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Coffee vs. Tea	September 20, 2009, 12:46PM
by: baroque
To understand the dire need for the healthcare reform, one must first understand what’s wrong with the health care system. There are people who are under the impression that the health care system has no flaws, or believe that the current flaws are unable to be reconciled. Once this hurdle is overcome, there’s another more drastic hurdle that is impossible to fully pass. This next enigma is how to fix the flaws. There are many ways to fix each individually, but the problem lies in the opinions of the masses. There’s no conceivable possibility of having every single person unify on a single solution. Because of this problem, it’s difficult to successfully discuss the health care reform without heated conflictions in thoughts, ideas, and possible ameliorations. In fact, the healthcare system has been previously evaluated back in 1993 with a crushing defeat. The problem with the past health care reform was the fact that policy was placed before politics. The reform was well built to satisfy health economics, yet they failed to take into consideration the public, or more simply, the voters. In the Clinton health care reform, a person who lost a job would be guaranteed to lose any health care benefits they may have awarded through their job. In a time when people were already fearful of losing their job due to the economy, adding a health care loss would further devastate a family’s financial stability. Therefore, the year after the reform was introduced, Congress declared the reform as officially dead. In order to avoid making the same mistakes again, the health care reform currently taking place must meet the needs of the public, health economics, and fiscal budgets. According to a report from the Department of Health and Human Services, health care cost is expected to rise to $8,160 per person by the end of the 2009 fiscal year as opposed to $4,790 per person at the end of the 2000 fiscal year. With all the health care costs inflating, the question that arises is whether or not Americans get increased quality health care with the increased prices. As the data falls into place, it turns out that Americans are not getting adequate health care for the money that’s being put into the health care system. Part of the problem with increased costs is location. When comparing the cost the elderly spent on health care in Miami, San Francisco, and Salem, there are a few details to note. Miami has the most expensive health care of the three followed by San Francisco, then Salem. Beginning in 1999 and ending in 2006, San Francisco and Salem actually keep roughly the same cost gap while Miami’s cost starts to climb. Judging by this information, Miami’s elderly should be getting a better quality of health care for the price they’re paying, correct? Of course, that’s not where it ends. Looking closer into the actual health care situation in these three cities, a test was conducted to see how many elderly people survived after a heart attack. In the lowest spending area of the country, a little over thirty percent of elderly die after a heart attack. In the highest spending area of the country, which includes Miami, roughly thirty two percent of the elderly die after a heart attack. Further investigation revealed what possibilities the doctors could recommend to their patients showing up with chest pains. Doctors may recommend frequent check-ups to monitor the progress of the elderly, or they may also suggest tests that may be run in order to check for complications. Ironically, the large portion of tests that are used to check for heart problems are actually not proven to create a difference in the outcome of a patient, and this is where the problem is involved. Doctors in places such as Miami actually have their own machines such as the echo cardiogram. By suggesting their patients to be tested using their machine, doctors get paid every time these machines are used. In lower spending areas, doctors don’t have the same incentives. In order to suggest getting a test with a machine such as an echo cardiogram, they’d have to send the patient to a better equipped hospital with no personal incentives for themselves. It’s also been proven that patients in low cost areas receive the same, and sometimes even better, care than high cost areas. Now, this is just one tiny example of a health care system flaw by illustrating the incentives some doctors possess. There are many variations to this example, and it could even be argued that there are more elderly in Miami since Florida is a retirement location. Arguments also stem from the availability of equipment in a particular area, though it's proven that every patient has access to the same machines. President Barack Obama has already initiated his health care reform by increasing health care coverage for children. President Obama has created the Recovery Act of 2009 in order to fulfill the obligated requirements of health care reform. With this Recovery Act, President Obama has overcome the greatest reason for the failure of Clinton's health care reform. If an American loses their job, the government will temporarily supply a tax credit in order for their insurance to be provided through COBRA (Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act). The Recovery Act of 2009 also outlines plans to have America's health records completely computerized in five years. The current paper system relies heavily on a patient's memory which leads to erroneous information. Not only is this system expensive to maintain, but also requires a longer amount of time needed to fully implement its use. By placing all the medical records on a computer, the information is easier to back up and modernizes the health care system. The health care system slow with their health records, and also slow in terms of having access to immediate information that may save someone's life. The health care industry is fickle. With constantly changing research on the best treatments available to patients, physicians and doctors need to have access to the most recent data in order to provide the best service to each and every patient. The Recovery Act of 2009 is allocating $1.1 billion in order to create a more effective means of communication between the different facets of the health industry. Finally, $1 billion will be put forth for the prevention of health problems. A large chunk of all health problems occur due to issues involving lack of exercise, a poor diet, and drug use. Many types of cancer and other diseases can be detected at an early stage with screening tests. The difficulty lies in that Americans aren't getting these tests. The government has set aside a reserve fund of $630 billion distributed over ten years in order to meet all the goals set forth with the Recovery Act of 2009. In fact, President Obama even claims that $630 billion isn't enough for a complete health care reform, but it's enough to make an impact in how the industry is handled. By following these eight principles, President Obama plans to work with Congress to change the tide in health care: guarantee choice, make health care coverage affordable, protect families' financial health, invest in prevention and wellness, provide portability of coverage, aim for universality, improve patient safety and quality care, and maintain long-term fiscal sustainability. The health care reform will benefit Americans who have health insurance as well as those who don't. For those who already have health insurance, the new reform will provide more stability and security. Insurance companies will be unable to deny coverage for