Windows 10

I just "reserved" a copy for a free upgrade (from Windows 7). Did I just make a huge mistake?

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Darlie Routier

Some people believe strongly in her innocence but I have been listing to a number of counter arguments.

I am against the death penalty because, to be blunt, you can never be 100% sure.

My trouble is, no matter how much I try, I have trouble with somebody coming in just stabbing the kids and then slashing her. Seems much more plausible taht she was involved.

Thoughts, arguments?
Sorry if there has already been a thread on this.

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Stage Left ... Stage Right ... Stage Wrong!

Isn't this just the most staged photo ever???

"Hey fellas, look over there on yonder hill"

"Wait, let's get a closer look ..."

"Yep, enemy fighters ... get ready to gun 'em down Abbas!"


[Snipped from BBC News App - shame on them and Reuters.]

Surely they could have at least found a flack jacket for the reporter to wear over his suede jacket while mimicking a militia.

Oh ... and be careful who you point that gun Abbas lest you take Cap'n Sparrow's eye out!

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(Maybe this goes here) A model rocket engine in a styrofoam glider

Think this goes here.
Maybe Forum Community.
Maybe even Trial and Errors.


I was shopping at WalMart and they had a dispaly of Estees model rockets.

I picked one up. Thought the son and I could have some fun with it.

Pick up a pack of motors. I think there were 3 in the package.

Then, as I'm walking around, I see a styrofoam glider kit.

I think, "What if I core out the section under tail and between the elevators, and stick a motor in there?"

I let out a wry giggle.

Here's the question:
I'm thinking I should balance the styrofoam glider on a pencil point, find its center of something (mass?)
Mark this point.
Core out the butt end, stick in motor.
Put glider back on pencil point at the mark.
Balance out the front of the glider with pennies or something

I should balance it out, right? This will provide for the chance of a more level flight?

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Why the conspiracies around environmentalism?

Again and again we see that so many seem to think that the environmentalist cause is actually about sowing death or destruction. From chemtrailers who think depopulation is a thing to the anti Agenda 21 crowd.

Take this lady who recently spoke at the Vatican.

Quote:

According to Madise, Sachs and his ilk push policy initiatives at the U.N. “that are radically antagonistic to the right to life from conception to natural death, to the rights and dignity of the family.” Madise also has criticisms for the Holy See and U.S. President Barack Obama. The former, she says, has sold out to pursuers of a “global population-control agenda.” “Pope Francis,” Madise laments, believes “humanity and mankind are behind of 99 percent of the climate change.” “Environmental issues in international negotiations are not about planting trees,” Madise warns her audience, but about “killing babies, the infirm and the elderly.”

http://ift.tt/1M1G6vj

I've been around a lot of environmentalists. A lot. Never have I encountered anyone that desired killing babies, the infirm or the elderly. Actually preserving quality of life was at the fore. Keeping people alive was the agenda. I have also yet to encounter a single policy proposal from any environmental group that would lead to those situations. No culling. No mass baby slaughter. No genocide of the elderly.

So...what gives? How is it that someone looks at something so harmless and potentially awesome like Agenda 21 and see such malice? How does someone hear "reduce your footprint" and think it means people need to be murdered?

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Angelica Zambrano - Testimony of Heaven and Hell

Has anyone heard of the testimony of Angelica Zambrano who has now claimed to have visited heaven and hell for the fourth tim? If so would anyone like to give a skeptical perspective on it.

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Euthanasia laws in Belgium

On February 13, 2014, Belgium legalized euthanasia by lethal injection for children. By a vote of 86 to 44 with 12 abstentions, the lower house of Parliament approved the law which had previously been passed by the country’s Senate. Young children will be allowed to end their lives with the help of a doctor in the world’s most radical extension of a euthanasia law.
Under the law there is no age limit to minors who can seek a lethal injection. terminally ill and people with psychiatric illnesses such as severe depression can also seek euthanasia. This article outlines the process http://ift.tt/1FVJkj5
Should this be something that is considered by all countries and is it a regressive or progressive approach?

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Is the EPA stepping too far (Expanding the Clean Water Act)?

http://ift.tt/1FVJkiZ

http://ift.tt/1FVJhE3

Quote:

EPA water rule is blow to Americans’ private property rights .... President Obama’s Environmental Protection Agency currently stands poised to strike the greatest blow to private property rights the modern era has seen, through a proposed rule that radically expands EPA jurisdiction by placing virtually all land and water under the heavy regulatory hand of the federal government. For years, the EPA’s regulatory jurisdiction has been limited to the “navigable waters” of the United States, a term that has always been understood to include only large bodies of water capable of serving as pathways for interstate commerce. Regulation of all other waters was, rightly, left to the states. Unhappy with the limited scope of the jurisdiction given to it by Congress, the EPA and Army Corps of Engineers have simply redefined the meaning of “navigable waters” in an extraordinary way, to include virtually every body of water in the nation right down to the smallest of streams, farm ponds and ditches. ...

http://ift.tt/1FVJkj1

Quote:

Yesterday (5/27/15), EPA announced an astonishing extension of its authority without congressional approval, doubling the federal jurisdiction of “waterways” from the 3.5 million miles legislated by Congress to over 8 million miles. This expansion puts manufacturers, homebuilders, farmers and millions of others at risk for lengthy environmental reviews, permitting delays, and potential lawsuits, while delaying economic activity and development.

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Kerry Breaks A Leg

http://ift.tt/1JhzzNb

"U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry broke his right femur in a cycling accident in Scionzier, France, on Sunday morning, State Department spokesman John Kirby said. "



Ouch!:( That's gotta hurt.

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Technical analysis

The world is reluctant to believe price history alone contains sufficient information to construct a fiscal winning strategy.
Therefore I logged into the real time information using a saxo platform simulator.
I traded the emini snp for 6 months, and exclusive of brokerage, took an account from 100k to 200k $A. I have a graph showing max drawdown of 20k.

Does anyone believe me?

Disclosure of interest, I have followed it closely since 1984.

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Speciation in Evolution

I'm not a biologist but I thought this article was interesting. I'd be interested in comments from those more knowledgeable than I.

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Condolences to the Biden family

Our vice president lost his son Beau today from brain cancer, may he rest in peace. A public servant, soldier and most important a husband and father.

http://ift.tt/1GN47Ga

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RationalWiki

(Not sure where to put this, but this seemed appropriate.)

Anyone here follow, or better yet, post to RationalWiki?
http://ift.tt/1jICC5r

I first discovered it a few years ago after Conservapedia made the news (Obama the first Muslim president?) and I followed a link. It was started by Conservapedia refugees but has become, I think, a first class resource for information about assorted woo and idiocy that's unencumbered by Wikipedia's NPOV policy. If they think something's idiotic, they say it.

I also enjoy their WIGO (What Is Going On) pages, particularly the Conservapedia one. That sadly is no longer on the main page but is still going: http://ift.tt/1GMSQFQ

If you happen to be a member there, please drop me a PM. I have a Question.

