Saturday, June 05, 2010

"You know, Barbara is unstable. She is too big, and spends too much."

"There is never enough time, unless you're serving it." - Malcolm Forbes

***

An email I got:

"http://gssq.blogspot.com/2001/11/now-that-google-has-finally-reindexed.html

In the above entry, there is a .wav file of George H. W. Bush that was spliced together. I haven't heard it in over 10 years and would love to get my grubby hands on it again. Sadly, the link in your blog is now broken. (9 years later I'd hope so). I was wondering if you possibly had that wav file you could email. For a bit of a walk down memory lane, it would be awesome. Thanks in advance!

Thanks for your time,

~clone"


Listen to the MP3 (which seems patched together mostly from his State of the Union address):

[Addendum: Unfortunately as of February 2012 Odeo has gone down]

Or download the original WAV [Addendum: Unfortunately so has my homepage, so here it is on 4shared, till it goes down and someone tells me about it:



Page link]


Transcript:

"You know, Barbara is unstable.

She is too big, and spends too much. She's nagging, lazy and uninspired, but when Barbara holds my pride, I have always risen to the occasion.

This may seem frivolous, and it don't mean itself, but this weekend, we did it together, right here in this chamber, pushing, my missile inch by inch further and deeper, and I'm huge, and I think twice - really - that this is no time to boast.

Tonight she wanted me to know that some day having a good time must end. Which means, no more next year than this year, oh no, this will not stand!

She now recognises that I have needs; my piece is hard and it has been languishing in these Hallowed Halls for years now.

There're certain things that a president can do without the wife, and I'm gonna do them. Let me level with ya, I relish I'm good, and job, and I cannot wait.

Let me tell you what you can do. Give me the same thing 43 Governors have - a new woman under complete government control. And you, pay the bill.

And finally, I had a joint tonight, and it is, kicking in now. And that is fine. No one ever thinks - I need drugs, but after all, a man needs a vice.

You know, I have bad dreams. This time, I saw Elvis - that thief - making fun of my life, and you know, my thing.

*This* will not stand. Thank you, and God Bless our beloved country, thank you very very much."

Links - 5th June 2010

"Any American who is prepared to run for president should automatically, by definition, be disqualified from ever doing so." - Gore Vidal

***

Schumpeter: Overstretched | The Economist - "63% of workers say that their employers do not appreciate their extra effort. And 57% feel that employees are treated like dispensable commodities. Half report that their current level of work is unsustainable... Absenteeism is on the rise. Low-level corporate crime is growing. Corporate loyalty is on the wane. The Corporate Leadership Council reports that the proportion of workers who are willing to put in “discretionary effort” has dropped by almost half since 2007, while the share of respondents who claim that they are “disengaged” from their jobs has risen from a tenth to a fifth. But “discretionary effort” and “engagement” are vital sources of the innovation and creativity that companies claim to value so highly. The biggest danger for companies is if workers head for the door as the economy picks up"
Alternatively, they can try going on telling their workers to be Cheaper, Better, Faster - and see what happens

Evolutionary Psychology FAQ - "Today, apparently, a number of thinkers have, like the Catholic Church, also grounded their moral and political views in certain scientific assumptions about the world. In this case, these are scientific assumptions about human nature (mainly that there isn't one). Consequently, any body of theory and research which calls these assumptions into question will be seen as quite threatening. The problem, of course, is not with those who claim on theoretical and empirical grounds that there is a human nature, it is with those who have succumbed to the temptation to ground their theology in assumptions about humans which are scientifically testable. This is especially unwise because the science of human behavior and psychology is extraordinarily undeveloped... Research which calls into question assumptions underlying popular moral and political views will then unfortunately find itself attacked on extra-scientific grounds. Such research will, in effect, be viewed as heresy. The solution? Don't base your moral or political views on supposed 'facts' about human nature!...
Q: What are your politics? (Translation: Doesn't evolutionary psychology have a crypto conservative political agenda?)
A: Sigh. It shouldn't matter, but of course it does. In case anyone is interested (and I hope no one is), I'm a liberal Democrat"

School to toughen up 'sissy' boys - " Qinlinglu Elementary School in Zhengzhou, Henan province, has launched an initiative called 'Looking for a Real Man' to encourage boys to act more like boys. As part of this the youngsters are taught how to act more masculine and must take an oath swearing to act like 'real men'... During class breaks their favorite game is elastic band skipping, which is a typical girl's game. And the boys are very fragile. If we just scold them a bit they will cry out loudly. In contrast, he says the girls at the school are becoming wilder and wilder."