pre-existing conditions or risks due to the 12 million people over the last three years who were turned down. Age and gender discrimination will be limited when involving premiums. Insurance companies will be restricted from dropping coverages due to unknown illnesses that patients have not listed on their application. Preventative care through the insurance companies will be made free. Medicare for seniors will be improved and cheapened. For those who are unable to afford insurance, the new reform will provide a brand new insurance market: the Exchange. Small businesses and people without insurance will be able to get insurance by comparing different costs, protection, and benefits. The government will provide tax credits using a sliding scale for people who have low incomes. These tax credits will cap how much they're going to pay for premiums. Tax credits for insurance will also be provided to small businesses. For all Americans regardless of insurance status, there are positive outcomes. Allegedly, the reform will not raise the national deficit at all and will be paid for by using fees charged on the more expensive insurance plans that the insurance companies offer as well as other health care savings. If this isn't the case and the health care reform somehow manages in influence the deficit, the health care reform will be further cut in order to create a self-sufficient system. A commission will be formed in order to annually give out advice on how to improve Medicare. This commission will be unable to actually implement any Medicare changes; they will simply offer improvements. Also, large employers (50+ employees) will be forced to provide health insurance to their employees or pay a fee to create an affordable plan in the Exchange. With all the steps that President Obama is taking, who knows what the outcome will be for the health care industry. The changes are too large to keep track of everything going on. It's unavoidable that there will be people attempting to thwart the system and create their own profit. The possibility of the reform going off without a hitch is unlikely, though a desired outcome for many people. Not every problem has been addressed, but the main points have been sought to be corrected. People are still arguing on how the health care reform should be corrected. The Congress and the President are the final decision, though.
topic: Various
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Love?	September 13, 2009, 7:47PM
by: baroque
Love has often been universally misunderstood. A pivotal reason for this is the vague definition that most people attach to the word. Many people even create their own definition in order to suit a specific situation as well as a specific emotion that's felt. In fact, hasty generalizations don't even apply to how people view love. Philosophers and psychologists alike have been attempting to understand and portray love to its barest foundations, as well as artists, musicians, poets, and even authors. As a result, many theories, pictures, songs, poems, and stories have emerged from the chaos that is love. Many of these avenues of expression depict viewpoints that many people agree with. Adversely, many perverse love expressions are ridiculed. With a broad spectrum of personal views, love is potentially the most confused concept in the English language. There is a vast plethora of theories involving love. According to psychologist Zick Rubin, love is made of three elements: attachment, caring, and intimacy. Rubin defines attachment as the need to be cared for and to be with the other person, caring is valuing the other person's happiness and needs as much as your own, and intimacy is sharing private thoughts, feelings, and desires with the other person. Using this basis of thought, Rubin developed a question set for “liking” and “loving” that was administered to 198 undergraduate students in order to single out 13 specific questions in each category for a test. These questions were used to define the complexity of love in people who take the test. Psychologist Elaine Hatfield's theory, love is made of two types: compassionate love and passionate love. Compassionate love is comprised of mutual respect, trust, and affection. Passionate love deals with the physical aspect involving intense feelings and sexual attraction. Building off the compassionate/passionate love idea is the Triangular Theory of Love. Psychologist Robert Sternberg suggested that there are three components to love: intimacy, passion, and commitment. However, unlike Rubin and Hatfield, Sternberg twisted his theory up by stating that each of his components could be mixed together. To illustrate, intimacy and commitment formed a compassionate love, while passion and intimacy formed passionate love. Sternberg also believed that all three components could be combined at once to form consummate love. This final form of love is not only the strongest, but also the rarest. To conclude, the final type of a love descriptor is from a book titled “The Colors of Love” by John Lee. In the book, Lee hypothesized that love is akin to the primary and secondary colors. Instead of colors though, there are styles of love: Eros, Ludos, and Storge. Eros is loving an ideal person, Ludos is love as a game, and Storge is love is a friendship. Of course, each of those, when combined with another, forms a secondary style of love. Mania (Eros + Ludos) is an obsessive love, Pragma (Ludos + Storge) is a realistic and practical love, while Agape (Eros + Storge) is a selfless love. Many other prevalent theories describe love; some theories are practical while others aren't. Despite the psychological viewpoint on love, is it possible that every moment of love you've ever experienced is based on a combination of two chemicals in your brain? Scientists have been studying prairie voles, one of only 3% of species that appear to be monogamous. The uniqueness of the prairie vole, apart from their monogamy, is that they have a very closely related genetic make up as the montane vole, over 99%. The montane vole, however, is not monogamous. During sex, the prairie vole releases two chemicals called vasopressin and oxytocin. The montane vole doesn't release these two chemicals. In fact, the montane vole, even when injected with vasopressin and oxytocin, still show signs of one-night-stand sex proving that there are no receptors in a montane vole's brain. The question still remains whether or not a human brain works the same as a vole's brain. The interaction between vasopressin and oxytocin in a human's brain is still not fully understood. Dopamine is excreted to excite a person when they think about someone they love followed by serotonin to calm people down in order to trust. Once trust has begun, the oxytocin kicks in and takes effect. The oxytocin creates a feeling of connection to the person you're with. Finally, vasopressin is released. Vasopressin has the effect of tying the emotions you have to memories. By combining these chemicals in different quantities, among other chemicals in the body such as, but not limited to, phenyl ethylamine, and norepinephrine, different behavioral patterns come into focus. Although there are apparent fall outs and anomalies to each of these descriptions, the true basis for love has not yet been fully understood. Regardless of the facts, there will always be romantics out there who will be steadfast in their beliefs about love, even if scientists pin it down to a particular chemical reaction. People will still marvel at the portrayals of love displayed by artists, musicians, poets, and even authors. Expressions of love will forever hold a place in the hearts of many individuals.