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creationist strawmanning

I came across this

Quote:

Being an evolutionist means there is no bad news. If new species appear abruptly in the fossil record, that just means evolution operates in spurts. If species then persist for eons with little modification, that just means evolution takes long breaks. If clever mechanisms are discovered in biology, that just means evolution is smarter than we imagined. If strikingly similar designs are found in distant species, that just means evolution repeats itself. If significant differences are found in allied species, that just means evolution sometimes introduces new designs rapidly. If no likely mechanism can be found for the large-scale change evolution requires, that just means evolution is mysterious. If adaptation responds to environmental signals, that just means evolution has more foresight than was thought. If major predictions of evolution are found to be false, that just means evolution is more complex than we thought. – Cornelius Hunter

Apparently to him, evolution is unfalseifyable
First I do think he doesn't understand that Darwin's theory is compatible with the fossil record: http://ift.tt/1PUO5jB
Hunter is using the wrong definition of gradualism.
I also point out how traits are aligned with cladistics here: http://ift.tt/1HCeV6e
See more here: http://ift.tt/1PUO5zP
Likewise his claim of "no known mechanism" has no basis in reality.
Thoughts?

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the rise of the nazi party linked to the economic deppresion

I am reading about the post war German freikorps to the eventual triumph of the Nazi party in the early thirties. I am personly convinced that without the economic downturn the already declining Nazi party would have faded away.
There are several opposing viewpoints, some have merit though I feel lack strong hard evidence. What do other people here think. In short,if the economic problems of the early thirties had not occurred would the Nazis have got power.

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[Split Thread] The Rohingya Boat People Who Aren't Really Boat People Crisis

Quote:

Originally Posted by The Atheist (Post 10679927) Thousands of oppressed people aren't a security threat. Ask Robert Mugabe. I think you'll find plenty of people are pointing the finger, but what do you propose to do about it? Shall we set some drones on the government buildings in Naypyidaw? Maybe they could enlist the Falun Dafa for help?

First thing "we" (meaning Thailand) ought to do is find a plan to take over those boats. They are not refugees fleeing to democracy. They are oppressed and poor people who have been conned by people traffickers into thinking they have a job waiting from them and legal status in Malaysia. It's a consortium of Malaysian, Thai, and Myanmar pirates. They stay just about at the 3 mile zone. If a navy vessel, anything in grey will do... could be Thai, Royal Navy, Myanmar, Lower Slobbovia... they chug out past the 3 mile line. Sort of like the South African creep in Lethal Weapon who kept flaunting "Immunity!" - they shout, "International Waters! Can't Touch Us!"

They are held prisoner on the boats, just like in the camps. And if they don't come up with the ransom, they are beaten and starved and killed. The February crisis was triggered by the Thai army uncovering a camp (where everyone had conveniently fled, being no doubt informed by their government contacts that a raid was coming) with a couple of mass graves. So instead of the jungle camps on the Thai/Malaysia border, they are using a converted small tanker and some other rat-trap vessels as floating prison camps. Surely the international standards for piracy can be applied to kidnapping and murder!

>>>Apologies for the continuing derail. I'm asking the mods to split this post off into a new thread. Maybe "The Rohingya Boat People Who Aren't Boat People Crisis". <<<

ETA: And no, I doubt the Falung Gong would be of any use. A lot of people think the Rohingya are way up northeast in the highlands and jungle country. Their area, Rakhine is actually prime coastal real estate... another reason they're likely being subjugated and bullied. There's a lot of potential development in that area. If it's populated by a "non-people", they're going to benefit in some way, but probably in terms of becoming a permanent under or even criminal class. Might as well just move 'em on out. Sorta like the Americans treated the Cherokee and other pesky local inhabitants who were taking up prime real estate. But Rakhine is far from the Chinese border; not Rohingya are even thinking of making that trek overland to the porous border with China.

Split from here.

Posted By:zooterkin

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New Study shows Liberals have a lower average IQ than Conservatives

In before EG3000! This really is delightfully unhinged - sadly there is no link to the alleged study.

https://iahymnewsnetwork.wordpress.c...conservatives/

Quote:

A new study conducted at Harvard University shows that in America, Liberals have a significantly lower IQ than Conservatives. The study was conducted on 100,000 registered voters in 40 different states over the last twelve years, and has concluded its results. The first part of the study lists the correlation between political beliefs and intelligence. Subjects of the study were chosen at random and requested to come to an unmarked van to take a test and answer some questions for a reasonable amount of money. Of the 100,000 people, there were people from many doctrines, from conservative to liberal to marxist to fascist. Socialists came out on bottom, with an average IQ of 87. The second worst were Liberals and then Marxists, with 88 and 89 respectively. Conservatives received an average score of 110, which is significantly above average. However, the conservatives did not score the highest. The holder of second place were Communists with an average I.Q of 115, and the first place was apolitical people who did not follow any specific doctrine, who received a whopping score on average of 135.

I enjoyed this bit the most

Quote:

Communists are the most likely to commit rape or sexual assault, second to socialists.

Wonderful, just wonderful :D

I also quite enjoyed how the journalist apparently questioned both Obama and Hillary about the results. One wonders just how many of these kinds of deranged calls Hillary's staff have to hang up on, it would be on a pretty regular basis, I'd have thought.

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matthew Sheppard

I am sure we have all heard of the book that claims the death of Matthew shepard wasn't a hate crime...considering the killer himself says differently years after his conviction:
http://ift.tt/1qBZAOR
and some of his sources are less than reliable: http://cloudfront.equalitymatters.or...wcomboct12.pdf
And ignores evidence from the trial: http://ift.tt/1LP7AnQ
I would ask if this book is reliable.
I would also point out that the author has a bias and history of exaggeration: http://ift.tt/1LP7zjB

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New species of hominin discovered.

Humanity's family tree just got a little more crowded. It lived concurrently with Lucy.

Quote:

CNN)Meet Australopithecus deyiremeda, a newly discovered species of hominin that sheds light on our earliest ancestors, scientists say. In a study published in the journal Nature, the researchers say their discovery in Ethiopia of teeth and jawbones dating back between 3.3 million and 3.5 million years supports the idea that several hominin species coexisted during this period. The remains show clear similarities to "Lucy," the famous 3.2 million-year-old remains of the species Australopithecus afarensis, found in 1974. But, the researchers say, there are sufficient differences in the jaw architecture and size and shape of the teeth to mean that this is a new species, indicating that our ancestry is more complicated than previously thought.

http://ift.tt/1Jdznyu

Steve S

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Clinton Crime Family Foundation

Is it ethical for two liberals to become incredibly wealthy working for a charity? Do you liberals see anything wrong with this latest scandal from your nominee?

http://ift.tt/1JdzkTa

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Professor Investigated Under Title IX for Writing Column, Tweet

Apparently the speech of professors is now to be investigated by the government if they question feminist orthodoxy:

Title IX Investigation Opened Against Female Northwestern Professor Over Column, Tweet

Quote:

In February, Northwestern film professor and liberal cultural critic (and occasional Slate contributor) Laura Kipnis wrote an article for the Chronicle of Higher Education called "Sexual Paranoia Strikes Academe." Kipnis' piece was critical of what she called the "layers of prohibition and sexual terror" that have inspired campus rules prohibiting romantic relationships between professors and students. Wrote Kipnis: It’s the fiction of the all-powerful professor embedded in the new campus codes that appalls me. And the kowtowing to the fiction—kowtowing wrapped in a vaguely feminist air of rectitude. If this is feminism, it’s feminism hijacked by melodrama. The melodramatic imagination’s obsession with helpless victims and powerful predators is what’s shaping the conversation of the moment, to the detriment of those whose interests are supposedly being protected, namely students. The result? Students’ sense of vulnerability is skyrocketing. Later in the piece, she argued that students "so committed to their own vulnerability, conditioned to imagine they have no agency, and protected from unequal power arrangements in romantic life" will struggle to deal with the problems and conflicts of the real world. On Friday, Kipnis published another piece in the Chronicle, revealing that, in a twist that's ironic on more than one level, she is now the subject of an investigation into graduate student complaints that her earlier column and a subsequent tweet violated Title IX, the law that prohibits sex descrimination in education. Her piece, in addition to pointing out the absurdity of being charged with discriminatory behavior because of an essay, alleges an investigatory process that's ridiculously opaque for the accused: I wouldn’t be informed about the substance of the complaints until I met with the investigators. Apparently the idea was that they’d tell me the charges, and then, while I was collecting my wits, interrogate me about them. The term "kangaroo court" came to mind. I wrote to ask for the charges in writing. The coordinator wrote back thanking me for my thoughtful questions. One of Kipnis' accusers was alluded to, though not by name and seemingly without rancor or judgment, in Kipnis' first piece. This accuser apparently said Kipnis' allusion to her was "retaliatory" and believes the above-linked tweet refers to her, which Kipnis says is not the case. The other accuser was not mentioned at all in Kipnis' essay but is said to have brought charges "on behalf" of the university and two individuals who were referred to anonymously in the first piece.

