one thing i regret, is not listening to the questions in my head whilst a jw.
one i didn't ask until years after leaving was....who designed disease?
of course the first thing to realise is the complexity of disease, the histology, pathology and aetiology.
Or just how conveniently citrus fruits break into nice eatable pieces ... can you imagine how messy they would be if they weren't segmented?
Counterpoint: Explain the mango - so delicious and yet so very difficult to prepare? Also: the pineapple, how could you eat it without a knife?
now theres, sound of music, its a wonderful life, philadelphia story, the great esacape... what else though?.
The Bishop's Wife.
former vice president cheney says he's worried about stability in iraq after us forces leave.. http://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/former-vice-president-cheney-says-hes-worried-about-stability-in-iraq-after-us-forces-leave/2011/12/13/giqaa7abro_story.html.
bangalore.
.
The Iraq War is over, at least officially. It was, as then-Illinois State Senator Barack Obama said in 2002, a “dumb war:”
I don’t oppose all wars. What I am opposed to is a dumb war. What I am opposed to is a rash war. What I am opposed to is the cynical attempt by Richard Perle and Paul Wolfowitz and other armchair, weekend warriors in this administration to shove their own ideological agendas down our throats, irrespective of the costs in lives lost and in hardships borne.
The “cost in lives and hardships borne” Mr. Obama accurately predicted is impossible to fully reckon, as is the monetary cost. Well over 100,000 people are needlessly dead, tens of thousands more physically and psychologically scarred for life and around a trillion sorely needed-dollars poured down a rat hole.
How did this happen? There are many reasons, but the short answer is that it was a perfect storm of assholes. It was an event that brought together a small but influential group of arrogant neo-con [gun-slingers] eager to impose their vision on the world, profit-seeking conglomerates yearning to cash in, a supine media and a nation insane with fear in the wake of the 9/11 attacks.
But none of it would have been possible without the insecure, not-too-bright scion of a prominent political family who was then in the Oval Office and burning to prove to his patrician daddy that he is too smart and capable, not dumb, not like people say. So now we know what happens when Fredo Corleone leapfrogs his smarter brother to become the Godfather—only of a nuclear-armed superpower instead of an organized crime family. Not pretty, is it?
http://www.rumproast.com/
former vice president cheney says he's worried about stability in iraq after us forces leave.. http://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/former-vice-president-cheney-says-hes-worried-about-stability-in-iraq-after-us-forces-leave/2011/12/13/giqaa7abro_story.html.
bangalore.
.
Former Vice President Cheney Says He’s Worried About Stability In Iraq After US forces Leave.
I think it's fair to say that we all are.
.
http://www.vanityfair.com/online/daily/2011/12/in-memoriam-christopher-hitchens-19492011.
it angers me that we still do not have the technology to save these people.
Interesting that he chose to go to Houston for medical care rather than stay in Britain.
Not at all. He was an American citizen and resided in America so there was never any question of his "staying in Britain."
u.s. officially ends its mission in iraq.. http://www.nytimes.com/2011/12/16/world/middleeast/panetta-in-baghdad-for-iraq-military-handover-ceremony.html.
bangalore.
.
Not a very celebratory mood. As predictable, the GOP is bashing Obama for following-through on ending this misbegotten debacle.
Well, not all Republicans -
Colonel Lawrence Wilkerson, former chief of staff for Secretary of State Colin Powell was absolutely amazing on The Rachel Maddow Show last night. He was talking about the end of the Iraq War and the shameful response coming from Republicans, including those running for president.
"The only way I can explain it, Rachel, is their hatred of President Obama. And I say that with some circumspection.
They want to defeat this man. They want to bring this man out of the White House. They want to embarrass this man. They want to put this man through every kind of turmoil they can possibly put him through politically.
So, they will take almost any stand even -- and this is what really grates on me as a Republican -- even if it is not in the interest of this country, they will take a stand and have repeatedly taken stands that oppose the president simply because they oppose the president.
It's not America. It`s not the United States. It's not our best interests. It's certainly not our national security interests. It's getting rid of this president.
That is political opportunism and political blindness of the first order. And it may cause me to leave this party eventually, I must say that. [...]