topic: Various
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A New Flavor of Karma	February 28, 2009, 2:16AM
by: Stake-N-Shake
There are literally thousands of different answers to the question, "Why did (insert event here) happen?" One of my personal favorite answers is Karma: the idea that what goes around, comes around. A way for people to take responsibilties for their actions without a constant threat of a lake of fire looming over your head. I help aid an American History class for Freshman in high school, and I often get asked a lot of weird questions. A 14 year old girl asked me after notes if I could explain the concept of Karma. By the time I was halfway done with my take on Karma, I had two things: one was the entire classroom, including the teacher, enthralled with my speech. I also had the foundation for a new twist on Karma, that I ended up calling "Mortal Will." The basics of Mortal Will are a mixture of free will, Karma, and a bit of "connected existance" in one tasty philosophical burrito. There are three fundementals, called the Physics of Will, called such because of their resemblance to Newton's Three Laws of Motion. 1. Events and ideas tend to stay in motion or at rest, until acted upon by an outside force; namely Mortal intervention. An event cannot happen if someone does not take the initiative to set wheels in motion. In contrast, an event cannot stop, unless someone interposed themselves in the events direct path. Much like Russia stepped into the path of Hitler's Nazi Regime. 2. The reaction taken by an event reflects the amount force used to move or stop it. For example, if you want to lose a few pounds, you can't do it buy excercising for ten minutes a weeks. It takes time, effort, and commitment to make anything worth happening happen worthwhile. 3. For every action, there an equal, though not necessarily opposite, reaction. This is where the concept of Karma comes into play. I shouldn't need to explain this. If you've followed me this far, you know what Karma is. The aspect of Mortal Will says that every individual is an island of conscienceness, and although not directly connected, affect each other indefinitely. Think of each person's unique Will as a small beam of vertical light in a grey haze of collective conscienceness. Some beams are brighter than others, and some beams cluster together around a certain event or idea. Each beam, or Mortal, has it's own source, it's own processes, but it shares similar functionalities with other beams, thus affecting the group as a whole, and likewise being affected by the group. I was then asked if I could provide proof of my concept. I answered, "I want you to close your eyes and push your background thoughts away." I then proclaimed it would be a great idea if we all went to get slushies after school. Instantly, the classroom agreed, with the exception of a boy near the middle of the group that said he would prefer some hot cocoa with whipped cream. Several other student mulled this new opinion over and nodded in agreement. Hot cocoa sounds fairly good as well. I then proclaimed that they had just proven Mortal Will to hold at least some water. I injected my opinion into the thoughts of other Mortals, and they were affected as such. They then proved it further by introducing another opinion into the mix. While some agree with the new idea, other simply stuck to their "original" thought, proving that their Will was indeed their own. In conclusion, I reitirated that Mortal Will is basically a system in which we depend entirely up to ourselves as free-thinking individuals, instead of seeking a Higher Power, which, to some, may or may not even exist. It is based off the facts that you will face the consequences of your actions, you must strive with effort to seize what you seek, and that we cannot take any sort of action without it somehow affecting the Mortal world as a whole. If you have any questions, or if I was forggy about my concept, please do not hesitate to contact me. Thank you to whoever decided to read this whole article out. It really means a lot to me.