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Planting by moon phases -- make any sense?

The very first Jack Horkheimer Star Hustler episode (1976) mentioned planting crops with respect to Moon phases. I got to thinking, and most googling turned up sites like this, which make claims like

Quote:

In the second quarter the gravitational pull is less...After the full moon, as the moon wanes, the energy is drawing down. The gravitation pull is high, creating more moisture in the soil, but the moonlight is decreasing, putting energy into the roots...

...which sounds like a lot of woo to me.

Even Wikipedia says, under Agricultural astrology:

Quote:

Moon gardeners maintain that not only is science on their side, but also that the results are plain to see. According to the theory, plants that are sown in the few days before a full moon become stronger and more productive. The moon gardeners claim that the gravitational force of the full moon affects the level of groundwater in the soil, just as it does the level of the oceans. With more water being drawn up into the soil during a full moon, any newly-sown seeds are boosted by the increased hydration.

So was Jack (RIP) full of it, or is there anything here beyond wishful thinking and self-deception?

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Cuba taken off the terrorist sponsors list

http://ift.tt/1PTatd0

Thanks, Obama. You'd think the Cold War had been over for two decades or more...:rolleyes:

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Jesus was a real bad guy

Or so says Leumas:

-What lesson would one learn from him cursing a Fig Tree for not having fruits OUT OF SEASON? That he is a moron? That he is a DESPOT? That people should give what they cannot give? That people are expected to do what they cannot do? How wise is that?
-Jesus being such a servile coward with the Roman Centurion.
-Being such a vile abuser and humiliator of the poor Phoenician woman.
-Being racist and calling gentiles Dogs
-Telling people not to worry about the future and not to work because they will be provided for by some imaginary sky daddy.
-Denying his family.
-Verbally abusing his mother.
-Verbally abusing his mother and father at the age of 12
-Going around performing magic tricks to bamboozle people into believing that he is god.
-Conspiring with his friend Lazarus to pretend to be dead so that he can pretend to raise him from the dead in order to huckster people.
-Making people believe in demonic possession and exorcisms
-Making people believe that infirmity and diseases and illness are due to sins
-Telling a man that he has to leave his dead father without a burial.
-Telling a man that he needs to give away all his possessions and go around begging
-Telling people that they do not need to wash their hands before eating
-Telling people that what they ingest does not harm them
-Telling people that they need to gouge out their eyes and cut off their hands.....even if that is metaphorical it means to shun and ostracize people.
-Telling people that they cannot divorce
-Telling people that looking at women is a sin
-Deceiving people that the end of the world is neigh
-Telling people that they should hate their family for his sake
-Telling people that familial strife is what he wants them to do....but not a bad -idea I think
-Going around insulting the Jews
-Telling people that slaves are lower than the masters
-Telling people to bring people and kill them under his feet for not agreeing
with him
-Telling people that prayer works
-Telling people that if they do not agree with him they are worthless and will be tortured for ever
-Telling people that they cannot build on sand when all they have over there is sand... ok this one is just a joke....but seriously...he did not know about raft foundations or piles?

Now, I'm just an agnostic who went to Sunday School eons ago, and have no real desire to be an apologetic, but I will steadfastly maintain that the above is a series of half-truths, statements taken out of context, misrepresentations, and lies (false statement made with deliberate intent to deceive)

It would take weeks for me to respond to every point above, so ill start one by one from the top and take it from there.

1) The fig tree parable. According to the apologetics (see eg: http://ift.tt/1lnH3TT
the tree is a metaphor for the Jewish nation. Personally, when I first heard the story years ago, I just took it as Jesus demonstrating his dominance over the natural. It was an odd story, for sure, but to read into it the idea of despotism or moronic behavior is a huge stretch IMO

2) There's no reference, so presumably this refers to the 'Cutting off the ear' episode?? (im just guessing) If so, I never took it as a sign of cowardice. Given that it involves someone who supposedly is accepting their crucifixion for the 'greater good' that seems more brave than cowardly to me. It is also fully consistent with the general Christian message to 'love your enemy' and 'turn the other cheek'. If one understands this fundamental message than in context calling Jesus' actions towards the Centurion 'cowardly' is a huge stretch IMO.

3) Stating to the Phoenician woman:
" “Let the children be filled first, for it is not good to take the children’s bread and throw it to the little dogs." Mark 7:25-30
How this can be construed as being a "vile abuser and humiliator" is beyond me, unless one is filled with vitriolic hatred of all things Chrisitian, but here is the apologetic interpretation:
http://ift.tt/1dC9RaQ
which points out that 'dog' in the context of the story is hardly insulting, and that the story relates to Jesus' primary mission being to the Jews.
Personally, I never gave the statement much thought; it didn't seem particularly strong one way or the other. The bottom line in the episode is that Jesus expelling a demon from the woman's daughter. If he were truly a 'vile abuser' as Leumas asserts, then why did he grant the wishes of the woman? Makes no sense at all, unless you have a vitriolic hatred of all things Christian.

4) No evidence is given as to 'racism' so I can't comment
5) Jesus never said that so again I can't comment. Presumably Leumas is just paraphrasing a statement, but by adding his own terms like "imaginary sky fairy" it just gets lost in his own personal biases against believers.
6) 'Denying his family' no reference, presumably Mark 3:31? At any rate, it is consistent with his behavior as a 12 year old in (7) and (8) "verbally abusing his parents" Here's one apologetic interpretation:
http://ift.tt/1dC9RaS
Personally, I would probably agree with the idea that 'leaving family to follow the leader' is a bit cult-like. However, to characterize Jesus' statements to his parents as 'abusive' is a huge stretch IMO. Where is the 'abuse'?

I'm running short on time, so for now i'll skip to one of my favorites on the list (cause it bugged me as a church-going adolescent) "telling people that looking at a woman is a sin" No matter what source, this is an outright lie, since the phrase is:
"Do not commit adultery.’ But I tell you that anyone who looks at a woman lustfully has already committed adultery with her in his heart" Matthew 5:2728
Here is the apologetic response:
http://ift.tt/1dC9U6g
The bottom line is that Leumas definitely knows the various translations, but he purposely leaves out the "lust" part and everything that goes with it eg. adultery, "coveting the wife" because he wants to present Jesus in as unkind a light as he can--it is a deliberate misrepresentation, otherwise known as a lie.

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Typing issue.

I've been trying to search for a fix but with little success.

I have a Dell Lattitude E6400 laptop I use for recreational use, However when I try typing the text line jumps somewhere else randomly making my words a jumbled mess.