Expelled activists describe cold-blooded killings - "Israel has gone mad and it will not continue to exist forever."
His comment reveals the activists' real aim

Is This Woman Too Hot To Be a Banker? - "This is the way Debbie Lorenzana tells it: Her bosses told her they couldn't concentrate on their work because her appearance was too distracting. They ordered her to stop wearing turtlenecks. She was also forbidden to wear pencil skirts, three-inch heels, or fitted business suits. Lorenzana, a 33-year-old single mom, pointed out female colleagues whose clothing was far more revealing than hers: "They said their body shapes were different from mine, and I drew too much attention," she says."
It's revealing that her lawyer made her take very conservative pictures for her lawsuit. And all her jobs seem to have been sales jobs - and it's unsurprising she excelled in all of them.

Sigh. Another Conference Against Porn | Good Vibrations Magazine - "It’s really problematic that they usually make sweeping statements about porn without acknowledging that when they talk about “porn,” the term gets used to cover all sexually explicit material, even though porn is much more diverse than they describe. Although it’s in the minority, there’s a growing amount of porn that challenges, questions, and subverts the mainstream industry and they’re usually left out. of the discussion For that matter, there’s plenty of gay porn that, while it doesn’t necessarily challenge notions of sex, certainly doesn’t fit their analyses of how porn affects women simply because there aren’t any women in these movies. There’s also heterosexual porn that shows people having fun, without themes of nonconsensual domination, humiliation, or degradation. If they used some/many/most language in their analysis, they would actually make it more valid because they would actively challenge the idea that all porn has to be a certain way. Also missing from their critiques is any questioning or reflection upon the goals and needs that people are trying to meet by watching porn. In my experience as a sex educator, there are lots of reasons people are interested in porn... I wouldn’t be pointing out that these folks don’t have much understanding around the experiences of men and porn if they weren’t already making all sorts of declarations about the reasons men watch porn and the effects that it may have on them... I’d much rather work towards solutions than complain about problems. Maybe these folks could do the same, but I’m not holding my breath. If you want to check out some of the porn that comes from a different angle, take a look at Good Releasing, our very own production line. You could also try Jiz Lee, No Fauxxx, Pink & White Productions, Courtney Trouble, Comstock Films, Furry Girl, Ruby’s Diary, or Candida Royalle"

Norwegian Boy saves Sister from Moose Attack using World of Warcraft Skills - "Hans knew the first thing he had to do was ‘taunt’ and provoke the animal so that it would leave his sister alone and she could run to safety... Once Hans was a target, he remembered another skill he had picked up at level 30 in ‘World of Warcraft’ – he feigned death. The moose lost interest in the inanimate boy and wandered off into the woods"

How Superstitions Improve Performance

Porn Stars in 3-D Lure Consumers in Japan to Sony, Panasonic Televisions

Today's Alternative Marriage Styles: The Case of Swingers - "Swingers surveyed are the white, middle-class, middle-aged, church-going segment of the population reported in earlier studies, but when it comes to attitudes about sex and marriage they are less racist, less sexist, and less heterosexist than the general population. Swinging appears to make the vast majority of swingers' marriages happier, and swingers rate the happiness of their marriages and life satisfaction generally as higher than the non-swinging population"

