Clipmarks | anilarora's clips

Atheism: 10 Myths & 10 Truths For The Open-Minded

Tue, 26 Dec 2006 07:55:26 GMT

clipped by: BartendingBear
clipper's remarks: These 10 Myths of Atheism are well countered by the 10 Truths offered in answer to them in this article.

Clip Source: www.latimes.com

10 myths -- and 10 truths -- about atheism

SEVERAL POLLS indicate that the term "atheism" has acquired such an extraordinary stigma in the United States that being an atheist is now a perfect impediment to a career in politics (in a way that being black, Muslim or homosexual is not). According to a recent Newsweek poll, only 37% of Americans would vote for an otherwise qualified atheist for president.

Atheists are often imagined to be intolerant, immoral, depressed, blind to the beauty of nature and dogmatically closed to evidence of the supernatural.

Atheists believe that life is meaningless.

Atheism is responsible for the greatest crimes in human history.

Atheism is dogmatic.

Atheists think everything in the universe arose by chance.

Atheism has no connection to science.

Atheists are arrogant.

Atheists are closed to spiritual experience.

Atheists believe that there is nothing beyond human life and human understanding.

Atheists ignore the fact that religion is extremely beneficial to society.

Atheism provides no basis for morality.

We have made considerable moral progress over the years, and we didn't make this progress by reading the Bible or the Koran more closely. Both books condone the practice of slavery — and yet every civilized human being now recognizes that slavery is an abomination. Whatever is good in scripture — like the golden rule — can be valued for its ethical wisdom without our believing that it was handed down to us by the creator of the universe.

Tags: religion, atheism, logic, truth, rationality

11 Rules of Writing

Wed, 20 Dec 2006 14:28:59 GMT

clipped by: wurdzgurl

Clip Source: www.junketstudies.com

1. To join two independent clauses, use a comma followed by a conjunction, a semicolon alone, or a semicolon followed by a sentence modifier.

2. Use commas to bracket nonrestrictive phrases, which are not essential to the sentence's meaning.

3. Do not use commas to bracket phrases that are essential to a sentence's meaning.

4. When beginning a sentence with an introductory phrase or an introductory (dependent) clause, include a comma.

5. To indicate possession, end a singular noun with an apostrophe followed by an "s". Otherwise, the noun's form seems plural.

6. Use proper punctuation to integrate a quotation into a sentence. If the introductory material is an independent clause, add the quotation after a colon. If the introductory material ends in "thinks," "saying," or some other verb indicating expression, use a comma.

7. Make the subject and verb agree with each other, not with a word that comes between them.

8. Be sure that a pronoun, a participial phrase, or an appositive refers clearly to the proper subject.

9. Use parallel construction to make a strong point and create a smooth flow.

10. Use the active voice unless you specifically need to use the passive.

11. Omit unnecessary words.

Tags: writing, grammar

God's Inbox

Mon, 11 Dec 2006 15:13:50 GMT

clipped by: coconutshell
clipper's remarks: Hahhaahhahahah!!! Since I'm being evil, I'm sure that Father Christmas would leave me coal in my stocking this year. Coal won't be so bad.........................

As long as it comes with a grill and steaks.

Clip Source: haha.nu

God’s Inbox

Check how might the God’s Inbox looks like (check also the desktop too)? Author: Evan Eisen. Click on the image to enlarge.

Tags: humour, religion, funny, internet, email, inbox

Diseases Follow Environmental Degradation

Tue, 05 Dec 2006 13:45:43 GMT

clipped by: Deepti

Clip Source: www.ipsnews.org

CHERTHALA, Kerala, Dec 4 (IPS/IFEJ) - Lulled by social indices that compare with the developed world's and tourist brochures that gush over 'God's Own Country', the deaths of 125 people from an outbreak of the mosquito-borne disease, chikungunya, has come as a reality check for people in this southern state.

Authorities and experts, starting with federal health minister Anbumani Ramadoss, were quick to point out that the outbreak, which raged through September and October, was linked to insanitary conditions fostered by creeping environmental degradation in Kerala, known for its lush, spice-growing hills, riverine valleys and serene backwaters that empty into the Arabian sea.

Nowhere did the epidemic strike harder than in the state's prime tourist destination of Alappuzha district, whose population of two million people suddenly found suddenly itself at the mercy of aedes aegypti mosquito and the virus it carried.

