Don't Ask, Don't Tell

Okay, correct me if I'm wrong... but gays and lesbians do NO HARM in the military. It is HOMOPHOBIA that does the harm. Morale would not waver, unit cohesion would not waver if we overcame homophobia. Gays and lesbians are not animals running around rampantly raping men and women, respectively. Come on! There are strict regulations about relationships in the military, are there not? Its not as though a man is going to put part of his unit in danger in efforts to save his partner-- and if so, it is an equally pressing matter with heterosexuals.

And what do you think our conservative Christian military chiefs think? Oh, because the majority of the military is "conservative" (I'd like to see the proof), America is for once in its horrible lifetime, going to serve the majority, instead of the minority?? That makes delightfully little sense. Politicians are always ready to appease the minority.

I don't understand it... Men can carry pictures of their wife or girlfriend, women of their boyfriend or husband, but if a man openly carries a picture of his boyfriend, domestic partner, or civil union partner, he can be dismissed?

What makes it any different? The fact that copulation doesn't lead to reproduction? Does that mean using birth control is wrong? Does that mean the infertile should be ostracized?

It can't be the fact that others aren't "openly heterosexual", because you are openly heterosexual every time you talk about your partner of the opposite sex. Every time you talk about the girl you fucked in high school... Maybe you don't realize it... Try talking about someone you're fond of in gender-neutral pronouns, and not mentioning their name.... It's not so easy, is it? Try avoiding the subject of significant others in casual conversation... not so easy...

And to think people can be dismissed from the military for saying "she" instead of "they"... Because that is being openly gay.

I lost a little respect for Romney, there; I respected his positions on gay rights, keeping them separate from his personal beliefs, as he should.

Church Cancels Memorial for Gay Vet

ARLINGTON, Texas - Relatives of a gay Navy veteran who died say they are upset that a megachurch canceled his memorial service 24 hours before it was to start. Officials at the nondenominational High Point Church knew that Cecil Howard Sinclair was gay when they offered to host his service, said his sister, Kathleen Wright.

But after his obituary listed his life partner as one of his survivors, she said, it was called off.

"It's a slap in the face. It's like, `Oh, we're sorry he died, but he's gay so we can't help you,'" she said Friday.

___

On the Net:

High Point Church: http://www.churchunusual.com

More at Yahoo News

That's so wrong its horrible.

The Truth

Back in the times of our founding fathers, Thomas Jefferson saw a need for an educated population. The "mob", as they called the uneducated colonists of the time, was too unlearned in the knowledge of the world to make decisions in a true democracy. To alleviate this problem, Jefferson pushed for a national school system for all. Each state was able to make decisions regarding the guidelines of their individual districts and each district was to appoint a school board to oversee the administration and specific rules of the school district. This ideal system worked for a while. I believe it was the 1990's when it finally began to break, at least in our area, and allowed politics to slip into the sacred hall of the school board. Currently, the school board at West Greene is at one of its worst moments. The School Board of West Greene has displayed, over the past few years, a slowly decreasing interest in the education of the students. You can see this most clearly in the increase in the members of the administration. West Greene currently has two superintendents, technically one superintendent and one "assistant to the superintendent". Many people do not understand exactly what a superintendent does in a high school, so I will enlighten you. A superintendent, according to the American Heritage Dictionary, is a person who oversees and supervises an organization or district. Personally, I feel that with a smaller district like West Greene, which recently had a graduating class of 48, it should be easier to supervise, not more difficult and definitely should not require more than one set of eyes for the job.

You can also see the loss of importance that the student has gone through when you look at the textbooks that are currently in use. Subjects like math and science are constantly changing and rearranging according to the results of new ground-breaking research. For example, most Biology textbooks are outdated before they reach the printer's office because of the rapid push in all fields of research going on around the world. The school tries to keep up with these changes in these crucial subjects, but what about the other ones, like English, Social Studies, and Languages? Our textbooks are extremely outdated. Not just by a few years, but by decades. My grammar book from my junior year was published in the 1960's and my American History textbook opened with information on the "current" president, Mr. Ronald Reagan. I understand that the budget is limited, but it seems to me that enough money should have been set aside within several decades to purchase new textbooks for our children. Our school board is cutting corners in the wrong places. Maybe we should help guide the scissors over the correct places.

