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Possible new UK law will require psychics to prove claims

Sat, 19 Apr 2008 16:25:50 GMT

clipped by: enbar
clipper's remarks: If it is passed, the law -- an anti-fraud measure aimed at protecting consumers -- may severely curtail the activities of spiritualist healers, psychics, mediums, and related practitioners. Raises some interesting church-state issues.

Clip Source: news.bbc.co.uk

There may be trouble ahead

BBC News

A change in the law could mean mediums, psychics and healers face prosecution if they cannot justify their claims. Spiritualists are delivering a mass petition to Downing Street and complaining that a genuine religion is being discriminated against.

Parliament is about to debate measures that will see all forms of paid-for paranormal activities fall under the new Consumer Protection Regulations. As well as tackling a raft of more mundane commercial sharp practice, these regulations will also replace the Fraudulent Mediums Act 1951.

And some mediums are not happy. Under the old legislation, it had to be proven that any accused psychic was setting out to commit a fraud. The first case was a man in 1952 on a charge that he did in "purporting to act as a spiritualistic medium, unlawfully use a certain fraudulent device, namely, a length of cheesecloth". He was acquitted, setting a pattern for the last 50 years of very few prosecutions.

Tags: religion, uk, news, law, church_and_state, spirituality, post:facebook(source), post:googlereader(source)

"Can the world afford a middle class?"

Sat, 09 Feb 2008 05:46:05 GMT

clipped by: enbar
clipper's remarks: This is an interesting, straightforward, clear-eyed article, if not as subtle as the title makes it sound. (It doesn't really mean "middle class," it means "people who aren't living at a subsistence level.")

Clip Source: www.latimes.com

Can the world afford a middle class?

More countries are pulling themselves out of poverty, placing greater demand on food supplies and natural resources.

By Moisés Naím
February 8, 2008

The middle class in poor countries is the fastest-growing segment of the world's population. While the total population of the planet will increase by about a billion people in the next 12 years, the ranks of the middle class will swell by as many as 1.8 billion -- 600 million just in China.

These protesters are the most vociferous manifestations of a global trend: We are all paying more for bread, milk and chocolate, to name just a few items. The new consumers of the emerging global middle class are driving up global food prices. The food-price index compiled since 1845 by the Economist is now at its all-time high; it increased 30% in 2007 alone. Wheat and soybean prices rose by almost 80% and 90%, respectively. Many other grains reached record highs.

Tags: energy, environment, economics, international, commentary, post:facebook(source)

Lunar eclipse in North America, Feb. 20/21

Sat, 02 Feb 2008 04:05:38 GMT

clipped by: enbar
clipper's remarks: A lunar eclipse will be visible in North America, beginning 8:43 pm EST on Feb. 20 and ending 12:09 a.m. EST Feb. 21 (totality 10:01-10:51).

Clip Source: sunearth.gsfc.nasa.gov

NASA (National Aeronautics and Space Administration)

Eclipse Home Page

by Fred Espenak, GSFC Planetary Systems Laboratory

Total Lunar Eclipse: February 20, 2008

--- Live Webcast of Eclipse! ---

Path of the Moon through Earth's umbral and penumbral shadows
during the Total Lunar Eclipse of February 20, 2008.
(Eastern Standard Time)

A total eclipse of the Moon occurs during the night of Wednesday, February 20/21, 2008. The entire event is visible from South America and most of North America as well as Western Europe, Africa, and western Asia. During a total lunar eclipse, the Moon's disk can take on a dramatically colorful appearance from bright orange to blood red to dark brown and (rarely) very dark gray.

Tags: events, science, moon, post:tumblr, post:facebook(source)

Mosio: realtime mobile Q & A. Try it

Tue, 13 Nov 2007 03:07:35 GMT

clipped by: enbar
clipper's remarks: Text-message a question, get an answer from whoever happens to be browsing the site. Check the site out. It's fun in a weird way. People sort of race to give the best answers.

Sometimes it's "where's the closest pool hall to this address," sometimes it's "when is Pirates of the Caribbean coming out on DVD," sometimes it's "what country is the largest exporter of rice."

