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| Save the Internet - Support Network Neutrality | September 25, 2006, 6:30AM |
 by: eon |
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Right now, greedy teleco and cable companies are pumping millions of dollars into the pockets of congress and PR firms in order to take control of the internet away from home grown sites such as this one and put it squarely into the hands of big corporations with big wallets. It's bad enough that in this world, big greedy corporations control television and radio. That's not enough for them, though. They see the internet as a threat to what they really want--complete control of the media and thus complete control of public opinion. Pesky blogs and home grown sites are interfering with their plans. Aww!! The internet has revolutionized free communication around the globe. Now big companies want to set that revolution in reverse and make sure they control the `net the same way they control everything else. Don't let it happen! The time to act is now. Measures are before the senate. If bill H.R. 5252 / S. 2686 is passed, we can kiss our free internet the fuck goodbye. Urge your senator to vote NO to H.R. 5252 / S. 2686. Go here: www.SaveTheInternet.com Use that site to find out where your sentor stands on Network Neutrality. Then go to sign the petition in support of Network Neutrality. When you sign the petition a message will be sent to the senators for your state. You'll have the opportunity to add in a few choice words if your senator is among those who is caving in to the big companies and putting your rights up for sale. Do this now, not later! www.SaveTheInternet.com I found out that one of my Texas senators, Kay Bailey Hutchison is doing just that. She opposes Network Neutrality and you can bet I gave her a piece of my mind. | |
topic: Site News | |
[reply] [33 comments] |
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| Groups Launch | September 23, 2006, 3:54AM |
by: eon |
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Yes, groups are here, love them or hate them. I've intentionally delayed the launch of this feature by, oh, months. Why? Because I've become sort of an odd, neurotic, nit-picky fellow as of late. If I delayed launch until I was happy with them, they'd never of seen the light of day. Though there are changes and feature additions I'd like to make, I think you'll find that DS Groups come with a respectable feature set and that they'll have what you need to manage (or participate in!) a worthwhile group. These probably won't operate just like any other groups you're accustomed to, but I feel the design is intuitive and self explanatory in most cases. As always, I'll be making adjustments where they are needed. Of course, as always, there are bugs waiting to be found. We tested these pretty well, but just as it's been with any other DS feature, Groups are a live test and a work in progress. You do know what to do when you find these bugs, right? *waits for the first official "I hate DS Groups" group to be formed* A word about customization. If you're a CSS monkey, I think you'll be quite pleased. Nearly everything about the appearance of groups can be, well, monkied with. Having said that, I've yet to write any sort of comprehensive guide to doing this. I'd like to eventually add something similar to the 'Look and Feel' portion of the Control Panel to Groups, making it easier for people to make some basic customizations without having to know any CSS. Enjoy and, Good luck, Starlings... | |
topic: Site News | |
[reply] [23 comments] |
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| persian history | September 22, 2006, 8:21AM |
 by: solar_system |
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Persian History For more than three thousand years Persia was a melting pot of civilizations and demographic movements between Asia and Europe. Under Cyrus the Great, it became the center of the world's first empire. The country has always been known to its own people as Iran (land of the Aryans) or "noble people", although for centuries jt was referred to as Persia (Pars or Pars) by the Europeans, mainly due to the writings of Greek historians. First inhabited 4000 B.C., the region was overrun by Aryans, who later split into two groups, the Medes and the Persians. The Persian Empire was founded 550 B.C. by Cyrus the Great and dominated the surrounding area until the time of Alexander the Great. Cyrus the Great overthrew the Median rulers, conquered the kingdom of Lydia in 546 BC and established the Persian Empire. Cambyses II son of Cyrus the Great conquered the Egyptians in 525 BC and Darius the Great his successor pushed the Persian borders far as Indus River and constructed a canal connecting the Nile River and the Red Sea. Other well-known Persian Kings were Xerxes, Ardashir, Shapur, Yazdegerd, Firuz, Khosrau. The last of the Sassanid kings was Yazdegerd III, during whose reign (632-41) the Arabs invaded Persia and replaced Zoroastrianism (Persian religion at the time and still practiced by some Persians in Iran and around the globe) with Islam. Norooz Customs in harmony with the rebirth of nature, the Iranian New Year Celebration, or NOROOZ, always begins on the first day of spring. Norooz ceremonies are symbolic representations of two ancient concepts - the End and the Rebirth; or Good and Evil. A few weeks before the New Year, Iranians clean and rearrange their homes. They make new clothes, bake pastries and germinate seeds as sign of renewal. Haji Firooz Is a character who is the traditional herald of |the Norooz. Haji Firooz disguise themselves Makeup and wear brightly colored outfits of satin. Haji Firuz sing and dance and parade as a carnival through the streets with tambourines, kettledrums, and trumpets to spread good cheer and the news of the