Read the Rest

This was written by Glen "Buddy" Ruse, a student at Penn State who happens to be a good friend of mine, about the school from which he graduated. It's the sad truth, as it is the school I currently attend.

The Stolen Tome

Morgan Glendennings, aristocrat wizard, is at a crossroads. She believes her family’s mysterious heirloom holds a secret. After much research, she learns of an ancient book that contains the information she needs. When the book is lost during shipment, Morgan suspects it has been stolen. She hires a shadowy rogue named Axel to help get it back. Together, they pursue the book and the men who stole it. Axel’s distrust of wizards and all things magical only complicates matters, especially when the chase takes longer and covers a greater distance than either expected. Caught in the intricate plots and schemes of the thieves who stole the book, Morgan and Axel push onward, trying to learn who paid the thieves for their services. Can they figure out who is behind the theft and why they would go to such lengths? And what could be so important about the Stolen Tome?

Buy It

Having refused to grow up and find a "real" occupation, Brian writes during his time away from the job that pays the bills. Born, raised, and hiding in southwestern Pennsylvania, he is a self-confessed hockey addict who won’t seek out any sort of treatment program for fear that he may be cured. As a proud member of the Vast Right Wing Conspiracy, he is currently involved in a top secret project to overthrow all that is good and fair in the world just so that he can make a few bucks. His hobbies include a plethora of bizarre interests: import video games, reptiles, wrestling memorabilia, MST3K, collecting toys from his childhood, and Legos. Amazingly, despite all of these things, he has never been married.



I plan on getting a copy... I have the first few chapters from Brian, back when we did writers workshop. It's good fantasy literature.

I can't wait to get myself a signed copy. Hah.

Too Many Books?

WILKES-BARRE, Pa., July 25 A bookstore owner's obsession with the written word has cost him his Pennsylvania home after local officials deemed his book collection a fire hazard.

Authorities in Wilkes-Barre, Pa., condemned John Puchniak's apartment this year when a routine inspection raised concern the bookstore owner's collection of nearly 3,000 texts could cause a fire, The (Wilkes-Barre) Times Leader reported Wednesday.

More at Earthtimes.org

It is virtually impossible to have too many books... Especially when you own a bookstore. I'm with the guy on this one. By the way-- didn't something of this nature happen in Diane Setterfield's Thirteenth Tale?

Berkeley and Locke

I thought this was neat. I apologize for the lack of posts. I'll catch up soon-- I swear!


Or go to Youtube


More about Berkeley's Immaterialism

Bong hits 4 Jesus

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A divided U.S. Supreme Court on Monday curtailed free-speech rights for students, ruling against a teenager who unfurled a banner saying "Bong Hits 4 Jesus" because the message could be interpreted as promoting drug use.

In its first major decision on student free-speech rights in nearly 20 years, the high court's conservative majority ruled that a high school principal did not violate the student's rights by confiscating the banner and suspending him.

Student Joseph Frederick says the banner's language was meant to be nonsensical and funny, a prank to get on television as the Winter Olympic torch relay passed by the school in January 2002 in Juneau, Alaska. More at Yahoo News

Skin grafts grown from hair

Pisa, June 22 - Italian researchers have
succeeded in using hair to grow the right kind of skin for grafting onto serious burns and other wounds. "Basically, you put the hair in an incubator and grow skin cells that produce a protein that endows the skin with protective properties," said Pisa University's Marco Romanelli. "We have obtained a type of skin that is able to repair the kind of wounds that are hardest to treat". "And there's no risk of us turning anyone bald - we only take about 100 hairs from each person, the number that falls out every day in any case". Read More at Life in Italy

Rock addiction deemed a 'disability'

A heavy metal fan has been awarded sickness handouts after doctors said his addiction to music was a disability.

The ruling means Roger Tullgren, 42, will pocket thousands of pounds in state benefits to help finance his 36-year obsession.

His boss is also letting him play his ear-splitting music at work and giving him time off for concerts, reports the Daily Mirror.

It marks an end to Roger's 10-year bid to have his "condition", which began when he started listening to Ozzy Osbourne's band Black Sabbath in 1971, officially classified as a handicap.
Read More at Ananova.com


I wonder if I can get the state to pay for my heavy-metal addiction...

