Welcome to ...

The place where the world comes together in honesty and mirth.
Windmills Tilted, Scared Cows Butchered, Lies Skewered on the Lance of Reality ... or something to that effect.


Tuesday, July 27, 2010

The Daily Drift

The Daily Drift
Today's horoscope says:

You sometimes get the urge to have a totally extravagant, utterly unnecessary shopping spree, despite what others may think.
Since you're one of the very few people who rarely buys much for yourself under ordinary circumstances, that means that it's finally your turn.
It's all good, you can afford it and everybody deserves the chance to do right by themselves.

Today is:
Today is Tuesday, July 27, the 208th day of 2010.
There are 157 days left in the year.

Today's unusual holidays or celebrations are:
Barbie-in-a-blender Day
Take your houseplant for a walk Day
and
Walk On Stilts Day

Don't forget to visit our sister blog!

On The Job

On The Job
Many Americans are feeling left behind by the ruthlessly fast-changing job market.  
Also: 

Bad Food

A health-inspection report lists gross findings at every major professional sports venue.  
Also: 

No Balance - Bad Credit

Your credit score could still suffer even if you pay off your balance each month.  
Also: 

B.C.

B.C.

Lake vanishes

A sudden dam collapse turns a $100 million Iowa recreation area into a "nasty looking scene."  
Also: 

Thunderstorm over Nashville

http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4089/4832186695_59e8898a4d_m.jpg

Mystery painting unveiled amid dispute

A find that electrified the art world and sparked an about-face from the Vatican makes its public debut.
Also: 

Morocco's king opens palace to tourists

It took 1,200 artisans nearly a decade to finish the magnificent Royal Mansour.  
Also: 

The Most Colorful Towns On Earth


The eye often wearies of red brick, gray steel and beige stone. For this, the solution is house paint. When an entire neighborhood assumes the colors of the rainbow, even the front gardens pale in comparison.

Throughout the world, there are ten particularly stunning towns that resemble freshly opened packages of crayons - offering a respite from our dismal urban surroundings and reminding us that our personal environments need not be so bland.

World's Oldest Doodle Found On Rock


Scientists have discovered what is believed to be one of the world's oldest doodles - an ancient scrawl carved onto a rock by a caveman 4,500 years ago. Cambridge University experts believe the crudely etched circles are the Neolithic version of a modern office worker's scribbles on a post-it note.

The 6.6in (17cm) chunk of sandstone was discovered by an amateur archaeologist from the bottom of a deep quarry in Over, Cambs., during a university fun day.

Caravanserai - Staging Post Of The Desert

There were once thousands of caravanserai, staging posts for the weary traveler, dotted throughout Asia, North Africa and the South-Eastern parts of Europe.

The Silk Road, an important and extensive trans-continental network of routes, was dotted with them. Many caravanserai still survive, but more, like the one in the Lut desert of Iran are abandoned and slowly turning to dust.

Workers begin to dismantle WTC ship

Plank by plank, workers are starting to dismantle the remains of a 17th century ship found buried near ground zero.

Several Ancient Shipwrecks Discovered In Mediterranean Sea

Several Ancient Shipwrecks Discovered In Mediterranean Sea

Several Ancient Shipwrecks Discovered In Mediterranean Sea
The discoveries were made as part of a long-term cooperation between Italian authorities and the Aurora Trust, a foundation set up by U.S. entrepreneur Craig Mullen and his partner Ian Koblick that promotes exploration of the Mediterranean seabed.

Shoe

Shoe

Russian spies welcomed home as heroes

Though lousy at espionage, some of the agents have been promised bright futures.
Also: 

Immigrant groups criticize fingerprinting

The federal government is expanding a program to identify illegal immigrants.  
Also: 

A $1.6 million golden shower, er, parachute

The company names its first American CEO, and declares its first losing quarter in 18 years. 
Also: 

Non-Americans ask, "What is this tea party?"


Question from a non-American on reddit.com:
I keep hearing and seeing posts about this tea party?
When is it?? Who is it?? And do I want to be there?
A couple of the answers from that thread:

The "tea party" is a corporate-backed astroturf political "movement" that began right around the time a lot of European-descended "white" Americans realized that there wasn't anything they could do to prevent an African-descended "black" Senator from being elected President of the United States.
A group of almost entirely white, upper-middle-class, Republican men are incensed that there is a "black" man in the White House working in a room that isn't the kitchen.
So, they've taken to the streets to protest policies that they would undoubtedly support if it were a "white" Republican enacting them.
and
"It's the last great hope for America. And really, since you're a foreigner, we shouldn't tell you because it's American made and not for export!
Besides, you couldn't understand anyway because you don't know what it's like to have freedoms (like when I was a kid, why can't we go back to those times?) and we can't translate into your boogabooga language."
Want to take a wild guess as to who is the teabagger of those two cited above?

