Mothers, Tall Girls and Women's Rights

So it's Mother's Day and a few items are worth mentioning. The first is the election of Iran to the UN Commission on the Status of Women.  I know, you're thinking that Iran still has one foot still in the 8th century.  And you would be right.  However, they also have a few women elected to office which is rare for any Muslim country.  In fact they have a number of non-Muslamic rules that make it seem progressive.  Like Iraq under Hussein, Iran pushes education for all and has some positive notions. But still, any country that is ruled by a religious figure (of any denomination) is not a serious canditate to represent women at the UN.  Imagine the Vatican in a similar position.  Sure there's a strong push for equality, but ultimately it's a male dominated religion. So how does Iran get the ok to be part of the UN Status of Women?  Would you believe that it is with the help of Canada and the US?  Neither country made any objections.  Huh?  Well, they gave Iran a pass because it agreed to remove itself from the Human Rights Council. So ultimately, they chose to appease Iran by letting it on a slightly less important council.  I hate politics. CNSNews.com (Apr 30, 2010) - Silence From U.S. and Its Allies Allowed Iran to Get Seat on U.N. Women’s Rights Body The United States and 12 other Western democracies kept silent this week as Iran was nominated for membership of the United Nations’ Commission on the Status of Women (CSW), thus enabling Iran to get the seat. In the four-year period beginning in 2011, Iran will help set U.N. policy on gender equality and the advancement of women. ... Read the full story here... The second article is from the (Muslim) country of Somalia where the local tribesmen discuss the value of tall girls vs short girls.  The value of their daughters comes down to how many head of cattle they are worth.  Just a reminder of how far we have to go in certain parts of the world. Los Angeles Times (May 4, 2010) - Tall girls, more cattle ... "Tall girls fetch more cattle because their daughters will quickly grow and can be married off to fetch even more cattle," said the chief, shooing a stubborn fly. "A tall girl can command 60 to 100 cattle from a suitor. A short girl may get 20 head, and, sometimes, short girls overstay their welcome in the father's home and end up fetching only five cattle. By then, a tall girl has already borne five children." ... "Things get competitive for a tall girl," said the chief. "Once she reaches 12 years of age, men come to the father and promise many cattle. Of course, a suitor with no cattle will never marry. Our laws forbid that. He is single for life. If he sleeps with someone's daughter or gets her pregnant, he'll be killed." What do tall women think about marriage and cattle? The chief bit his lip, bafflement drifting across his face. "Women have no say," he said. ... Read the full story here... Bil An Outraged Dad

Worse Than PETA

You've got to go pretty far to be nuttier than PETA. Dr Brett Mills at East Anglia University has come out and said that all those animal life documentaries do not take into consideration the right to privacy of the animals. That's right. Maybe the animals don't WANT to appear on TV. I guess he's including the family dog and goldfish in there. He hasn't gone so far as to suggest a lawyer to represent the animals, but maybe that's next on the agenda. East Anglia. That name sounds familiar. Oh yes, that's the university that's connected to the ClimateGate emails. And already a number of the professors have had their studies and comments debunked, bringing global warming into doubt. I think it's time to have a serious look at anything coming out of this university. And for the record, PETA has officially said that photographing animals is okay with them Telegraph, UK (Apr 29, 2010) - Wildlife documentaries invade animal privacy rights, claims leading academic Dr Brett Mills believes programmes such as the BBC's Nature's Great Events, narrated by Sir David Attenborough, are "unethical" for capturing animals' most intimate secrets on camera without their consent. The senior lecturer at the University of East Anglia said it was wrong for broadcasters to treat all creatures as "fair game" and to fail to consider their right to privacy before recording. Animals just like humans have a basic right not to have their most intimate moments – such as mating, giving birth and dying – broadcast to an audience of millions, he said. ... Read the full story here... Bil An Outraged Dad