coming new year Norooz. Chahar shanbeh soori happens on the last Tuesday evening of the year. Every family gathers several piles of wood or brush in the streets or parks to be lit shortly after the sunset. Then all the family members line up and take turns jumping over the burning fire and singing "sorkheeyeh toe az man, Zardeeyeh man az toe'. "I give my paleness to the fire and take fire red healthy color". Yellow or paleness symbolizes the sickness and pain and red symbolizes heath. Fireworks can be heard throughout the night. Haft Seen Is a spread with seven items which each symbolizes a wish or theme. All seven items in this ceremonial table starts with the Persian letter Seen or S in English. The Haft Seen spread is usually put out a week before the New Year, which sets the mood for celebration. The seven items are Sabzeh (grown wheat or Jentil) for rebirth, Samanu (flour and sugar) for sweetness of life, Sekeh (coin ) for prosperity and wealth, Senjed ( dried fruit of Lotus tree) for love, Seer (garlic) for health, Somaq ( sumac berries) for warmth and Serkeh ( vinegar) for patience. Also there other items on the Norooz spread such as painted eggs, which represent fertility, a mirror that represents image and reflection of life and a goldfish in a bowl that represents life. Seezdah Bedar Is the 13th day of Norooz and Persians to overcome the bad luck they spend the entire day out of the house with families and friends in the parks having a picnic. They sing and play games and celebrate a happy and healthy holiday season and end the holiday season on a positive note.( On the thirteenth day of the new year, which also marks the end of the Norooz holiday break for the students, families leave their houses and head for the outdoors where they eat, play games, and celebrate a happy and healthy holiday season. This tradition is called Seezdah Bedar (seezdah means thirteen) which in English translates to "getting rid of thirteen". This fun and exciting outing involves all family members and is intended to end the holiday season on a relaxing and positive note. The concept of avoiding the number thirteen is mainly to symbolize the will and power to deal with all evil in the new year. An interesting ritual performed at the end of the picnic day is to throw away the Sabzee from the Norooz Haft Seen table. The sabzee is supposed to have collected all the sickness, pain and ill fate hiding on the path of the family throughout the coming year! Touching someone else's sabzee on this thirteenth day or bringing it home is, therefore, not a good idea and may result in inviting their pain and hardship to oneself. Another meaningful ritual performed with the dumping of the sabzee is that young single women tie the sabzee leaves prior to discarding it, symbolizing the wish to be tied in a marriage by the Seezdah Bedar of the following year!) Sofreh-e Haft Sin = cloth of seven dishes A ceremonial table called Sofreh-e Haft Sin (cloth of seven dishes), name of each dish beginning with the Persian letter Sinn. A few days prior to the New Year, a special cover is spread on to the Persian carpet or on a table in every Persian household. This ceremonial table is called cloth of seven dishes, (each one beginning with the Persian letter cinn). The number seven has been sacred in Iran since the ancient times, and the seven dishes stand for the seven angelic heralds of life-rebirth, health, happiness, prosperity, joy, patience, and beauty. The symbolic dishes consist of: 1. Sabzeh or sprouts, usually wheat or lentil representing rebirth. 2. Samanu is a pudding in which common wheat sprouts are transformed and given new life as a sweet, creamy pudding and represents the ultimate sophistication of Persian cooking. 3. Seeb means apple and represents health and beauty. 4. Senjed the sweet, dry fruit of the Lotus tree represents love. It has been said that when lotus tree is in full bloom, its fragrance and its fruit make people fall in love and become oblivious to all else. 5. Seer which is garlic in Persian represents medicine. 6. Somaq sumac berries represent the color of sunrise; with the appearance of the sun Good conquers Evil. 7. Serkeh or vinegar represents age and patience. To reconfirm all hopes and wishes expressed by the traditional foods, other elements and symbols are also on the sofreh): • a few coins placed on the sofreh represent prosperity and wealth; • a basket of painted eggs represents fertility; • a Seville orange floating in a bowl of water represents the earth floating in space; • a goldfish in a bowl represents life and the end of astral year-picas; • a flask of rose water known for its magical cleansing power, is also included on the tablecloth; • Nearby is a brazier for burning wild rue ,a sacred herb whose smoldering fumes ward off evil spirits; • A pot of flowering hyacinth or narcissus is also set on the sofreh; • A mirror which represents the images and reflections of Creation as we celebrate anew the ancient Persian traditions and beliefs that creation took place on the first day of spring. • On either side of the mirror are two candlesticks holding a flickering candle for each child in the family. The candles represent enlightenment and happiness. Amoo Noruz =Uncle New Year Once upon a time there was an old man named Amoo Noruz, who would come to town every year on the first day of spring. His beard and hair died red, with camphire, his hat made of felt; a light blue shawl around his waist, wearing a pair of wide black cotton pants, and canvas, thin soled shoes. He would walk to the gates of town with a walking stick. By the edge of town, lived an old lady called Nanneh Sarma (Nanny Frost), who was in love with Amoo Noruz, and waited for him during the last days of winter. Every morning she would get up early, sweep the house, and clean it all over. Then she would begin with her make