Monday, September 30, 2013
Olympic flame for Sochi Games lit, ready for relay
An ancient ceremony was re-enacted in Greece Sunday as the sun's rays lit the Olympic flame that will be carried to the Winter Games in Russia.
ANCIENT OLYMPIA, Greece — Using the sun's rays, the Olympic flame lighting for the Winter Games in Sochi went off without a hitch in southern Greece Sunday, ahead of its journey across Russia's nine time zones and even a trip to space before the Feb. 7-23 games.
The ceremony was held with actresses dressed as ancient priestesses at the birthplace of the Greek games held in antiquity, with the flame lighting using a parabolic mirror.
Actress Ino Menegaki, in the role of high priestess, called out to the ancient god of the sun, Apollo, before the flame was lit and passed to 18-year-old Greek alpine skier Ioannis Antoniou. NHL star Alex Ovechkin was the first Russian involved in the torch relay.
Moments before the being handed the torch, the Washington Capitals winger said: "To be honest with you, it's going to be (an) experience for all my life, and you know, I am proud to be Russian and proud to be here."
Newly elected International Olympic Committee President Thomas Bach was present at the ceremony. He said he had discussed an ongoing controversy with games organizers about Russia's record on the treatment of gays and had received assurances of non-discrimination at the games.
"We have the assurances of the highest authorities in Russia, and yesterday I spoke with the Russian delegation here in Olympia again and they reassured us that the Olympic Charter will fully apply for all the participants of the games," he said.
Sunday's 20-minute ancient re-enactment, involving 21 priestesses dressed in cream-colored pleated dresses, marked the start of the build-up to the games — centered on the torch relay.
The Russian leg of the relay is set to cover more than 40,000 miles before the Winter Games, carrying the torch by hot-air balloon, dog sled and a nuclear-powered ice breaker before its scheduled trip to space on Nov. 7.
"The Olympic Games ... should inspire the people of the world and especially the political authorities by showing them that quarrels and conflicts can be addressed with peaceful means," Bach said before the ceremony. "I think it will have a very positive effect on Russia. It will show a new Russia to the world and also open up civil society."
Sochi organizers promised the torch route would be within an hour's travel of an estimated 90 percent of Russia's population
"There is no greater privilege than to stand here in the spiritual home of the Olympic Movement," Dmitry Chernyshenko, chief organizer of Sochi 2014, said at Ancient Olympia. "This is the beginning of an epic journey for the Olympic Torch, a journey that will change Russia forever."
The weekend ceremony was overshadowed by the arrest in Athens of the leadership of the country's far-right Golden Dawn party on charges of forming a criminal organization.
The Greek leg of the relay will cover around 1,250 miles until an Oct. 7 handover ceremony in the Panathenian Stadium in Athens, venue of the first modern Olympics in 1896.
Some 2,800 athletes from more than 80 countries are due to compete at Sochi.
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By Derek Gatopoulos of Associated Press
NASA preparing to launch 3-D printer into space
3-D printing could be a game-changer for space travel, allowing astronauts to create supplies and replacement parts on the fly.
MOFFETT FIELD, Calif. — NASA is preparing to launch a 3-D printer into space next year, a toaster-sized game changer that greatly reduces the need for astronauts to load up with every tool, spare part or supply they might ever possibly need.
The printers would serve as a flying factory of infinite designs, creating objects by extruding layer upon layer of plastic from long strands coiled around large spools. Doctors use them to make replacement joints and artists use them to build exquisite jewelry.
In NASA labs, engineers are 3-D printing small satellites that could shoot out of the Space Station and transmit data to earth, as well as replacement parts and rocket pieces that can survive extreme temperatures.
"Any time we realize we can 3-D print something in space, it's like Christmas," said inventor Andrew Filo, who is consulting with NASA on the project. "You can get rid of concepts like rationing, scarce or irreplaceable."
The spools of plastic could eventually replace racks of extra instruments and hardware, although the upcoming mission is just a demonstration printing job.
"If you want to be adaptable, you have to be able to design and manufacture on the fly, and that's where 3-D printing in space comes in," said Dave Korsmeyer, director of engineering at NASA's Ames Research Center at Moffett Field, about 35 miles south of San Francisco.