topic: Various
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Childrens Development In An Alternative Lifestye..	January 8, 2009, 6:37AM
by: Digital_Fxxker
“Allowing a child to be exposed to be exposed to alternative lifestyle is damaging to their development”-Anonymous online source. Many people, after reading the given statement, would be fully supportive of it, with the argument that they were brought up in a conventional family environment (heterosexual parent or parents) and they turned out a respectable person. So in their views any other way of life is inappropriate or damaging to that person’s outcome. However, these people also claim that they are open minded and fair but, by stereotyping individuals and groups who have had alternative upbringings as having ‘corrupt minds’ or are ‘deviants of society’ this cancels out there claims of being fair and shows them as being close minded and unjust. Does it not? If you were to do an experiment and compare two children, from separate upbringings and look at their personal views on life, and everyday situations at influential stages of there life, you would most likely find that Child A- the child who had the typical heterosexual parents- who lived by conventional values would be closed off, distant and un-accepting in unfamiliar surroundings and communities. This child would grow up thinking that same sex relationships are ‘un-natural’ and ‘wrong’. Where as Child B- the child who has had an alternative upbringing and have same sex parents - would be more understanding and accepting to people’s different lifestyle choices as they have been shown out in the open to them. And without too much difficulty, these children would be able to adjust to unfamiliar setting. By comparing these children at different stages of their life’s it is evident that even from a very early age the children have similar views on thing surrounding them such as good behaviour and appropriate manners. But a difference in their development is hard to see at such an early age which child is which. However, by the start of primary school it becomes more visible as child A may find it harder to make friends and the friends that they do make they have a close connection with them as they are usually also from the same family setting. Child B will find it easier to be make friends but will find it harder to feel a close connection with these friends. In their teenage years the divide is a lot more visible as Child A (conventional upbringing) shows more signs of being a typical teenager with a small group of friends and is socially more accepted with a conventional appearance and is offended by the opposite lifestyles. Child B (alternative up bringing) appears to be more approachable with their peers and there appearance may reflect there directness towards people which in turn they get ridiculed for by children in group A. These teenagers would possibly be more daring and willing to try new things. These choices and opinions stay with them thought their adult life and acts like a window to their development. by observing they types of people in a variety of jobs across the uk it shows that people who are open with their views feel suited to a position inside the alternative community –by either running an alternative club to being a protest manager-.and the majority of those brought up conventionally have ordinary jobs. In spite of the given examples, it’s true that this is not always the case, you may have heterosexual parents who believe themselves and show there children that there is more than one type of family and that same sex relationships are around and accepted by different societies and that they are also normal. By giving that child un-biast information and allowing them the freedom to have their own views on different communities and there lifestyle choices it allows that child to grow up with a fair and accepting view on different situations. Personally, I disagree that “being exposed to alternative lifestyles is damaging to a Childs development”. because the way I see it, is if a person is brought up in a sheltered environment and told the only one particular way of life is right, then that person is being held back from making there own decisions and judgement. Indirectly is stopping that person growing as a person compared to someone who is aware of alternative lifestyles and having the mental capacity to acknowledge that it is accepted. So incidentally it appears that being exposed to different lifestyles is in fact beneficial to a child development as it allows them to understand and feel comfortable about being in different situations through out life. By Leah Cameron
topic: Various
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Can you be fat and fit?	October 18, 2008, 9:18PM
by: bloodyXtears
Men and women who are judged fit on a treadmill test but who are overweight or obese have a lower risk of death than those of appropriate weight but have low fitness levels. In a study published in the Journal of The American Medical Association researcher and exercise physiologist Steven Blair of the University of South Carolina tracked 2,600 people over age 60 years to determine how physical fitness and body fat affected their death rates over a period of 12 years. Blair found that those in the lowest 5th of fitness levels were four times more likely to die than those in the top 5th of fitness levels. This level of fitness provided protection against death whether an individual was of normal weight, overweight, or obese. Blair thinks his findings are important because people in the US and many other countries are increasingly inactive and obesity rates are high, and at the same time many of these countries populations are aging. "We should not ignore obesity," Blair said. "But what happens all too often is we focus nearly exclusively on obesity and forget the activity and fitness part." Blair's team assessed participants' fitness using a treadmill test, seeing how long they could walk while the treadmill's workout increased in intensity. They measured body mass index (BMI) a figure that is calculated from a person's height and weight, as well as waist circumference and percent body fat. Their results showed that even a small effort to improve fitness levels provides a health benefit and that people who are sedentary now don't need to take drastic steps in exercise frequency or intensity to make gains. "If you're overweight or obese and you're sedentary and unfit and you start taking three 10-minute walks a day and you do that at least five days a week, you're not going to lose an enormous amount of weight," Blair said. "You're going to still be heavy. But you're going to be much healthier if you do that," Blair said. Blair also recommends healthy eating patterns, including lots of fruit, vegetables, and whole grains. According to the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), more than 1/3 of the US adult population is obese; obesity is a major risk factor for cardiovascular disease (CVD), some types of cancer, and type 2 diabetes. The CDC has also found that more than 1/2 of adults in the US do not participate in regular physical activity. Exercise can cut your risk of dying from CVD, as well as lowering your risk of stroke, colon cancer, hypertension, and type 2 diabetes. (I did not write any of this. found here