Thai Politics | Erotic Massage | Happy Ending - "Chuvit made his fortune in Bangkok running lucrative “soapies”: luxury massage parlors where women treat patrons to erotic baths... 'People still think of you as the “Brothel King.” But in 2005 you smashed a jacuzzi bathtub in front of parliament to show you’re out of that business'... 'The media says I’m a sex merchant, a sex tycoon. Whatever. But I quit already! They’re massage parlors, OK? It’s not immoral... Society, like in Thailand or Asia, everyone runs in a group. In the U.S., you sit at a bar to drink alone and nobody blames you. But Thai people doing this? They’ll say, “What’s wrong with you? Are you broken-hearted?”... People say, “Mr. Chuvit, you're the massage parlor king. Why get into politics?” Because politics has a lot of dirty people. I'm like the massage parlor. I'm gonna clean them all up... Thai people are always talking so nice, even when they’re lying. It’s difficult to see inside them. When I ran my campaign, people would come up and say, "Oh, Mr. Chuvit, I chose you!" I know they’re lying. Why? Because I never win... My political policy is very short. It's love. If the Red Shirts love the [rival-political faction] Yellow Shirts, if the Yellow Shirts love Red Shirts, do you know how much this country would move forward? You just have to love your country, love your king, love your society. All we need is love.'
I wonder if there're translation issues

Get trained, change jobs - "MORE workers who receive training are changing jobs... Almost three in 10 workers with Workforce Skills Qualification (WSQ) training had changed jobs, compared with two in 10 workers without such training, according to a government study of labour mobility between June 2007 and June 2009."
Moral of the story: Don't send your staff for training!

Islamic Foundation calls for death sentence if apostate fails to repent - "According to the Maldivian constitution all citizens are required to be Muslim, and the country is always described as a “100 percent” Muslim country... “In Islam, there are many cases, it doesn’t mean death penalty,” Dr Naik explained. “But if the person who reverts who was a Muslim then converts to and becomes a non-Muslim and propagates his faith and speaks against Islam, and if it’s Islamic rule, then the person should be put to death”"

Why Sex and the City 2 is a science fiction movie - "Sartorially, the film is the most scifi thing I've seen all year. The wardrobe department obviously used Jean Paul Gaultier's designs from The Fifth Element as a jumping-off point. Tromping through the dunes, the women look like David Lynch's Fremen... Carrie goes to the souk to purchase what appears to be genie shoes (I'm serious). At this point, Carrie's old flame, Aiden Shaw, suddenly appears. Do you know how difficult it is to run into people you know in NYC, let alone in the UAE? Aiden's appearance wasn't just a lazy, ludicrously improbable sop to longtime SATC fans. No, it was The City's machinations keeping Carrie in check. The shoes conspired against her. Ooooh."
One comment: "Thanks for writing possibly the first review of this movie I've seen that isn't tinged with misogynistic horror at the thought of middle-aged ladies having active sex lives."
Hurr hurr. Any time you criticise women, you're a misogynist.


Anti-drugs campaigner Barbara Harris brings crusade to sterilise addicts to UK - ""The problem that Ms Harris is trying to address is a real one," concedes Julian Sheather, the British Medical Association's ethics manager... "A small number of drug-addicted women give birth to a succession of drug-dependent children who are taken into foster care. It is by any standards an appalling start in life"... It is reported that one out of every 264 babies born in Scotland suffers withdrawal symptoms from mothers who use drugs including heroin and cannabis... For many women with drug problems, the chance to become a mother can be life-changing and a powerful motivation to seek help for their addiction and other problems in their lives""
The objection sounds like feel-good hand-waving.
One comment: "Can a drug addict give informed consent to sterilisation? Can a drug addict give informed consent to intercourse? Every child should be a wanted child, not the unintended outcome of a casual relationship. I will contribute now."
Strangely, but not entirely unexpectedly, one commenter blames capitalism for drug addiction (?!)


Unofficial Singapore Government 2.0 wiki [licensed for non-commercial use only] / Abbreviations

GOOD Transparency – Immigration Infographic — Simple Complexity - "GOOD Magazine’s latest Infographic Transparency looks at the 20 countries from which the most people came to America in 2008, how many immigrants already had family here, and how many received asylum when they arrived on our shores."
The US accepted 64 UK refugees and asylees in 2008?!

Extending Apologetic Logic to Other Spheres

"The louder he talked of his honor, the faster we counted our spoons." - Ralph Waldo Emerson

***

"A common technique used in debates by evangelicals is that they will "rationally" prove the resurrection is historically probable but when asked if the methods apply to other miracles - they will coyly reply "they haven't studied it yet"! One such example is that of Christian apologist Micheal Horner. Horner is fond of claiming that skeptics and critical historians have an “anti-supernatural bias” against reports about miracles in the Bible.