For the first 3-D printer in space test slated for fall 2014, NASA had more than a dozen machines to choose from, ranging from $300 desktop models to $500,000 warehouse builders.
All of them, however, were built for use on Earth, and space travel presented challenges, from the loads and vibrations of launch to the stresses of working in orbit, including microgravity, differing air pressures, limited power and variable temperatures.
As a result, NASA hired Silicon Valley startup Made In Space to build something entirely new.
"Imagine an astronaut needing to make a life-or-death repair on the International Space Station," said Aaron Kemmer, CEO of Made in Space. "Rather than hoping that the necessary parts and tools are on the station already, what if the parts could be 3-D printed when they needed them?"
When staffing his start up in 2010, Kemmer and his partners warned engineers there would be ups and downs — nauseating ones. In more than a dozen flights in NASA's "vomit comet" reduced-gravity aircraft, Made In Space scientists tested printer after printer.
Last week at their headquarters on NASA's campus, Made In Space engineers in lab coats and hair nets tinkered with a sealed 3-D printer in a dust free cleanroom, preparing the models for further pre-launch tests.
As proof of its utility, the team revisited the notorious 1970 moon-bound Apollo 13 breakdown, when astronauts were forced to jerry-rig a lifesaving carbon dioxide filter holder with a plastic bag, a manual cover and duct tape. A 3-D printer could have solved the problem in minutes.
"Safety has been one of our biggest concerns," said strategic officer Michael Chen. Sparks, breakages and electric surges can have grave consequences in the space station. "But when we get it right, we believe these are the only way to manifest living in space," he said.
Space-bound printers will also, eventually, need to capture gasses emitted from the extruded plastics, be able to print their own parts for self-repairs and have some abilities to recycle printed products into new ones.
Scott Crump, who helped develop 3-D printing technology in 1988 by making a toy frog for his daughter with a glue gun in his kitchen, said he never conceived how pivotal it could be for space travel. But he said that until metal becomes commonly used in 3-D printers, the applications will be limited.
"The good news is that you don't have to have this huge amount of inventory in space, but the bad news is now you need materials, in this case filament, and a lot of power," he said.
NASA and other international space agencies are pressing forward with 3-D printing. Mastering space manufacturing, along with finding and producing water and food on the moon or other planets, could lead to living on space.
Last month, the space agency awarded Bothell, Wash.-based Tethers Unlimited $500,000 toward a project to use 3-D printing and robots to build massive antennas and solar power generators in space by 2020. It replaces the expensive and cumbersome process of building foldable parts on Earth and assembling them in orbit.
For Made In Space's debut, when it's shuttled up to the space station aboard a spaceflight cargo resupply mission, the initial prints will be tests — different small shapes to be studied for strength and accuracy. They're also discussing with NASA about what the first real piece that they should print will be.
Whatever it is, it will be a historic and symbolic item sure to end up in a museum someday.
"It's not something we're discussing publicly right now," said CEO Kemmer. Then, Jason Dunn, the chief technology officer, beckoned, dropping his voice as he grinned.
"We're going to build a Death Star," he joked softly, referring to the giant space station in the "Star Wars" movies that could blow up planets. "Then it's all going to be over."
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By Martha Mendoza of Associated Press
The Republicans don't let a little thing like voting to shutdown the government interfere with their need to P-A-R-T-A-Y!
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| Photo courtesy of No Tea Party Today |
Maybe it was the alcohol, or the late hour, or maybe the House Republicans have just completely lost their minds. On Saturday night, while they were trying to come up with some kind of magic bullet to kill Obamacare, they decided that not only were they going to shut down the government, but now they have added a “conscience clause” to the spending bill which takes away preventative care from women, which includes birth control.
Under Obamacare rules, birth control is free with most providers, but apparently the House Repubs have decided that the reproductive rights of American women are better off in their control. Yeah, so basically the GOP is saying that it doesn’t want the government involved in your health care…unless it’s a birth control issue, of course.
And before you go thinking that this attack on women was the only outrageous thing they did Saturday night, hold on, I’m afraid I have more to report. Friday afternoon, Republican John Culberson from TX got huge applause from his colleagues when he compared the GOP’s effort to destroy Obamacare to the heroes of 9/11. Culberson compared the House Repubs to the passengers on United Flight 93 who overtook the terrorists and got control of the plane on 9/11. Yes, Seriously.