topic: Various
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Mirror to the soul?	August 15, 2008, 12:01AM
by: red_bleedinghearts
Do you ever look into a mirror as if you can look through yourself? As if you can peer into your own eyes and learn what you need to do to fix your problems, whether in life or just personal problems, things you hate about yourself? I do it all the time. In fact, I think everyone does at one point or another, and that it's perfectly normal. Of course, we all know the answers aren't in the mirror. Logic tells us there's nothing we can learn from it, but I know, at least in my own case, I do it anyway. It's hard to pinpoint exactly why. Perhaps I'm hoping to one day see something I didn't notice before, or maybe it's in the hopes that one day I'll look in the mirror, and I actually will see inside myself and be able to repair whatever I feel is wrong. Sometimes it's hard to pinpoint intentions. Not only the intentions of others, but those of yourself as well. Every once in a while, I find myself doing something and wondering why. Helping people and wondering if my intentions really are as pure as I believe them to be, or if they're something underlying, something lurking just below my consciousness, that throws little hints at my brain to do a good deed because there's a chance I might get something in return. Don't get me wrong, I'm a good person. I believe that with all my heart, but doubt creeps in. It always does at some point or another in every situation you will ever enter in your lifetime. I just don't like being selfish at all and get paranoid from time to time that I might be acting in a selfish manner. I guess some of this way of thinking was pre-programmed into me before I was born, because most people are either selfish, or they aren't from birth. Some of it most likely comes from the way I was raised as well. Constantly reprimanded for any type of behavior that even hinted at selfishness, and taught to be completely selfless at all costs. I believe that is what has instilled most of my "selfish paranoia", but I suppose that's what a by-the-book Christian raising gets you. It might even be just one small part in my decision several years back to become Pagan. And one more of many reasons why I peer into the mirror, wanting to discover something new, but all the same afraid of what might be found. All that being said, if there were such a mirror, a magic mirror per se, one that could show you your own soul, your true intentions in everything as well as your faults, would you be brave enough to look in? Even with the potential to see all of that and fix whatever is wrong with you, personally, would you have the guts? Would you steel yourself for the inside image of yourself, take it all in, and summon up the strength and courage to attempt mold yourself into the better, stronger, braver person you long to be? Or would you simply avoid said mirror and live the rest of your life just the way you are, fumbling in darkness and grasping for self-realization? To be one-hundred percent honest, I'm not sure what I would do. As much as there are things about me, about my personality, that I would love to correct, I would have fears. I would be afraid of seeing more negativity and broken parts in my soul than I'm capable of fixing. I just wonder...If such a mirror did exist, if I did look in and see answers I didn't like, would it break my soul? Change the person I am entirely? What could happen?
topic: Various
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	August 5, 2008, 1:58PM
by: nightside_shadow
New Study Finds 'Teens' Music Tastes Are Mental Diagnostic Indicators Musical key to unlocking teenage wasteland. DOCTORS should ask their teenage patients what type of music they prefer to determine if they are at risk of developing a mental illness or committing suicide, researchers say. A study, published in today's Australasian Psychiatry journal, found that teens who listened to pop music were more likely to be struggling with their sexuality, those tuning in to rap or heavy metal could be having unprotected sex and drink-driving, and those who favoured jazz were usually misfits and loners. The findings prompted a call for doctors to include musical tastes as a diagnostic indicator in mental health assessments. The study's author, Felicity Baker, said yesterday: "There is no evidence to suggest the type of music you listen to will cause you to commit suicide, but those who are vulnerable and at risk of committing suicide may be listening to certain types of music." She said an Australian study of year 10 students had shown significant associations between heavy metal music and suicidal tendencies, depression, delinquency and drug-taking. An American study had also shown that young adults who regularly listened to heavy metal had a higher preoccupation with suicide and higher levels of depression than their peers. Deliberate self-harm and attempted suicide were also associated with teenagers who listened to trance, techno, heavy metal and medieval music as part of the Goth subculture, while those who attended dance parties were much more likely than their peers to be taking drugs. Some genres of rap music, such as French rap, were linked to more deviant behaviours, including theft, violence and drug use. Teens who listened to hip-hop were usually less troublesome, Dr Baker said. "But it's important to point out that music doesn't cause these behaviours," she said. "It's more a case of teenagers who may have a mental illness or are involved in these antisocial behaviours being drawn to certain types of music." Michael Bowden, a child psychiatrist and the head of medical programs at the NSW Institute of Psychiatry, said most doctors already questioned teen patients about their influences, whether from their peers, the internet or music. "Over the years there have been concerns about suicidal themes in some music and whenever a famous person, such as (Nirvana singer) Kurt Cobain, kills themselves we see a copycat effect among teenagers," he said. "But sometimes an adolescent's musical tastes will reveal nothing. The key to understanding any teenager is to treat them with respect by listening to what they have to say, rather than typecasting them according to the type of music they listen to." WHAT STUDIES SAY ABOUT YOUR SOUNDS: POP: Conformists, overly responsible, role-conscious, struggling with sexuality or peer acceptance. HEAVY METAL: Higher levels of suicidal ideation, depression, drug use, self-harm, shoplifting, vandalism, unprotected sex. DANCE: Higher levels of drug use regardless of socio-economic background. JAZZ/RHYTHM & BLUES: Introverted misfits, loners. RAP: Higher levels of theft, violence, anger, street gang membership, drug use and misogyny. --- Taken from Frantik News. http://www.frantiknews.blogspot.com/#teens ----- Personally, I think its bullshit.