Example: The qu lazy dogseown fox jumped over thick br [Left as is without going fixing it]

Any suggestions?

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Cannot come to school if mum drives

The Belz sect have said that children cannot attend their school if their mother drives them to school. The reason given is that it runs counter to traditions of female modesty.

Mainstream members of the UK Jewish community have said that this does not represent the views of mainstream Judaism.

http://ift.tt/1KtmdMH

IMO this is exactly the correct reaction.

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My laptop is scrolling to the top on its own

I have a Dell laptop with no external mouse. My screen seems to arbitrarily and periodically scroll upwards and other times to scroll left. The computer can not be used then. When the computer boots I have to hit f12 then hit enter on a dark screen to get it to boot.

I have run virus detection, gone back to a restore date the computer was working properly, and run microsoft diagnostics to no avail. The stress of typing knowing at any moment my cursor can be at the beginning of the line is maddening. My keyboard seems to be fine and if it was the keyboard I would think this wouldn't be a two minute problem every five minutes it would be an always problem.

Does anyone have a theory? Thanks.

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Diversity strikes the FAA

Trouble in the Skies

Really worth reading the entire lengthy article, here are some choice quotes:

Quote:

"FOX Business' "Trouble in the Skies," a six month investigation of the FAA’s new hiring practices, uncovered changes that may put the nation’s flying public at risk as well as allegations that the newest air traffic control recruits had access to answers on a key test that helped them gain jobs with the FAA. ... Also uncovered was an FAA effort to promote diversity that discarded 3000 qualified college graduates with degrees in air traffic control despite their following FAA procedure and obtaining FAA accredited degrees."

Quote:

"It takes several years of study to acquire the complex skills necessary to become an air traffic controller, or ATC. It’s considered among the highest pressured jobs in America. ... The FAA says it created the BQ (Biographical Questionnaire) to promote diversity among its work force. All air traffic control applicants are required to take it. Those who pass are deemed eligible and those who fail are ruled ineligible."

Quote:

"In 2014, 28,000 people took the BQ and 1591 were offered jobs. FOX Business, as first reported on FBN’s “The Willis Report”, has uncovered evidence that FAA employees’ including some within the agency’s human resources department may have helped applicants cheat on that test."

Quote:

"An FAA press release issued in April 2013 says, “Administrator Michael Huerta has made an historic commitment to transform the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) into a more diverse and inclusive workplace that reflects, understands, and relates to the diverse customers we serve.”"

Quote:

"The FAA made those changes based on a barrier analysis started in 2012 which identified, “… four of seven decision points in the air traffic controller hiring process that resulted in adverse impact to applicants from at least one demographic group.” In other words, the agency’s analysis determined there were barriers for minority applicants to obtain the FAA’s air traffic control jobs."

Quote:

“You’re toying with lives. You’re toying with students who invested so much time and effort into this and you’re also toying with aviation safety."

Many more good quotes I'd include but I don't want to exceed the limit, whatever that may be. The article is pretty vast so this is a very small bit of it.

Anyone who thought a crucial field like this would be spared from the lowering of standards to get more diversity, on account of the consequences of doing so being fatal... well, you'd better think again I suppose.

The most amazing part is the FAA guy calling applicants and letting them know he's e-mailing them all the answers to the BQ test so they'll pass it.

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Will we ever be satisfied?

Imagine a future where there is no more scarcity. 100% of the world's population has all basic needs satisfied: food, shelter, clothing and medical care. There are no more wars or civil wars or refugees or people living in slums or worse. No more slavery or human trafficking. All of the greatest social problems have been solved or reduced to minimal levels, orders of magnitude better than today.

Would we be satisfied? Would we all be happy? Or would we just find new things, perhaps imaginary things or hypothetical things or things that seem inconsequential today to be unhappy about and worried about? Would people still suffer from depression at the same rates or commit suicide at the same rates?

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Darwin and Hitler

I know Darwin didn't support eugenics, but this article makes the often repeated claim that evolution inspired the Nazis: http://ift.tt/1cmvnic

Quote:

First, almost all Nazi racial theorists believed that humans had evolved from primates. Second, they provided evolutionary explanations for the development of different human races, including the Nordic or Aryan race (these two terms were used synonymously). Specifically, they believed that the Nordic race had become superior because harsh climatic conditions in north-central Europe during the Ice Ages had sharpened the struggle for existence, causing the weak to perish and leaving only the most vigorous. Third, they believed that the differential evolutionary development of the races provided scientific evidence for racial inequality. Fourth, they held that the different and unequal human races were locked in an ineluctable struggle for existence. Fifth, they thought that the way for their own race to triumph in the struggle for existence was to procreate more prolifically than competing races and to gain more “living space” (Lebensraum) into which to expand. Sixth, many argued that Darwinism promoted a collectivist ideal. These six points—derived from the view that humans and human races evolved and are still evolving through the Darwinian mechanism of natural selection—profoundly impacted Nazi policy. They formed the backdrop for eugenics, killing the disabled, the quest for “living space,” and racial extermination.

Quote:

In 1938 the Ministry of Education published an official curriculum handbook for the schools. This handbook mandated teaching evolution, including the evolution of human races, which evolved through “selection and elimination.” It stipulated, “The student must accept as something self-evident this most essential and most important natural law of elimination [of unfit] together with evolution and reproduction.” In the fifth class, teachers were instructed to teach about the “emergence of the primitive human races (in connection with the evolution of animals).” In the eighth class, students were to be taught evolution even more extensively, including lessons on “Lamarckism and Darwinism and their worldview and political implications,” as well as the “origin and evolution of humanity and its races,” which included segments on “prehistoric humanity and its races” and “contemporary human races in view of evolutionary history.”

Any thoughts towards these claims?

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"I Fooled Millions Into Thinking Chocolate Helps Weight Loss. Here's How."

The health and weight loss industry has had its own Sokal hoax:

http://ift.tt/1dA8MQH

Quote:

“Slim by Chocolate!” the headlines blared. A team of German researchers had found that people on a low-carb diet lost weight 10 percent faster if they ate a chocolate bar every day. It made the front page of Bild, Europe’s largest daily newspaper, just beneath their update about the Germanwings crash. From there, it ricocheted around the internet and beyond, making news in more than 20 countries and half a dozen languages. It was discussed on television news shows. It appeared in glossy print, most recently in the June issue of Shape magazine (“Why You Must Eat Chocolate Daily,” page 128). Not only does chocolate accelerate weight loss, the study found, but it leads to healthier cholesterol levels and overall increased well-being. The Bild story quotes the study’s lead author, Johannes Bohannon, Ph.D., research director of the Institute of Diet and Health: “The best part is you can buy chocolate everywhere.” I am Johannes Bohannon, Ph.D. Well, actually my name is John, and I’m a journalist. I do have a Ph.D., but it’s in the molecular biology of bacteria, not humans. The Institute of Diet and Health? That’s nothing more than a website.

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Have you ever tried identifying a forgotten book title?

I'm not sure if this is the right forum, but it's "literature" so I guess its worth a shot.

Anyway, t's pretty tough when you don't know the title or author. I remember this book from when I was a kid, around 6-9 for the life of me can't remember the title. I remember it was a pretty cool story though. All I remember was that it was published before 1999, offwhite dustjacket perhaps about .5" thick spine. On the cover I vaguely recall an image of a boy, the protagonist, looking down on a cloud, with stars and the moon and some other characters from the story.

