Here is some proof that religious idiocy is not limited to the middle east:
"A Brazilian archbishop says all those who helped a child rape victim secure an abortion are to be excommunicated from the Catholic Church. The girl, aged nine, who lives in the north-eastern state of Pernambuco, became pregnant with twins. It is alleged that she had been sexually assaulted over a number of years by her stepfather. The excommunication applies to the child's mother and the doctors involved in the procedure."
Anyone with any sense knows that an attempt to carry the pregnancy to term would have caused the girl to die horribly, while failing to save the babies.
Note that there is no mention of the rapist being excommunicated.
Update:
The rot is not confined to South America. The Vatican supports their position. Somebody needs to read what is written in Luke 10:25-37.
Thursday, March 5, 2009
Wednesday, March 4, 2009
Funny Link
I liked the writing style of this post.
Note that Kang and Kodos are theyr dogs, and Zydeco is the cat.
Note that Kang and Kodos are theyr dogs, and Zydeco is the cat.
Stage Presence
One of the students in my class is an actor. He is certainly suited for it. He is friendly, outgoing, and energetic. His attitude is generally somewhere between ebullient and flamboyant. Basically, he always has excellent stage presence. He has a way of drawing attention to himself and making you remember him. This is mostly a matter of movement and attitude. As far as I can tell*, he is not much more attractive or handsome than the average healthy college student.
I had assumed that this was something he did on purpose, and I was always slightly suspicious that he was manipulating me in an attempt to get better grades. But I am beginning to think that this quality is simply a natural part of him. During the exam today, he was clearly not trying to attract any attention to himself. He, like all the other students, was puzzling through the problems. Like the other students, he would sometimes do things like scratch his chin, stare off into space trying to remember things, and so on.
But whenever he moved, he drew attention to himself. Whenever he looked up, it seemed for an instant that he was looking at me in order to ask a question. Whenever he moved his hand, it seemed for an instant he was trying to call me over to ask a question. All of his movements had some kind of natural attention-grabbing quality. I am not sure why this is. It is true that his movements and gestures tend to be a bit larger and faster than most people's, but that cannot be the full explanation.
The only word that can describe this is 'charisma'. Through some combination of innate talent and training, the ability to draw attention to himself is something that is always a part of him. It is just there, defying explanation. Almost every successful actor and performer has this mysterious skill, but you don't notice how strange and unusual is is it until you see them doing something normal in a crowd full of normal people.
*I am incredibly bad at determining how 'attractive' a person of either gender is. I can't see any difference between Tom Cruise and Peter Lorre.
I had assumed that this was something he did on purpose, and I was always slightly suspicious that he was manipulating me in an attempt to get better grades. But I am beginning to think that this quality is simply a natural part of him. During the exam today, he was clearly not trying to attract any attention to himself. He, like all the other students, was puzzling through the problems. Like the other students, he would sometimes do things like scratch his chin, stare off into space trying to remember things, and so on.
But whenever he moved, he drew attention to himself. Whenever he looked up, it seemed for an instant that he was looking at me in order to ask a question. Whenever he moved his hand, it seemed for an instant he was trying to call me over to ask a question. All of his movements had some kind of natural attention-grabbing quality. I am not sure why this is. It is true that his movements and gestures tend to be a bit larger and faster than most people's, but that cannot be the full explanation.
The only word that can describe this is 'charisma'. Through some combination of innate talent and training, the ability to draw attention to himself is something that is always a part of him. It is just there, defying explanation. Almost every successful actor and performer has this mysterious skill, but you don't notice how strange and unusual is is it until you see them doing something normal in a crowd full of normal people.
*I am incredibly bad at determining how 'attractive' a person of either gender is. I can't see any difference between Tom Cruise and Peter Lorre.
Tuesday, March 3, 2009
Future Shock 3
Cyborgs are one of the many things that I expect to exist in the future. But I always assumed it would take several decades for the technology to be developed.
The technology exists today. Scientists can run a wire into a mouse's head that will make it run around in a circle. They can put a device on a person's head that will make that person move his arms involuntarily. The technology is easy to build and easy to use, and they are willing and able to release this technology to the general public in the very near future.
We already have therapists using electromagnetic blasts to treat depression and other mental conditions. Garage inventors and tinkerers will soon have access to this tech. If you know anything about the open source tinkering community, you know to expect a lot of innovation. This will be big, and it will be scary, and it will be happening soon.