Clip Source: www.mosio.com

[+] birthday@: Birthday Reminders to your phone so you don't forget again!

Get a birthday reminder to your phone, text "MM/DD Friend's Name" to birthday@mosio.com

Clip Source: www.mosio.com

What credit score do you usually have to have to get a credit card? Been building mine...
-boggle (44Q / 115A) Mon Nov 12, 2007 6:36pm

No answer yet! Answer this now

Permalink

+answer

Clip Source: www.mosio.com

What is the form for a haiku
-tbthorpe (3Q / 0A) Mon Nov 12, 2007 6:05pm

it's 5 syllables, 7, then 5.

-TransAm (0Q / 49A) Mon Nov 12, 2007 6:06pm

it's five syllables
then put seven syllables
then again with five.

-elvis (34Q / 84A) Mon Nov 12, 2007 6:09pm

You rock Elvis. Cheers.

-ashkalb (7Q / 31A) Mon Nov 12, 2007 6:20pm

Permalink

+answer

Clip Source: www.mosio.com

Who is the lead singer of three door down?
-Catty1212 (66Q / 0A) Mon Nov 12, 2007 5:28pm

Brad Arnold is the lead singer of Three Doors Down.

-TransAm (0Q / 49A) Mon Nov 12, 2007 5:29pm

Permalink

+answer

Clip Source: www.mosio.com

Where is michigan st located?
-masterscruffy (11Q / 0A) Mon Nov 12, 2007 5:12pm

Tags: mobile, cool, social, questions, 2.0, post:facebook(source)

Another update on Lakshmi Tatma, the 8-limbed toddler

Tue, 06 Nov 2007 19:15:03 GMT

clipped by: enbar
clipper's remarks: I find it fascinating that people in her home village revered her as a reincarnated goddess and even opposed the surgery.

Clip Source: www.deccanherald.com

Monday, November 5, 2007

Divine intervention for baby Lakshmi

Reckoned as the Goddess in her dusty remote village in Ahraria district, Bihar, two-year old Lakshmi led a miserable life because she was joined by birth to her half formed twin.

Her eight limbs convinced the villagers that she was the Goddess incarnate and thronged her house with flowers, offerings and prayers. But Lakshmi’s poor and illiterate parents knew that their daughter needed immediate medical attention. They ran from pillar to post but could not get appropriate help. No doctor was willing to undertake the complicated surgery, which her poor parents could ill-afford.

Lakshmi is actually a pair of conjoined twins, but only one of the twins has a head. Two
pairs of arms and legs have formed at either end of the two adjoining torsos, creating a child with eight limbs which she can move and control.

Tags: health, science, medicine, news, international, india, post:facebook(source)

The Pixies likes you've never heard them before

Fri, 26 Oct 2007 04:05:28 GMT

clipped by: enbar
clipper's remarks: This is amazing. An a capella glee club doing the Pixies.

Clip Source: www.youtube.com

The Blue Ribbon Glee Club Live at Ronny's: Where Is My Mind?

[Video]

From: robkrobkrobk

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The first song of the debut performance of the ...

The first song of the debut performance of the Blue Ribbon Glee Club. Taped at Ronny's bar in Chicago, IL.

Added: May 06, 2007

Category: Music

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Blue Ribbon Glee Club Blueribbongleeclub punk choir choral Ronny's Where Is My Mind Pixies

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Tags: music, video, punk, cool, vocal, post:facebook(source)

Archive of Baltic-related KGB documents now online

Wed, 12 Sep 2007 23:06:18 GMT

clipped by: enbar
clipper's remarks: Via the AHA blogs (blogs.historians.org). A collection of documents related to KGB activities in the Baltic states has now been put online by a consortium based in Lithuania.

Clip Source: www.kgbdocuments.eu

www.kgbdocuments.eu is on-line!

Welcome!

The idea for this project was born a long time ago but was not finalised until 2006, when historians from Latvia, Estonia and Lithuania met in Vilnius. The project aimed to make public KGB documents from the years of the occupation of the three countries.

