Why is this on the BBC Site, not most US ones?

US 'failing to stem terror risk'
"The most striking thing to us is that the size of the problem still totally dwarfs the policy response."
Thomas Kean - Chairman of the 9/11 Public Discourse Project

The group also criticised the Bush administration's efforts to improve its global image, tarnished by reports of the mistreatment of terror suspects.
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And here is a commentary listing "Five questions non-Muslims would like answered". It's a little raw, but the points he makes are valid... Where is the rightous Muslim's voice in all this terror nonsense, and "Why is only one of the 47 Muslim-majority countries a free country?"

I think there is a real opportunity for someone to stand up and share that Islam is not completely a mess.

Thoughts?

Have a Peaceful Veteran's Day. Shalom.

The Links Between the Dalai Lama and Neuroscience
The Dalai Lama will present a lecture to the world's largest group of brain scientists this weekend.
Some small studies have suggested that meditating on compassion can affect parts of the brain associated with positive thoughts. The Dalai Lama's talk will discuss meditation as a way to promote well-being and compassion.
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Also, this weird situation:
"Tibet's exiled spiritual leader, the Dalai Lama, took a rare swipe at the United States, saying he was puzzled why residents in the capital of the world's oldest democracy have no Congressional voting rights."

Interesting eh?
Charlie

Ratbikes and Topix

A few things today...

"RatBikes?" what the hell? Actually a fairly kool concept, keep yer moto full-on grunge. "Ratbikes are the ultimate distilled evolution of motorcycling: No Bullsh*t involved. Just do the minimum to keep them healthy and Ride. Let your bike wear it's visual history with pride. No time consuming cleaning, washing, polishing, adding shiny parts that do nothing. None of that, forget about it! Embrace The Pure and Essential Essence of Riding - Ride A Ratbike!"
A Preeeety wild gallery of RatBikes. Not sure one of these is right for me, but they sure look funny. 8-)
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We were curious how the breakdown of posts by topic from blogs would differ from mainstream media, and were blown away by the contrasts.

Hope you are well!
Charlie

10 Reasons Why Gay Marriage is Wrong

Awesome post from the Best of CraigsList. I guess Texas is voting on this now/soon? Rock on!

10 Reasons Why Gay Marriage is Wrong

1. Being gay is not natural. Real Americans always reject unnatural things like eyeglasses, polyester, and air conditioning.

2. Gay marriage will encourage people to be gay, in the same way that hanging around tall people will make you tall.

3. Legalizing gay marriage will open the door to all kinds of crazy behavior. People may even wish to marry their pets because a dog has legal standing and can sign a marriage contract.

4. Straight marriage has been around a long time and hasn't changed at all; women are still property, blacks still can't marry whites, and divorce is still illegal.

5. Straight marriage will be less meaningful if gay marriage were allowed; the sanctity of Britany Spears' 55-hour just-for-fun marriage would be destroyed.

6. Straight marriages are valid because they produce children. Gay couples, infertile couples, and old people shouldn't be allowed to marry because our orphanages aren't full yet, and the world needs more children.

7. Obviously gay parents will raise gay children, since straight parents only raise straight children.

8. Gay marriage is not supported by religion. In a theocracy like ours, the values of one religion are imposed on the entire country. That's why we have only one religion in America.

9. Children can never succeed without a male and a female role model at home. That's why we as a society expressly forbid single parents to raise children.

10. Gay marriage will change the foundation of society; we could never adapt to new social norms. Just like we haven't adapted to cars, the service-sector economy, or longer life spans.

a few links to kool stuff...

"What the fuck is in the box?!" This is bloody hilarious! I love Shatner.

WOW. This is nasty... "Why haven't we seen this?" So do you think Bush's actions help this situation or stoke the fires?

"We have a strategy drawn up for the destruction of Anglo-Saxon civilization... we must make use of everything we have at hand to strike at this front by means of our suicide operations or by means of our missiles. There are 29 sensitive sites in the U.S. and in the West. We have already spied on these sites and we know how we are going to attack them."
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We're packaging together some of the world's coolest and funniest cartoons and sending them straight to your iPod each week. - NICE!
http://www.channelfrederator.com
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Nice... Info on new developments in Absinthe.
Absinthe was first distilled in 1792 in Switzerland, where it was marketed as a medicinal elixir, a cure for stomach ailments. High concentrations of chlorophyll gave it a rich olive color. In the 19th century, people began turning to the minty drink less for pains of the stomach than for pains of the soul. Absinthe came to be associated with artists and Moulin Rouge bohemians. Baudelaire, Rimbaud, Van Gogh, and Picasso were devotees. Toulouse-Lautrec carried some in a hollowed-out cane. Oscar Wilde wrote, "What difference is there between a glass of absinthe and a sunset?" Soon absinthe was the social lubricant of choice for a broad swath of Europeans - artists and otherwise. In 1874, the French sipped 700,000 liters of the stuff; by the turn of the century, consumption had shot up to 36 million liters, driven in part by a phylloxera infestation that had devastated the wine-grape harvest.

By the early 20th century, absinthe was becoming popular in America. It found a natural reception in New Orleans, where the bon temps were already rolling. Breaux's own great-grandparents were known to enjoy an occasional glass. But the drink was drawing fire for its thujone content. "It is truly madness in a bottle, and no habitual drinker can claim that he will not become a criminal," declared one politician. The anti-absinthe fervor climaxed in 1905, when Swiss farmer Jean Lanfray shot his pregnant wife and two daughters after downing two glasses. (Overlooked was what else Lanfray consumed that day: crème de menthe, cognac, seven glasses of wine, coffee with brandy, and another liter of wine.) By the end of World War I, the "green menace" was made illegal everywhere in western Europe except Spain. No reputable distillery still made it.

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