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So called "good guy with a gun" meets other good guys with guns, and badges. Does not end well for 2nd Amendment.
Dallas police have confirmed that three officers shot and killed the homeowner who had fatally shot a burglar.
Officers responded to a call in the 10300 block of Plummer Drive in Far East Dallas. Witnesses said they saw a homeowner shoot and kill Jerry Hale in the alley. The suspect was evidently trying to break into the homeowner’s residence. Police arrived to find the armed man standing over the burglar’s body in an alley, police said.
They stopped an ambulance from entering the alley because the homeowner was still armed. Officers gave “loud verbal commands” to drop the gun.
After he refused, they shot him multiple times, police said. He died from his injuries. The homeowner has not been identified.
Ten to one that the dead burglar was unarmed.
Look I completely support a homeowner defending their home, but I cannot help but wonder what makes it okay to kill a man who was in an alley behind that home?
And as for that whole "stand your ground" thing, well apparently standing that ground when the police are telling you not to is NOT going to work out in your favor. But you know, sometimes when you are holding a gun, you feel invincible.
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Ted Cruz on Meet the Press builds a case against the Affordable Care Act with lies, lies, and more lies.
I watched this interview with growing agitation as Cruz made one false charge after another against Obamacare, and cited facts that were apparently freshly pulled out of his ass.
And perhaps even MORE upsetting was how many of them David Gregory let slide.
Here is but a sample:
Cruz: "The House last night, at 12:30 in the morning, voted to keep the government open, to fully fund the government. But at the same time, the House responded to the millions of Americans who are hurting under Obama Care. And I think the Senate needs to do the same thing."
Now in this case I will give Gregory a little credit for challenging Cruz on his facts.
Gregory: " You keep saying that the Senate and the House should listen to the American people. I looked at polling this week that shows, in a lot of quarters, the bill is unpopular, the law is unpopular. 56% want to uphold this law. So when you say, "Listen to the American people," they're not necessarily with you."
That was something, but considering how over the top Cruz's statements were I wanted more than that.
Later Cruz makes this statement: "I've spent hundreds of hours cris-crossing the state of Texas, traveling nationally. And people all over the country, they're losing their jobs, they're being forced into part-time work, they're facing skyrocketing health insurance premiums, and they're losing their health insurance."
NOBODY has been directly affected by the law as of yet because it has not been fully implemented, and the parts that have seem to have been consistently beneficial. The only reason that companies might be laying off worker or moving them to part time is to create the impression they are suffering a hardship, and provide talking points to the conservative side of the argument, or are attempting to avoid having to provide health care for their employees. In other words this is a problem created artificially by certain businesses and NOT the direct result of Obamacare.
Then there was this exchange where Cruz tried to blame Harry Reid for the looming government shutdown: "Well, let's be clear what the Senate has done. So far, Majority Leader Harry Reed has essentially told the House of Representatives and the American people, 'Go jump in a lake.' He said, 'I'm not willing to compromise, I'm not willing to even talk.' (It must be noted that in Cruz's eyes a "compromise" would be to repeal the new law, defund the law, or delay the law for a year so that the Republicans can use it against the Democrats in 2014. Because once people know what it's about they will no longer have that in their toolkit. Can't imagine why Harry Reid won't go along with that!) His position is 100% of Obamacare must be funded in all instances, and, other than that, he's going to shut the government down. Now David, I hope he doesn't do that. If Harry Reed forces a government shutdown, that will be a mistake. I hope he backs away from that ledge that he's pushing us towards. But that is his position."
Once again Gregory does challenge him on it not very aggressively.
Gregory: "But Senator, even Republicans that I've spoken to, your colleagues, say, 'Senator Cruz can't blame Harry Reed for shutting down the government. Senator Reed acted. He passed a bill to keep the government open.'"
I do like however that Gregory mentioned that Cruz does not represent the majority of the Republican party.
Later Cruz tries to pretend that his position has the support of the unions:
Okay, look. The facts are becoming more and more clear that Obamacare isn't working. Every day, that's becoming more clear. There's a reason the unions are jumping ship. One union after another is saying, "Let me out." There's a reason why James Hoffa, the president of The Teamsters, said that he was writing on behalf of millions of working men and women, and he used "millions," not hundreds, not thousands. And he said Obamacare was destroying their health care. "Destroying" is his word. Now why is it that Harry Reed and the Senate Democrats are not willing to listen to the millions of working men and women whose health care is being destroyed?
