and rip mp3s?
Ride the Highway to Hell here.
Return of the Robber Barons
As the Bush Regime outfits B-2 stealth bombers with 30,000 pound monster "bunker buster" bombs for its coming attack on Iran, the US economy continues its 21st century decline. While profits soar for the armaments industry, the American people continue to take it on the chin.
The latest report from the Bureau of Labor Statistics shows that the real wages and salaries of US civilian workers are below those of 5 years ago. It could not be otherwise with US corporations offshoring good jobs in order to reduce labor costs and, thereby, to convert wages once paid to Americans into multi-million dollar bonuses paid to CEOs and other top management.
Link.
The latest report from the Bureau of Labor Statistics shows that the real wages and salaries of US civilian workers are below those of 5 years ago. It could not be otherwise with US corporations offshoring good jobs in order to reduce labor costs and, thereby, to convert wages once paid to Americans into multi-million dollar bonuses paid to CEOs and other top management.
Link.
No sex, please, you're a carnivore
"Vegansexuals" is the name given to people who not only don't eat any meat or animal products, but also choose not to be sexually intimate with non-vegan partners.
Their reasoning is that the bodies of non-vegans are made up of the dead animals they have consumed.
Read more, but probably not get laid, here.
Their reasoning is that the bodies of non-vegans are made up of the dead animals they have consumed.
Read more, but probably not get laid, here.
The Bottled Water Lie
The soft drink giant Pepsi has been forced to make an embarrassing admission – its best-selling Aquafina bottled water is nothing more than tap water.
Drink up here.
Drink up here.
'Greedy' fat people shouldn't be treated, says top doctor
Obese people are often simply greedy and should not always be treated with pills, the head of the British Medical Association has said.
Dr Hamish Meldrum believes an obsession with medical labels may be stopping overweight people addressing their own problems.
He said the obesity epidemic is being mistakenly targeted with medical treatments and doctors' appointments.
Read more.
Dr Hamish Meldrum believes an obsession with medical labels may be stopping overweight people addressing their own problems.
He said the obesity epidemic is being mistakenly targeted with medical treatments and doctors' appointments.
Read more.
August 1, 2007
The motives behind the Bush administration’s latest terror scare
The terror scare serves three basic political functions: to divert public attention from the disaster in Iraq and the social crisis within the US, to justify a foreign policy based on militarism and war, and to provide a pretext for police state measures at home.
What has happened over the last two weeks?
...
There is no doubt that the brutal neo-colonialist foreign policy of the US government has placed the American people in danger of another terrorist attack. However, the greatest threat to the democratic rights and safety of the American people, and the people of the world, comes not from Islamic extremists in the Middle East, but from US imperialism and the warmongers in Washington.
Read the rest.
What has happened over the last two weeks?
...
There is no doubt that the brutal neo-colonialist foreign policy of the US government has placed the American people in danger of another terrorist attack. However, the greatest threat to the democratic rights and safety of the American people, and the people of the world, comes not from Islamic extremists in the Middle East, but from US imperialism and the warmongers in Washington.
Read the rest.
The president is threatening me
In case I get picked up and taken away under President Bush's Military Commissions Act of October 2006, I want it on record that I am not a terrorist or an enemy combatant, and that the organization I run in Bellingham is not associated with any terrorist cell.
...
I perceive Bush's July 17 executive order as a personal threat. When someone makes a threat, their intention is often to scare, isolate and subdue the other person into silence through fear.
I will not be silent.
No one should be silent.
Read the rest.
...
I perceive Bush's July 17 executive order as a personal threat. When someone makes a threat, their intention is often to scare, isolate and subdue the other person into silence through fear.
I will not be silent.
No one should be silent.
Read the rest.
Will Bush Cancel The 2008 Election?
Those who think this crew will quietly walk away from power are simply not paying attention.
The real question is not how or when they might do it. It’s how, realistically, we can stop them.
Read more.
The real question is not how or when they might do it. It’s how, realistically, we can stop them.
Read more.
Half of Iraq 'in absolute poverty'
"Iraqis are suffering from a growing lack of food, shelter, water and sanitation, health care, education, and employment," said the report, compiled by Oxfam and the NGO Co-ordination Committee in Iraq (NCCI).
And who's to blame again?
Oh, I think you know.
It's past time you admit it.
Read the rest.
And who's to blame again?
Oh, I think you know.
It's past time you admit it.
Read the rest.
An Immoral Philosophy
What kind of philosophy says that it's O.K. to subsidize insurance companies, but not to provide health care to children?
Read more.
Read more.
President Rudy
How much worse a president would Rudy Giuliani be than George W. Bush? Author Kevin Baker counts the ways.
Read more.
Read more.
