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rebecca12345
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Below are the 20 most recent journal entries recorded in the "rebecca12345" journal:[<< Previous 20 entries]
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10:43 am
[Link] | I like this comic. Though I don't know whether it is more amusing or depressing..
Current Mood:  amused
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09:11 am
[Link] |
Translating Creationist to English
Here is a fun poem about speaking creationist. Really, it's easier than any reality-based language. You don't have to know anything about what you are talking about, in fact it is better not to since then you might accidentally let some truth into what you are saying. Just lie constantly and shamelessly.
http://digitalcuttlefish.blogspot.com/2008/03/translating-from-creationist-to-english.html
Current Mood:  okay
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04:56 pm
[Link] |
Cladistics
I don't get why this
is on a list of 40 most inappropriate children's book covers. I think it sounds like a great book, and definitely far better than some of the supposedly less offensive. Here is the rest of the list: http://www.cracked.com/article_15923_40-most-inappropriate-childrens-book-covers.html
Current Mood: okay
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04:11 pm
[Link] |
Earth's Greatest Lawsuit
This is rather amusing, though absurd and if they are serious quixotic. Suing religion's that have misled people into giving them money. Though I do like the idea of holding them to truth in advertising laws, though it would never work.
http://www.earthsgreatestlawsuit.org/
I also like today's Cectic. The sad thing is that that sort of thing could actually trick some people. I guess it is no more absurd than most other healing things of that type.
Current Mood:  sad
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11:01 am
[Link] |
XKCD comic
I really like today's XKCD.
Current Mood: content
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06:37 am
[Link] |
Domestic Partnerships
As of yesterday, domestic partnerships for gay couples are legal in Oregon. Since the judge's ruling happened late in the day, Monday will probably be the first day couples can register. Though I wish gay marriages were allowed at the federal level, this is a step in the right direction. Gay couples and their families will at least get some of the legal benefits of marriage within the state of Oregon.
http://www.statesmanjournal.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080202/STATE/802020330/1042
Current Mood: hopeful
Tags: domestic partnerships
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10:12 pm
[Link] |
Student teaching placement!
It has been confirmed! I have a student teaching placement and will be starting my practicum soon. I have been waiting several months for this so I am really excited!
Unfortunately, I am going to have to have my computer sent in to get the DVD-RW drive fixed, which is annoying, but I will get a loaner computer for that time. That is good because otherwise I would just have to wait to get it fixed until I finished my practicum, since I need a computer for lesson plans and everything. Still, I am so excited about the practicum that the computer problem can't bother me too much.
Current Mood: excited
Tags: student teaching
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09:32 am
[Link] | This is just wrong. Camoflauge nuts with a yellow support the troops ribbon on them. What is disturbing is that I am not sure if they are serious. I assumed they weren't, but they say they are donating money to the Support the troops website. So, really wrong either way.
http://www.yournutz.com/store/support-the-troops-desert-camo-campaign-p-156.html
I like today's Bizarro. Fish emerging from the ocean, afraid of creationists. It is rather silly and not entirely accurate, but I think it does capture the attitude of creationists. Evidence that contradicts their beliefs is not welcomed but hated.
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/fun/bizarro.asp
Current Mood: bored
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10:31 am
[Link] |
War on drugs
The war on drugs has been an expensive failure that has filled our prisons, ruined lives and increased other types of crimes that are far from victimless, like theft in order to pay for drugs which cost far more than they would if they were legal. Now, there is a cheap, effective antidote to opioid overdose which could be given to doctors or to the drug users which is being opposed because people might be more likely to keep using drugs without the fear of dieing from overdoses. Also, ending up in the emergency room, if they are lucky enough to get that far alive, might convince them to go into rehab. Anyways, I guess they figure that deaths of drug users are signs of success in the War on Drugs. After all, for each one that dies of an overdose, that is one less drug user. And if one of their friends is scared clean, once in a few hundred deaths, that is a benefit too. So, don't let them have a $9.50 rescue kit that could save their lives.