topic: Various
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Who are we or you to judge the blood?	March 7, 2008, 1:48AM
by: THE_FLY
i had noticed a Message that my best friend Merissa had posted due to the shock and tears that i've shed over this bulletin? i don't/won't bash her for anythign because she means more than alot to me in many ways but this message....i will share with people..... I have felt for sometime now that Obama is the one person that 'Frightens Me'. I believe the Bible has warned us that 'A man will come from the East that will be charismatic in nature and have proposed solutions for all our problems and his rhetoric will attract many supporters!' When will our pathetic Nation quit turning their back on God and understand that this man is 'A Muslim'....First, Last and always....and we are AT WAR with the Muslim Nation, whether our bleeding-heart, secular, Liberal friends believe it or not. This man fits every description from the Bible of the 'Anti-Christ'! Who is Barack Obama? Probable U. S. presidential candidate, Barack Hussein Obama was born in Honolulu, Hawaii, to Barack Hussein Obama, Sr., a black MUSLIM from Nyangoma-Kogel, Kenya and Ann Dunham, a white ATHEIST from Wichita , Kansas. Obama's parents met at the University of Hawaii. When Obama was two years old, his parents divorced. His father returned to Kenya. His mother then married Lolo Soetoro, a RADICAL Muslim from Indonesia. When Obama was 6 years old, the family relocated to Indonesia. Obama attended a MUSLIM school in Jakarta. He also spent two years in a Catholic school. Obama takes great care to conceal the fact that he is a Muslim. He is quick to point out that, 'He was once a Muslim, but that he also attended Catholic school.' Obama's political handlers are attempting to make it appear that that he is not a radical. Obama's introduction to Islam came via his father, and that this influence was temporary at best. In reality, the senior Obama returned to Kenya soon after the divorce, and never again had any direct influence over his son's education. Lolo Soetoro, the second husband of Obama's mother, Ann Dunham, introduced his stepson to Islam. Obama was enrolled in a Wahabi school in Jakarta. Wahabism is the RADICAL teaching that is followed by the Muslim terrorists who are now waging Jihad against the western world. Since it is politically expedient to be a CHRISTIAN when seeking major public office in the United States, Barack Hussein Obama has joined the United Church of Christ in an attempt to downplay his Muslim background. ALSO, keep in mind that when he was sworn into office he DID NOT use the Holy Bible, but instead the Koran. Barack Hussein Obama will NOT recite the Pledge of Allegiance nor will he show any reverence for our flag. While others place their hands over their hearts, Obama turns his back to the flag and slouches. Do you want someone like this as your PRESIDENT? Let us all remain alert concerning Obama's expected presidential candidacy. The Muslims have said they plan on destroying the US from the inside out, what better way to start than at the highest level - through the President of the United States, one of their own! Please forward to everyone you know. Would you want this man leading our country?...... NOT ME In All honesty? why....why does the world, society, or let alone OUR OWN PEOPLE have to come to this?! To be BRUTALLY HONEST? when i read this bulletin....not only did it break my heart, but it made me cry, because of the fact that this not only shows RIDICULOUSLY HIGH slander towards the bible (that has been re-written more times over than Rap remix songs) but it also shows that if we go towards a path of NEVER trusting our outer countries that respect the fact that WE, THE PEOPLE OF AMERICA live the way we want and enjoy our lives the way we want THEY WISH THAT WE DON'T FORCE OUR LIVESTYLE DOWN THEIR THROAT In all honesty.....it kills me in the worst way that people would actually think like this cause this truly TRULY hurts....alot A Bible (NOT EVEN AN EXTREMELY LITERAL AUTHENTIC ONE) tells you to forgive and forget, but yet BANISH those who are not worthy Why does the majority of society BELIEVE something like this?! It's wrong....VERY wrong! Whoever becomes the leader of this decrepid nation, SHOULD NOT be bashed or banished to eternal damnation JUST BECAUSE of their religion IMO? if you choose to redundantly bash someone because of their religion when it comes to helping others see a better way that will actually make them a moderately happy person, and IN LEAGUE with being acceptable about themselves or their life? THEN YOU should be banished to your personal damnation See.....Where i live? I'm beyond BEYOND sick and tired of having to tell every segregating african american that... 1-I am not a christian, or anything within relation to the "Religion Tree of Blasphemy" (in reference towards the southern-hateful families who bash/disown everyone who's not in leauge with churches) I'm a buddhist, and i was born into buddhism, along with my younger brother. But my religion doesn't pray and chant about self-greed, we chant about victory over violence, peace, ect. 2-I dress like this because of the fact that I grew up REFUSING to look like a typical stereotype that gets bashed and bothered and claimed for something else, YET i'm obliviously different from your average "black person" 3-I have a free spirit, because my family gave it to me when i was young, and i enjoy having this life 4-I'm not a "freak" or a fucking "gothic" kid cause i don't run around within a parade of ignorance and Untalented chaos JUST to get attention in all the wrong ways. Honestly? I'll vote for obama not because of the fact that he's black/muslim, ect. it's because of the fact that APPARENTLY ALONG with ms. clint? he's got a head on his shoulders Since these campaign runs have started lately? i've realized that America STILL hasn't evolved from the "common state of inner ignorance" People bashing hillary by claiming that if she goes on her period in the chair, she blows up half the continent or saying that she would tell everyone to go buy shoes with her when she's making a peace treaty or with the obama thing? claiming that he wants to bomb america from the inside-out or saying that he'll destroy us all because he's a muslim Last i remembered? -clears throat- THEY started war with other countries just to be greedy and pessimist and in this case... Being a pessimist....DOESN'T mean you're a Realist being a pessimist in this case? only makes you seem like a common enemy with those who have cared about you more than you'll ever know -I'm not bashing GOD! i bash the people who use, abuse, and mislead the world ABOUT god in the wrong way-