Too Much Freedom of Speech?

Consider freedom of speech. Hardly anyone actually supports unrestricted freedom to say what we want. Many of those defending Kilroy-Silk, for example, would be horrified by the extreme freedom of speech in Denmark, where pro-paedophile groups are allowed to speak with impunity. This would be a freedom too far.

But why? In his classic defence of liberty, John Stuart Mill distinguished between offense and harm. We cannot stop people doing or saying anything simply because it offends us. Too many people are offended by too many different things. We should only constrain the liberty of others if what they do causes harm. More at BBC News

What do you think? When is freedom of speech too much?

Restrictions on free speech [wiki] are prevalent whether we realize it or not.

The first morning of the 2005 school year held more than the typical jitters for Toni Kay Scott. One moment, the seventh-grader, known as T.K., was stepping from her mom's Ford pickup to join friends in front of Redwood Middle School in Napa, Calif. Minutes later, the police officer assigned to watch arriving students was steering her toward the principal's office.

Scott, an impish brunet with a tiny nostril stud, had violated Redwood's dress code. The code aimed to squelch gangs by requiring students to wear only certain clothes and solid colors. Scott could change her outfit and stay at school, or she could spend the day at home. "I said, 'There's nothing wrong with what I'm wearing. I'm going home,'" recalls Scott, a near straight-A student. "I thought it was kind of ridiculous." More at Time Magazine

Stem Cells from Skin

"These cells should provide a valuable resource for tissue repair and for organs as well," said Anthony Atala, M.D., director of the Wake Forest Institute for Regenerative Medicine and senior researcher on the project. "Because these cells are taken from a patient's own skin, there would not be problems with organ or tissue rejection."

The research team grew mesenchymal stem cells, a type of stem cell normally found in bone marrow. Using tissue samples from 15 donors who had routine circumcisions, the scientists were able to isolate single stem cells, which they then grew in culture dishes in the laboratory. The scientists used hormones and growth factors to coax the stem cells into becoming fat, muscle and bone cells.

When the differentiated cells were seeded onto three-dimensional molds and implanted in mice, they maintained features consistent with bone, muscle and fat tissue. "Our study shows that stem cells can be obtained from a simple skin biopsy and can be made to become three vital tissues," said Shay Soker, Ph.D., associate professor of surgery at Wake Forest's School of Medicine, which is part of Wake Forest University Baptist Medical Center. "The bulk of our bodies is made up of fat, muscle and bone."

The promise of stem cells lies in their ability to develop into specialized types of cells and to replicate themselves. Scientists hope to harness the potential of stem cells and use them to replace damaged cells and tissue in conditions such as spinal cord injuries, diabetes, Alzheimer's disease, stroke and burns.

Read the rest at Science Daily

Admittedly, from what information this article gives, that's far from ideal. Ideally, you'd use skin cells to produce pluripotent cells (Meaning the can produce any cell in the human body, like an embryonic stem cell does.). The only real revelation here is that you can produce the cells from skin, we already knew that you could get multipotent stem cells from the bone marrow. But just you wait...

With a few strokes of genetic trickery, scientists have transformed mouse skin cells into embryonic stem cells and proved their potency by using the new cells to produce baby mice.

The experiments are seen as a major advance for regenerative medicine, which aims to custom-build tissues and cells to repair ailing and aging bodies.

Scientists caution there are serious safety issues that must be resolved before the techniques could ever be used on people, but they say the advance points to a new way of making embryonic stem cells for patients from their own cells.

More at Canada.com.

The main problem with stem cells, is they share so much in common with cancer cells, that they often form tumors that become cancerous. I mean, think about it, what are the main characteristics of the general stem cell AND cancer cells:

1) They proliferate.
2) They differentiate.
3) They migrate.

I'm no geneticist, but I'll leave it at that.

Ugly Aphrodesiac

LOS ANGELES - The hagfish is a bottom feeder so repulsive it had a cameo on TV's "Fear Factor." It slimes its enemies, has rows of teeth on its tongue, and feeds on the innards of rotting fish by penetrating any orifice. But cooked and served on a plate, it is considered an aphrodisiac in South Korea.