The Autism Link

As you read this story, I want you to imagine the sound of me hitting my head against the wall. The EPA has confirmed that 1988 was one of the turning points in the rise of autism in the US. And for 22 years, no one has been able to pinpoint the cause. Vaccinations and Autism Most parents point to vaccinations and possible mercury or something that triggers the autism. Lots of parents have stories about how there child changed just AFTER getting their vaccination. Study after study has been done pooh-poohing parents' concerns. The vaccine is safe, they said. And yet there is a huge anti-vaccination movement. But now the EPA admits that that's one of the dates when they changed how the common vaccines were being produced. They started adding "cells derived from the tissue of aborted babies". What a loaded statement! Lots of ammo for the Pro-Life side. But wait, that's not the point that was always being denied. They ARE using cells from the tissue of aborted babies. No, they just denied that there was any connection between the news process and autism. The obvious question is, Did you really have to use tissue from aborted babies? Lessons From a Mad Cow But here's another question. Have they not heard of Mad Cows Disease? You see there were these few cows that had the disease. But the general practice was to ground dead cows' brains into feed for other cows. Sort of a waste-not-want-not type of deal. Anyway, the disease spread because the healthy cows were eating brains from diseased cows. Duh. And that's why there is no more epidemic. They stopped the practice. Double duh. The use of aborted fetal tissue is still just a correlation, not a scientific cause and effect. But isn't that enough to stop the practice? Maybe the occasional aborted baby has autism that is somehow transmitted to other kids in the vaccine. Study After Study For 22 years this has been denied and parents have insisted. But this is all about abortion politics so it's a protected subject. As recently as March of this year, the US Institute of Medicine denied there was a link between the vaccines and autism because of mercury. That was designed to say the vaccines were safe and ally fears.  But their study didn't mention the aborted fetal tissue.  I wonder why? I'd love to know why the EPA came out with this study now. Maybe something is past the date it can be prosecuted? They will be presenting their 'new findings' in May. We'll have to wait and see LifeSiteNews.com (Apr 23, 2010) - Study Confirms Autism Boom - Correlates with Aborted Fetal DNA in Vaccines A recent study by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has confirmed 1988 as a “change point” in the rise of Autism Disorder rates in the U.S. - a date that pro-life leaders say correlates with the introduction of fetal cells for use in vaccines. While the EPA study does not speculate into the cause of the jump in autism rates, and makes no mention of aborted fetal cells, the researchers point out that it “is important to determine whether a preventable exposure to an environmental factor may be associated with the increase.” According to the pro-life group Sound Choice Pharmaceutical Institute (SCPI), which specializes in vaccine research, that “environmental factor” may well be the use of aborted fetal cells in vaccines. ... Read the full story here... Bil An Outraged Dad

Gender Bending Nuttiness

No more segregated bathrooms. No more segregated sports teams. That's what the Maine Human Rights Council has ruled. All because of some gender-confused 12-year-old boy who wants to use the girl's bathroom. You would think that something like this would get tossed out on it's ear. But no, little Johnny's complaints were given due notice and then this stupid ruling was delivered. C'mon, couldn't someone just have told Johnny to suck it up and use the boy's room? He's twelve! No doubt there's some stupid mixed up parent driving this. We don't want little Johnny's feelings to be hurt. Gimme a break. I'm going to pass on the stupidity of the unisex bathrooms. 'nuff said. But unisex sports teams don't fly at all. What you end up with is a mixed team and a women's team. You see, it's simple to start off with unisex teams, but then the women want to branch off and create their own league because the men are too rough. No kidding. And as usual, the girls can do this because they're girls. Under this type of system, do you think there's any kind of chance that the boys would be able to break off? No way. Just look at the YMCA and the YWCA. News Scotsman (Feb 26, 2010) - Maine Commission Moves to Ban Gender Specific Bathrooms, Sports Teams in Schools The Maine Human Rights Commissions taking heat over a proposal to ban schools from enforcing gender divisions in sports teams, school organizations, bathrooms and locker rooms, saying forcing a student into a particular room or group because of their biological gender amounts to discrimination. The little girls' room won't be just for little girls anymore, if the Maine Human Rights Commission has its way. The commission is taking heat over a controversial proposal to ban schools from enforcing gender divisions in sports teams, school organizations, bathrooms and locker rooms. It says forcing a student into a particular room or group because of his or her biological gender amounts to discrimination. The issue came to light last year when the commission ruled that, under the Maine Human Rights Act, a school had discriminated against a 12-year-old transgender boy by denying him access to the girls' bathroom. Now the commission aims to issue guidelines on how schools should deal with similar situations in the future. It would make Maine the first state to implement such guidelines for schools as young as preschool and nursery -- and even some private schools. ... Read the full story here... Hopefully, the Maine Human Rights Council has as much bite as the Canadian Human Rights Council. They make rulings that involve judgements or money, but they have no real teeth. Their biggest proponent is that they get lots of air time in the news. The Canadian HRC until recently had a 100% guilty rate. That's right, all you had to do was make a complaint and the Council said that your rights were being infringed. If your feelings were hurt, seek restitution from the HRC. What a joke. Meaningless and a waste of time. Bil An Outraged Dad