As far as story goes, details are vague. The story begins with these gods/deities in the universe that have just finished creating a world, yet they are quarreling amongst each other because nothing in the world/universe was officially named yet. So the deities decide to create a boy/prince (or assign a boy the task of naming everything in the universe/world). Thus, the boy goes on many adventures traveling to distant places and giving names to everything. So in a sense, it is like a version of the story in Genesis of the Bible, except Adam is a boy.

So for example, if the prince/boy came across an object/creature, he would ask the gods "What is this called?" and they would respond something like "That's up to you" along those lines.

It's possible that the author could have had influence from foreign creation myths/folklore stories/legends (Indian/Arabic, possibly Greek/Persian/Chinese?), so the names might have been unusual/unique. Or, there could have been no foreign influence and the names were just general fantasy/mythological-influenced.

I can say for sure, that the title is neither The Little Prince or The Neverending Story.

_______________

But anyway, that's my title. What's yours? Were you ever successful in identifying your lost book?

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Chris Mohr's YouTube Part 23 Epilogue: WTC Dust Update; Saying Goodbye to 9/11 Truth

Why I do NOT believe thermite was used to bring down the World Trade Center Buildings on 9/11. After the thermitic dust paper of 2009 by Harrit/Jones/Ryan/Farrer et al, I hired Jim Millette to analyze the WTC dust and he found NO THERMITE. This YouTube video is a detailed summary of responses to both studies: critiques by Jones of the Millette dust study, critiques of the 2009 paper, and ESPECIALLY shocking levels of opposition to the 2009 thermitic paper from 9/11 controlled demolition advocates! Then I say goodbye to the 9/11 debate; I have not found convincing scientific evidence to back up any controlled demolition theories. I'll stick around for awhile to respond to comments here, but I think it's finally time I mostly move on.
https://youtu.be/aGGJ4xzna8o

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Muslim boys high school soccer team refuses to play against team with 2 girls

When is Islam going to stop treating women like second class citizens?

http://ift.tt/1cmvni5

Quote:

A boys soccer team from ISNA Private Islamic High School refused to finish a game on Tuesday because two females were on the opposing team during a Brampton tournament. Robert F. Hall Catholic School, in Caledon, does not have a girls team so the two females played on the senior boys team, which was approved by the Region of Peel Secondary School Athletic Association (ROPSSAA). During halftime, the ISNA Private Islamic High School team brought the concern to the referee. Robert F. Hall Catholic School school was winning the game 3–1 at that point.

This quote is kinda scary:

Quote:

We were a little bit caught off guard because we assumed it was a senior boys league and exclusively for boys,” Essa Abdool-Karim. the coach of the ISNA High School soccer team, said. “Free mixing is generally something we do not do, more so out of respect than anything,” he said.

Free mixing is something we generally don't do???? WTF?

What planet are these people living on?

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Heart Attack Gun

I ran across an article discussing conspiracy theories that turned out to be real.One item that I found interesting was that the CIA invented an assassination weapon that fired frozen pellets of shellfish toxin contaminated ice. Is such a weapon feasible? The KGB used a device to fire a spray of hydrogen cyanide into the face of assassination targets,and the result was said to resemble a fatal heart attack,so I am thinking the CIA gun might actually have been used: http://ift.tt/1FdyUXr

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fact checking Media Matters

I came across this, apparently people who supported Obama care are granted waivers: http://ift.tt/1G4Q0NT
Somehow I think this man missed the point: http://ift.tt/1G4Q0NV
Turns out many unions were denied waivers unlike what the fact checker implies.
Hell, as they said it's not that labor unions are favored, simply that plans representing more insured individuals have applied.

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Help / UFO Aircraft Video display / Camera angle

I am a member of the Skeptic Society forum. I have a UFO "woo" enthusiast posting a video, that claims to be a Mexican military aircraft surveillance video of UFOs. The video is infra red. I have found two skeptic debunking articles that indicate the UFOs are most probably off shore oil platforms, burning off gases, on the horizon, that have been picked up on infra red. I think these articles are correct.

I ask for help from ISF "aircraft boffin" members concerning two simple questions.

1) The infra red video has audio of hysterical aircraft crew. Would I be correct in assuming military aircraft videos don't have audio tracks and this is therefore probably a post production fabrication.

2) Below is a still from the video. On the left hand side is a display. Does this display indicate the camera is facing down or does it mean something else? How can I determine if the camera is facing down or not?

Here is the video footage on You Tube.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KRvWRrf__XA

Here is a debunking article on eSkeptic Magazine.
http://ift.tt/1G4Q0NP

( I'm aware that we have many experienced pilots and aircrew here on the ISF and any help would be most welcome, as I am getting out of my depth)

Attached Images

hqdefault.jpg (13.1 KB)

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Cases of planted evidence

I was kind of hoping we might create a semi-archive of cases of planted evidence in cases

I thought I would start with David Kofoed - Planted evidence in the case of Matthew Livers and Nick Sampson.
Edit: Adding a link
http://ift.tt/1G4Q28v

Also,what came be done to prevent such cases?

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SETI organization told about Billy Meier's alleged ET contacts

SETI Sent Evidence of ET Contact by They Fly Productions | They Fly Blog -- a fan site for UFO contactee "Billy" Eduard Albert Meier.

Quote:

Evidence of extraterrestrial contacts in Switzerland, said to be ongoing for 73 years, sent to scientists at SETI and recently formed NExSS Initiative

Presumably the SETI Institute. I don't know if they responded, so I'll compose a response.

Dear Billy Meier fans,

Please convey this message to Mr. "Billy" Eduard Albert Meier. We have written this message in English, but we can easily do a translation into German for his convenience if he would prefer it.

Dear "Billy" Eduard Albert Meier,

Please convey to your extraterrestrial friends the following message. It would be a great help to all of us, and if they act on this message, it will be a great vindication for you.

Dear extraterrestrial friends of Billy Meier,

We have been searching for entities like you, and we invite you to reveal yourselves to us in an unmistakable way. We invite you to land in New York City, the closest city that we Earth people have to a capital city of humanity. It is the headquarters of the United Nations, the closest organization that we Earth people have to a world government, and it is also a major economic and cultural center.

The United Nations plaza may be too cramped for your spacecraft to land in, but Central Park is nearby, and it has a lot of open space. If that is unsatisfactory, then there are three large airports on the outskirts of the city: JFK, LaGuardia, and Newark. They have large areas of pavement that can easily accept heavy vehicles, up to 300 - 400 metric tons.

You have been able to travel from near the Pleiades star cluster to rural Switzerland, and it should not be too much to travel a tiny bit further. We have determined that the Pleiades cluster is about 444 light-years or 136 parsecs away from the Earth. New York City is much closer to Switzerland.

Many of us will visit your vehicles and take pictures of them. Some of us may be overenthusiastic in their interest in you, but we will handle policing duties. You ought to welcome the numerous pictures that we will take of your vehicles. To see why, let us note an event in our history of discovering the Universe. A little over two hundred years ago, many of our scientists were very skeptical that there is a such thing as falls of extraterrestrial rocks. They preferred to believe that these were Earth rocks struck by lightning or rocks ejected from volcanoes or condensations in the upper atmosphere. But in 1803 in our calendar, a certain Jean-Baptiste Biot was sent to investigate a report of a fall of such rocks at the town of L'Aigle, France. He found numerous independent witnesses to the event, and several rocks that were very different from other rocky material from the area. He successfully demonstrated that an extraterrestrial rock had fallen on that town, making a fireball and breaking up. Please show us the courtesy of a similar demonstration of the reality of you and your technology.