Apparently, a decline in traditional agriculture, combined with a rise in industries related to the export of marine and coir products had upset the delicate ecology of the backwaters and turned Cherthala into a vast cesspool of industrial and other effluents.

The high level of organic, chemical and sanitary waste has led to a marked decrease in the oxygen levels, which in turn resulted has in the extermination of fish and toads, natural predators which keep mosquitoes under control.

According to local residents, an early indication of the increasing contamination of the waterways was the large number of dead fish found floating in the nearby Vembanad lake, a few years ago. This was a direct consequence of the contamination of the lake water by the coir and other industrial units situated close to it, they alleged.

Local farmers have another explanation for the rising levels of mosquito infestation. A steady decline in the prices of the paddy produced locally had resulted in most of the farmers giving up rice cultivation, they say.

Tags: kerala, india, disease, mosquitos, environment, chikungunya

5 Steps to Being More Photogenic

Fri, 01 Dec 2006 05:24:15 GMT

clipped by: meerkat
clipper's remarks: So useful for professional portraits, or for random pictures with your friends. Ah, vanity.

Clip Source: www.digitalcamerau.com

Step 1

If you are standing - turn slightly and rest your weight on one foot. It may FEEL goofy, but you WILL look better.

If you are sitting – angle to one side or the other.

Step 2

Lean slightly toward the camera – Leaning slightly toward the camera adds interest, dimension, and a natural look to a photo. Think of having a long neck like a gazelle, and tilt your chin down just a bit to avoid the appearance of a double chin and also to prevent the camera from getting a view right up your nostrils.

Step 3

Models are taught to change state by developing a ‘trigger.’ So when they are about to have their picture taken, even if they are in a crummy mood, they can go from level 1 to level 5 in a heart beat. Firing a trigger is a reminder to do the things that make you look good. Believe it or not, THE most successful trigger we found over the years was called the ‘rear cheek squeeze.’ It’s really cool because it’s inconspicuous. Yes, it’s exactly what it sounds like; you squeeze the cheeks of your rear end together. Don’t make fun of it until you try it. To see it’s effectiveness try this experiment. Ask someone to sit on a chair and then ask them to squeeze their cheeks together. I have not met ONE person who doesn’t immediately smile and say something like, okay, now what?

Step 4

Learn to ¾ smile – People just don’t like pictures of themselves with huge smiles. Smiling too big exposes gums and causes your eyes to turn into slits.

Step 5

Never look directly at the lens – ALWAYS, look slightly ABOVE the lens.

Tags: tips, photo, howto

You can D/L Vista wallpaper hear...(nice pics)

Tue, 28 Nov 2006 14:07:01 GMT

clipped by: mingkymomo
clipper's remarks: nice wallpaper

Clip Source: labnol.blogspot.com

Download Windows Vista Wallpapers

posted by Amit Agarwal on 11/24/2006 03:00:00 PM

You can download Windows Vista Wallpapers by just right clicking on any of the thumbnail images and choose "Save Target As" to save the large size Vista wallpaper image to your hard disk.

These are high resolution Vista Wallpapers and will also fit your wide screen Laptops. Will even make a perfect Windows Vista theme for XP.

The above gallery of Windows Vista Wallpaper images is constructed from Flickr where the wallpapers were uploaded by Brajeshwar, a popular Adobe Geek and Macromedia Flash guru.

If you are not upgrading from XP to Vista yet, this is possibly the easiest way to make your XP Desktop look like Windows Vista [choose one of the green Wallpapers with leaves and water drops or one with bamboo sticks]

If you like to download the entire Vista wallpaper collection in one go, Brajeshwar has put them in a ZIP file for you. Here are the links:
Microsoft Windows Vista Wallpaper Pack

Microsoft Windows Vista r5381 Wallpaper [Officially wallpapers from Microsoft bundled in the latest Windows Vista build.]

Tags: windows, vista, beautiful, pics, wallpaper, nice

Santhara - Fasting to death

Thu, 23 Nov 2006 06:21:16 GMT

clipped by: Deepti

Clip Source: www.bbc.co.uk

Santhara or Sallenkhana is a procedure in which a Jain stops eating with the intention of preparing for death. This is different from suicide as it is not taken in passionate mood of anger, deceit or other emotions, but is undertaken only when the body is no more capable of serving its owner as a instrument of sprituality and when inevitability of death is a matter of undisputed certainty.

The intention is to purify the body, and remove all thought of the physical things from the mind.