This of course a gross misrepresentation of what Hoffa said, and just three days ago he expressed his anger at being used by the conservatives to further their agenda:
"I call on Sen. Ted Cruz, Sen. David Vitter and others to cease and desist from misusing our constructive comments in their destructive campaign to hobble the president and the nation," Hoffa said."Though we may have concerns with specific provisions of the ACA, we share the president’s goal of ensuring that every American has affordable access to top-quality health care," Hoffa said in the statement. "It is on this main point that we disagree wholeheartedly with the efforts of extreme right-wing Republicans to gut the ACA. Any suggestion otherwise is simply political posturing."
There are many more examples just like this, and they are equally enraging to listen to.
However what I took overall from this is that it is proof positive in my eyes that, much like the Tea Party movement, this whole sham is funded by the Koch brothers and their ilk and that it more or less explains why not every conservative is on the same page when it comes to dealing with this new law.
Essentially if you are on the take, like Rush Limbaugh, Sarah Palin, Ted Cruz, and Mike Lee you fight this thing with everything you've got. But if you are not receiving the payola then you try to do your job while also watching to see how this whole thing plays out so you are not on the wrong side of history.
Personally I think I can already determine how this is going to go down, and it does NOT benefit Cruz and his Teabaggers politically. However I have little doubt that Cruz has a cushy job waiting for him somewhere if this thing blows up in his face and costs him his reelection bid.
After all look how well being a paid shill worked out for Sarah Palin.
(Full transcript here.)
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Sunday, September 29, 2013
Drug 'Molly' is popular on electronic music scene in US
Molly is the street name for a drug that is pushed as the pure powder form of a banned substance known as MDMA, the main chemical in ecstasy.
NEW YORK – Artist and therapy student Anna and her friends marked a birthday in New York recently with a familiar ritual: They pumped up the electronic music, danced and celebrated with a special guest called Molly.
"It was a group of about 12 people at someone's house and we were all just celebrating," Anna recalled. "Somebody had it and, and you know, it was a pretty electronic music kind of crowd."
Molly, an illegal stimulant frequently sold in pill form, has become prominent in the electronic music scene over the past decade, said Anna, 26, who did not want to give her full name because she is in school and "counseling people to be healthy."
Molly is the street name for a drug that is pushed as the pure powder form of a banned substance known as MDMA, the main chemical in ecstasy. In the last five years, Molly has made its way into popular culture, helped by references to it made by entertainers such as Madonna, Miley Cyrus and Kanye West.
The drug's dangers became more clear after a rash of overdoses and four deaths this summer, including two at a huge annual electronic music festival in New York City.
The parties of the late 1980s and early '90s saw the heyday of ecstasy, but its popularity began to wane a decade ago after a number of deaths and hospitalizations.
That's when Molly made her way onto the scene.
Drug 'Molly' is popular on electronic music scene in USReuters Photo: DEA File A sign with a DEA badge marks the entrance to the US Drug Enforcement Administration Museum in Arlington, Va. Over the last few years, drugs sold under the name Molly have flooded the market, said Rusty Payne, a DEA spokesman.
Over the last few years, drugs sold under that name have "flooded" the market, said Rusty Payne, a spokesman with the Drug Enforcement Administration.
In some states, there has been a 100-fold increase –- the combined number of arrests, seizures, emergency room mentions and overdoses – between 2009 and 2012, according to DEA figures.
The drug is accessible and marketed to recreational drug users who believe it to be less dangerous than its predecessor, which was often cut with other substances, from Ritalin to LSD.
Like ecstasy, Molly is said to give a lengthy, euphoric high with slight hallucinogenic properties.
In reality, however, the promised pure MDMA experience "doesn't exist," said Payne.
'SOMETHING COMPLETELY DIFFERENT'
Most of the Molly is one of several synthetic designer drugs that have been flooding the U.S. and European marketplace from chemical labs primarily based in China, Payne said.