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=17578955
Current Mood:  pissed off
Tags: war on drugs
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11:33 am
[Link] |
Killer bees and pareidolia
Today I saw something about some really interesting, and terrifying, bees that live in Japan. They are huge, about the size of your thumb, and have a poison that they spray on you that melts your flesh. According to the thing I read, about 40 people die each year. Normally I love bees, but those sound nasty. I don't mind bee stings, since I am apparently not at all allergic, but flesh melting poison is bad.
http://scienceblogs.com/zooillogix/2008/01/the_5_most_horrifying_bugs_in.php
Then on a lighter note, though less in touch with reality, a woman found the image of Jesus in a potato after praying about whether to make a potato salad to bring to a church event. After looking at the picture, I have to say I don't see it. But that is generally the case with pareidolia.
http://digitalcuttlefish.blogspot.com/2008/01/pareidolia.html
http://media.myfoxorlando.com/photogalleries/JesusPotato012108/1/lg/potato5.htm
Current Mood: amused
Tags: pareidolia, science
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12:48 pm
[Link] |
Resolution 888
I think this is a good response to the Resolution 888 which is basically about Christianity and how wonderful it is. Let's also have a resolution that 2+2=3. And if you disagree with that, you are evil and going against my faith-based math.
Current Mood: bored
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12:51 am
[Link] |
Michael Shermer
Tonight I went with a group to Michael Shermer's booksigning for his new book The Mind of the Market. It was really interesting. He talked about how some aspects of how we deal with money and trade in general may have evolved and why we behave in ways which may seem irrational. One example was where a student is given $100 and they decide how much to keep and how much to give to the other student. The other student can either accept, and both get the money, or refuse and neither get any money. Rationally, if the first student kept $90 and gave the other student $10, the second student should accept but almost no one does. People are willing to pay the $10 to prevent the other person from getting the $90 when they think it is unfair. Also, when they split the money more evenly, there is more oxytocin in their brains, which is related to bonding. So, there is an aspect of caring what others think, and reciprocity, and altruism.
During the speech, a couple 9/11 conspiracy theorists got up and made some weird statements, and then claimed that since Michael Shermer was unwilling to answer their questions right then that he was afraid and had lost every debate against one of them he was ever in. In one of the recent issues of Skeptic magazine, which Michael Shermer edits, the focus was 9/11 conspiracy theories. Apparently, I found out later, these 2 don't believe that there were any planes involved, not only at the Pentagon, but even at the World Trade Center. I don't know quite how they manage to make that work in their own minds, but they seem to believe that. Apparently there have been a lot of people like that on this book tour.
After the booksigning, a group of us were talking for a while and Michael Shermer came over and invited us to come with him and some people who had offered to buy him a drink to the Heathman Hotel bar to have a few drinks. So, he drove and most of the rest of us walked over there and hung out for a couple hours. He is really nice and I enjoyed talking to him a lot. It was interesting to hear about his work in skepticism, his views on atheism vs. skepticism or humanism and all that. Also, he talked about some of the people he had met. He told about Hitchens taking him up to his room once and introducing him to single malt scotch, with a whole table full of open bottles of it. And Michael was still drunk the next day when he had to give a speech. Also, Hitchens has apparently decided to give up smoking, as of a couple weeks ago. Which would be weird because all of the stories I have heard about him include the ubiquitous cigarette in one hand and drink in the other. And then, Michael is friends with Dawkins and was talking about how nice he is.
Another interesting thing was hearing about the sort of articles that get submitted to his magazine. Apparently there are a lot of conspiracy theories and pseudoscientific articles. Also, a lot of articles which are just incredibly poorly written. In general, it was a great night. I am really glad I went, since I not only got to listen to Michael Shermer but actually got a chance to talk to him for a couple hours afterwards. Now I am looking forward to reading the books I bought tonight.
Current Mood: excited
Tags: michael shermer
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11:48 am
[Link] | I love Cectic comics. Especially today's. I never understand those who think that this life is insufficient or less valuable if it is all we have. Offering to spend the rest of your life, the only years you have, with someone is more valuable than offering an eternity neither will be able to enjoy.
