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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.


Thursday, October 22, 2009

Rape Called a Pre-Existing Condition

This is an outrage of unprecedented proportions!
This is a disturbing story.
It's the story of a woman who made the choice, after being raped, of taking anti-AIDS medication for a month, as a precautionary step.
Little did she know it would scar her for life, in the minds of insurance underwriters.

Full Story


FDA Warns of Online Swine Flu Scams

Many seem to be ready to toss aside swine flu as something to worry about.
Many seem ready to skip the swine flu shot.
At the same time, many are ready to fall for Internet H1N1 scams, as the Food and Drug Administration warned today.

Full Story

After Election Results Announced, McCain Voters Saw Testosterone Drop

A study published in the Public Library of Science (PLOS One) examined the results of the 2008 Presidential Election.
In this case, however, the results were examined using a different metric than most: testosterone level.

Full Story


Found: first 'skylight' on the moon

A hole in the lunar surface has been found that could lead to a vast underground tunnel – it could one day provide shelter for human settlers.

Found: first 'skylight' on the moon

The poll is out

A new Gallup poll shows that 44% of Americans favor legalization of pot.

Student advertises for a personal assistant

Student advertises for a personal assistant

A busy sophomore wants someone to schedule haircuts, do laundry, and gas up his car.

Pay
Also:

Homebuyer tax credit under scrutiny

Homebuyer tax credit under scrutiny

Allegations of massive fraud may jeopardize efforts to extend the popular program.

Exercise may make you smarter

Exercise may make you smarter

Workouts that raise your heart rate may boost your brainpower, a study shows.

Ways to jazz up plain hot cocoa

5 ways to jazz up plain hot cocoa

A few extra ingredients can transform ordinary chocolate into a fiery drink.

Natural ways to avoid colds and flu

Natural ways to avoid colds and flu

Try these simple solutions to help strengthen your immune system.

When to start receiving Social Security

When to start receiving Social Security

Sometimes delaying your retirement benefits can pay off significantly.

4-day workweek brings unexpected bonus

4-day workweek brings unexpected bonus

Utah's experiment with a shorter week has paid off in ways the state didn't even anticipate.

Secret weapon in climate war

Secret weapon in climate war

A slimy, fast-growing "nuisance" may hold the key to easing climate change.

Food giveaway whets appetites

Food giveaway whets appetites

A chain restaurant's second free promotion is creating another frenzy.

Controversial moon theory rewrites history

Controversial moon theory rewrites history

New evidence refutes the long-held theory that a huge collision formed Earth's moon.

Story
Also:

Most impoverished cities in the U.S.

Most impoverished cities in the U.S.

"The Great Recession" has brought 2.6 million more Americans into poverty.

Products that are booming now

10 products that are booming now

These consumer items have managed to outpace the competition during the severe downturn.

Navy's new warships built for speed

Navy's new warships built for speed

Two new combat ships topping out at "unheard-of" speeds could transform the war on piracy.

How a mistake felled the Berlin Wall

How a mistake felled the Berlin Wall

Crucial questions at a news conference led to one of the biggest fumbles in history.

Jet misses airport by 150 miles

Jet misses airport by 150 miles

Northwest Airlines pilots overshoot their destination and don't make radio contact for over an hour.

Player's good deed backfires badly

Player's good deed backfires badly

Caroline Wozniacki's gesture of sportsmanship in tennis leads to an investigation.

Jobless Americans losing their lifeline

Jobless Americans losing their lifeline

Every day in the U.S., 7,000 jobless workers lose their unemployment benefits.

What do you get ...

What do you get when you cross poison ivy with a 4-leaf clover?

A rash of good luck.

And I Quote

Only those who will risk going too far can possibly find out how far one can go.

~ T.S. Eliot

NTSA says check for Apena

The National Transportation Safety Board said Tuesday that commercial truck and bus drivers and merchant ship pilots should be screened for sleep apnea.

Safety board issues wake-up call on sleep disorder

Who owns our debt

We went from being the largest lender nation to the largest debtor nation under ronnie raygun and things haven't gotten better. Except with the 8 years under Clinton the debt was reduced, but with the shrub's 'fiscal conservative' handling of the debt it ballooned out of all sense.

Of course those that caused the debt are lying about it and blaming everyone else (as they always do about everything) only this time no one is believing them - and as usual they are clueless about it.

who owns america

Financial Services Technology: Federal deficit: who owns what?

Go get'em Al

Senator Al Franken is kicking booty and taking names ...

In a hearing on health care:

One of the highlights of the hearing was when sen. Al Franken (D-Mn) questioned Hudson Institute senior fellow Diana Furchtgott-Roth about medical bankruptcies. Franken asked Furchtgott-Roth — who claimed that moving towards a European-style system of universal health care would increase bankruptcies — about how many medical bankruptcies there were in countries that have universal health care, like Switzerland and France. Furchtgott-Rott repeatedly told franken that she didn’t “have that number,” and Franken informed her that the number was actually zero.
Think Progress

How your brain creates the fourth dimension

Time is an illusion: your brain stitches it together until it seems continuous.
But what happens when it goes wrong?

Timewarp

Rethinking Relativity

An analysis of ancient light from distant galaxies suggests that gravity once distorted time more than space.
That's not the way Einstein saw things.

Is time out of joint?

Athropologial News

Humans were settled on open grassland in Africa as early as 2 million years ago, making stone tools and using them to butcher zebra and other grazers.

Mona Lisa's smile a mystery no more

Leonardo da Vinci's enigmatic portrait works by sending mixed signals to the brain.

Mona Lisa's smile a mystery no more

Archaeological News

5000-year-old pottery and new districts found in a sunken settlement off the coast of Greece make it the oldest known underwater town.

Underwater town breaks antiquity record

Science News

From BBC-Science:


Click to reveal

Pearl River Tower China boasts 'world's greenest tower'

Leaping wolf snatches photo prize

From BBC-Science:
Storybook wolf (Jose Luis Rodruiguez)
A captivating image of a wolf wins the prestigious Wildlife Photographer of the Year award.

Paleontological News

Truth about controversial fossil

The huge fanfare surrounding a fossil discovery this spring may not have been warranted.

Worst things to do with credit cards

Worst things to do with credit cards

A late payment isn't as harmful as you might think, but some mistakes will decimate your credit.

Bad to worst
Also:

Bittersweet Symphony

The Verve

Stressful yet satisfying jobs

10 stressful yet satisfying jobs

These careers have their share of challenges but can give a real sense of accomplishment.

Unusual Holidays and Celebrations

All right now!
Another day without any events to speak of - we're slacking off folks.

Daily Almanac

Today is Thursday, Oct. 22, the 295th day of 2009.

There are 70 days left in the year.

Today In History October 22

Our Readers

Some of our readers today have been in:

Paris, Ile-De-France, France
London, England, United Kingdom
Porto, Porto, Portugal
Kelowna, British Columbia, Canada
Bangalore, Karnataka, India
Queenstown, Otago, New Zealand
Monterrey, Nuevo Leon, Mexico

as well as Luxembourg, and the United States

Daily Horoscope

Today's horoscope says:

There's a threatening gray cloud of pessimism just over the horizon.
Its power over your life will increase exponentially with each negative person you encounter today, so try to stick with people who always see the bright side of life and who are good at cheering you up.
Stay away from naysayers who tell you the things you want to do can't be done.
Because the truth is, anything that you can think of can happen -- if you persevere.

Oooh, don't be so negative people.