up. From dying her hands and feet with camphire, and seven different lines of make up; the eyeliner, and shading of the eyelids; from powdering her cheeks pink, to a glossy red lipstick, and a bit of glitter over her hair. Then she would dress in bright red leg wears and short plaid skirt, and perfume over the hair and a touch of rose water behind her ears. She would then throw a rug in the terrace, overlooking the fountain pool. Her flowerbed, by this time, was filled with irises, and hyacinths of all colors. A couple of trees filled with spring blossoms; their branches swelled with tiny buds of light green leaves. She had placed in a silver tray "Haft Seen", Green sprouts, Garlic, Vinegar, Sumac, Apple, Wheat pudding, and senjed. In another tray she had all sorts of dried fruits, candies, and sweets, cookies, cakes, nuts, raisins and chocolates. Some colored eggs and a couple of goldfish in a fish-bowl, were placed right by the mirror, between the two trays. She would brew some tea in a samovar, and place an orange in a bowl of water. Then she would sit and wait for Amoo Noruz. After all this work, it wouldn’t take long for the old lady to get tired and fall into a morning nap. Her eyelids would become heavy and fall down and slowly sleep would take her. Meanwhile, Amoo Noruz would arrive, but he hates to wake the sweet old lady. He would pick a hyacinth from the garden and place it on her chest, and then he would sit besides her. Making himself a cup of tea, and cutting the orange, eating half, and leaving the other half for Nanne Sarma. Then he would kiss the old lady on a cheek and leave. As the sun made her way to the terrace of the house, the old lady would wake up, finding her cheek tinkling. Then she would see that everything on the trays had been touched, the orange had been peeled-- half of which was there, left for her. The tea had long been brewed, and a cup of tea had been served. In her great dismay, she then would realize that Amoo Noruz had come and gone, but hesitated to wake her up. She would go desperate, and pull at her pearl necklace and tear it. The pearls would run all over the place, and that’s why there are usually hailstones on the first days of spring. She would be exasperated at giving up to asleep at the wrong time, but now too late to regret. Her friends and neighbors would tell her to be patient and wait until next spring day, when Amoo Noruz shall walk from the mountains and pass by her house once again. Nanne Sarma would accept their advice, but nobody knows if she could ever see Amoo Noruz. Some say if the two should ever meet, it will be the end of the world. As of today, we can say that the two have not met, since the world still has not come to an end. Norouz is a national celebration To say something new about Norouz is a difficult task. Norouz is a national celebration and everyone knows what a national celebration us. Norouz is celebrated every year, and talked about each year again. Much has been said about it, and you have heard a lot in this regard. So is there no point in talking about it one again? Of course there is! Do we not renew Norouz each year. So let us also hear about it repeatedly as well. It is boring and even nonsense to repeat a scientific or a literary text. Wisdom rejects repetition, but sensations welcome it. Nature too, likes repeti tion, and the societies need it. Nature is basically made up of repetition. A society is strengthened through repetition, sensations gain their life from it and Norouz is a beautiful, repetitious story in which the nature, sensations and the society are all engaged, yet it never gets old or boring. Norouz, which has for long centuries been the master and most gracious of all the national ceremonies around the world, maintains its young, strong, lively existence, because it is not an imposed, an artificial or a political ceremony. It is the ceremony of the universe, the happiness day of earth and the birthday of the sun and the skies. The glorious day when every natural phenomenon evolves, blooms and resolutes filled with the sweet anxiety of many "startings". The national ceremonies of the other cultures often encourage men and women to leave their workshops, farms, deserts, alleys and streets, gardens and pastures, and then gather up in rooms under the ceilings, behind closed doors. They gather in such surroundings as bars, dancings, cellars saloons and house... in places that are heated with gas, lit with light bulbs, filled with smoke, made pretty with artificial colors, decorated with paper or plastic flowers and ornaments, scented with perfumes or burning herbs... Norouz, on the contrary, grabs the people's hands kindly and pulls them joyfully along with it out of their small surroundings in rooms, behind closed doors, under ceilings, from among tall buildings and cement pavement s in and around towns into the glorious vast pastures, green areas and the broad, kind embrace of nature, where everyone feels free and jubilant. The kind spring sun warms them and brightens their day, the glory of witnessing renewing of creation and themselves excites them, the wind and the spring rain beautifully designs new scenes which are already background with bloomed buds of various colors and scented with: "Smell of rain, smell of spearmint, smell of soil. And smell of boughs that are wet of gentle spring rain and shining clean"... Norouz is a great chance for recollection of lots of great memories. Memories of relationship between man and nature, which is renewed each year. This forgetful child of nature who has got himself so much engaged in artificial affairs and pre-sceduled eng agements, that he/she has even totally forgotten his own lovely mother. He/she is now called back to the kind embrace of his loving mother with the magical spell of Norouz. There, they will together joyfully celebrate this