Current Mood:  contemplative
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11:07 am
[Link] |
Astrology fails
An astrology magazine recently went out of business due to "unforeseen circumstances". Shouldn't they have foreseen them? For example, their horoscopes must have had something about this right? Unless of course astrology doesn't work. No, I suspect they will never come to that conclusion. They are probably disappointed that they can't get rich off of the people who believe in astrology, and their readers will probably just find another place to get their horoscopes. Oh well, it is rather amusing.
http://www.astrologicalmagazine.com/
Current Mood: amused
Tags: astrology
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11:44 am
[Link] |
Improved Catastrophism
All this talk about the universe being created 6,000 years ago is absurd. Really, yesterdayism is a better explanation. The Last Thurdayists almost got it right, but really it all happened yesterday.
http://zsylvester.blogspot.com/2008/01/absurd-catastrophism.html
However, if you want a more traditional view, here are a couple articles explaining the causes of the Cambrian Explosion, which led to the deaths of the Neandertals and the creation of peanut butter. Those damn mitochondria and bacteria just couldn't keep away from each other as God had intended.
http://scienceblogs.com/afarensis/2006/03/31/precambrian_archaeology/
http://scienceblogs.com/afarensis/2007/04/01/the_return_of_the_precambrian/
Current Mood: amused
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12:41 pm
[Link] |
Weirdness
I am used to seeing things attacking Dawkins and The God Delusion, however I just read an article praising Christopher Hitchens' book God is not Great that does this. I can only assume that the writer of the article has only read one of the two books. I have read both, and could understand someone having the exact opposite position, thinking that Hitchens was the one who was offensive, but contrasting them to say that Hitchens was appropriately respectful to religion?
http://articles.citypages.com/2008-01-02/feature/christopher-hitchens/
Current Mood: confused
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11:01 am
[Link] | This is sickening. The Pope has declared, as a supposed solution to the problem of pedophilia in the church, that Catholics should pray about it. Every church is supposed to have someone praying about it at all times. Prayer has only one effect- making it look like they are doing something when they are in fact doing nothing that will change anything. But it is far easier than actually fixing some of the systematic problems in the church which allowed the abuse of children to become such a major problem. That would be difficult, and might require admitting that they had been doing something wrong before. Instead, they pray, and use gays as a scapegoat. Business as usual for the church.
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/comment/faith/article3142511.ece
Current Mood: angry
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10:45 am
[Link] | I like Cectic comics. They often have amusing comments on religion and people who advocate various types of woo. Today's comic is about the weird fantasies the alties who rail against big pharma seem to have. They think that big pharma is actively harming people, producing false information and suppressing cures that would really work.
http://cectic.com/095.html
Unfortunately, they are more likely to be listened to than mocked or treated as crazy.
Current Mood: amused
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06:46 pm
[Link] | A Young Earth Creationist who has a fossil "museum" which supposedly supports the idea of a young earth, and special creation, apparently found a mastodon fossil a few years ago. Now, he is auctioning it off, instead of giving it to a museum or anything like that. Hopefully a real museum will be able to buy it, but that will still mean money that will go to the YEC museum to help it spread lies. And, from the website, it looks like there are other fossils being sold. I guess that is fine when you believe that it is all meaningless, and devote your life to trying to prove that a book written thousands of years ago by people who didn't have much of the information we know have is completely literally true.
http://www.mtblanco.com/
When I see things like this, people who do seem to look at enough evidence that they should know that they are wrong, I wonder if they are just completely deluded or dishonest. Or maybe both. I hope that on some level they know they are wrong.
Current Mood: angry
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03:50 pm
[Link] | This is an amusing graphic. Shows some of the absurdity of the YEC camp. Admittedly it is not exactly what they believe, but what they really believe doesn't make any more sense and is somewhat less amusing.
http://www.tonmo.com/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=1316&d=1125668767
And here is a fun comic. I like the part about the problems with becoming a YEC. He actually understands math, so he can't possibly be a YEC. And, even worse, he might have some acquaintance with logic and reality.
http://cectic.com/094.html
Current Mood: amused
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