If you do not wish to risk compromising your technology, you can stay in low Earth orbit. Some of our people live in a large spacecraft there, the International Space Station, and you may want to visit them. You may not be able to dock with it, but you can get close enough for them to see you in full detail. They may wave their arms at you -- it is a gesture of friendship. We invite you to return that gesture with something visible from outside your spacecraft, like tilting your spacecraft.

You can still communicate with us on the ground by sending us some atmospheric-entry capsules with messages in them. Since that is only one-way, you could describe in those messages the protocols that you would prefer for radio communcation. What transmission power, carrier frequency, modulation type, encoding of information in the modulation, etc.

-- (whoever might sign this message) on behalf of the people of planet Earth

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Dennis Hastert indicted.

Former House Speaker Dennis Hastert has been indicted for lying to the FBI about hush money he paid to someone, apparently to cover up past misconduct.

Quote:

J. Dennis Hastert, the longest serving Republican speaker in the U.S. House, was indicted Thursday by a federal grand jury on charges that he violated banking laws in a bid to pay $3.5 million because of “past misconduct” against an unnamed individual from their hometown west of Chicago. . . . The indictment did not spell out the exact nature of the “prior misconduct” by Hastert against the individual from his hometown, Yorkville, but noted that before entering politics in 1981, Hastert spent more than a decade as a teacher and wrestling coach at the local high school. This unnamed individual mentioned in the indictment has known Hastert for most of their life, the indictment states.

http://ift.tt/1J9YGRU

Steve S

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Bikers Plan Anti-Muslim Rally

I am certain this event will go off without a hitch. Basically a group of bikers plan to gather in a Denny's parking lot for a "draw Muhammad" event and then take the drawing to the nearby muslim community center that the two texas shooters attended. The organizer likes wearing (and selling!) a "F### Islam" shirt and has encouraged attendees to exercise their 2nd amendment rights at this event.

Quote:

During the protest, attendees—many of whom are part of the motorcycle group, RidersUSA—will march with signs and American flags. Event organizer Jon Reitzheimer tells New Times the protest will be peaceful, and that he plans to “pull the reins in on people who want to do stupid things like throw bacon” at the center. He will also be selling black T-shirts that read “**** Islam.” Reitzheimer scheduled the rally to coincide with Friday evening prayer, and is encouraging people to bring cartoon drawings of the Prophet Muhammad to enter into a contest. (The winner will be selected during the “after-party” at a nearby bar, Wild Bills.) There will be at least “two state militia groups to provide security,” but he’s still encouraging folks to bring guns “just in case our first amendment [right] comes under the much anticipated attack.”

link

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Transgender ism and crimes....

this link: https://outofmypantiesnow.wordpress....tantially-all/
Claims there is a correlation between transgenderism and criminal behavior. Thoughts?

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40% of Internet users now use an ad-blocker. Publishers screwed.

Bye-bye profit model.

I wonder where this leads.

http://ift.tt/1LMRn1U

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adoption and civil rights?

An organization in Australia made this page on the dangers of forced adoption: http://ift.tt/1LMmM4n
Not well cited...any other issues anybody can see?

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alexander the greats hypaspists

Recently a discussion(in which I was wrong) on Persian chariots got me reexamining the army of Alexander the great. A long running debate on this area is on the elite infantry called the hypaspists. The debate centers on the role and equipment of this high status-although peasant raised-unit.
I veer strongly to the belief that the hypaspists,in at least Alexanders day,were a extremely flexible-although normal-unit that could take the place of honor on the right of the army and fight with sarrisa,or could take a light infantry roll and accompany fast flying columns on demand,as they often did.
I have almost two dozen books on alexanders campaigns and army and there are opposing views.

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Demonic activity on the rise?

The Catholic Church says so. But don't worry, they have a plan:

Practical help for the demon-possessed: Vatican rolls out new exorcism course
Catholic News Agency

Quote:

This month the Vatican will gather a wide range experts in the field of exorcism with the aim of shedding light on demonic possession from both theological and scientific perspectives.

Oh, good. I'm glad they're bring science to bear on this issue!

Quote:

According to AIE spokesperson Dr. Valter Cascioli, an increasing number of bishops and cardinals asked to participate in the conference due to an increase in demonic activity. “It's becoming a pastoral emergency,” Cascioli told CNA. “At the moment the number of disturbances of extraordinary demonic activity is on the rise.” The rise in demonic activity can be attributed to a decreasing faith among individuals, coupled with an increase in curiosity and participation in occult activity such as Ouija boards and seances, Cascioli said.

:jaw-dropp

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"An Honest Liar" Screening in Livonia, MI

So a few years back I heard they were doing a movie on James "The Amazing" Randi. I followed the updates closely and kept getting more and more excited as the release date came closer. When the day did come I was so disappointed that there wasn't a single theater in Michigan showing this film.

To make a long story short I am now hosting a screening of the film for one night only on June 18th at the AMC Livonia 20. I need to get about 70 people to commit to buying tickets in order for the film to show.

Follow this link (replace the dot with a .)to watch the preview and buy tickets:
wwwdottuggdotcom/events/15771

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Male microchimerism in women without sons: Fact or latest slut-shaming woo?

I've seen some online discussion of late claiming that women with many sexual partners show Y-chromosome specific microchimerism. Some go as far to claim that this means a woman's offspring will include DNA from prior sexual partners. :eye-poppi Also there have been claims that epigenetics suggests that prior partners will influence the way genes are expressed in offspring, without altering or infusing the offspring's DNA itself.

Particularly given the context of these statements, I think it's male insecurity and slut-shaming dressed in a gross misunderstanding of the implications of recent research. Its also suspicious that the claims suggest multiple partners will result in male microchimerism, but regular relations with a single partner aren't mentioned as a cause. I've argued against it, but the topic is far outside my areas of daily expertise and experience, so I was hoping it could be discussed in a more scholarly manner here.

This study was among those cited by the claimants.

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Songs on new iPhone

I'm about to replace my iPhone 5S with a 6. I'm going to try diligently not to round up multiple Apple employees and take them out behind the barn, as I have done with the past two upgrades.

I want to copy precisely those songs on my old phone to my new phone. Nothing but songs, and nothing but the ones I have on my phone (as opposed to all the song purchased by the rest of my family).

I have started a backup of my phone in iTunes. After telling me about 49 songs it couldn't back up because my computer is not authorized (it is), it's now "downloading" three movies that I do not have on my phone. That has been going on for about an hour.

Simple question: I do have a good playlist in iTunes. If I sync my new phone, will I get just the songs in that playlist? Can I be selective on a per-playlist basis like that?

If not: Can anyone tell me what I should do?

~~ Paul

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Wildfires; USA compared to Australia.

http://ift.tt/1KpMtY2
I was reading about wildfires and the effort our firefighters make or don't make to save homes and businesses.

Quote:

For state governments and communities, there are lessons to learn from Australia's fire-protection model. There, the government's wildfire policy, called "Stay or Go," requires that residents create defensible space by regularly thinning the brush and trees around their homes and train in basic firefighting tactics. Australians are encouraged to stay and help fight fires when the flames approach their houses, but if they decide to flee, they must do so at the first sight of smoke. America doesn't have such a policy. The rule of thumb here is best described as, "Hope, Pray, and Run." In other words, hope that fires don't start, pray that firefighters put them out when they do, and run when the flames burn toward houses. Australia's "Stay or Go" policy would never work in the U.S.. In the West, dry grass and forests, steep mountains, and strong winds lead to fires far too explosive for amateurs to fight, and the idea that Americans fight the fires that threaten their houses is unrealistic and dangerous. But there are pieces of "Stay or Go" that federal, state, and county governments would be reckless not to adopt. Homeowners should be proactively preparing for fires--as they do in Australia--by thinning brush around their homes and installing fire resistant roofs and siding.