happy reunion. The careless child will find out about his/her own origin in the kind embrace of his/her mother, and the mother's face will bloom in finding back her lost child, shed tears of happiness for this happy occasion, cry joyfully in spring thunders, get young a nd pretty another time, and briefly speaking, like the Prophet Jacob (AS), who regained his lost sight after smelling the scent of Joseph's (AS) shirt, will be bestowed a sharp sight to see her dear child once again. The more complex or heavier our artificial, technical civilization will become, the more urgent the need to reunion with and return to the nature's embrace. Thus, unlike traditions, that get old and incompetent, and sometimes even useless as time goes by, Norouz gets younger, prettier and stronger with the passage of time, and that is because Norouz is a third way for reconciling between the two sides of the long cultural aware that has been going on since the era of Lao-Tso and Conficious until the recent days of Roseau and Walter. Norouz is not merely a good chance for relaxing and being happy, but a bare need of the society and the vitally needed spiritual food for a nation. What else is capable of brightening up cold hearts, in a dark world, based upon ever-ongoing changes, revolutions, separation and loss, disintegration and dissolving, where the only thing that is stable and never subject to change is ever-renewing itself and instability? What else can make a nation invulnerable in the cruel path of the carriage of time, which destroys anything in its path, breaks and crashes any pillar and demolishes any base? No nation is formed within a night, one generation's era of even two. A nation can be described as the continuous string of many generations that time, this pitiless, thoughtless sword of nature, separates their physical connections along the course of th eir history. Unfortunately, we cannot have a two-way correspondence with our ancestors those who have formed the soil of our nation. The horrendous, deep valley of history is dug. The long, hollow centuries have formed a great impassable gap between us and them. It is only our traditions that speaking away from the sharp eyes of the cruel time executioner, can kindly take our hands and convey us spiritually to the other side of this terrifying valley, thus reconciling between us and our glorious past, our ancestors. It is in the holy face of these traditions that we can feel their presence by our side today, and Norouz celebrations are among the steadiest, most gracious of these traditions. Whenever we celebrate Norouz, it is as if we are taking part in every Norouz celebration observed on this land ever since the beginning of this ceremony. That is the time when all the black and white pages of history of our ancient nation are turned one a fter the other before our curious eyes, and we eagerly eye witness their events. Believing in the fact that our nation has always celebrated Norouz in our homeland awakens these exciting ideas in our minds that... "Why sure, every year, even in the sad year when Alexander pained the facade of this country red with the noble blood of o ur nation, by the long blazing flames which were burning the beautiful Persepolice Palace, right there in the same year, our oppressed ancestors must have celebrated Norouz more seriously and more piously, amid their sorrows. So dearly has been Norouz celebrated in those sad years, and all the years similar to them. A cause to be cheered despite all the miseries." It has never been an excuse to be "careless, cheap and forgetful", but a pretext to announce the lively determination of our nation to be and to continue to be and maintain strong ties with a glorious past, which the time factor and the invaders of differ ent races have always tried in vain, to wipe off the scene of existence. Norouz has always been so dear. To Zoroastrian clergies, to sagacious old men in ancient history, to Muslims, to Shia Muslims, and to Persian speaking people all over the world. Everyone has considered Norouz a beloved one, and talked about it sympathetically. Even the philosophers and scientists who have considered Norouz "The first day of creation, when Ahourmazda (God, in ancient Persians mythology) created the universe in six days, and was busy till the sixth day when this job was accomplished, and that is why the first day of Farwardin (the first Iranian month of the year) is named Hourmazd and the sixth day, "The Holy Day". What a beautiful story it is. Even prettier than reality itself! Doesn't every human being honestly feel that the first day of spring is the first day of creation repeated again? If God set a beginning for life on earth, that day must have doubtlessly been the Norouz day. Surely, spring has always been the first season of the year. God must not have ever made summer, winter or fall the first season of the year, may! The fist grass on earth must have surely started sprouting on the first day of spring, the rivers must have started running then, and the buds blooming which means Norouz must have always been on the first day of spring, simultaneous with the renewing of creation. "Soul" must have surely been created in this season. Love's first bow must have stricken a heart on its first day, and the sun risen for the first time on the very same day, marking the start of the clock of universe. Islam, which wiped off all the discrimination and colors of racism and tribalism, and changed the form of many traditions, on the contrary polished the beautiful facade of Norouz. It approved of this glorious tradition, let is sapling continue to grow and get stronger, now with a strong, gentle support, safe from extinction in the first days of introducing Islam to the Iranians. The two great events of appointing Imam Ali (AS) as the Prophet's spiritual inheritor on Al Qadir day, and