There were more motives to prepare an online site. First of all, historians from the three countries have always been annoyed by Russian propaganda that there had never been any occupation of any of the three Baltic States. Many historians were tired of getting into polemics with allegedly non-partisan Russian print and broadcast media representatives on the subject. The more so that later the historians’ arguments were presented out of context, and separate comments were used according to the strict scenario useful to Moscow’s propaganda...

Tags: history, primary_source, europe, russia, post:facebook(source), post:tumblr, !toread

Feast of Fools interviews Chocolate Rain's Tay Zonday

Sat, 11 Aug 2007 17:39:09 GMT

clipped by: enbar
clipper's remarks: This is why I gotta love the Internet. You don't just get Tay Zonday's wacky YouTube video. You get the video, plus the online conversation around it. Turns out he's an Am Civ grad student with interesting things to say about race and GLBT issues.

Clip Source: www.feastoffools.net

Gay Fun Show Show Me Now! Mini Bites Tasty Zine Community

Home About Us Photos Ringtones Questions Advertise Music Blogroll Store Media Kit Contact

FOF #585 - My Name is Tay Zonday - 08.07.07

Tay Zonday’s video caught on because it’s a great blank canvass for people to superimpose themselves. If the song was directly addressing race it wouldn’t be so much fun to make your own version.

Also, the mismatch of Tay’s voice with his face, his obliqueness and outsider feel adds to the appeal. Like the Mona Lisa, Tay Zonday’s knowing yet emotionally unavailable gaze draws us in further.

Tay Zonday (in this interview):

“Consumerism has reduced participation in our democracy to where we feel obligated to say ‘I love this’ or ‘I hate this’ and there isn’t any more sophisticated public discourse in that binary.”

Tags: chocolate_rain, interview, podcast, blogclip, glbt, music, !toread, post:facebook(source)

Profile of biblical scholar Bart Ehrman (2006)

Sat, 11 Aug 2007 03:50:37 GMT

clipped by: enbar
clipper's remarks: Journalist Neely Tucker profiles Bart Ehrman, concentrating on the story of his gradual loss of faith as he studied the origins of the New Testament. Nice piece of religion journalism. Archived at http://webcitation.org/5R0Hnb9Xp

Clip Source: www.washingtonpost.com

The Book of Bart

In the Bestseller 'Misquoting Jesus,' Agnostic Author Bart Ehrman Picks Apart the Gospels That Made a Disbeliever Out of Him

Bart Ehrman is a sermon, a parable, but of what? He's a best-selling author, a New Testament expert and perhaps a cautionary tale: the fundamentalist scholar who peered so hard into the origins of Christianity that he lost his faith altogether.

But after three decades of research into that divine revelation, Ehrman became an agnostic. What he found in the ancient papyri of the scriptorium was not the greatest story ever told, but the crumbling dust of his own faith.

"Sometimes Christian apologists say there are only three options to who Jesus was: a liar, a lunatic or the Lord," he tells a packed auditorium here at the University of North Carolina, where he chairs the department of religious studies. "But there could be a fourth option -- legend."

Tags: books, religion, christianity, bible, evangelicalism, journalism, interview, news, post:facebook(source), nbrrrb

Tips for getting the most out of the Perseid shower this weekend

Sat, 11 Aug 2007 02:41:50 GMT

clipped by: enbar
clipper's remarks: Earth & Sky has some tips and links for getting maximum enjoyment out of the Perseid meteor shower, which will be at its peak this weekend (thanks to all the other clippers who've posted great links).

Clip Source: www.earthsky.org

Here’s the razor-thin waning crescent moon, as it will appear in the east before dawn Friday morning. This waning moon is a welcome sight! It means the moon will be out of the way for this weekend’s peak of the 2007 Perseid meteor shower.

While the best time will likely be on Sunday and Monday mornings, try Saturday and even Friday before dawn as well. At dawn, the radiant point for the Perseids – in tbe constellation Perseus – is high overhead. Thus the meteors will be raining down from the top of the sky, appearing on all sides of you.

Earth & Sky’s Perseid meteor shower series includes:
Part 1: Sky alert! Perseid meteors peak this weekend
Part 2: Where’s the radiant for the Perseids?
Part 3: Perseid meteors before dawn on August 12
Part 4: Watch these stars, while watching the Perseids

The 2007 peak of the Perseid meteor shower

Perseid meteors best from midnight to dawn

Watch meteors like a pro in 2007!