"A lot of people are missing the boat here," he said. Molly could be anything ... 80 to 90 percent of the time we are given a chemical or substance believed to be Molly, we're finding most of the time it is something completely different."
Four recent deaths attributed to Molly have thrust the club drug into the national spotlight. On August 31, a 23-year-old Syracuse University graduate and a 20-year-old University of New Hampshire student died after taking what they believed to be Molly during an electronic music concert in New York City. The deaths, and several other reported overdoses, prompted the Electric Zoo festival to cancel the final day of the concert.
A University of Virginia student died at a rave in Washington, D.C., the same weekend, after taking what her friends said was Molly. Days earlier in Boston, a 19-year-old woman died in a club and three concert-goers overdosed at the waterfront, police said.
In Atlanta, this weekend's TomorrowWorld music festival organizers warned on its website of zero-tolerance for MDMA use, but noted: "If you or someone around you has taken something that you are concerned about or need help, it is important that you tell our staff. We are here to help and never judge."
The number of visits to U.S. emergency rooms involving MDMA has jumped 123 percent since 2004, according to data compiled by the Drug Abuse Warning Network. In 2011, the most recent year on record, there were 22,498 such visits.
In the New York concert deaths, the medical examiner found lethal mixtures of MDMA and methylone, a synthetic stimulant, the DEA said.
"It's exactly the same phenomenon that occurred with ecstasy a decade ago," said Dr. Charles Grob, a professor of psychiatry and pediatrics at the UCLA School of Medicine and an expert on MDMA. "Ecstasy had terrible reliability and it's the same with Molly. Though it's being marketed as pure MDMA, it's a hoax."
Overdose symptoms can include rapid heart beat, overheating, excessive sweating, shivering and involuntary twitching.
Grob said references in pop culture can fan misconceptions.
Miley Cyrus admitted in July that a lyric in her new dance anthem "We Can't Stop" was a reference to Molly. Last year at a Miami concert, Madonna, the mother of a teenager, asked: "How many people in this crowd have seen Molly?" She later said she was referring to a friend.
The illusion that MDMA is somehow less harmful has been branded with Molly, according to Anna.
"I have definitely heard that people think that it's pure. I have some friends that are like 'I only want to do Molly. I won't do other stuff' because it's marketed as something that's somehow better," said Anna. "But actually no one knows what's in it. All of it is a gamble."
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By Victoria Cavaliere of Reuters
Time for yet another soothing story about Christianity courtesy of the Bible.
The barely bearded one, Joe Miller, who don't need nothing from no stinking "gubmint," is begging for donations on Facebook to pay for the birth of his grandson. Oh and a vehicle to transport his surfboard.
The Facebook page of Joe Miller, who is seeking the GOP nomination for Senate after a failed 2010 Senate run as the Republican nominee, has shared a plea for financial help from his daughter, Kelsey Meza, and her husband. The couple works in Mexico for Youth with a Mission -- a Christian charitable organization -- and they draw no salary, instead relying "on God’s provision and generosity of our support team for our income." Miller, who campaigned on a theme of smaller government and greater personal responsibility, shared the money request on Thursday. According to the couple's blog, which features instructions about how to help, the goal is to raise $10,000 by December -- to pay for the birth of a baby and for a new truck or SUV capable of carrying the family, its dog and surfboards.
A surfboard? Seriously?
Okay now I know what you are going to say. You are going to say that surely this is some kind of joke, because there is NO way that a man like Joe Miller, who constantly talks about pulling ourselves up by our own bootstraps and how REAL Americans don't need help from anybody (Except maybe God), would stoop to begging for money from strangers on the internet.
And to that I would answer, "Man you don't know Joe Miller do you?"
Of COURSE Joe wants money donated to him when his family has financial problems, hell he has been grifting for money ever since he got his ass handed to him back in 2010 by Lisa Murkowski.
Not that it has usually done him much good:
A campaign disclosure report shows Joe Miller’s political action committee raised $5,210 last year.
But hey maybe he has not always been good at attracting donations, but this time is different.
After all there is a baby on the way. And a surfboard that desperately needs a ride. Have some compassion!
P.S. Speaking of compassion if you take a look at the comments section over at the Dispatch you will see that there is very little available for Miller in Alaska these days.
Good luck with that primary race oh Barely Bearded One. You're going to need it!