No More Recreational Fishing

This isn't a political blog and I really want to stay away from politics completely. But there is always so much junk coming out of government regardless who is in power or whose side you are on. I couldn't resist this story because it is making the rounds just this afternoon. ESPN is making a big splash with it because it affects the many recreational fisherman and the whole industry. No Fishing off the Dock The report hasn't come out yet stating there will be a ban, but the discussions have been closed. According to the different recreational sports fishing groups, the Interagency Ocean Policy Task Force is highly influenced by the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) and International Fund for Animal Welfare (IFAW) which recently were successful in convincing Ontario to ban bear hunting. Now I'm not against hunting or fishing, but if the fish or bears are in danger, then they should be protected. But to ban ALL sports fishing? Where is the sense of that? ESPN (Mar 9, 2010) - Culled out The Obama administration will accept no more public input for a federal strategy that could prohibit U.S. citizens from fishing the nation's oceans, coastal areas, Great Lakes, and even inland waters. One sign at the United We Fish rally at the Capital summed up the feelings of recreational and commercial fishermen. This announcement comes at the time when the situation supposedly still is "fluid" and the Interagency Ocean Policy Task Force still hasn't issued its final report on zoning uses of these waters. ... Consequently, unless anglers speak up and convince their Congressional representatives to stop this bureaucratic freight train, it appears that the task force will issue a final report for "marine spatial planning" by late March, with President Barack Obama then issuing an Executive Order to implement its recommendations — whatever they may be. Led by NOAA's Jane Lubchenco, the task force has shown no overt dislike of recreational angling, but its indifference to the economic, social and biological value of the sport has been deafening. ... Read the full story here... This isn't really a story yet because no bill has been passed. But it sure looks like it is headed that way. The Obama administration seems to be headed in this direction because of different actions they have taken already. Expansion of the Clean Water Act In July of 2009 an expansion of the Clean Water Act was introduced that effectively gave the government control over that pond you have out back on your own farm: "Right now, the law says that the Environmental Protection Agency is in charge of all navigable water," said Sen. John Barrasso, R-Wyo., chairman of the Senate Western Caucus and an opponent of the bill. "Well, this bill removes the word 'navigable,' so for ranchers and farmers who have mud puddles, prairie potholes -- anything from snow melting on their land -- all of that water will now come under the regulation of the Army Corps of Engineers and the Environmental Protection Agency," he said. The EPA's Man-Made Drought And then there was the man-made drought this summer in San Joaquin Valley, California's bread basket.  The canals to supply water to the thousands of acres have been in place for years and it is a big employer in the debt-ridden state.  But the EPA said the 3-inch delta smelt was in danger and diverted all the water to the ocean.  Farmers complained all summer but with little fanfare on the TV news.  Schwarzenegger said there was nothing he could do. The EPA priorities seemed to be very skewed. It is easy to see why the recreational sporting industry is worried. Bil An Outraged Dad

The Planet of Promiscuous Women

Here's another case of scientists with their head up there ass. It seems that there's this disease in some men that kills off the male Y-chromosome leaving only the X-chromosome. Which means that he will only produce female children. So in order to ensure the future of all humanity, women need to have sex with as many different guys as they can. You see, if she stays with one guy who has this disease, she will only have girls. So in order to ensure there will also be boys, she should spread the loving around. University of Playboy? I confirmed and no, it was NOT the University of Playboy that produced the study, it was the Universities of Exeter and Liverpool. The study does not give a time estimate for the downfall of humanity, but I think it is safe to say that you won't have to start preaching promiscuity to your daughter any time soon. I mean, we will probably have nuked ourselves or destroyed the atmosphere long before we have to worry about this. I wonder what other solutions they came up with to head off this disaster? I guess we could round up all these damaged Y-killers and shoot them. Okay, sterilizing them would probably do just as well. But since what the scientists are actually talking about a form of eugenics, why not just give a test to all pregnant woman and kill off these Y-killers in the womb, just in case some of them get away from the sterilizing police. Huh? Come on! How many women were part of this study? Or rather, how many were part of writing the conclusion? This is one of the most stupid conclusions I've heard. And I'm not talking about the moral or disease issues here. Think about it for a minute. You want women to have sex with more than one man to get a variety of genes to ensure she has sex with someone who is clean. But let's suppose the man she would have married didn't have the disease. All her children would have been Y-killer free. But now she's having sex with multiple guys and some of them are probably going to have the disease. Where is the plus side to promiscuity? What were they thinking? And who gave them money for this study? I guess the real stupidityy would be giving them any additional money. Read the whole article for yourself. News Scotsman (Feb 26, 2010) - Women who have multiple sex partners 'preserve humanity' PROMISCUOUS women who have children by different men could help prevent humanity from becoming extinct, scientists claimed yesterday. A study has shown that women who have multiple sexual partners reduce the risk of replicating a genetic quirk that means they are more likely to have only daughters. A study by the Universities of Exeter and Liverpool contends that if all women had children with just one partner, a male- destroying chromosome could be reproduced and spread until humanity eventually became 100 per cent female, precipitating its extinction. It claims that having multiple partners reduces the spread of a sex-ratio distortion (SR) chromosome that would lead to all-female offspring. The SR chromosome has the effect of killing all the "male" Y chromosomes before fertilisation. Polyandry, the practice of females having multiple partners to protect the future of the species, is common in the animal kingdom. Scientists believe that its occurrence has several benefits, including ensuring reproductive success and conferring more variation in traits to female's offspring, which would have a wider benefits for the health of a species' pack, hive or family. ... Read the full story here... Bil An Outraged Dad