In his debate with skeptic Farrell Till in 1995, the latter presented him with accounts of miracles from non-Christian writers (Josephus, Suetonius), modern day “Elvis-sightings” and Mormon claims about Joseph Smith and the golden plates and asked for his opinion on their historicity. Horner, who obviously does not believe such miracles, replied that he hadn’t “checked into” them. A year later, in another debate, this time with atheist Dan Barker, Horner was once again asked by Till in the Q&A session about these non-biblical reports of miracles and whether he had evaluated them historically. Once again Horner replied that he hasn’t “yet done that.” The full transcripts of both debates as well as Farell Till’s comments can be found in the Internet Infidels website [accessed on October 2, 2007]:

The Horner-Till debate:
http://www.infidels.org/library/modern/farrell_till/horner-till/

The Horner-Barker debate:
http://www.infidels.org/library/modern/dan_barker/barker_horner.html

Farrell Till’s comments on Horner’s position on miracles:
http://www.infidels.org/library/magazines/tsr/1997/2/2claim97.html"


And my response to long tracts about beliefs being "rationally required", "rationally allowed" and "rationally forbidden":

How would you classify belief in the following?

1) The Theory of Gravity
2) The Theory of Evolution
3) Holocaust Denial
4) Julius Caesar being born by Caesarian Section
5) String Theory
6) Rasputin having mystical powers
7) Assortative Mating
8) The Armenian "Genocide" of 1915-1917
9) Crop Circles
10) Alien Abductions
11) Homoepathy
12) The Blank Slate Theory of the Human Mind
13) JFK Conspiracy Theories
14) 9/11 Conspiracy Theories
15) Moon Landing Conspiracy Theories
16) Scientology
17) The existence of William Shakespeare
18) The idea that Salieri killed Mozart
19) The existence of the Basilisk
20) That North Korea just blew up a South Korean vessel

Friday, June 04, 2010

A great message of 'support' for City Harvest

"After one look at this planet any visitor from outer space would say "I want to see the manager."" - William S. Burroughs

***

Facebook | City Harvest Church (Official): Statement to CHC Members (June 2, 2010):

chcsupport.th.png

"CHC is half as the strength of the SAF regulars combined. Some regulars will even join us. If we want to build an army, we can. We want to buy arms, we have the money given to us by God to buy. No weapon shall form against us. CHC will be victorious, no matter what.

When he arrived, the king asked him, "Micaiah, shall we go to war against Ramoth Gilead, or shall I refrain?" "Attack and be victorious," he answered, "for they will be given into your hand." - 2 Chronicles 18:14

God will give us victory if we are willing to fight in the name of the LORD."


Best comment I've seen so far is from Xiaxue:

"So your god is pastor kong???? RT: @heywenz @Xiaxue You are no one to judge our God."

Thursday, June 03, 2010

Sausagefest (2nd June 2010)

"I'm sick of following my dreams. I'm just going to ask them where they're going and hook up with them later." - Mitch Hedberg

***

Last night, I had a sausagefest.

It was inspired by a night in April when I was eating Currywurst and Brot at Magma and thought that, hey, it wasn't very good and that anyway I preferred it with fries. Bunny Girl then said that she wanted to try Currywurst, and the idea was born.

At first, in keeping with the theme of the evening, I was only going to invite girls (MFTTW, Cunning Linguist, Bunny Girl and Temptation Chris came in the end), but in the end I also asked Mr Wet along (since he's in touch with his sensitive side, I guess that counts); the planned sequel will be a tacofest where I only invite guys, but I suspect Mexican food is not as popular as sausages.


The sausages we ended up consuming:

1) American Packaged Bratwurst ("Cooked Brats")
2) Cold Storage Deli Bratwurst
3) Weisswurst
4) Bockwurst

The sausages we didn't:

1) Spicy Italian
2) Cold Storage Raw Bratwurst
3) English Cumberland
4) Chorizo
5) "Wienerli. Swiss Style" (Swiss Style Vienna Sausage)


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One of my specialities, home-made fries

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Grilling Cooked Brats and frying frites

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Done frites

We then boiled Weißwurst in beer and onions, to bring out its flavour.

