For all the values voters out there who just want to vote about gay marriage and abortion and all that jazz: “Meanwhile, in heaven, Jesus is rolling his eyes, waving his arms, asking, ‘What the fuck? What about the poor, motherfuckers? The starving? Hello?'” This is a most excellent read!
Things are going so well in Iraq that Shiite militias took control of a whole city for quite a while on Friday. They burned down three police stations and left dozens dead. It derails Iraqi government control and greatly undermines the American claims that we’re in control of the country.
More on the American bedbug invasion: “The bloodsucking bugs were virtually eradicated in the United States in the 1950s. But they are now showing up practically everywhere—nursing homes, jails, apartment buildings, dormitories. Experts blame the resurgence on increased international travel, immigration, changes in pest-control practices, and the bugs’ growing resistance to insecticides. [. . .] The most likely victims are travelers, who are either bitten in hotels or who unknowingly bring home the bugs in their luggage. People who buy used furniture or rent furniture are also at risk.”
Watch this video by Michael J. Fox. After watching it, do you need more convincing that stem cell research should be pursued? Compared to what you just saw, consider this image: Marty McFly. Knowing science could help millions of people right now and billions in the next century, can you stare him in the face and explain why we shouldn’t use for research embryos that will be destroyed anyway?
A Houston landscaper refuses to work for gay customers. One, it’s a private company and is not bound by discrimination laws (unlike Dallas, Houston has nothing that covers this). Two, let them discriminate all they want; it’s their right to do so until/unless Houston addresses that. Three, let them reap what they sow. By discriminating and making the very false assumption that doing so would not become public, their names and the story have rapidly spread throughout the country—and now around the world. Oops. While bigotry zealots will want to support them, the majority of Americans no longer have the will for that level of shallow hate. If a boycott takes place, more power to the boycotters. Oh, and how many designers are gay and will now refuse to send work to this company? The answer: A LOT! (As one commenter put it: ” ooh, what nasty homophobes. in landscaping too! that’s like being a homophobic hairdresser.”) In the meantime, it’ll be interesting to see how such a religious business explains away the false claims of membership in an organization it hasn’t been a part of for quite some time (I’m sure the Bible says somewhere that you can lie through your teeth if it brings in more customers, right?). I was glad to see so many real Christians taking them to task for practicing hate in the name of Jesus who himself carried on with lepers and prostitutes and all those shunned by the Pharisees.
Greenland Ice Sheet On A Downward Slide: “For the first time NASA scientists have analyzed data from direct, detailed satellite measurements to show that ice losses now far surpass ice gains in the shrinking Greenland ice sheet.”
I’m sorry to say this: Holy. Shit. “Thousands of JetBlue Airways passengers were unwitting participants in a test of pilot fatigue that was conducted last year without proper federal approval, the Wall Street Journal reported. Pilots who had volunteered for the experiment flew for more than the eight hours per day that Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) regulations permit. Some flew for as many as 10 to 11 hours, the newspaper said.” Yes, the airline worked the pilots more than they’re allowed, fitted them with devices to measure how their excessive fatigue affected them, then kept making them fly planes full of passengers just to see what would happen. Un-Fucking-Believable! What did the FAA say? I quote: “We don’t allow experiments with passengers on board, period.” JetBlue apparently feels differently.
Bush says his administration has never been ‘stay the course’ on Iraq, but read the article to see the video of that claim followed by reports as far back as 2004 in which he says precisely that: America will ‘stay the course’ in Iraq. I find it amazing the man can take himself seriously with all the lies he tells, and it’s even more amazing (or perhaps not) that Americans still believe anything he and his cronies have to say.
I can’t recommend enough that you read this very interesting article about choice with regards to handedness (left- or right-handed) and sexual orientation. It’s interesting in so many ways (especially because, if orientation is a choice, handedness should be more so given its lower incidence of frequency among twins, but that’s just one interesting aspect of the paper). The money quote (among a great many others): “But—surprise—with sexual orientation, both twins share the trait homosexuality more often than they do left-handedness—yet no one would claim this is evidence that left-handedness is a ‘chosen alternative lifestyle’ because left-handedness isn’t seen as a moral issue—any more.” Really, you should go read it. With all the biological proof from the animal kingdom showing the proliferation of the trait among more than 1,500 species, it’s hard to imagine anyone still thinks it’s a choice of any kind, but that doesn’t negate the coolness factor of this comparison and how in-depth the information goes.