choosing him as the Calif of the Muslims and Emir of all the believers (Amirul Mu'menin) have both been on Norouz day and surely what a great coinci dence! Thus, all the abundant love, piety and belief of the Muslim Iranians in Imam Ali's (AS) right and holiness became the supporting resort for Norouz. This glorious celebration, which had begun its life with the ancient soul and love of a nation, was now dou bly fortified with the holy spirit of a great religion, Islam, as well. A national tradition was thus intermingling with religious piety and the new strong love which had sprinkled in the hearts of these people, getting holier. During the Saffavid Dynasty's era, it even became an established Shia tradition, abundant with piet y and pure beliefs, now complete with special prayers. As the history books reveal, "One year, when Norouz and Ashoura (the tenth day of the lunar month of Moharram, when Imam Hussein (AS) and his followers were martyred in Karbala-one of the saddest events in the history of Shia; a mourning holiday) coincide d, the Saffavid Shah spent that day mourning for Imam Hussein (AS) and celebrated the following day as Norouz!" Norouz which is old and the dust of many centuries has set on its face, has witnessed the hymns of moqan (clergies of sun worshippers) calling and endearing it, the holy psalms of the Zoroastrians at their Fire-Temples addressed to it, Avesta's murmurs ca lling it holy names, and heavenly rhymes of Ahourmazd, praising it personally and secretly in its ears. From then on, it has been praised with the holy verses of Qur'an and Allah's own words. Special salats (Islamic prayer, similar to five-time daily prayers) were devised for Norouz, as well as special prayers to be said at Norouz day and the moment of turn ing the year. These were all coupled with love of Imam Ali (AS) and his just government in Shiaism. This approach pumped fresh blood in the veins of this old tradition, which has lived a long life along with all our ancestors since old days, and cheered up the moments of every one of us, with tender and profound love, always very sincerely. The main prophesy of Norouz yet, is to polish the stains of sadness and hopelessness off the hearts of this nation, which has often been betrayed and even stabbed from behind, and blow the soul of jubilance in the corpse of this land and its people. And yet that is not all. Norouz is responsible for strengthening the ties between the present generation and all our wise ancestors in the past on the one hand, and strengthen the ties of these all with mother nature on the other hand. Above all, Norouz strengthens the ties of oneness among the present day Iranians, who have the bitter memories of suffering the invasions of many kinds, cruelties of both insider and outsider enemies, executioners who made minarets of their heads and mass acred many generations. It melts the thick ice of the walls of being strangers among our nation and sows the seeds of being related to each other, flesh and blood. Thus, it fills the deep gaps of forgetfulness which often separate the hearts of different groups of the nation had it not been filled with the kindness of Norouz. And we, in these happy moments, light the holy Ahouraian fire of Norouz once again, and deep in our conscience, tread the black death-stricken deserts of hollow centuries, and get ready to celebrate Norouz along with al the men and women, who once celebra ted this glorious national ceremony on this land. Their noble blood runs in our veins, our hearts beat happily with it and their souls once again start life in our bodies under the clear skies of Iran. Thus, we proudly proclaim our lively existence as a happy wise nation, standing tall amid the heavy winds of horrendous incidents which are capable of uprooting any strong tree, but not our nation's. We announce that we are alive and we will continue our proud existence on this land till the end of the time, even in this dark century when our enemies, and particularly the usurper West, are fiercely determined to make us foreign with our own culture, so that we will be their obedient slaves, with no personality of our own to rely on. So let us renew our alliance with all our ancestors and with all the different races of our nation, as well as with our mythology in this historical intersection of time, beliefs and traditions. Let us borrow the precious inheritance of love from them and promise to be faithful inheritors of it. Let us promise as a nation, never to die, or how in obedience to other cultures, because our roots are deeply delved into the rich culture of humankind, piety of religions and nobleness of an ancient nation that is standing tall at the great passage of history and at the scene of the whole universe. effort:hossein raji | |
topic: Philosophy | |
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| for those that would udnerstand... | September 21, 2006, 1:36PM |
 by: RIP13 |
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Encore un beau jour se leve dans ce beau pays que nous appellons la France... Je ne puissent point m'interdire de penser qu'il n'y'aura jamais un autre jour comme celui-ci, ou comme celui qui l'a precedé, ou bien celui qui a precedé son precedant... rien ne serais jamais la meme Avec chaque seconde on veillit sans le savoir, et on change a l'inconnu - le monde nous faconne a ce qu'il voudra que nous soyons...C'est une travestie de vie que nous vivons, pas comme nos vraies ancetres - les néanderthales et les singes, qui ont su vivre avec la Terre, et non pas seulement sur...Nous gachons cette belle chose qui nous acceuille car on ne sait point comment l'aider sans oublier qu'elle existe, et sans gacher ce qu'elle nous donne en l'abusant... A present, la Terre, en plein dans son adolescence est en train de mourir, et tout ca a cause de nous - j'ai pitié pour la Terre, et non pas la race humaine, car la race humaine se detruit elle meme, et elle ne fait point d'aide pour tout ce qui l'entour - le faune et la flore, les ames et les esprits, les airs et les terres, tout cela ne conte point, tant que l'homme puise se contenter. J'ai honte de faire partie de cette race, j'ai honte d'etre inscrite dans une société que je n'apprecie point, j'ai honte d'etre vivante et de ne rien pouvoir pour notre Mere a nous tous - la Terre! Je suis desolé mais c'est bien vrai ce que je dis - nous nous aidons point! veillez reflechir a ca... | |