Anyone here ever had to decide to "Stay or Go"?

Ranb

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Did the Ancient Greeks develop thermal bathing?

Pardon my ignorance, but I thought the Romans were pioneers of thermal bathing and bathing systems in general.

But here:

http://ift.tt/1JVOGMS

Quote:

James Bond wasn’t the first to enjoy the benefits of a shot of cold water. In ancient times, hot water was a luxury. People had to live near a hot springs in order to enjoy the comfort of a hot bath, so for most of human history people bathed in cold water. But even when the Ancient Greeks developed heating systems for their public baths, they continued bathing in cold water for the health benefits. The Spartans, hard-asses that they were, felt hot water was for the weak and unmanly. When they did take baths (which was, like, once a year) they used only cold water because they thought it tempered the body and made it vigorous for ass kicking.

yes there are natural springs in Greece but again I thought developing heating systems was a Roman invention.

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Creationism Banned From Science Classes By Scottish Government

Quote:

While creationism can be taught in religious and moral education, scientific advisor for the SSS Paul Braterman explained to the Herald Scotland that the Scottish Government’s previous stance didn’t allow or ban teaching of creationism in schools’ science lessons. “Now we have, at last, a clear statement from the responsible minister that creationism should not be taught as science,” said Braterman.

http://ift.tt/1KoSX9L


So shines a good deed in a weary world.

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EMDR as therapy for for PTSD

Does anyone have any experience or insight?

My daughter was raped over a year ago, and is still suffering the consequences, which include panic attacks . A phsychiatrist has diagnosed PTSD, and she has been having had quite a bit of CBT and other counselling. Her life is much improved, and she is being safe and happy, yet there remain some problems.

The psychiatrist has recommended a course of EMDR.. Apparently this is now fairly standard, although it is only a while back that its use was controversial. The Cochrane review and WHO both recommend it in these circumstances, so my initial response that it sounds like complete woo is seemingly way off the mark.

If anyone can give me an idea what it entails, and what they will be trying to achieve, or if there is anything negative about the practise, I would be most grateful.

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China Draws Sabre

I may have mentioned once or several times in the past the disturbing presence of Chinese Imperialism, and noted China's sabre-rattling over disputed islands in the South China Sea.

Things had started to get interesting a few months back when it became apparent that far from disputing the islands - variously claimed by Vietnam, Philippines, Malaysia & Indonesia - they have just gone and annexed them.

They have built structures that look awfully military.

At the same time, USA has been testing the resolve of the Chinese by flying military reconnaissance missions over the islands and not leaving when China asks them to go away.

Given the Global Times being a mouthpiece for the regime, the Chinese seem to have given their response to the latest infringement by US planes.

Quote:

If the United States' bottom line is that China has to halt its activities, then a US-China war is inevitable in the South China Sea.

link

I hope Wolfman's still hanging around so he can come and justify all this and explain why it's all ok and just part of China's peaceful efforts.

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Ugly Vigilante Justice

http://ift.tt/1HMhsgD

Quote:

Citing witnesses in the village of Rio Bravo, local media reported that the girl was beaten and burned to death for her alleged involvement in the killing of a taxi driver there earlier this month.

As much as we bitch about my home in the USA, there are far worse places to live.

Quote:

Guatemala is one of the world's most violent countries, according to the United Nations, which created a commission in 2006 to investigate corruption and impunity there. Nearly every murder in Guatemala goes unsolved, and convictions are achieved in only about 6% of all criminal cases, the commission says on its website.

Those are low conviction rates. Here are some others for comparison. http://ift.tt/1IlSVya

Ranb

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Cops pose victim as hunting trophy

I can see this being the new fad even if the photo is old.

http://ift.tt/1J1X0vv

Quote:

Finnigan told prosecutors that he and McDermott had arrested the man because he had “20 bags of weed,” but neither officer filed an arrest report for the case and they apparently let him go because he did not have a serious criminal background.

Interesting. I wonder where the drugs went?

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[Moderated] Continuation Part 16: Amanda Knox/Raffaele Sollecito

Once again, the thread has grown lengthy, so this is a continuation from the previous thread Part 15. As usual, the split point is arbitrary and participants are free to quote from the previous thread(s) into this one. For further reference, see: Part 14,Part 13, Part 12, Part 11, Part 10, Part 9, Part 8, Part 7, Part 6, Part 5, Part 4, Part 3, Part 2, and Part 1. The thread will remain on moderated status for the present.

Posted By:Agatha

Quote:

Originally Posted by Grinder (Post 10673780) Never believed he bought it anywhere. It was fronted to him by the burglar. ;) It has now been well established he had phone access so that wasn't an impediment to selling various goods. He wouldn't have needed a phone for in person bar contacts to move these low priced items, but he had phone access as shown by many diverse sources.

What ever.....:D I still don't buy he was a fence. That is someone who makes his living buy in and selling stolen goods

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blaming the west for Africa's homophobia?

This is a weird one:
http://secularsagainstgaymarriage.bl...nderstand.html
This article ignores the effect Scott Lively had on the region and how anti gay laws increase the risk of hiv: http://ift.tt/1LJ5INh
Your thoughts on it?

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Foreskin fixation - circumcision in the courts.

Quote:

Heather Hironimus and Dennis Nebus are fixated on their son’s foreskin. It is an obsession that has bound them together long beyond the end of their relationship. Nebus believes their 4 1/2-year-old son, Chase Ryan Nebus-Hironimus, should be circumcised for medical reasons. Hironimus believes circumcision is barbaric genital mutilation. Nebus has gone to court to get his son circumcised. Hironimus has gone to jail to prevent it. Their dispute is easily the weirdest, saddest, most disturbing battle yet in the war over circumcision.

Slate.

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Mick Huckabee: POTUS can ignore SCOTUS rulings

Huckabee Vows To Ignore Gay Marriage Ruling: The 'Supreme Court' Is Not The 'Supreme Being'

Quote:

Republican presidential candidate Mick Huckabee insisted on Sunday that the president of the United States would not have to follow a ruling that struck down bans on same-sex marriage because the Supreme Court was not the "Supreme Being." "You seemed to indicate that as president, you wouldn't necessarily obey court rulings, even the Supreme Court," Fox News host Chris Wallace pointed out during an interview on Sunday. "We have operated under the principle of judicial review since the Marbury v. Madison case in 1803."

So according to Mikey here, the POTUS doesn't have to follow SCOTUS rulings that he (or she) doesn't agree with. I'm sure he'd stick to that position if President Obama decided to disregard Heller and/or McDonald and started messing with gun rights.

Ah GOP; how you entertain us. Please continue. This is the best:

"Presidents have understood that the Supreme Court cannot make a law, they cannot make it, the legislature has to make it, the executive branch has to sign it and enforce it," Huckabee said. "And the notion that the Supreme Court comes up with the ruling and that automatically subjects the two other branches to following it defies everything there is about the three equal branches of government."

:eek:

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Finally an arrest about gay marriage

We finally found out which minsters will be arrested for practicing their religious beliefs over the gay marriage issue.

http://ift.tt/1LJ5IwH

Man illegally follows federal judges orders, he should rot in prison for that.