topic: Various
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Animal Attacks	December 31, 2007, 3:17PM
by: MorningStar23
Animals kept in cages for human entertainment. It seems natural enough. You take your children to the zoo, your friends come with you, and you buy a souvenir T-shirt. You get to see the Animals in 'their natural habitat' which is really a simulated habitat created by humans for animals far from what they're used to. But lets face facts here, we're animals too. We evolved from apes, and we are mammals, same as the lions, tigers, and bears! (oh my) But is it natural to see a human freak show? A carnival with humans locked in cages, prodded at with sticks, taunted with food? No it's not natural, and here's why. We understand how the humans locked in cages are feeling. Lonely, hatred, loathing for the world that allowed them to be captured there. Is it just possible that the animals that we tease with food and prod at with sticks just might hate everyone and everything? And yet we still wonder why they try to escape, killing many people on their path to freedom. Is it really that much of a mystery? The problem is that people see the great and majestic animal as something inferior to humans, put here by God to with with as we like. (Also one of the many reasons I've found it difficult to believe in 'God') Now don't get me wrong, I'm not from PETA, in fact, don't give them money, they're as crooked as George Bush himself. I eat hamburgers and fully enjoy them. I've even eaten crocodile once. What got me to write this is the news coverage of a Tiger attacking people. A human can beat another human within an inch of his life, but gets a fair trial, with a jury, a judge, and they still sometimes get away. If an animal should even do half of that, we put it immediately to death. I think there's something wrong with that myself. Why is it that Humans think they are superior to animals in every way, when they are in fact animals themselves? Because we've mastered dialect and technology. Without those two key factors, we would be out there foraging for food, protecting ourselves against every predator that might come our way. We would be just like them. I thought this was all completely obvious to everyone, but apparently not. So the question arises again. Why did a tiger break out of it's human made habitat and kill someone? Why did it attack? It can't possibly hold a grudge against humanity for keeping it there. It can't possibly want freedom. It can't possibly view every human as a threat, and attack them for fear that any human they see could be the one to put them back into captivity. But if we were in a cage with people always looking at us, taunting us, would we not do the same? Try and escape, anyone who gets in the way of our freedom could pose a threat. We would harm them too. Just look at the past... animals have attacked people in either resentment or on a quest for freedom as long as we've had them in captivity. How could this pattern not be obvious? I know that some people are going to read this, and no, it's not my personal belief, it's fact. And if there is a God out there, I'll willingly go to his hell because I wouldn't want anything to do with him anyways, so if you're going to reply to this article saying that I'm going to hell, I know, and I thank you for the compliment.
topic: Various
[reply] [1 comment]

Happy Turkey Day	November 20, 2007, 1:30PM
by: KLOKWERKAOS
Thanksgiving is one of the USA's most sacred holidays, right up with the 4th of July. It conveniently occurs on the "fourth Thursday in November" each year. Not only does this day mark the official beginning of the Holiday Shopping Season, it is also one of the key elements in the country's national mythology. Oppressed pioneers, "The Pilgrims," arrive on the savage shores of Massachusetts, desiring only religious freedom. After a tough year of overcoming countless adversities, they rejoice with a festival of giving thanks to G*d, and eating a lovely dinner with family and friends, and of course some kindly Indians. The reality is a little different. The reality is a story about mass-murder that went on for hundreds of years. History Every schoolchild in the USA has been taught that the Pilgrims invited the local Indians to a major feast after surviving their first year in "New England." In 1620 the English ship Mayflower landed at a place to be named Plymouth, delivering 102 right-wing Christian extremists. By today's standards, this would be a group of hardcore Christian lunatics, isolated in the mountains somewhere, far from the sinful world, where the Anti-Christ is already running the show and the Rapture was supposed to have happened a few months ago. This English crew was kicked out of England not because of "religious intolerance," but because these "Puritans" were such assholes that they were too stuff for even the English to deal with. Imagine England of Shakespeare's time. Music, cakes & ale, tea & crumpets, wenches, sex and ribaldry were the order of the day, and were about all that any normal people cared about. Good times! Then you have these fucking Puritans, wearing only black, walking around all gloomy, as music, dancing, non-married "lustful glances," and basically every fun thing they could think of were considered forbidden. You couldn't whistle a tune or tap your foot if you heard one; if you weren't married, you couldn't even look in the same direction as a person of the opposite sex. They would punish each other with bizarre penalties for any violations of their law. They made the Taliban look like Japanese tourists. The original Native