topic: Philosophy | |
[reply] [2 comments] |
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| Addicted to Hate; and why gays don’t go to hell | September 20, 2006, 3:09AM |
 by: Bohemian |
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An article which my aspiring journalist friend has written addressing the treatment of gays: To begin, I have never been the biggest gay rights activist the world has ever seen. I am gay, but I never saw the reason in defending myself against something I don’t feel I should have to. But a few articles of news have caught my attention. Until now, I've never witnessed true persecution, just a few schoolyard bullies and bible-bashers. I learnt to deal; it's not like it's anyone's opinions but their own that they're voicing. But today I read a story in the newspaper about a guy in America that wore a dress to his prom and was denied access. It's unfair and bigoted, but nobody died because of it. I then googled the story, and in the process unearthed the black, filthy underbelly of discrimination that extends here to Australia too. Doctors in the Northern Territory and Western Australia refuse to treat patients with AIDS, and one documentary filmmaker quotes a particular MD in Adelaide saying "By not treating these AIDS fu**ers, I'm doing my country a service and sending these faggots to hell- a fate they deserve." People like this individual are the reason there is war in the world. They are the reason social equality will likely not exist within our lifetime. They are the reason more than half a million gay teenagers in Australia are killing themselves each year. But back to America, where all of Australia's social standards, fads, opinions and prejudices come from. In the land of plenty, it is in fact true that plenty of people wish that plenty of gays would just go away. I had to do a double take when I read that it is in fact illegal to just be gay in 20 states of America under sodomy laws. That's not even beginning to scratch the surface of marriage and adoption rights. Another story I read was about a teenage boy named Matthew Shepard. He was violently gay bashed in Wyoming, USA. He was beaten and left hanging on a fence to die, a fate he inevitably succumbed to. Enter Fred Phelps. A Baptist preacher who rallies anti-gay protests all around America. He gathered his hateful propaganda and his disgusted troops and picketed Matthew Shepard’s funeral, harassing his grieving mother and telling her that “her son was a bad man who is rotting away in hell for his sins.” And so, while I would never dream of comparing my life to Matthew Shepard’s I see the need now to stand up for not only myself, but for those who no longer have the chance to. Now I don’t have a problem with people voicing their opinion, if I did I’d be a hypocrite for writing this e-mail. But when some one substitutes their voice for their fists, that’s when I get a touch angry. But what sticks in my craw worse than anything else is when homophobic haters hide behind the bible to justify their rampant abuse. I believe in God. To a degree, I’d say that I consider myself a fairly upstanding Christian. But when people preach that “God hates fags” like Fred Phelps and his legion of supporters do, It almost makes me angry enough to abandon the faith altogether. But not quite. It’s true that the bible does contain quotes that prohibit homosexuality. But, my Holy Book-abusing friends, did God write the bible? That would be a no. So I’d take anything I read in there with a grain of salt. You’ll forgive me if I ignore the part about gays burning in hell if in the same breath I’m told of seas parting for slaves and people rising from the dead. For something that clearly is a work of fiction, penned thousands of years ago by a bunch of homophobic dead guys no less, a lot of people live their everyday lives by it so strictly it’s as if it were the south beach diet. I don’t think that gays have to fear hell. I think gays, and all people for that matter, have to fear hell being brought to earth by people like Fred Phelps and his followers. | |
topic: Current Events | |
[reply] [71 comments] |
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| Montreal Shooting, A Response to an Ignorant Article in the Toronto Sun | September 17, 2006, 5:23PM |
 by: Saturnalia |
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Some of you might have already heard about the incredibly insensitive and ignorant article written in the "Toronto Sun" about VampireFreaks.com's connection to the murders commited by Kimveer Gill at Dawson College in Motreal. If not, click this link: Toronto Sun Article, "Stay Home, You Freaks!" I usually don't get involved in such things, but the sheer audacity of this so-called "journalist" just pissed me off to no end. This is the letter I wrote to the editor: ---- I recently had the displeasure of reading the article entitled "Stay home, you freaks! - VampireFreaks.com wants to walk for sick kids to improve image" by Michele Mandel. Is this what journalism is really like in Canada, or is it just that the Toronto Sun is one of those news spoof magazines, full of stories of UFO's and Big Foot, that one would buy at the grocery store checkout line? If the latter is true, then please disregard the following. Nothing gets