Tag: Open Thread

Petty Egotistical Gob of Fat.

It appears that Timmeh has barred Arianna Huffington from NBC and MSNBC because she has some less than flattering things to say about him in her new book- Right Is Wrong: How The Lunatic Fringe Hijacked America, Shredded The Constitution, and Made Us All Less Safe.

Seems she called him “a conventional wisdom zombie”.

Now actually I think that Arianna’s “blog” is nothing more than a celebrity masturbation society and I’ve never forgiven her for her early fascism.  Kind of hard to get over the fact she was a Coulter/Ingram/Malkin clone without the bulimia and with an accent like a Gabor sister.

But I have to give her credit for this.  Way to stand up against the man sista!

Here is the coverage on her own site.  The video plays automatically- don’t say I didn’t warn you.

It’s a post by ZP Heller @ BraveNewFilms.org that is too short to quote extensively, but includes this gem-

If Huffington’s claim is true and Russert has been pulling rank with NBC, then this whole affair smacks of immature middle-school antics.  Is Russert really that sensitive that he can’t take criticism from Huffington?

Arianna’s latest is-

Shameful Days: Why Won’t The Media Pursue the Pentagon Propaganda Scandal?

The last ten days have been among the most shameful in the history of American journalism.

On April 20th, the New York Times published its expose of the Bush administration’s use of Pentagon-approved, prepped, and financially-enriched “military analysts” to appear on TV to help sell the invasion of Iraq, and then put a positive spin on the occupation — even as conditions on the ground deteriorated.

It was a powerful illustration of the Bush administration’s commitment to propaganda and disinformation. But it was also a damning indictment of the mainstream media’s complicity in the wholesale deception of the American public on the single most important decision a country can make — the decision to go to war.

Blessings to all on May Day*, known in traditional Celtic cultures as Beltane

^{*due to the leap year, and the tradition of evenly spacing the sabbats across the calendar, “May Day” falls in April this year.}

It seem to me there was Bluegrass around here more recently than September, but I couldn’t find it.   Come to think of it,I can’t even remember who I’m subbing for on Tuesdays.  Also, a promo for Thursday, since RiaD , after one week on, is going to ….something ….maybe one of these http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Q…  or a graduation or something.  Anyway, it will be very special.  

Why bluegrass

http://query.nytimes.com/gst/f…

The inflorescence

http://online-media.uni-marbur…

Taxonomic controversy (Abstract)

http://www.jstor.org/pss/1224640

More than almost anyone wants to know.

http://64.233.167.104/search?q…

Beginning Lesson

There is some GREAT STUFF on the FRONT PAGE.  

NEWS, ANALYSIS, INSPIRATION, HUMOR, (not counting RiaD’s joke)

ACUTE AND CHRONIC DEPRESSION and, of course,  SEX.  

Go fucking read some of it you Giggling Neo-Fascist Liverals!!

and, if you please, don’t rec this.

Some days there’s nothing i feel like putting in the pony.  Ok, that’s a lie.  Some days im particularly sensitive to the amount of sports content i put in the morning pony ;), but have nothing of substance to say.  On those days i generally hunt for a news story or some other item on the web i can present for discussion.  But on Monday when i am typing this (like with time travel in the douglas adams books, we need new verb tenses to discuss what we’re typing that wont have published until some time before youre reading it but after im typing it…but we’ll save that topic for another day) i’m horrifically unfocused…the Flyers are playing, and, at the risk of sounding whiny..i just dont feel like it…

So here are some finds from my horribly unfocused web travels…

From the “news you can use” category, is it any wonder that this Yahoo!News article caught my attention???

Chocolate may reduce pregnancy complication risk

Chocolate, especially dark chocolate, is rich in a chemical called theobromine, which stimulates the heart, relaxes smooth muscle and dilates blood vessels, and has been used to treat chest pain, high blood pressure, and hardening of the arteries, Dr. Elizabeth W. Triche of Yale University in New Haven, Connecticut and colleagues

Apparently after polling new mothers and testing cord blood, researchers found a possible link between higher chocolate consumption and fewer occurrences of preeclampsia.  So I guess all those Peppermint Patties I ate in 1993 were a good idea…  😉  

I’m pretty angry tonight.  People are being stupider than usual and if you know my general attitude toward humanity you know that’s saying something.  The source of my discontent this evening is, of course, the incestuous Beltway Bendover for Ass Access Butt Sniffing Feces Flinging Media and their Hollywood for the Ugly Uncle Brother Wife Sisters in the institutional political class.  

Reverend Wright IS Right!

Never heard a preacher like Reverend Wright before?  Did you sanctimonious morons ever GO to Church or are you Christmas/Easter Christians?  Can’t remember the last time?  You’re going to burn in hellfire for eternity you GOD DAMN SINNERS!

YOU DON’T UNDERSTAND YOUR OWN GOD DAMNED RELIGION!

NOBODY is worthy to sit at the feet of the Lord your God.  You were “conceived in sin (disobedience)” which is why SEX IS EVIL!  There is not a one among that doesn’t offend the sight (not to say smell, for you stink of death and corruption) of your vengeful jealous GOD who doesn’t care whether it’s a Golden Calf or Mammon that you put before him, and thinks that coveting and killing and lying and stealing ARE EVIL!  Who would demand the sacrifice of your first born son and punish you (to say nothing of your innocent kin- wives, children, servants, livestock, whatever) ON A BET!

Wrath of God?

But he loves you.  Nope, really.

In addition to smiting your enemies for real estate, he loves you enough that he incarnated some part and yet all of himself into a fully HUMAN being who lived his whole life without sinning at all, Jesus Christ our Saviour.