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Can you find yourself in a sea of 1.2 billion Facebook profile pics?
Check out all the Faces of Facebook. It's a site that visualizes more than 1.2 billion Facebook users on a single page, compiling their profile pictures like the world's craziest patchwork quilt. When you first click on the site, the work of freelance designer Natalia Rojas, there are so many faces that it just looks like static. It's only when you begin to zoom in on the faces (arranged chronologically based on when they registered with the site) that you can actually start to process the scale of what you're seeing. Rojas says the site doesn't break any rules, because it doesn't store information or photos. We must admit, it's quite a tribute to the reach of Mark Zuckerberg's dorm-room brainchild. Can you find yourself? [Source]
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Author: now.msn.com
Miss Philippines Megan Young crowned Miss World 2013 in Bali
The 2013 Miss World pageant has been won by Miss Philippines, Megan Young, on the Indonesian island of Bali.
US-born Ms Young, 23, beat 126 other contestants and pledged to be "the best Miss World ever".
The competition was moved to Bali from the capital, Jakarta, because of protests from hardline Muslim groups.
Security for Saturday's event was high in Bali, a resort island with a majority Hindu population, but no further demonstrations were reported.
Miss France, Marine Lorphelin, came second in the contest and Miss Ghana, Carranzar Naa Okailey Shooter, took third place.
Wearing a glittering gown, Ms Young, who moved to the Philippines at the age of 10, wept as the Miss World sash was put over her shoulder by 2012 winner Miss China.
She told the cheering crowd in Nusa Dua in southern Bali she would "be myself in everything I do, to share what I know and to educate people".
Heavily armed police patrolled the event in southern Bali Indonesia is the world's most populous Muslim country and the organisers had originally offered to abandon the contest's bikini round in an attempt to address complaints of pornography and immorality.
Protests were led by the hardline Islamic Defenders' Front (FPI), which had planned to cross to the island from East Java but were prevented when the port was shut late on Friday.
The event, broadcast in 180 countries, was guarded by heavily armed police with water cannon while some 1,000 FPI members held a prayer session at a mosque outside Jakarta.
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Author: bbc.co.uk
Half of British pilots fall asleep in cockpit
More than half of British pilots admit to falling asleep in the cockpit, and nearly a third of those say they have woken up to find the co-pilot asleep, too.
LONDON — More than half of British airline pilots say they have fallen asleep in the cockpit, a survey said, ahead of an EU vote on flying hours which a pilots' association said could compromise flight safety.
According to the British Airline Pilots' Association, 56 percent of 500 commercial pilots admitted to being asleep while on the flight deck and, of those, nearly one in three said they had woken up to find their co-pilot also asleep.
Pilot exhaustion grabbed the headlines this week when a newspaper reported two pilots on a British long-haul flight fell asleep in the cockpit, leaving the packed jet travellng unsupervised on autopilot.
The survey, released by BALPA, came ahead of a vote in the European Parliament Monday on new rules which could replace British regulations.
"Tiredness is already a major challenge for pilots who are deeply concerned that unscientific new EU rules will cut UK standards and lead to increased levels of tiredness, which has been shown to be a major contributory factor in air accidents."— Jim McAuslan, BALPA general secretary
BALPA, a trade union for pilots, voiced concerns that these proposed changes would water down British safety standards.
The rule changes would mean that pilots could work a maximum of 110 hours in a two-week period, more than the 95-hour limit under British regulations, and at night could be expected to fly for up to 11 hours, against a current 10-hour limit.
"Tiredness is already a major challenge for pilots who are deeply concerned that unscientific new EU rules will cut UK standards and lead to increased levels of tiredness, which has been shown to be a major contributory factor in air accidents," BALPA General Secretary Jim McAuslan said in a statement.
The proposals, devised by the European Aviation Safety Agency to harmonize the rules regarding pilots' hours across the European Union, would also mean they could be called to work at any time on their days off. Currently, restrictions are in place to help them plan their rest on days off.
The survey of pilots, by pollster ComRes, found 84 percent of respondents believed their abilities had been compromised over the last six months by tiredness with almost half saying pilot exhaustion was the biggest threat to flight safety.