And the overseas appetite for the hagfish — also known as the slime eel — is creating a business opportunity for struggling West Coast fishermen confronted with tough restrictions on the catching of salmon and other fish. Read More

Hagfish [wiki], a pseudo-vertebrate creature than can turn a bucket of water into slime in minutes is considered an aphrodisiac? I mean it eats the insides of fish by entering the fish through the gills or anus.

Very odd.

Give Peace a Chance

POLICE have arrested a 60-year-old lawyer wearing a T-shirt saying "Give Peace A Chance".

A judge charged Stephen Downs with trespassing after he politely declined to leave the Crossgates Mall in a suburb of Albany, New York State, on Monday evening, or remove his top, which he had had printed there.

Mr Downs pleaded not guilty and cited his right to free speech. He could face up to a year in prison. His son, Roger, 31, avoided arrest by removing a T-shirt saying "No War With Iraq" on one side and "Let Inspections Work" on the other.

His father's second offending message was: "Peace On Earth." "We weren't talking to people or handing out leaflets," Mr Downs Jr told a local newspaper. "My point was I'm not trying to convert anybody," his father said.

Most Americans support President Bush's war plans, but many Democrat voters oppose them. James Murley, the local police chief, told The Times that his office had been inundated with complaints since the arrest. "We're getting all kinds of e-mails, some of them rather nasty," he said.

Chief Murley said that one of his officers had tried for an hour to persuade Mr Downs to end a stand-off with two security guards who stopped him and his son after a shopper reported a confrontation with passers-by that she thought might turn nasty. But, as one guard pointed out three times in his deposition to police, he did so "in a nice way". The other guard took a tougher line, alleging that the men were "bothering" shoppers by telling them why they opposed the "pending war with Iraq". Chief Murley said that the shopping centre had signs advising customers that the "wearing of apparel likely to provoke disturbances" was banned. Paul A. Clyne, the District Attorney, also said that it was up to the mall to choose its clients.

However, Mr Downs may have an ace up his sleeve when he appears in court on March 17, with no jury. He is the director of the local office of a state commission that investigates complaints against judges and imposes punishments.

link

Big Toe

Youtube

"This has to be the most amazing footage i have ever seen... a man with no arms playing a Tom Petty tune on a guitar [Mary Jane's Last Dance], with his feet!!! simply amazing! His name is Mark Goffeney, he deserves huge props coz i think not only he is awesome, but he puts most muso's out there to shame! He has actually bought out an album called 'Big Toe', so go check it out!"

More of Mark's performances
Three Doors Down's Kryptonite
Collective Soul's Shine
Big Toe's We are All the Same


His band's page is here.

15 Greatest Dead Rockstars

15 Greatest Dead Rockstars


#15

Name: Ronnie Van Zant
Band: Lynyrd Skynyrd
Died of: plane crash.
Why he was so great: One of many celebrities, he was one of the few who said they wanted to die before their 30th birthday, and succeeded without having to OD on smack. In fact, he died 3 months short of his birthday. You know why else he's so great? Because a damn lot of people don't realize he's dead. Though many say he and Niel Young were rivals, they were in fact friends, and collaborated on several songs. Oh, and that was such an issue, vandals broke into his tomb to see if he was wearing a Niel Young shirt.

#14

Name: Layne Staley
Band: Alice in Chains
Died of: heroin/cocaine "speedball" Over dose.
Why he's so great: Damn, because he is the man in the box, damn it. Oh, and he died April 5, 2002, the same day as Kurt Cobain, 5 years later. And he's the one guy that could use the excuse "I'm a heroin addict" to get out of a tour. Most bands would be like "well, write some more kick ass songs about it, and release a new album, you fucking pussy."

#13

Name: Cliff Burton
Band: Metallica
Died of: Bus crash. In Germany.
Why he was so great: He started playing bass when he was 14, which means there's still hope for me. He wrote 6 of the 8 tracks on Ride the Lightening. Apparently he didn't live long enough to do any of the crazy shit these other guys did, though.

#12

Name: Sid Vicious
Band: Sex Pistols
Died of: Drug overdose.
Why he was so great: At only 21 years of age, Sex Pistol's bassist was very much addicted to drugs. Oh, and sources say he killed his girlfriend, Nancy, and killed himself to avoid the humiliation of a trial. Though, other sources say, that's bullshit, and he killed himself because of the broken heart she left behind. Oh, and he was using amphetamines by the time he was 9, with his mother, and started self-injuring when he was 10.