The Tsunami that Wasn't

Yes, there was no tsunami. After Chile's horrible 8.8 earthquake, scientists at the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center in Hawaii braced everyone for a possible tsunami and recommended that the coast be cleared. And the tsunami never came. Well actually, it did produce 4-foot waves on the beach of Hawaii, which is minor. The PTWC confirmed that it was a non-event, but defended its warning based on devastating tsunamis in the past. There are 300 early warning sensors in various places around the Pacific, but they do not say what the sensors indicated, if they indicated anything. By my way of thinking, the PTWC just made itself redundant. It basically stated that it will announce tsunami warnings just in case a tsunami does appear. So if there is an earthquake in the Pacific, there will be a warning. Well listen, how about you pay me the $10 million or whatever they are getting from the government and I'll issue the tsunami warning. For every earthquake, I'll issue a warning. Heck, I'll even do it fo $5 million. This is what happens when politics and lawyers take over. No one wants to be caught with their pants down. It's cover-your-ass, just in case. What the scientifc data says is less important. I could respect this warning if they said the sensors indicated that the there might be a tsunami. I'd even be happy with them saying that the indicators show that nothing is happening, but caution should still be taken in case they are wrong. It's simple, you state the science and then give your interpretation of it. But no, lets put out evacuation warnings just in case. That's nuts. AP, Honolulu (Feb 28, 2010) - The warning was ominous, its predictions dire: Oceanographers issued a bulletin telling Hawaii and other Pacific islands that a killer wave was heading their way with terrifying force and that "urgent action should be taken to protect lives and property." But the devastating tidal surge predicted after Chile's magnitude 8.8-earthquake for areas far from the epicenter never materialized. And by Sunday, authorities had lifted the warning after waves half the predicted size tickled the shores of Hawaii and tourists once again jammed beaches and restaurants. Scientists acknowledged they overstated the threat but defended their actions, saying they took the proper steps and learned the lessons of the 2004 Indonesian tsunami that killed thousands of people who didn't get enough warning. "It's a key point to remember that we cannot end the warnings. Failure to warn is not an option for us," said Dai Lin Wang, an oceanographer at the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center in Hawaii. "We cannot have a situation that we thought was no problem and then it's devastating. That just cannot happen." ... Read the full story here... I'm also not limiting this to just the PTWC. Doesn't it make for great headlines when you talk about a huge tsunami headed for Hawaii. Disaster makes for great reading.  The media has it's own hand in spreading the warnings. You know, I'm thinking about it and I could probably manage to put out some decent tsunami warnings for $3 million if I try really hard. Bil An Outraged Dad

Killer Karaoke

What does it say about a society that has a series of killings grouped around people who sing the Sinatra standard "My Way" out of tune? It's true unfortunately. This weird situation exists in the Philippines where a number of people have been killed in fights over poor renditions of the song. Authorities seem to blame it on a cultural bias where the people pride themselves on being good singers. Talk about a poor stereotype. But then if you read the full story, you find that you will find karaoke machines in back alleys and other weird places, reflecting the how the craze has affected the people. Kind of hard to swallow, but is there a better option? New York Times (Feb 7, 2010) - ... The authorities do not know exactly how many people have been killed warbling “My Way” in karaoke bars over the years in the Philippines, or how many fatal fights it has fueled. But the news media have recorded at least half a dozen victims in the past decade and includes them in a subcategory of crime dubbed the “My Way Killings.” The killings have produced urban legends about the song and left Filipinos groping for answers. Are the killings the natural byproduct of the country’s culture of violence drinking and machismo? Or is there something inherently sinister in the song? Whatever the reason, many karaoke bars have removed the song from their playbooks. And the country’s many Sinatra lovers, like Mr. Gregorio here in this city in the southernmost Philippines, are practicing self-censorship out of perceived self-preservation ... Read the full story here... Bil An Outraged Dad