Since beer in Singapore is expensive, we used the lousiest beer we could find: Tiger Beer (since 1932).

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The only thing Tiger Beer is good for: boiling sausages

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Tiger Beer, Onions and Sausages (Weißwurst, Cold Storage Deli Bratwurst, Cooked Brat)

Unfortunately, though I had dispatched my minion (MFTTW) to German Market Place (Bukit Timah Road) to buy the curry ketchup, she forgot to bring it, so we extemporised with tomato ketchup, BBQ sauce and curry powder.

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It actually worked quite well with the BBQ sauce.

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Bratkartoffeln (German Fried Potatoes), which is actually even more tedious to make than frites.

I'd felt like having Saganaki (Greek Pan-Fried Cheese), and my sister said it could be made with Halloumi which you can find in Singapore, so we also had a go at it:

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Australian Halloumi in cornstarch

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Frying Halloumi

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Fried Halloumi

The crowning glory of Saganaki, of course, is when it is set on fire at your table with the cry of "Opa!"; according to Urban Dictionary, "Opa" is "Greek for, "Oh my God! Your cheese is on fire!""

So we decided to cry out "Opa!" as I valiantly tried to light the Saganaki with flaming disposable chopsticks (we had no lighter and I didn't want to search for matches).

The moment of glory was not captured successfully, but here is its aftermath:


Flaming pan-fried Saganaki (using Halloumi). With too much Cognac. And the flames were extinguished with fresh lemon juice.

Lessons from making Flaming Saganaki:

1) If your first attempt fails, do not pour more alcohol onto the same piece of cheese if you want to be able to eat it afterwards
2) Just light one piece of cheese for dramatic effect - save the rest for eating
3) There is a reason they serve it in its own small pan - so the alcohol fumes collect

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Cognac-drenched Saganaki. We didn't touch the centre piece (the one which had gotten the most cognac).

Later, we also got to eat a brownie made with an Easter Egg, and I had one of my fantasies fulfilled: having a beautiful woman spray whipped cream directly into my mouth (I gagged and had to spit).

(Credits: Main photographer of the evening, Bunny Girl, and chronicler of the NSFW pictures MFTTW)


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Bonus pictures: mutant egg found in my fridge

Wednesday, June 02, 2010

Monday, May 31, 2010

"Why on earth did you do that?" "Because this is the Middle East."

"I'm not worried about the bullet with my name on it... just the thousands out there marked 'Occupant.'" - Unknown

***

In the day, I saw that some people were up in arms over something called a "#freedomflotilla", which was an attempt by some activists to break the Israeli blockade on Gaza by sailing in a ship with aid.

What they missed (but which most media happily picked up) were reports of the activists' violence (extensively covered here).

Let's just say that these are Israelis. If they'd wanted to kill people, everyone on that ship would've been dead by now.

Now, I'm very amused, as it seems that both sides know how to play the publicity game:


"Israeli Navy Addresses a Ship in the Flotilla and Offers it to Dock in the Ashdod Port"

Even better:


"Demonstrators Use Violence Against Israeli Navy Soldiers Attempting to Board Ship"

Specified incidents:

"The first soldier is injured and is thrown to the lower deck"
"Attack using metal pole"
"Attack using a large metal object"
"Tens of rioters hit an IDF soldier and try to kidnap him"
"Stun grenade thrown at soldiers"
"Firebomb thrown at soldiers"

[Addendum:


"Close-Up Footage of Mavi Marmara Passengers Attacking IDF Soldiers"

Also, the first soldiers used paintball guns - it's hard to get more peaceful than that.

Large amount of weapons prepared to attack soldiers with

North Korea kills 46 South Korean sailors in cold blood - silence.
Saddam Hussein kills 100,000 Kurds in one operation alone - silence.
10 activists who attack IDF soldiers with knives are shot dead in self-defence - an uproar.]

While Israel shares responsibility for the mess it's currently in, in this situation, at least, they seem to have reacted very appropriately.