If you believe in some carefully selected texts of dubious historical provenance called The Gospel (and I know you believe that they’re the inerrant Word Of God) Jesus was a teacher with at least 2 strong messages; one of which I’m going to characterize as temporal and social, and the other of which I’m going to characterize as spiritual and to hell with parallelism.

Jesus’ Social message was that there are things God can do for you other than smiting your enemies.

He can make you kinder and more compassionate.  He doesn’t much care for the greedy and sanctimonious.  He’s not that into violence toward others even when provoked.

Jesus’ Spiritual message was unmerited favor by grace.

By believing that he was the incarnation of God sent here to spread God’s message of love and forgiveness of sin, you can spare yourself the torment of an eternity of existence after death separated from God’s presence.  The proof is that Jesus died and was raised from the dead (plus assorted other miracles).

Some Christians think that outward prosperity is an indicator of God’s grace.  Some Christians think that sacrifice guarantees prosperity.  Some Christians think that avoidance of sin through conformist behavior is sufficient, but they are mistaken because the OMNIPOTENT GOD who sees the fall of every sparrow can look straight into your heart and mind and knows your EVERY unworthy motivation and secret.  Every lazy self indulgent moment of your stinking existence for which there is not enough incense for the nostrils of GOD!

When was the last time you washed the wounds of a leper?

But even the mildest of Christians contend that evidence of acceptance of the teaching of Jesus is that you strive to emulate his actions.  Heal the sick.  Help the poor.  Turn the other cheek.  Love your neighbor as yourself and forgive them their trespasses.

Little stuff.

Some people are not Christians.  People like me for instance who don’t believe in God at all and follow teachers who have something to say about the human condition in practical terms and find other excuses for altruism than fear of punishment.

Can deathbed acceptance forgive a life of sin?  Are you repentant enough?

God Knows!

Thanks to all of you for your comments in my pony party last week. After a full week at the vet, my pups are now at home, though they’re not out of the woods yet. Both tails started wagging as soon as they walked in the door. And we got them to eat a bit. They’ve both had a really rough week, with maladies ranging from kidney failure to incontinence to jaundice. Have you ever seen a yellow dog? Not fur color – I mean yellow skin. It’s not a pretty sight. Both have lost over 2 lbs. In one case, that’s 20% of his body weight. For the other, it’s 15%. This hasn’t been a fun week. But, the vet is hopeful. We’ll just have to wait and see. They appear comfortable, though frail. Poor pups.

The most likely cause is leptospirosis, though that’s not confirmed yet. Pretty scary little bacteria, I must say. And, we have to take precautions, because it is zoonotic. But at least my pups are home.

Thanks again for all your kind wishes. I hope to be able to comment today, but that will depend on my schedule.

1. The Associated Press reports 2.28 million homes vacant in the United States. “The percentage of vacant homes for sale in the United States set a record high in the first quarter of this year, the government said today. The Census Bureau report shows that shows that 2.9 percent of U.S. homes — excluding rental properties — were vacant and up for sale, compared with 2.8 percent in the fourth quarter of 2007. It was the highest quarterly number in records going back to 1956. That works out to 2.28 million properties”.

   Reuters adds Homeowner vacancies hit record high. This was “the third quarter in a row in which the vacancy rate increased”. “Analysts attributed the rising vacancy rate to a surge in foreclosures brought on by the subprime mortgage crisis” and “believe home prices will not rebound until 2010.”

   Meanwhile, The New York Times reports the Loan industry is fighting new rules on mortgages. “As the Federal Reserve completes work on rules to root out abuses by lenders, its plan has run into a buzz saw of criticism from bankers, mortgage brokers and other parts of the housing industry. One common industry criticism is that at a time of tight credit, tighter rules could make many mortgages more expensive by creating more paperwork and potentially exposing lenders to more lawsuits.” The NY Times also notes Investments in self-storage stocks are doing well. The industry is being helped by foreclosures and long-term military deployments.

Four at Four continues below the fold with news about Department of Justice’s approval of CIA use of torture, Baghdad’s storm of mortars and sand, and a colossal squid thaw.

Currently, the 2nd round series’ stand as follows:

Eastern:

Montreal and Philly are tied at 1 game each.  Game 3 tonight, 7 p.m. edt

Pittsburgh leads NY 2 games to 0

Western:

Detroit leads Colorado 2 games to 0.  

San Jose trails Dallas 0-2

When the stranger came to town

All the people watched with wonder

In their tattered clothes

Gathered round and raised their eyes up from the dirt

Monday’s Headlines:Loan Industry Fighting Rules on Mortgages: Brownsville’s Bad Lie: UN troops ‘armed DR Congo rebels’: Zimbabwe opposition’s hold on parliament confirmed: Apathy dooms plan to save Tempelhof, site of Berlin airlift: Satirical comedian Beppe Grillo may dictate outcome in Rome elections: Israeli attack kills four children of Palestinian family: Warring factions to gather in Iraq: For Chinese Athletes, Western-Style Perks: North Korean officer defects to South: military: Mexico City gives girls a party to remember

The blind man who was given the gift of sight by gene therapy

By Jeremy Laurance, Health Editor

Monday, 28 April 2008

A pioneering gene therapy trial has helped a blind man to see in a breakthrough that brings hope to millions affected by eye diseases. British scientists have claimed a world first for the revolutionary treatment, which involved a single injection into the retina at the back of the eye.

Steven Howarth, 18, from Bolton, who has a rare inherited eye disorder which has left him with extremely poor vision and completely unable to see in the dark, improved sufficiently after the treatment to be able to navigate a “maze” in conditions similar to street lighting at night.