The Catcher in the Dictionary

Maybe it's all too fitting that a California school district tried to ban the dictionary for its explicit comments just days before the famed JD Salinger died. Salinger of course was the author of The Catcher in the Rye, one of the most banned books in American schools. And because of his death, his famous novel from1951 about adolescence and growing up is back on the top 20 over at Amazon. It's interesting, I know all about the book but have never read it. Maybe I'll have to pick it up. Regardless, someone down in southern California made a complaint that the famous Mirriam-Webster's dictionary was too explicit and not age appropriate for younger children. One of the offending entries was for "oral sex" which was defined as oral stimulation of the genitals. Now you see, I can't really get outraged with this one, because it's just too stupid. Words aren't offensive, it how they are put together and what their intent is that can cause damage. I daresay that words like "penis", "masturbation" and "orgasm" have been in the dictionary for quite a few years. It doesn't make the dictionary or encyclopedia dirty or unworthy. I'm sure there is a portion of the population that disagree, but they're not on the internet and definitely not reading my blog. Fox News (Jan 27, 2010) - California School District Reverses Dictionary Ban After 'Oral Sex' Flap Embarrass. -verb 1. To cause confusion and shame; disconcert; abash. As in: A California school district was EMBARRASSED after it tried to ban America's classic dictionary from 4th- and 5th-grade classrooms because it worried the book contained "age-inappropriate" words. After conducting an investigation of the very wordy book, Menifee Union School District has reversed its decision and invited Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary back into bookcases at Oak Meadows Elementary School. ... Read the full story here... Bil An Outraged Dad

Political Correctness at McDonald's

Which Culture Should We Insult Today? This is one for the books. McDonald's created a series of 12 zodiac toys for their Happy Meals for the Chinese audience. The Chinese zodiac runs according to the full year in a 12 year cycle. Each of signs of the zodiac is represented by an animal, like the snake, rooster or monkey. And one of the signs is a pig. Which is verbotten to Muslims. So McDonald's decides to change the Chinese zodiac and replace the pig with Cupid. Can you imagine how the board meeting went: "Well, we can't insult the Muslims, so let's insult everyone else in China. Yeah, that's the thing to do." It's like someone representing the astrological zodiac using a frog instead of a bull for taurus.  Oh yeah, that would go over big. CNN (Jan 25, 2010) - McDonald's frantic backpedaling: The pig toy fiasco There is such a thing as being too culturally sensitive. The Straits Times reports that fast food giant McDonald's opened up a virtual beehive in Singapore when it deliberately omitted pig characters from its latest toy promotion, earning the ire of netizens and Chinese customers. The pig toy was suppose to be part of a 12-character Doraemon set depicting the animals of the Chinese zodiac calendar. However, management at the Golden Arches decided not to include the pig toy to avoid offending Muslim customers, and had a Doraemon Cupid toy in its place instead -- a move which seriously upset Chinese customers keen on collecting all 12 toys in the series. A flurry of irate emails and demands by collectors and customers followed, and now the fast food giant has reversed its decision, adding a pig toy back to the promotional line-up (Updated January 25, 2010). ... Read the full story here... Bil An Outraged Dad

Corner Parks are Now Responsible for Global Warming

Sometimes, I think these people should just shut up. In an effort to help the global warming cause, the University of California Irvine is releasing the results of their study that says that the park down on the corner of your street is contributing to the carbon in the air.  Yes, the green space actually helps to retain carbon, but the amount of carbon it takes to maintain the parks is greater than the amount of carbon it saves.  That's when you look at the mowing, fertilizing and other lawn care maintenance that goes on. I'm not going to dispute their findings, but did they really consider the impact their study would produce?  Look at just some of the headlines that already being produced:  "Urban 'green' spaces may contribute to global warming, UCI study finds", "City Parks May Be Bad for the Environment" and "Urban 'green' spaces not so environmentally friendly". In this world where few people read past the headlines, the impression is that city parks are bad and we should get rid of them.  Even worse, when you read the full articles, that's what the conclusion is.  We shouldn't have city parks. This is such a lame brain news release. Anyone who has the slightest doubts about global warming will be laughing at this.  How could they not?  How could this be taken seriously?  Talk about fuel for the fire.  This damages the global warming cause more than aids it.  Taking care of greenspaces are things a simple thing that the average joe can do and can relate to.  Now they are being told that greenspaces are bad. Let's take the study to its rightful conclusion, something that seems to be sorely lacking:  If you get rid of the park, what will replace it?  A family home?  A store?  A factory?  It's going to be something because they are not going to leave it as an overgrown path of weeds.  And then the real question becomes, what takes up more carbon, a playground or a factory? Duh. Studies like this do more damage to the global warming cause than good.  These people need to move past raw data and look at real life and real consequences. Like I said, I think these people should just shut up.  UCI (Jan 19, 2010) - Urban 'green' spaces may contribute to global warming, UCI study finds Dispelling the notion that urban “green” spaces help counteract greenhouse gas emissions, new research has found – in Southern California at least – that total emissions would be lower if lawns did not exist. Turfgrass lawns help remove carbon dioxide from the atmosphere through photosynthesis and store it as organic carbon in soil, making them important “carbon sinks.” However, greenhouse gas emissions from fertilizer production, mowing, leaf blowing and other lawn management practices are four times greater than the amount of carbon stored by ornamental grass in parks, a UC Irvine study shows. These emissions include nitrous oxide released from soil after fertilization. Nitrous oxide is a greenhouse gas that’s 300 times more powerful than carbon dioxide, the Earth’s most problematic climate warmer. “Lawns look great – they’re nice and green and healthy, and they’re photosynthesizing a lot of organic carbon. But the carbon-storing benefits of lawns are counteracted by fuel consumption,” said Amy Townsend-Small, Earth system science postdoctoral researcher and lead author of the study, forthcoming in the journal Geophysical Research Letters. . . . Read the full story here... Bil An Outraged Dad