The only thing that can make this better is a helmet-cam, like this Dutch video showing a raid against Somali pirates:



Well, actually something like that exists (unfortunately in Hebrew [?], but it shows people brandishing objects and attacking the soldiers):


(this is from Turkish TV)

"I don't know about you but if I genuinely feared for my life I would hide with the other protesters below decks rather than waiting topside for the soliders to touch down so that I could beat them with metal bars."

Unfortunately, despite all this, people will go on claiming things like "Israel has just announced the world's most dangerous weapons: Wheelchairs and elderly people", just as earlier this year (or was it last year) people were mocking the authorities at some event for overreacting with heavy security (including riot police) against what was alleged to be flower-bearing hippies, complete with this iconic picture of a girl dancer placing a flower in front of some police, even though there were in fact some violent anarchists who caused trouble.

Links - 31st May 2010

"Love is a snowmobile racing across the tundra and then suddenly it flips over, pinning you underneath. At night, the ice weasels come." - Matt Groening

***

The Straight Dope: Does every type of animal dropping have its own name? - "Useful verbs are blissom, to copulate with a ewe; and caponize, to castrate a chicken. For gourmets we have ranivorous, frog-eating; and scolecophagous, worm-eating. In the animal mania department there is formication, the feeling that bugs are crawling over you; boanthropy, the delusion that you're an ox; cynanthropy, the fantasy that you're a dog; and galeanthropy, the nightmare that you're a cat"

The Straight Dope: How accurate are lie-detector tests? - "Probably the most comprehensive look at polygraph accuracy is a 2003 report from the National Academy of Sciences. After examining 57 polygraph studies the NAS concluded: "In populations of examinees such as those represented in the polygraph research literature, untrained in countermeasures, specific-incident polygraph tests can discriminate lying from truth telling at rates well above chance, though well below perfection." Their analysis of the 30 most recent polygraph data sets showed an overall accuracy of 85 percent, and an analysis of seven field studies involving specific incidents showed a median accuracy of 89 percent."

YouTube - Mc Donald's - Playland - "For kids, McDonald's is a fun, exciting place. We wanted to bring that feeling back to adults"

Because Every Country Is The Best At Something - "International Number Ones"

Can a Pill Help Women Reach Orgasm? - "Tiefer argues that no single drug could possibly cure all of women's sexual problems because there are so many potential causes for a woman's inability to enjoy sex. Male impotence is essentially a mechanical problem that can be cured by a medication that enables erection. But women may turn away from sex for many reasons: physical, emotional, psychological."
Women are complicated

Hans Rosling on Singapore (Part II) - "Q: How valid is this idea that China is the world's biggest source of pollution?
A: It is intellectually at this level. (He bends down and points to his socks). I call the people with these ideas Post-Industrial Morons."
Pointing out an incontrovertible truth makes you a Moron? Sounds like Post-Colonial Guilt
Addendum: In the other part of the interview, he reveals that he is a misandrist and blames men for everything, imagining that men are solely responsible if women don't want to have children; I don't expect him to be up to speed with the latest research on maternal gatekeeping, but at least he should acknowledge that it takes two hands to clap. He also says that if a marriage breaks down and a divorce happens, it must be the women leaving unhappy marriages, and that must be the man's fault. If a woman does not want to have kids, it must be because she married a bastard: "Low-income divorcees with children in tow are also entitled to housing subsidies in Sweden. This makes it easier for women who leave unhappy marriages. 'You then remarry someone you love, that you are willing to have more kids with, instead of with that bastard you happened to marry the first time,' he says." (asterisks replaced)

The man accused of setting up false suicide pacts - "It is related to the whole question of freedom of speech. The difficulty is how the promotion of suicide is defined - after all, there are books, plays and films that deal with the issue."