Why people have sex: It feels good
After exhaustively compiling a list of the 237 reasons why people have sex, researchers found that young men and women get intimate for mostly the same motivations. It's more about lust in the body than a love connection in the heart.
Um, duh.
"It's refuted a lot of gender stereotypes ... that men only want sex for the physical pleasure and women want love," said University of Texas clinical psychology professor Cindy Meston, the study's co-author. "That's not what I came up with in my findings."
Get laid here.
Um, duh.
"It's refuted a lot of gender stereotypes ... that men only want sex for the physical pleasure and women want love," said University of Texas clinical psychology professor Cindy Meston, the study's co-author. "That's not what I came up with in my findings."
Get laid here.
Preaching to the Perverted in Second Life
Linden Labs recently outlawed gambling in Second Life, officially making cybersex the one interesting thing that happens there. A Jesuit scholar has suggested that Second Life is an excellent target for missionary work in an attempt to bring that number down to zero. The very concept of missionary work in an artificial world brings up a number of questions, many of them exceedingly creepy.
Read the rest.
Read the rest.
Pope Benedict admits evidence for evolution
POPE Benedict has said there is substantial scientific proof of the theory of evolution.
The Pope, speaking as he was concluding his holiday in northern Italy, also said the human race must listen to "the voice of the Earth" or risk destroying its very existence.
...
But he said evolution did not answer all the questions and could not exclude a role by God.
Of course not because then he'd be out of a job. ;-)
“Above all it does not answer the great philosophical question 'where does everything come from?'“
His comments appear to be an endorsement of the doctrine of intelligent design.
We could have been "intellligently" designed by a teenage "alien" in a high school science experiment gone terribly wrong. ;-)
Read more.
The Pope, speaking as he was concluding his holiday in northern Italy, also said the human race must listen to "the voice of the Earth" or risk destroying its very existence.
...
But he said evolution did not answer all the questions and could not exclude a role by God.
Of course not because then he'd be out of a job. ;-)
“Above all it does not answer the great philosophical question 'where does everything come from?'“
His comments appear to be an endorsement of the doctrine of intelligent design.
We could have been "intellligently" designed by a teenage "alien" in a high school science experiment gone terribly wrong. ;-)
Read more.
A truce in the sex ed wars?
It's fun to be right, that's for sure. So my fellow liberals have been gloating since last April, when an exhaustive five-year study showed what we always suspected: Kids receiving "abstinence education" are no more likely to delay sexual intercourse than their peers.
...
But here's what most liberals won't admit: We don't have solid evidence for our own favored forms of sex education, either. So if the law requires science-based sex ed, we might have to change our entire approach.
Learn more.
...
But here's what most liberals won't admit: We don't have solid evidence for our own favored forms of sex education, either. So if the law requires science-based sex ed, we might have to change our entire approach.
Learn more.
Study: Laser printers may pose health risks
Emissions from office laser printers can be as unhealthy as cigarette smoke, according to an Australian professor who is now calling for regulations to limit printer emissions.
Learn more.
Learn more.
Pentagon to implant microchips in soldiers' brains
The Department of Defense is planning to implant microchips in soldiers' brains for monitoring their health information, and has already awarded a $1.6 million contract to the Center for Bioelectronics, Biosensors and Biochips (C3B) at Clemson University for the development of an implantable "biochip".
Soldiers fear that the biochip, about the size of a grain of rice, which measures and relays information on soldiers vital signs 24 hours a day, can be used to put them under surveillance even when they are off duty.
You think?
Read more.
Soldiers fear that the biochip, about the size of a grain of rice, which measures and relays information on soldiers vital signs 24 hours a day, can be used to put them under surveillance even when they are off duty.
You think?
Read more.
American moves to Canada reach record high
The number of Americans admitted to Canada last year reached a 30-year high, with a 20 per cent increase over the previous year and nearly double the number that arrived in 2000.
More here.
More here.
Bush Administration's intelligence chief acknowledges 'series' of other 'secret surveillance activities'
Bush's executive order authorized "a number" of intelligence activities. The name created by the Bush team -- 'Terrorist Surveillance Program' -- applied only to "one particular aspect of these activities," McConnell wrote.
"This is the only aspect of the NSA activities that can be discussed publicly, because it is the only aspect of those various activities whose existence has been officially acknowledged," McConnell said.
Read more.
"This is the only aspect of the NSA activities that can be discussed publicly, because it is the only aspect of those various activities whose existence has been officially acknowledged," McConnell said.
Read more.
Blunt: Government shutdown 'inevitable'
House Minority Whip Roy Blunt (D-Mo.) on Tuesday became the latest Republican to predict a government shutdown this fall when Congress and the White House spar about the size of an annual spending package that is assured to eclipse President Bush's request.
Read more.
Read more.
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