Any issue you want to pick, my Republicans seem to be intent on suicide."
all i can say is.... wow..... http://news.yahoo.com/six-waltons-more-wealth-bottom-30-americans-182819449.html.
different people will take this different ways, but jeffrey goldberg tells us that six members of the walton family (the original owners of walmart) have more wealth than the bottom 30 % of americans.
in 2007, according to the labor economist sylvia allegretto, the six walton family members on the forbes 400 had a net worth equal to the bottom 30 percent of all americans.. .
Im not sure I beleive that about the life insurance though...
Oh, darth! Did you ever just walk into an airplane propeller!
welfare queen asks for too much.. http://thestir.cafemom.com/in_the_news/129629/welfare_queen_asks_for_too.
bangalore.
.
Good story, Shelby!
Yeah, those preconceived notions can bite in the ass. Problem is, some people need to keep those negative stereotypes alive like the rest of us need air to breathe. Otherwise, their whole world view collapses.
Now, may I make a confession? I have worked with "disadvantaged" populations - running an employment agency, investigating child sexual abuse, writing grant proposals for social service agencies that serve the poor. What confounds me is - What is the best way to interrupt the generational cycle of discouragement and low expectations? How does a society of (ever more) limited resources begin to instill hope, self-respect and ambition in people who are surrounded only by examples of passive acceptance and the futility of effort?
What do we do about a young mother of 15 children who says " Somebody needs to pay ... for all my children ... all our suffering, all our pain ... Somebody needs to pay"? How do we break through that barrier of self-destructiveness? I mean, I believe her. Somebody has to pay - children have to eat and beyond that there is unquestionably pain and suffering. And I have learned that those children will perpetuate the cycle when their turn comes: the boys will impregnate and leave and the girls will raise the children and wail against an (increasingly) stingy and judgmental society, because make no mistake - in hard economic times, society resents the needy poor far more than they resent the fat cats who hoover up the real cash.
We are entering a period of long-term recession/depression - the resentment of the poor is going to get worse and even more deeply entrenched. What are the answers?
welfare queen asks for too much.. http://thestir.cafemom.com/in_the_news/129629/welfare_queen_asks_for_too.
bangalore.
.
Thank you, Jeff. That needed to be said.
welfare queen asks for too much.. http://thestir.cafemom.com/in_the_news/129629/welfare_queen_asks_for_too.
bangalore.
.
Why did this woman produce 15 kids when she does not have enough money to provide for their needs?
Psychology 101. Locus of control:
Locus of control is a theory in personality psychology referring to the extent to which individuals believe that they can control events that affect them.
One's "locus" (Latin for "place" or "location") can either be internal (meaning the person believes that they control their life) or external (meaning they believe that their environment, some higher power, or other people control their decisions and their life).
Individuals with a high internal locus of control believe that events result primarily from their own behavior and actions. For example, if a person with internal loci of control does not perform as well as they wanted to on a test, they would blame it on lack of preparedness on their part. Or if they performed well on a test, then they would think that it was because they studied enough. [ 1 ] Those with a high external locus of control believe that powerful others, fate, or chance primarily determine events. Using the test performance example again, if a person with external loci of control does poorly on a test, they would blame the test questions being too difficult. Whereas if they performed well on a test, they would think the teacher was being lenient, or that they were lucky. [ 2 ]
Those with a high internal locus of control have better control of their behavior, tend to exhibit more political behaviors, and are more likely to attempt to influence other people than those with a high external (or low internal respectively) locus of control. Those with a high internal locus of control are more likely to assume that their efforts will be successful. They are more active in seeking information and knowledge concerning their situation.
Gratification:
Deferred gratification and delayed gratification denote a person’s ability to wait in order to obtain something that he or she wants. This intellectual attribute is also called impulse control, will power, self control, and “low” time preference, in economics. Sociologically, good impulse control is considered a positive personality trait, which psychologist Daniel Goleman indicated as an important component trait of emotional intelligence. Moreover, people who lack the psychological trait of being able to delay gratification are said to require instant gratification and might suffer poor impulse control.