#11

Name: Jim Morrison
Band: The Doors
Died of: Unknown
Why he was so great: He originally went to UCLA for theater, but ended up in a rock band. One of the most influential rock bands, at that. He showed up high or drunk to a damn lot of recording sessions, and in "Five to One" he can even be heard hiccuping. Oh, and he never got an autopsy, because he died in France, and if no foul play is suspected, they don't look for a cause of death, apparently.

#10

Name: Jerry Garcia
Band: Grateful Dead
Died of: Heart attack.
Why he was so great: He was missing two-thirds of his right middle finger, due to an accident chopping wood, when he was 4 years old. Oh, and he originally went to school at San Fransisco's Art Institute. Grateful Dead spawned one of the biggest followings of any band of their time-- the Deadheads.

#9

Name: Freddie Mercury
Band: Queen
Died of: Bronchial pneumonia brought on by AIDS.
Why he was so great: He was the first celebrity to die of AIDS, greatly raising awareness about the disease. (Oh, and Bohemian Rhapsody was written 10 years before he was diagnosed. The song isn't about AIDS.) He never received any formal vocal training, yet he could sing across four octaves. Oh, and he wrote 10 out of Queen's 17 chart toppers.

#8

Name: Kurt Cobain
Band: Nirvana
Died of: Gunshot to the head. Homicide/suicide.
Why he was so great: He was friends with a gay in highschool. And claimed he was once arrested for painting "homo sex rules" on a bank, though he's stated "I'm not gay, although, I wish I was, just to piss off the homophobes." He liked to draw fetuses. Oh, and he suffered from a lifelong un-diagnosable stomach ailment, which lead him to an opiate addiction. We don't know, but we all think Courtney killed him.

#7

Name: Dimebag Darrell Abbot
Band: Pantera/Damageplan
Died of: gunshot, during a live performance.
Why he was so great: He recorded a track with Dallas musician, Rodd, called "Country Western Transvestite Whore". He was self-taught, purportedly only taking one guitar lesson, ever. Oh, and he had a tattoo of Ace Freshly on his chest (as well as his signature).

#6

Name: Randy Rhoads
Band: Ozzy Osbourne/Quiet Riot
Died of: plane crash.
Why he was so great: He played for Ozzy, for fuck's sake. He co-wrote "Mr. Crowley" with Ozzy, the only identification the mainstream has with Aliester Crowley. Oh, and he learned to play on a Gibson... when he was 6 years old.

#5

Name: Bradley Nowell
Band: Sublime
Died of: Heroin overdose.
Why he was so great: Head of punk-ska band Sublime, Bradley could do anything stoned. Oh, and he couldn't function without his dog, Louie, a dalmatian which most consider to be the mascot of Sublime.

#4

Name: Wendy O. Williams
Band: The Plasmatics
Died of: self-inflicted gunshot to the head
Why she was so great: Female lead singer of a PUNK band. This chick went on stage nearly nude, and cut shit up with chainsaws. She was arrested numerous times for indecency, and was a walking statement against modern culture. After the Plasmatics, she worked as an animal rehabilitator.

#3

Name: Syd Barret
Band: Pink Floyd
Died of: pancreatic cancer
Why he was so great: He was Pink Floyd. He was an amazing singer, songwriter, and artist. He was a recluse. He just epitomized awesome.

#2

Name: Jimi Hendrix
Band: Jimi Hendrix Experience
Died of: Asphyxiated. On his own vomit.
Why he was so great: He took curlers with him to England, whilst on tour. He was self-taught. And a groupie wrote about him in her confession book. We all doubt its true, but you never know.

#1

Name: Shannon Hoon
Band: Blind Melon
Died of: Accidental cocaine overdose.
Why he was so great: He was an amazing and caring man, as apparent if you listen to any interviews with him whilst he's sober. But the problem is, he wasn't sober often. Between attacking guards, pissing on fans, and wearing his girlfriend's dress on stage, Shannon was one crazy guy. Did I mention, he was inspired by Syd Barret, and grew up on Floyd and LSD?