Was Jesus Christ a Sith Lord? - "When Anakin quotes Jesus to Obi-Wan, "You are either for me or against me" (Matthew 12:30), we find out from Obi-Wan that Jesus was a Sith Lord — "Only the Sith deal in absolutes"... Anakin is quite willing to slaughter innocent children and his own friends in order to save someone he has decided he can't live without (although, as the rest of the series shows, he does manage to survive without her). Likewise, Padme is willing to orphan her children because her husband is an ass. Instead of living for love, she dies from petulance... If anyone wonders what life looks like to a pagan, watch the Star Wars series. Its incoherence, senseless violence and skewed perceptions of reality combine to demonstrate that without Christ at the center, life truly is but sound and fury, signifying nothing."
HAHAHAHAHAHA Christian Literary Analysis is even funnier than the normal sort

That dress looks great... and other fibs your friends tell you - "Four in ten women will lie to friends about how an outfit looks, in order to make themselves look better by comparison. Some will even go as far as 'accidentally' pouring drinks over a friend's clothing to avoid being overshadowed... Luckily, many women are wise to these wicked ways. When asked if they trusted their pals to give an honest opinion of their clothes, just 36 per cent said they did."

Mobile phone number suspended after three users die in 10 years - "A mobile phone company has suspended the number 0888 888 888 – after every single person assigned to it died in the last 10 years."
They should peddle it in China

Good Government vs. Less Government - "Or: Why the Heritage Freedom Index is a Damned Statistical Lie... many of these measures used in the composite Heritage Index have nothing to do with less government, and a lot more to do with good government. It is these measures of good government that correlate to economic growth and drive the overall correlation between the “Freedom Index” and positive outcomes... Fiscal Freedom and lower Government Spending negatively correlate with life expectancy, even without controlling for other variables!... it still undercuts the neoliberal argument (less government = always better)."

Newseum | Today's Front Pages - "834 front pages from 77 countries... The Newseum displays these daily newspaper front pages in their original, unedited form"

Italian priests' secret mistresses ask pope to scrap celibacy rule - "Dozens of Italian women who have had relationships with Roman Catholic priests or lay monks have endorsed an open letter to the pope that calls for the abolition of the celibacy rule. The letter, thought by one signatory to be unprecedented, argues that a priest "needs to live with his fellow human beings, experience feelings, love and be loved""

Recover Detail and Sharpen Your Blurred Photos - "Focus Magic uses advanced forensic strength deconvolution technology to literally "undo" blur and recover lost detail. It can repair both out-of-focus blur and motion blur (camera shake) in an image"

YouTube - Lyrebird mimic

Scrap the 50-50 divorce payouts that rob men, says law chief - "It is unfair to men and demeaning to women, she said... Lady Deech, one of the country's most senior family lawyers, said 40 years of divorce law reform had increased the number of divorces and hurt families... Children, who learn about the dangers of smoking and poor diet at school, should also be taught about the value of marriage, she said. Lady Deech spoke out after a series of multi-million-pound divorce payouts to wives who have been married to rich men for only a short time... 'It is no wonder that England is the divorce capital of Europe and out of step with other European countries.' Women who expect equality at work should not suddenly be treated as kept women when they divorce... 'But even when public debate focuses on the plight of single parents and their children, the fact that over half of them are created by divorce and separation is overlooked.'"

NUS Business School Global Alumni Network - "Going by the following accounts, marriages are made not just in heaven but in NUS Business School too. So what is it about looking across the lecture theatre to find your soulmate looking right back at you? Click on their names to read their story"
HAHAHAHAHAHA

David Laws has provoked his treatment at the hands of a homophobic press - "One of the most difficult observations we ever have to make to those who feel they are victims of homophobia is: "It might not be just because you're gay.""

New Template: Light Touch

Am putting the finishing touches on a new blog template (this might take a few days).

(I realise I haven't changed my blog template for 3 years)

Also, I have finally switched commenting systems from the rubbish that is Echo (JS-Kit) to Disqus.

Sunday, May 30, 2010

No wonder we have a Mason Lodge!

And here I was thinking Singapore was too trivial for the Illuminati to bother about:

"Is Singapore a New World Order society? What are the connections of our founding fathers and rulers to the illuminati? Is the country free or the people in it under a covert system of enslavement? Why did our early leaders make use of secret societies as part of their operation to establish dominance and order in Singapore? Have you realized how our entire education, national service and employment system was designed to condition people to become automated drones fully suited for the NWO?"

(Idea for Singapore Philosophy Meetup)

Someone: I don't think any of the Illuminati spoke Malay.