Tags: astronomy, howto, outdoors, post:tumblr, post:facebook(source)

Roasted watermelon for dinner? Yes indeed

Sat, 11 Aug 2007 02:05:01 GMT

clipped by: enbar
clipper's remarks: I really want to try this. It sounds crazy. But it kind of sounds cool too.

Clip Source: www.boston.com

Watermelon steak


	Vegetable oil (for brushing)
1/4	large watermelon
1/4	bottle cream sherry
4	tablespoons ( 1/2 stick) unsalted butter
	Salt and pepper, to taste

1. Set the oven at 350 degrees. Have a large roasting pan on hand. Oil a piece of parchment paper about the size of the pan.

2. Discard the rounded end of the watermelon. Cut the watermelon into 4 even slices, each at least 1-inch thick. Remove the rind.

3. Place the slices in the roasting pan. Pour the sherry over them and dot with butter. Sprinkle with salt, and very lightly with pepper. Cover the watermelon with the parchment paper, then cover the pan tightly with foil. Roast the slices for 2 1/2 hours or until charred around the edges.

4. Place watermelon on a rimmed baking sheet to cool. Strain cooking juices. Serve watermelon with juices spooned over, and feta cheese. Adapted from 51 Lincoln

Tags: watermelon, fruit, recipe, howto, weird, cool, post:facebook(clip)

Web 2.0 "backpack" for students

Tue, 07 Aug 2007 05:10:21 GMT

clipped by: enbar
clipper's remarks: Some of these tools could potentially be useful. Most are for collaborating with others in one way or another.

Clip Source: www.jeteye.com

Recommended web resources for students

Mostly these are pulled off a Read-Write Web post (top link below).

Web 2.0 Backpack: Web Apps for Students

Link: http://www.readwriteweb.com/archives/web_20_backpack_web_apps_for_students.php

SlideShare » FAQs » SlideCast

Sync a Slideshare presentation (like PowerPoint) with an MP3 audio track hosted online somewhere.

Link: http://www.slideshare.net/faqs/slidecast

Zentation.com - where Video and PowerPoint meet on the Web

Like Slidecasting above, but including video as well as audio.

Link: http://zentation.com/index.php

Free Quiz & Practice Questions - Quiz School

The site also offers a flashcard-making tool.

Link: http://www.proprofs.com/quiz-school/

Student Life Portal - CollegeMailer

Mailing lists. A fee-based service, but free for some small groups, I think.

Link: http://www.collegemailer.com/corpo/index.php

Gradefix

Supposedly, this schedules your homework and studying for you. Intriguing.

Link: http://www.gradefix.com/

Link: http://stu.dicio.us/

Tags: post:facebook(source), academe, tools, web, 2.0, social

Controversy over Oscar Romero's possible beatification

Tue, 07 Aug 2007 04:24:36 GMT

clipped by: enbar
clipper's remarks: Romero has become a popular hero to many Latin Americans because his unwillingness to moderate his stance against repression and state terror led to his assassination. Now the Vatican faces potential embarrassment over his possible canonization.

Clip Source: www.washingtonpost.com

Archbishop's Sainthood Politically Sensitive for Vatican

VATICAN CITY -- Archbishop Oscar Romero of El Salvador, the outspoken church leader who was killed in 1980 as he celebrated Mass, has become as polarizing in death as he was in life.

The campaign to make him a Roman Catholic saint appears to be languishing, as Vatican officials privately debate whether Romero was a martyr for the faith or for the political left.

Benedict told reporters that "Romero as a person merits beatification," but Vatican officials removed that quote in an official transcript, keeping only the pope's general praise of the slain prelate as a "great witness to the faith."

El Salvador was headed toward civil war in 1977, when Romero was appointed archbishop of the capital, San Salvador. Suspected guerrillas and leftist opponents of the military-led government were being killed daily.

The day after Romero called on the nation's military to halt its repression, he was shot while leading worship in a hospital chapel.

Tags: religion, christianity, roman_catholicism, politics, activism, international, latin_america, nbrrrb, post:facebook(source)