my blood boiling quite like some sensationalist journalist who thinks she can pick and choose a handful of comments off of a website to create a captivating (and grossly misinforming) article about something which she obviously knows very little. There is no mention of the numerous comments on the VampireFreaks message board that condemn the action of Mr. Gill; there isn't even any mention of the thousands of comments filled with disgust and hatred and mourning over this tragedy that were left on the killer's profile by VF members. Sure, there might be a couple stupid people that will say something insensitive just for attention or to look tough. A couple of those people might even be crazy and seriously need to seek counseling. However, they by no means represent the entire VampireFreaks community nor the Gothic community as a whole. I hope you're prepared to take the blame for the backlash of hatred and violence toward the Gothic community that this totally irresponsible and ignorant article will create. I hope you feel guilty and ashamed when vigilante Canadians decides to gain some twisted version of revenge for the Dawson tragedy and start attacking or even killing anyone they see dressed in black; just as in America after 9-11 when anyone Arabic, be they Muslim, Sikh or even Hindu, was percieved as a threat and angry, misguided people started murdering good Arabic members of their communities, though they had nothing to do with 9-11. Has anyone even bothered to check and see if Mr. Gill had a Myspace account? LiveJournal? Yahoo? MSN? Has anyone bothered to see how many people from these other online communities have commited murders and other atrocities? He had an account on YouTube.com where he displayed video of the Columbine High School Massacre in Colorado, but have there been dozens of articles written on how he was a part of that community? There are sick people in every community, the Gothic community is just an easy target because it isn't considered "normal." Even the Columbine killers were originally labeled as Gothic, even though they were closer to Neo-Nazi Skinheads. Gothic culture has become very difficult to define within the last decade or so, because it seems to have branched off in many different directions. Basically, all the Gothic culture is really about is appreciating the mysterious and mystical in life and trying to gain a very deep understanding of human emotion and the universe in general. We aren't all about "blood and gore." Most Gothic people have a deep respect and understanding of death and it's connection to life, but go no further than that. If we experience anger and frustration, we try to let it out in a constructive and creative manner, many of us writing poetry or stories, painting, sculpting, participating in drama clubs and other such artistic outlets. There is really no obsession with murder or suicide as all the stereotypes might like you to think. In fact, the parody of the gloomy, depressed, suicidal Goth has become a sort of running inside joke within the community. The murderous act that Kimveer Gill committed at Dawson College is disgusting, horrible and inexcusable. Most of us hope he rots for an eternity in hell. Life is precious and no one has the right to take it away from anyone else. Our hearts go out to all those families effected by this tragedy. To learn more about Gothic culture, I suggest you visit these following links: CANA (Christian Answers for the New Age) Article: The World According to Goth http://cana.userworld.com/cana_Goth.html Wikipedia.org Article: Gothic Subculture http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Goth ---- If you wish to send your own email to the editor, send it to: editor@tor.sunpub.com If you wish to send an email to the "journalist" herself, send it to: michele.mandel@tor.sunpub.com (Please do not be a dumbass and send these people hate mail without reading the article they wrote first.) | |
topic: Current Events | |
[reply] [28 comments] |
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| Everything changes, even cartoons | September 13, 2006, 7:54AM |
 by: Murderous_Breeze |
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Well this article is inspired by a cartoon i was watching yesterday that i decided to download, Captain Planet. Now in the last 10 years cartoons have gone a very long and twisted way, what happened to the cartoons we used to watch as a kid? They were so innocent and so fun that just the name of the show gives us old memories of sitting in the lounge on a saturday morning and switching on and enjoying our favourite old shows, like the Gummi bears, Darkwing Duck, Gargoyles, Tailspin, Ducktales, Captain Planet, and the list goes on and on. I believe it all started with anime cartoons, now i know alot of you will debate this, but anime cartoon style has totally corrupted the old style of cartoons. The shows back then had meaning and a certain amount of innocense in them, for example, Captain Planet taught us how to respect nature, and that by all of us coming together from different countries we could fight against a common enemy. Dont think i dont like anime, some of my most memorable moments was at home watching kenshin and guyver. But the all-out action scenes, the big breasted woman, the cool moves and fighting scenes, and the very complex storie lines of the japanese anime style slowly killed the off the old primative style of the 90s. It also didnt help when the japanese style promoted their drawings to games, in the end it was inevitable that the jap style would overcome the classical disney style. So this is an old school tribute to all the toons we loved. | |
topic: Life | |
[reply] [6 comments] |
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| Customer Service | September 12, 2006, 7:20PM |
 by: colorofnightfall |