Read these two articles for more:
First Part
Second Part
The technology exists today. Scientists can run a wire into a mouse's head that will make it run around in a circle. They can put a device on a person's head that will make that person move his arms involuntarily. The technology is easy to build and easy to use, and they are willing and able to release this technology to the general public in the very near future.
We already have therapists using electromagnetic blasts to treat depression and other mental conditions. Garage inventors and tinkerers will soon have access to this tech. If you know anything about the open source tinkering community, you know to expect a lot of innovation. This will be big, and it will be scary, and it will be happening soon.
Read these two articles for more:
First Part
Second Part
Monday, March 2, 2009
Sunday, March 1, 2009
Random thoughts: Assassination
Judges 3:15-23 tells the story of Ehud, who freed Israel from the Moabites by killing their king. The story tells of the assassination in detail. Ehud was left-handed, and concealed an eighteen-inch blade on his right thigh. He then asked told the king that he had a 'secret message' and the king sent his bodyguards away. Ehud then stabbed the king and made his escape.
It never explicitly said that they looked for weapons on his left hip, where most people keep a sword, but the assumption is that they would. This story is often used as an example of how people can accomplish things because they are different. "The guards didn't see a wepon on his left hip, and never imagined that someone would conceal a weapon somewhere else, so they trusted him alone with the king. Yay lefties."
I know that left-handed people were much rarer in antiquity than they are today, but the behavior of the king and his guards is still idiotic according to that theory. It doesn't take very much training to learn how to use a blade in your off-hand. Any right-handed person capable of using a sword could pull off this stunt after practicing for a few hours at most.
Even if you were completely incapable of using your left hand, there are at least two ways to draw an eighteen-inch blade from your right hip with your right hand. You can pull it out so the blade is pointing to the ground, and stab downwards. Or you can twist your hand upside down when you draw it, and then flip it forward so you are holding the blade normally.
I know they didn't have any kind of advanced combat training in biblical Judea, but surely the budyguards of a successful king would have known about these kind of basic blade stunts. I'm guessing that the real reason Ehud got in was because of attitude and psychological manipulation. It is clear from the story that he was good at deception. He probably just didn't look like a threat, so they didn't bother to look closely.
That hasn't changed in the last three thousand years. Good cops and securuty guards read people by their attitude. It is pracically impossible to scan a crowd for concealed weapons, but law enforcement professionals can easily spot the person who looks tense, nervous, or excited. If you keep your cool, they don't bother you.
It never explicitly said that they looked for weapons on his left hip, where most people keep a sword, but the assumption is that they would. This story is often used as an example of how people can accomplish things because they are different. "The guards didn't see a wepon on his left hip, and never imagined that someone would conceal a weapon somewhere else, so they trusted him alone with the king. Yay lefties."
I know that left-handed people were much rarer in antiquity than they are today, but the behavior of the king and his guards is still idiotic according to that theory. It doesn't take very much training to learn how to use a blade in your off-hand. Any right-handed person capable of using a sword could pull off this stunt after practicing for a few hours at most.
Even if you were completely incapable of using your left hand, there are at least two ways to draw an eighteen-inch blade from your right hip with your right hand. You can pull it out so the blade is pointing to the ground, and stab downwards. Or you can twist your hand upside down when you draw it, and then flip it forward so you are holding the blade normally.
I know they didn't have any kind of advanced combat training in biblical Judea, but surely the budyguards of a successful king would have known about these kind of basic blade stunts. I'm guessing that the real reason Ehud got in was because of attitude and psychological manipulation. It is clear from the story that he was good at deception. He probably just didn't look like a threat, so they didn't bother to look closely.
That hasn't changed in the last three thousand years. Good cops and securuty guards read people by their attitude. It is pracically impossible to scan a crowd for concealed weapons, but law enforcement professionals can easily spot the person who looks tense, nervous, or excited. If you keep your cool, they don't bother you.
Loaded Word
This is a dramatic demonstration of why you have to be careful about surveys. I applaud Gallup for providing such a clear example of how easy it is to influenced opinions.
I would guess that the true opinion is that people do support government takeovers. 'Nationalization' is one of those loaded words that people instinctively oppose.
I would guess that the true opinion is that people do support government takeovers. 'Nationalization' is one of those loaded words that people instinctively oppose.
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