As well as giving up food and water, the ascetic abandons all desires and dislikes so that they can concentrate exclusively on the spiritual as they approach death.

Those who undertake santhara are revered by fellow Jains and their deaths are celebrated publicly. Local newspapers praise them and families often take out full page advertisements of the practice. Santhara is seen as the ultimate way to expunge all sins and karma, liberating the soul from the cycle of birth, death and rebirth.

In India euthanasia is banned and suicide is a crime. People who try to kill themselves are jailed and people who help them in the act are charged with abetting a suicide. If there is a hunger strike and someone fasts to the point of danger, the police are allowed to force-feed the person and charge them with a criminal offence.

In September 2006 five people died after undertaking santhara. Experts estimate that over 200 people die annually across India from such fasts. Human rights organisations say santhara is comparable to suicide and euthanasia and must not be allowed to continue.

But opponents say santhara is a fundamental breach of Article 21 of the Indian constitution, which guarantees the right to life - but not death. After human rights activists filed a writ in the Rajasthan high court, the Jain community faced a court notice asking them to answer the allegations.

Tags: jains, india, fasting, death, suicide, law, constitution, culture

Barbaric divorce ritual continues in India

Wed, 22 Nov 2006 09:52:14 GMT

clipped by: Deepti

Clip Source: www.positiveatheism.org

Barbaric Divorce Ritual
Continues In India
by Chuck Shepherd
source: Bozeman Daily Chronicle, AP

The Associated Press reported on the growing movement in Muslim countries to abandon the ancient tradition of permitting husbands to divorce their wives by shouting "Talaq!" three times. Pakistan, Turkey, Syria, and Indonesia are among the nations that have abandoned the tradition, but it continues in India.

In India, a man may either shout "Talaq" three times at once, with the divorce effective four months later, or shout "Talaq" one time during each of three consecutive menstrual periods and be divorced immediately after the third shout.

Tags: muslim, india, divorce, marriage, family, law, women, rights

Best pics of 2005

Wed, 22 Nov 2006 08:10:40 GMT

clipped by: frozonfreak

Clip Source: www.avolitesshop.co.uk

Tags: pics nature

History Repeats ? How feasible is a divided Iraq ?

Wed, 22 Nov 2006 01:29:41 GMT

clipped by: sohil
clipper's remarks:

Cut back to 1947.
Ethnic riots had broken out across India, and its leaders decided the best course of action was to divide the country. Cyril Radcliffe drew a line across a map dividing communities that had lived together for hundreds of years.
Result: a million deaths and 14-16 million people displaced. Neither was that the end of the story. India and Pakistan didn't stop fighting, Pakistan imploded violently into two nations, and the mayhem still goes on in Kashmir.

It's only a unified, multicultural Iraq that can preserve some semblance of independence and decency.

Clip Source: timesofindia.indiatimes.com

One of the solutions that has been floated by the Iraq Study Group, an independent commission set up by US Congress, is to split Iraq into three regions: Shia, Sunni and Kurdish. Cut back to 1947.

Ethnic riots had broken out across India, and its leaders decided the best course of action was to divide the country. Cyril Radcliffe drew a line across a map dividing communities that had lived together for hundreds of years.

Result: a million deaths and 14-16 million people displaced. Neither was that the end of the story. India and Pakistan didn't stop fighting, Pakistan imploded violently into two nations, and the mayhem still goes on in Kashmir.

Clip Source: timesofindia.indiatimes.com

But as Anthony Cordesman of Washington's Centre for Strategic and International Studies has pointed out, 53 per cent of Iraq's population live in four cities and three of them are mixed. Any division of Iraq in terms of ethnic majo-rities will be a disaster.

The Sunnis would be losers as they would be left in possession of its central rump, barren and with few oil wells. India's Muslim League elite might have fancied themselves as inheritors of the Mughals, but Mughal power was ceded a long time back.

By contrast Sunnis, who just the other day ran all of Iraq and commanded its oil revenues, will have lost everything in the space of a few years.

Their rage will turn their part of the country into a base for Al-Qaida. Shia Iraq will be dominated by Iran. Turkey and Iran will find an autonomous Kurdish region threatening, to fend them off Kurds will invite the US in.

Just as in South Asia divided and quarrelling nations are the perfect recipe for big power intervention. It's only a unified, multicultural Iraq that can preserve some semblance of independence and decency.