Quebec suspends all new Haitian adoptions

I know, that got my hackles up at first also. What a headline considering the earthquakes. But then you read that the UN has requested countries be careful about any adoptions since it is hard to verify any personal information of the kids. Which can lead to child smuggling. Like what happened as a result of the tsunami in 2004. Disgusting. Just when you think we cannot sink any lower. There is a certain corner of hell reserved for child smugglers like that. Montreal Gazette, Jan 20, 2010 - By CHERYL CORNACCHIA The Quebec government has put on hold all new adoption applications of children in Haiti as part of an international effort to prevent a repeat of the child smuggling that occurred after the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami. On Monday, a United Nations agency urged caution with any new adoptions, given that the events unfolding in Haiti make it impossible to verify the personal and family situations of children. ... The federal government has announced it will expedite those pending applications by fast-tracking the visas and other paperwork that come under federal jurisdiction at the end of the international adoption process. Read the full story here... Bil An Outraged Dad

Jesus Rifles for Everyone

This makes two religious articles in two days. Somebody is going so smite me if I'm not careful. This story is about an American manuafacturer of rifle scopes engraving coded references to Bible quotes next to the serial number. Trijicon is a Michigan company that has putting these reference on their scopes for many years. It seems that gun enthusiasts have known and approved of this practice for years. ABC News - Coded references to New Testament Bible passages about Jesus Christ are inscribed on high-powered rifle sights provided to the U.S. military by a Michigan company, an ABC News investigation has found. The sights are used by U.S. troops in Iraq and Afghanistan and in the training of Iraqi and Afghan soldiers. The maker of the sights, Trijicon, has a $660 million multi-year contract to provide up to 800,000 sights to the Marine Corps, and additional contracts to provide sights to the U.S. Army. U.S. military rules specifically prohibit the proselytizing of any religion in Iraq or Afghanistan and were drawn up in order to prevent criticism that the U.S. was embarked on a religious "Crusade" in its war against al Qaeda and Iraqi insurgents. Read the full story here... I think this is so cool but so wrong at the same time. They say there are no atheists in a foxhole. I can see that and I can also see how having some Biblical connection for Christians would be comforting. It's almost like having your weapon blessed and feeling like you are invincible because you are protected by your God. Which of course is why it is so wrong. Any non-Christian would have the opposite reaction. Almost like the weapon is cursed. You can't mass produce something and expect it to please everyone. Religion is too touchy and is not something to be easily dismissed. Bil An Outraged Dad