people of this stretch of shoreline had already been killed off. In 1614 a British expedition had landed there. When they left they took 24 Indians as slaves and left smallpox behind. Three years of this epidemic wiped out around 95% percent of the inhabitants of the coast, destroying most villages completely. A thrilling tale of survival The Puritans built their town of Plymouth near the deserted ruins of an Indian village. They ate from abandoned cornfields grown wild. Only one Indian named Squanto was around the place -- he had spent the last few years as a slave to the English and Spanish in Europe. Squanto spoke English and taught the Pilgrims how to plant corn and how to catch fish until the first harvest. Squanto also helped the colonists negotiate a peace treaty with the few remaining people of the nearby Wampanoag tribe. Going home to his own Pawtuxet tribe, a day's hike to the north, Squanto had his throat cut as punishment for stupidly helping these weird strangers. In celebration of their good fortune, the colony's governor declared a three-day feast of Thanksgiving after that first harvest of 1621. The Pilgrims were very lucky that most of the Indians in their area had already been killed off, and they gave thanks for this. The scheming begins Many more religious nutcases began to arrive, taking land and enslaving Indians to help them farm it. By 1637 there were about 2,000 settlers. They pushed out from the coast and decided to remove the inhabitants. In the coming decades, these new settlers would form armies and go out raiding and destroying Indian villages, just to get them the fuck out of the way so Civilization could begin. One of the settlers wrote, "Those that escaped the fire were slain with the sword; some hewed to pieces, others run through with their rapiers, so that they were quickly dispatched and very few escaped. It was believed we thus destroyed about 400 at this time. It was a fearful sight to see them thus frying in the fire...horrible was the stink and scent thereof, but the victory seemed a sweet sacrifice, and we gave the prayers thereof to God, who had worked so wonderfully for us." By 1676, the colonists declared an official "day of public thanksgiving," saying, "there now scarce remains a name or family of the savages that are not slain, captivated or fled." By this time, the Puritans had destroyed the Wampanoag and all other neighboring tribes. The Wampanoag chief "King Philip" was beheaded. His head was stuck on a pole in Plymouth, where the skull still hung on display 150 years later. A Massachusetts law of 1695, the same year in which the Puritans of Salem were burning teenage girls to death for being "witches," gave colonists permission to kill Indians at will, declaring it was "lawful for any person that shall find any Indians traveling or skulking in any of the towns or roads to kill them as they may or can." Incidentally, the neurotic "puritanism" and prudishness of the Puritans is the reason Americunts are generally so fucked up in this regard, even now, in comparison to other countries. Honest Abe A couple of hundred years later, President Abraham Lincoln, just after ordering the army to wipe out some pesky Injuns out on the Plains, declared Thanksgiving to be a legal National Holiday. Since then Since that time, as most of the USA's original inhabitants are either fabulously wealthy running casinos or dirt-poor, living in broken-down trailers, Thanksgiving has morphed into a somewhat mandatory day when as many friends and/or family-members as possible are forced to gather at someone's comfortable home, to spend a whole day cooking a turkey, chit-chat about meaningless nonsense, re-live personal and family traumas from years and decades ago, and watch football games, even if one seriously hates football. Then, when all the food is ready, everyone sits fake-nicely around the table and fills their already-obese faces with as much food as they can possibly shove in. Indeed, most Americunts no longer call this Thanksgiving, in favor of the less-potentially-offensive term of Turkey Day. After this gluttonous orgy, and after a drunken uncle or two get into a fist-fight, and a child breaks a valuable antique, and two other children fight about the Nintendo, every one puts on their size XXXL sweaters and goes for a nice Thanksgiving walk around the block. This takes over an hour, as many of the adults have to stop and rest every 10 meters or so and smoke a cigarette. Returning to the house, everyone has several additional helpings of dessert, including ice cream and pie, until there is absolutely no food left in the house. Or maybe The alternative approach to a modern Thanksgiving is often chosen by people who want to receive special God-points for being extra-nice to "those less fortunate." These do-gooders go on down to the local homeless shelter or church-based soup kitchen, and spend the afternoon serving a Thanksgiving DinnerTM to "The Homeless." This meal always bears a striking resemblance to ordinary jail food, perhaps with a somewhat larger amount of imitation "mashed potatoes" or applesauce. This is fine with the throngs of unfortunate diners, nearly all of whom are crackheads or meth addicts or hardcore alcoholics. Afterwards, the do-gooders go to a fine restaurant, where they have pre-arranged for an elaborate Thanksgiving meal to be prepared. They have done such a good deed this Holiday Season, one that will take them through the year secure in the knowledge of their virtue. And now to the shops The next morning, "The Day After Turkey Day," is known to be the biggest shopping day of the year, and the launching of the Holiday Season marketing blitz. Many of the women will be seen at the shopping centers before dawn, queued up for early-opening stores, ready to max out the remaining credit cards yet again. And what are they buying? Thousands of dollars "worth" of toys and gadgets and electronics and other expensive shit, to help bolster the US economy, and to maintain the illusion that gives their lives meaning. And that's the story of Thanksgiving. (written by the good people of ED)
topic: Various
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