"The new ... rules would ensure that Europe will continue to have one of the strictest rules in the world, even stricter than today."— Athar Husain Khan, acting secretary-general, Association of European Airlines
British lawmakers, in a report published earlier this month, expressed concern that the new European rules set the limit for the flight duty period at night too high.
But the Association of European Airlines, which represents 31 European airlines, urged support for the proposals, saying they would ensure all airlines followed the same rules.
"The new ... rules would ensure that Europe will continue to have one of the strictest rules in the world, even stricter than today," the body's acting Secretary-General Athar Husain Khan said in a statement.
The Civil Aviation Agency, Britain's aviation regulator, dismissed worries about the new rules.
"We think the new European flight time limitation regulations maintain the UK's current high safety levels, and will actually increase safety for UK passengers travelling on some other European airlines," it said in a statement.
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By Sarah Young of Reuters
Gingerbread Man is employed to catch crosswalk violators
The Riverside, Calif., sheriff's department may employ the Brothers Grimm as consultants, as their most recent operation to increase traffic safety involved a 7-foot tall Gingerbread Man. The large confection could be seen crossing back and forth for almost an hour at the Moreno Valley crosswalk, and 13 motorists who did not yield to him were cited (we assume in these cases he was advised to "run, run, as fast as he can"). So was this a grab out of the taxpayer cookie jar? Not at all, according to Sgt. Bill Guimont, who points out the crosswalk is in front of an elementary school: “Our concern is if they can’t see a 7-foot Gingerbread Man, then how are they going to see their son or daughter that is only 5 feet tall walking through a crosswalk.” [Source]
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Author: now.msn.com
Kansas group claims science is religion and sues to keep it from being taught in public schools. Wait, what?
A Kansas-based group that “promotes the religious rights of parents, children, and taxpayers” is challenging the state’s science standards because they include the teaching of evolution, which the group claims is a religion and therefore should be excluded from science class.
As the AP reports, Citizens for Objective Public Education (COPE) claims that public schools “promote a ‘non-theistic religious worldview’ by allowing only ‘materialistic’ or ‘atheistic’ explanations to scientific questions.” The group argues that by teaching evolution “the state would be ‘indoctrinating’ impressionable students in violation of the First Amendment.”
COPE’s challenge [PDF] states that the teaching of evolution “amounts to an excessive government entanglement with religion” and violates the rights of Christian parents.
Indeed, COPE’s stated mission is to create “religious[ly] neutral” schools that do not promote “pantheistic and materialistic religions, including Atheism and Religious (‘Secular’) Humanism” - a category under which it includes “Darwinian evolution.”
I am not even sure where to begin.
Well first let me say that I sort of saw this coming decades ago when I first heard the argument proffered that "evolution was just a theory, which scientists believed to be true." I knew then that it was a blatant attempt to bring the teaching of evolution into the same realm shared by religion, as simply a matter of faith, because essentially it was the ONLY way that religion could challenge it.
Over the years I have watched Creationist polish their argument and even some of these debates between scientists like Richard Dawkins and Lawrence Krauss with young earth Creationists like Kent Hovind and William Lane Graig, which can be found all over YouTube, are attempts to position themselves in the same rarefied air that only scientists should really occupy.
Personally I am all for this Kansas case actually going to trial, during which those who want to teach Intelligent Design (The camouflaged version of Creationism.) in public schools can explain exactly WHAT they want to teach and what evidence they will use to teach it, and the scientific community can do the same.
I am also interested in how this group defines "religion" and how they would make the case that the teaching of science fits within it. And does that definition apply to ALL science taught in schools, including botany and astronomy, or does it only apply to those scientific disciplines which might negatively impact their ability to explain the world to children using fairy tales?
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'Soldier' has more fun playing kick the can than you ever did
The title of this little YouTube amusement is "When Lithuanian Soldiers Are Bored," and the resulting exhibition suggests the national army has a lot of down time. Possibly they spend it perfecting this entertaining form of kick-the-can taekwondo, or more likely they spend it hunched over a laptop creating CGI-enhanced videos of purported soldiers taking gymnastic target practice on dumpsters. It's easy to be suspicious (the sounds are almost identical, and the trajectory of those rebounds seems a bit much for your ordinary aluminum can), but at least the spin kicks are impressive. Now, if only someone would fix the gravity in Lithuania.
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Author: now.msn.com