Pat Robertson was Right

Gasp! That's right. I find myself in the in unenviable position of saying that Pat Robertson was correct in saying that Haiti is cursed. No, I don't personally think Haiti is cursed. Nor do I like Pat Robertson or his holier-than-thou type of religious preaching. However, Robertson is a religious leader speaking on a religious show to religious people. He is giving his spiritual view on the country of Haiti and honestly, I think he could say he wanted to (within certain limits) if could justify it within a religious context. Let's look at the facts, or rather the commonly held historical facts. Something that no one seems to care about these days. Haiti was once a slave colony of France. On August 14, 1791, a sacred Voodoo blood ceremony was performed to invoke Satan so that he would exterminate the French from the island. The Haitians eventually bought their way out of slavery and formed a country 13 years later. So from a Christian point of view, Haiti is cursed. Hey, in the every day Catholic mass we say that anyone who isn't a Christian will never make it to heaven. That's pretty opinionated also. But there's more. Because in Robertson's lifetime, in 1991, Haiti renewed it's pact with the devil when its new president Aristide, a defrocked Catholic priest, reinstated the 200-year-old pact with the devil. Not in a secret ceremony, but in public so that everyone knew that Voodoo was still the official religion of Haiti. American Daily, 2004 - Government Of The Devil, By The Devil, And For The Devil By Tom Barrett (03/11/04) "Haiti is the only country in the entire world that has dedicated its government to Satan. Demonic spirits have been consulted for political decisions, and have shaped the country's history." Thus speaks Reverend Doug Anderson, who grew up in Haiti with missionary parents, and served there along with his wife Dawn as a missionary until 1990. The leaders of Haiti make no attempt to hide their allegiance to Satan. Haiti's government is a government of the devil, by the devil, and for the devil. It is a matter of well-documented historical fact that the nation of Haiti was dedicated to Satan 200 years ago. On August 14, 1791, a group of houngans (voodoo priests), led by a former slave houngan named Boukman, made a pact with the Devil at a place called Bois-Caiman. All present vowed to exterminate all of the white Frenchmen on the island. They sacrificed a black pig in a voodoo ritual at which hundreds of slaves drank the pig's blood. In this ritual, Boukman asked Satan for his help in liberating Haiti from the French. In exchange, the voodoo priests offered to give the country to Satan for 200 years and swore to serve him. On January 1, 1804, the nation of Haiti was born and thus began a new demonic tyranny. Read the full story here... Listen, Pat Robertson can say that the grass is red for all I care.  It doesn't mean that grass is red. And I'm not going to get upset if he says it's red either. His observations about a curse causing an earthquake are about as relevant as any religious reader representing his views. But at least he did base his conclusion on fact. Bil An Outraged Dad

Unicef Calling

Knock, Knock. Who's there? Well it wasn't Unicef. The guy at the door had all the Unicef identification and even a nice sized placard with the Unicef logo. And I bought it. But no, I didn't give him any money. I had just given the last of my spending money to a local charity on Sunday. So even though it was just after the earthquake in Haiti, I couldn't donate. On the evening news that night they even talked about fraud artists.  But it wasn't until the next morning when I spoke with my brother that I put it all together. I finally called Unicef today and no, they do not have canvassers in the area. Dang, now I hope that guy comes back. Bil An Outraged Dad

But, but, I believed...

Mark McGwire admits using steroids AP, New York - Mark McGwire finally came clean, admitting he used steroids when he broke baseball's home run record in 1998. McGwire said in a statement sent to The Associated Press on Monday that he used steroids on and off for nearly a decade. "It's very emotional, it's telling family members, friends and coaches, you know, it's former teammates to try to get ahold of, you know, that I'm coming clean and being honest," he said during a 20-minute telephone interview, his voice repeatedly cracking. "It's the first time they've ever heard me, you know, talk about this. I hid it from everybody." Read the full story here... Yeah, I believed him when he said he didn't take steroids.  I really did.  Even after everyone came out and contradicted him. No matter what his detractors came up with, I somehow managed to rationalize a way that he was innocent. I guess I'm too much of an optimist.  I like to believe the best in people. This one hurts.  I'm so angry I could spit. Bil An Outraged Dad

30 Years of Global Cooling?

Who is this guy? Professor Mojib Latif, one of the world's leading climate modelers and one of the authors of the U.N.'s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) report, has publicly stated that the world is now in store for 30 long years of global cooling. His study is based on analysis of natural cycles in water temperatures in the Pacific and Atlantic oceans. Wait, it gets better The professor goes on to say that he is not disputing global warming or his previous findings. This mini ice-age is just a 'blip' on the whole global warming trend. Daily Mail, UK Britain's big freeze is the start of a worldwide trend towards colder weather that seriously challenges global warming theories, eminent scientists claimed yesterday. The world has entered a 'cold mode' which is likely to bring a global dip in temperatures which will last for 20 to 30 years, they say. Summers and winters will all be cooler than in recent years, and the changes will mean that global warming will be 'paused' or even reversed, it was claimed. Read the full story here... A blip of 30 years? At just what point do the scientists throw in the towel and say they just don't know what the frak is going on? How can the models predict all this global warming without showing the blip? We'll see if this news items hits the Mainstream Media or if it is quietly overlooked becauce of 'space issues'. But suppose it gets widespread reporting. I give it a week before some politician manages to find a way to tax the situation. Bil An Outraged Dad

Racial Profiling at its Worst?