Church to host 'Burn a Koran Day' on Sept. 11

This ought to go over well ... with the lunatic fundies that is.


A Florida church to host a 'Burn a Koran Day' on Sept. 11.
The Dove World Outreach Center, a non-denominational church founded in Gainesville, Fla., in 1986, has outlined its plans on its website and Facebook page .

Repugican Tennessee Lt. Gov calls Islam a 'cult,' says religious freedom may not count for Muslims

Who needs Osama bin Laden to stoke the hate of the world's Muslims when we have repugicans.
Tennessee Lt. Gov. Ron Ramsey, currently running third in the state's repugican gubernatorial primary race, says he's not sure if Constitutional guarantees of freedom of religion apply to the followers of the world's second-largest faith, Islam.

At a recent event in Hamilton County, Ramsey was asked by a man in the audience about the "threat that's invading our country from the Muslims." Ramsey proclaimed his support for the Constitution and the whole "Congress shall make no law" thing when it comes to religion. But he also said that Islam, arguably, is less a faith than it is a "cult."

"Now, you could even argue whether being a Muslim is actually a religion, or is it a nationality, way of life, cult whatever you want to call it," Ramsey said. "Now certainly we do protect our religions, but at the same time this is something we are going to have to face."
Now, technically calling Islam a cult is scientifically correct as all religions are properly referred to as cults, however I do not think that is the intention of this moron.

Ziggy

Ziggy

N.J. 'Housewife' to auction off possessions

Deeply in debt, Teresa Giudice and her husband must sell the contents of their 16-room mansion.  
Also: 

Parent sues adult child for parental support

Parent sues adult child for parental support

A British Columbia case is the thin edge of a growing trend: parents suing their adult children for support
It's been 16 years since Ken Anderson saw his mother. His parents moved out to B.C.'s West Kootenay region when he was 15,effectively abandoning him.
Basically an adult son who's got a good life of his own that he made for himself without his mother's help, is being sued by this mother because she's in so much debt, and she's a worthless human being.

200 'witches' killed in India each year

As many as 200 women are lynched every year in India after being accused of practicing witchcraft, a study by a charity has found. The deaths are most prevalent in poverty-stricken villages populated by tribal groups in the northern Indian state of Jharkhand, with cases also reported in the states of Andhra Pradesh, Haryana and Orissa.

Avdhash Kaushal, chairman of the Rural Litigation and Entitlement Kendra, said that most victims were single or widowed and were often targeted for their land or money. They are often forced to drink urine or eat excreta in public and are then paraded naked through the village. An estimated 200 are killed each year, with many more committing suicide afterward out of shame.


"During our legal literacy program in tribal villages, we came across these incidents of women being called witches and then being killed," he said of his charity, which helps tribal groups with litigation and welfare. The figure of 200 is an estimate based on research done by the charity in Jharkhand and figures from police and state authorities in other states. In the last 15 years, more than 2500 women have been killed for being witches, Kaushal estimated.

"A law against killing in the name of witchcraft has been passed in the states of Jharkhand, Bihar and Chattisgarh, but it is rarely implemented and the highest punishment for committing such a barbaric act is only three months," he said. The charity has petitioned India's Supreme Court asking the chief justice to investigate the number of women killed.

Broom Hilda

Broom Hilda

Police observe man fighting invisible opponent

At nearly 7 a.m., a man was stopped on an Englewood main street who appeared to be yelling at and fighting an invisible person, who could not be located by police.

Earlier, the visible man was seen urinating on the side of the road.

Upon approaching the man, police noticed an alcoholic odor, and the man said he had been drinking the night before and admitted that he had urinated on the side of the road.

He would not admit to fighting with the invisible person, or say who won the fight. He was cited for disorderly conduct and taken to Montgomery County Jail.

Man Finds $4,800 In Pot In Auction Painting

A Cherokee County man found a hidden treasure in a painting he bought at an auction: four pounds of marijuana.

Floating Pool Concept Could Clean NYC Waters "Like a Giant Strainer"

pluspool1.jpg 
Images: + Pool
A giant floating pool just off the riverside of Manhattan - for swimming and also filters and cleans the water? Why not? That's what a group of designers and architects are proposing in + Pool, a multi-purpose pool and urban revitalization concept that is in the shape of - you guessed it - a plus sign. They are looking for civic support for what is envisioned as a "giant strainer dropped into the river", which will also serve as a public amenity and ecological prototype. We love the sexy pool images and the clever way water filtration is incorporated into the concept:
Article continues: Floating Pool Concept Could Clean NYC Waters "Like a Giant Strainer"

Meet Milo, the reading dog

Rachael Ray puts this precocious pooch to the test by asking him to point out different words.
Also: 

Odds and Sods

I asked several different people what they thought the most unusual food at the Garlic Festival was.
Two boys were caught playing with a sword believed to have belonged to Metis leader Louis Riel that went missing at a festival in Saskatchewan on Saturday.