Tags: iraq, iraq war, iran, turkey, india, pakistan, al qaeda, terrorism, war, war on terror, muslim, muslims, islam, shia, sunni, kurd, 1947, south asia, kashmir, bush, bush administration, rumsfeld, us, usa, united states, nato, congress

At 35, Kiran Desai becomes the youngest woman to win the Man Booker Prize.

Mon, 13 Nov 2006 12:58:34 GMT

clipped by: anilarora

Clip Source: www.frontlineonnet.com

THE story of Kiran Desai's Man Booker Prize, which was awarded in a ceremony held on October 10, is linked by way of trivia as well as by literary inheritance to the story of Indian writing in English. While Kiran was attending the awards dinner, her mother, Anita Desai, who had been shortlisted for the prize three times but never won it, was away in a Tibetan settlement near Dehra Dun, without access to telephone or television.

Tags: awards

Orhan Pamuk, winner of the Nobel Prize for Literature, is a master at mixing known genres and style

Mon, 13 Nov 2006 12:56:19 GMT

clipped by: anilarora

Clip Source: www.frontlineonnet.com

His eight novels, the most famous amongst them, My Name is Red, The Black Book, The New Life, The White Castle and Istanbul are available in English translation and reveal palpably his evolution as a writer. He is, to be sure, a product of the modern and not unsurprisingly, postmodern world. That he is Turkish is no surprise.

Tags: awards

Economist Muhammad Yunus and the Grameen Bank of Bangladesh win the Nobel Peace Prize for 2006.

Mon, 13 Nov 2006 12:54:14 GMT

clipped by: anilarora
clipper's remarks: vvvv imp

Clip Source: www.frontlineonnet.com

THERE are many reasons to celebrate the award of the Nobel Peace Prize for 2006 jointly to Muhammad Yunus, the recognised creator of the "microcredit" model of finance for the poor that has swept across the developing world, and the Grameen Bank in Bangladesh that he founded three decades ago. These reasons go well beyond appreciation of the valuable human qualities of the man himself, such as his creativity, persistence, charisma and passionate advocacy in promoting this model widely and extending it in various ways. The reasons for celebration also go beyond regional pride - as South Asians, or even as citizens of the developing world in general.

Tags: awards nobel

Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva takes the second round of the presidential poll in Brazil by storm.

Mon, 13 Nov 2006 12:48:56 GMT

clipped by: anilarora

Clip Source: www.frontlineonnet.com

LUIZ INACIO LULA DA SILVA is the second President in recent Brazilian history to win two successive terms in office. Lula, who represents the Left-wing Workers Party, narrowly failed to win the election outright in the first round of voting on October 1. To compensate for that setback, Brazilians handed him a resounding victory in the second and final vote on October 28. Lula won more than 61 per cent of the votes polled. His Centre-Right rival Geraldo Alckmin, a former Governor of the prosperous Sao Paulo State and the candidate of the Brazil Social Democratic Party and Liberal Front (PSDB-FL), got roughly 39 per cent of the vote. In the first round, he had polled more than 41 per cent.

Tags: upsc brazil

judges

Mon, 13 Nov 2006 11:59:06 GMT

clipped by: anilarora
clipper's remarks: imp ..

Clip Source: timesofindia.indiatimes.com

Nine judges of the Supreme Court sat for five days from October 30 to hear arguments regarding the scope of power of Parliament to amend the Constitution. However, a 13-judge bench of the Supreme Court considered the same question of the scope of the amending power under Article 368 in 1973 in the celebrated case of Keshavanand Bharti.

Soon after the judgment in Keshava-nand, Nani Palkhivala, who appeared in the case, wrote, "The effect of the majority judgment of the Supreme Court may be summed up thus: Parliament cannot, in the exercise of its amending power, alter the basic structure or framework of the Constitution...

The amending power cannot be so exercised as to make the Constitution suffer a loss of identity". The majority decision of the five-judge bench in the Golaknath case had taken the view that even an amendment of the Constitution under Article 368 could be questioned on the violation of a fundamental right.

This was overruled in Keshavanand and it was held that the constituent power of Parliament could not be questioned on the violation of a fundamental right and the only limitation was that such an amendment could not alter the basic structure of the Constitution.

One of the points before the nine judges of the Constitution bench is whether an Act which was struck down by courts on the ground of violating fundamental rights could be validated by a constitutional amendment by putting it in the Ninth Schedule and giving it immunity from judicial review.

Tags: expect rate 4/5