Joan Rivers Kicked Off Newark-Bound Flight for Suspicious Passport So it's early January, just over a week since the Underwear Bomber, and Joan Rivers is booted from a plane because of a suspicious passport. She's 75 years old! In what possible category do you put her that might possibly say she is a risk to the ariplane? There is none. She's white. She's old. She's a woman. I'll even throw in that she's Jewish, but that one's not obvious to everyone. Whereas 100% of the airplane terrorists in the past 10 years have been young Muslim men. She's not even close. I'll grant you that all this happened in Costa Rica where they probably have never heard of Joan Rivers. But honestly, just what did they think she was going to do? Talk someone to death? I know the reason put forward is because her passport had "aka Joan Rivers" under her Joan Rosenberg name, but I don't buy it. If someone's going to fake a passport, why make it look different from everyone else's. If they thought it was a fake, why not withhold it and report her? I don't know what else was going on, but the full story has yet to be told. NBC, New York Joan Rivers has been known to look kind of scary at times, but no one's ever mistaken her for a potential terrorist – until now. The ever-hysterical plastic-surgery poster woman was kicked off a Newark-bound Continental flight from Costa Rica on Sunday after a security agent deemed the two names on her passport suspicious, according to published reports. Rivers' passport has her listed with two last names – Rivers, which she adopted before she went into show business, and Rosenberg, the surname belonging to her late husband. Read the full story here... Bil An Outraged Dad

Chicago Police May Scrap Entrance Exam

It's affirmative action gone all wrong. You might as well lower the physical requirements for firefighters so that more women can join. Oops, they've already done that. But the Chicago Police Department doesn't want to just lower it's standards, it wants to eliminate them. Couldn't they at least leave in the part where they check if any applicants know how to read? Duh! NBC ChicagoThe Chicago Police Department is seriously considering scrapping the police entrance exam, sources tell Fran Spielman. Dropping the exam would bolster minority hiring and avert legal battles, according to one source, while others confirm that the exam could be scrapped to open the process to as many people as possible. However, the lack of an exam would make Chicago the lone major city without one, and experts contend that the exam is integral to eliminating unqualified applicants. Read the full story here... There's a minimum intelligence to any job. But what about the psych part of the exam to see if they should be police officers? I totally believe in balancing out any group of workers in terms of race or sex to reflect the population. But this is stupid. It should be offensive to any group that is supposed to benefit from the elimination of the entrance exams. It says you are not smart enough to belong, but we will take you anyway. Bil An Outraged Dad

Thou Shalt Shoplift

A priest in the UK says it's okay to shoplift. Because it's better than prostition or suicide. And he tells his Catholic flock that it will not break the 8th commandment. This is wrong in so many ways. A lot has been written about this guy. Read the original article here: Daily Mail, UK - Poor people who are desperate for cash have been advised to go forth and shoplift from major stores - by an Anglican priest. The Rev Tim Jones said in his Sunday sermon that stealing from successful shops was preferable to burglary, robbery or prostitution. He told parishioners it would not break the eighth commandment 'thou shalt not steal' because it 'is permissible for those who are in desperate situations to take food that they might not starve'. ... 'I would ask that they do not steal from small family businesses, but from large national businesses, knowing that the costs are ultimately passed on to the rest of us in the form of higher prices. ... He added: 'The strong temptation is to burgle or rob people - family, friends, neighbours, strangers. 'Others are tempted towards prostitution, a nightmare world of degradation and abuse for all concerned. Others are tempted towards suicide. Instead, I would rather that they shoplift. ... Read the full story here... Why is this wrong? Let me count the ways: 1. Authority Figure Just like a teacher, policeman or politician, the priest has a large influence over his flock. It's not Joe Blow on the street corner telling you something. Your priest is someone you trust and have been brought up to believe in. If your priest says it is so, then it must be true. It's a "get out of jail free" card. But I want to leave religion out of this for a minute. Because even if you are not Christian, an authority figure says it's okay to steal. That's like giving carte blanche to anyone in some kind of difficulty to steal from someone else. It's a general pass to the public to do what they want. I can't wait for the first court case where the defendent uses this as a defense. 2. The iPod Generation In this world of short attention spans, anyone who hears about this priest and his dubious ethic hears "it's ok to steal" and nothing else. How many people who hear the message actually followed up on the story? Only the easy part, the part about stealing sinks in. 3. It's All Relative The priest says that stealing is better than prostitution or suicide. So it's all relative. With this logic, you could say that beating your wife is better than killing her. Or using marijuana is better than using ccocaine. Or stealing a motorcycle is beter than stealing a car. You can justify anything that way. You could say that female genital mutilation is ok in some African countries because the law doesn't persecute against it. That would be like saying that the act is ok over there, but not here. Wrong! It's not right wherever it is done. Listen, your moral compass should be unquivering. If you think it's wrong to steal, it's wrong to steal no matter what the circumstances. You don't change you beliefs based on what is going on around you. Bil An Outraged Dad