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K-9 saves police officer

http://ift.tt/1LJ5G83

Quote:

A Mississippi deputy who was attacked by three men is injured but alive after quick action by his K-9 officer. During the struggle, Frazier hit a remote control device around his neck, which unlocked the backdoor of his patrol car, authorities said. K-9 Officer Lucas, a black Belgian Malinois, sprung out. He bolted toward Frazier and bit one of the suspects, sending all three fleeing into the night, Grannan said.

The Belgian Malinois is slightly smaller and more aggressive (so I've read) than a German Shepherd.

I read a good book on them; http://ift.tt/1LJ5G86

Ranb

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Did the Pope(s) eat babies??

I see on several alternative news sites there's a trail of sorts (just do a google search) and they are claiming the Pope ate babies? ... what do you think?

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This is how "democracy" works in America today

An exposé of ALEC - a frightening glimpse into the way that corporations own the legislative processes of states.

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SAVANNAH, Ga. (WXIA) – The Georgia Legislature has a message for voters: don't ask us about our meetings with corporate lobbyists behind closed doors. The 11Alive Investigators tracked lawmakers to a resort hotel in Savannah last week, where we observed state legislators and lobbyists mingling in the hotel bar the night before they gathered in private rooms to decide what new laws would best serve the corporations. The meetings were part of the Spring Task Force Summit of the American Legislative Exchange Council, or ALEC. What is ALEC? "It's really a corporate bill mill," said Sen. Nan Orrock, an Atlanta Democrat who has served in both houses of the Georgia General Assembly for years. "They're cranking out legislation, putting it into the hands of legislators who go back and file it." Orrock would know. She was once a member of ALEC.

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Tanith Lee has died.

The prolific science fiction and fantasy writer Tanith Lee died on Sunday . She was 67.

Tor obit.
Guardian.

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The myth of bad British teeth

BBC News: The myth of bad British teeth

"Britain has become "internationally renowned" for having "really lousy" teeth, according to TV doctor Chris van Tulleken, with people not caring enough about staining and decay. Is this label fair?"

Personal experience: at 48 I still have all my own teeth, barring the four taken out when I was 14, which ultimately didn't lead to having a brace, and which also meant that I didn't have any problems when my wisdom teeth turned up. I have one NHS dental check-up a year (my dentist of 30 years assures me I don't need more), the last of which cost £18.50, which I claimed back from my insurance, anyway.

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The USA is taking on FIFA?

FIFA corruption is legendary, and it's looking as if the US is tackling it. 6 arrested in Switzerland at the annual governing body meeting, and maybe facing deportation.

Guardian front page with links to the story and live updates.

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FIFA raids

They must have been really bad for the Feds to go this far.

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"If you could experience everything...sitting in a chair, why bother with reality?"

This interview was bookmarked on my browser. It's an intriguing thought, long pondered by philosophy and explored in films such as the Matrix and Vanilla Sky with Tom Cruise.

To quote Arthur C Clarke:

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I mean, if you could experience everything, be everywhere, know everything, sitting in a chair - "wired," to coin a phrase - why bother with reality? It's an interesting philosophical question; I don't know the answer.

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What do you think? Do you agree with Hobbes that life is brutish and short and we should embrace technology to escape the harshness of reality? Or to prosper do we as a species move forward by incorporating both reality and technology into our lives?

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Scientists uncover big clue as to why men exist

And surprise! It's natural selection!

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Glad to know money was invested in such a worthy study

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Canadian Jeweler Threatened after selling ring

It was never about equal rights, its about control and forcing a viewpoint on others who want no part in this weird social experiment.

http://www.theamericanconservative.c...ristians-lose/

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So, a Canadian Christian jeweler custom-made a pair of engagement rings for a lesbian couple, Nicole White and Pam Renouf, at their request. Later, when they found out that the jeweler personally opposes same-sex marriage, they went to pieces and demanded their money back. From the CBC’s report: “They were great to work with. They seemed to have no issues. They knew the two of us were a same-sex couple,” White said. “I referred some of my friends to them, just because I did get some good customer service and they had good prices.” That was before one friend went in to purchase a ring for his girlfriend — and instead found a distressing sign. It reads: “The sanctity of marriage is under attack. Let’s keep marriage between a man and a woman.”

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The couple now believes the rings they ordered will have been tainted by having been fashioned by jeweler Esau Jardon’s hands, given what impure thoughts he holds in his mind. More: Jardon said he won’t apologize for his beliefs. “I feel really bad that [White] feels that we would in any way try to hurt or discriminate against her, but we will not retract from what we believe. I cannot say, ‘Well because you feel bad, I will stop believing what I believe,’” he said. “When I walk on Church Street in Toronto, where I am right now, and I see [LGBT rainbow flags], and I see a lot of signs and a lot of things on public property, I don’t have a problem with them. I accept it. I chose to come to Canada… and we accept the whole package… I don’t discriminate against that, nor do I come and tell them to take them down. For the same reason, I ask to have the same respect in return, especially when it’s in my own business.” But, after dealing with online bullying and threats, Jardon decided this week to refund the deposit to the couple:

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“One of the reasons my family chose to move to Canada was the rights that it offered, the freedom of religion and freedom of speech, both of which at the time seemed to be very limited in Mexico,” he said. “However, due to posting our religious beliefs, many people in Newfoundland want us to shut down business — that’s what they’ve been telling us.” He said some threats came with names and others were anonymous. “One of them states that ‘you better give them the money back or you will be very, very sorry,’” he said.

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pedophilia and adoption

I found this: http://ift.tt/1GBT9Ds
He makes a weird argument:

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A gay pedophile would be more interested in a boy child. A straight pedophile would be more interested in a girl child. "Saying gays can't adopt same-sex, is like saying heterosexuals can't adopt opposite sex." No. "Why", you ask because you can't figure it out on your own... Single normasexual men are not allowed to adopt female children very often, just like single normasexual men are not allowed to accompany girl scout overnight trips by themselves without a female in attendance as well. Can you guess why? Do you realize that other than what they perceive as sexual objects and the insanely high HIV/AIDs/Syphilis rates, gay men arenot much different than, well... men? Now, back to your question... A normasexual couple is composed of both a female AND a male, thus there is one person of the child's gender and one not, a balance to protect the child. A single normasexual male adopting a female child does not provide that protection. Two gay males adopting a male child do not provide that protection. This is not rocket science and has nothing to do with bigotry, it is merely common sense.

Common sense, right..... and he provides no evidence that a significant amount of adopters are pedophiles...and is there a hint of misogyny here?

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Wal-Mart shooting by Active Air Force Soldier

2 dead, one being the suspect in this Wal-Mart shooting:

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The suspect of the shooting incident at Wal-Mart Tuesday morning has been identified as Marcell Willis, a 21-year-old active duty Air Force, assigned to the Grand Forks Air Force Base. Preliminary investigation indicates that Marcell Willis entered the Wal-Mart store just after 1 a.m. He apparently encountered two Wal-Mart employees shortly after entering the store. Police say it appears he shot both employees; injuring one and killing the other.

Unfortunately we didn't have any good guys with guns to combat the bad guy with the gun. I'm rather interested to learn what caused him to snap. Going into a Wal-Mart at 1 a.m. on an early Tuesday morning probably isn't the best time if you want to do max damage. So far they haven't found any connection to the employees. Make no mistake, I'm glad the damage was minimal, but it's tough to grasp when it happens this close to home. Extremely close to home.

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Stupid news reporting

The headline screams

Galapagos Island Volcano Erupts, Threatening Fragile Ecosystem

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It is not a fragile ecosystem and only exists because the very volcano the headline is warning us about is the reason the ecosystem exists in the first place :(

The stupid just burns sometimes :boggled:

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