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How many of us have said "I have to finish high school so I don't end up working somewhere like McDonalds" as thought it was hilarious and possibly the easiest job on the planet. How many people who said that have never held a 'real' job? How many people know how ridiculously hard it is to work in a McDonalds (or any fast food restaurant) or what trying to live off a McDonald's salary is like? For reference, all fast food restaurants timetheir employees. Food preparation staff especially. Most meals have to be finished and put together in under 3 minutes or a 'mark' is made on an employee record. At places like McDonald's, every table in the entire restaurant has to be cleaned in under 3 minutes. And not only are you asked to clean the messes made during the day, but closing implies an employee getting a station to thoroughly clean. I work in a casual dining restaurant(Panera Bread) where it takes on average 1-2.5 hours to clean your closing station. Not only that but many employees for jobs in restaurants or small retail stores start at $6.50-$7.50 an hour. In 1998 it was calculated that in order to hold a one-room apartment and 'get by' you would have to make an average of $8.89 an hour. And the cost of living had risen significantly since 1998. This isn't to discredit the pains of retail(which I have also worked) since the same average starting wages goes for retail (often retail is less because work/health standards are more lax) and cleaning staff or any other 'undesirable' job. I have, after working retail and food service, found working food service is more abusive. People act like your life is to serve them. Like 'customer service' implies 'slavery unto customer-like-god' Well regardless of the motto or the sign, it is not my pleasure to serve you. As stated above, I work at a Panera Bread Bakery/Café. For those unfamiliar with the chain (it is US only at this point), they are casual sandwich/soup/salad (and now pizza) shops that are coupled with bakeries that sell fresh breads (everything is baked fresh at night, I'm there when it happens), bagels and pastries. They are really your 'rich man's McDonalds.' They make cappuccino's and sell you an $8 'gourmet' deli sandwich with a piece of baguette. Enjoyably, I work register and am not timed nor am I on dining room staff nor are they as strict with us as they are at McDonalds(I have been told by 4 separate people it was the worst place they ever worked; most quit after 2 weeks), but thats not to say the work is light. But working register means I have to prepare drinks and tray/slice/whatever pastries, bagels and bread. And, la piece de resistance, I get to deal face to face with all the smiling customers. Customers are quite easily one of the worst aspects of working. Wether they are bitching that there is too much foam on their latté or too little strawberries on their pastry or filing a complaint because you didn't smile when you said 'have a nice day' they are a royal pain in the ass. Oh and by the way, unless you tip 9 times out of 10 when someone says 'have a nice day' they are really saying 'I hope you choke on it.' I attend a school for the intellectually gifted and will graduate with all honors and several AP's and all that fucking jazz. Not that being intelligent matters, but people treat me like I am stupid by default. They walk into the restaurant and automatically assume I can't understand english (I can, and most of my spanish speaking coworkers pretend like they can't when people come up to them and act like they are an idiot), or that I can't do basic math or even count to three. I've actually had people accuse me of being a moron and giving them 'the wrong change.' When I tell them a computer does all the math for me and there is no margin of error the often recount their change and huff off without apologizing. People also forget that we have to ask you question; its what they're paying us to do. If I ask if you want a drink or something, shoving your credit card in my eye is not going to make me help you any faster. I don't give two shits if its platinum either. And if you cut some old lady so you can order two decaf skim café lattés with extra foam, I am going to ask you to wait in line, please. And if you have a problem with that than get the fuck away asshole. Most like that old lady comes out once a week and gets all dressed up so she can buy her bear claw and broccoli cheese soup before going back to her assisted living facility. So wait five seconds before you get your fucking polo in a bundle. Also, acting impatient or telling me if service was any slower you'd grow old inspires me pour 105 degree espresso on your fucking face. Realize that I did not wake up this morning and say 'Hmmm How can I take it in the ass from some bitch who hasn't gotten any in 5 years or some asshole with something to prove.' I probably woke up saying 'fuck. I don't want to go to work today.' Then we come to the problem of choice. Free will is a baaaad thing. I have often thought of instituting a fascist state of food service; what I pick for you is best, no questions asked. Often people say "I want a soup and a salad." By asking them 'what soup?' and 'what salad?' you are opening a can of worms. They have choices?! That giant sign above my head that is approximately 8 feet wide is there for them to read?! What's even worse is if you don't have what they want. They stroll up to the counter (or often enough inch up there after waiting in lines that often go out the door) and say "I want THIS salad and THIS sandwich with THIS SIDE." in a combined prideful and condescending tone. Because OF course I am too stupid to know the names of the soups at a place I am in 3-4 days a week. And of course pride because out SIX soups and TWELVE sandwiches and FOUR sides they were gwown-up enouf to choose sum. Awwwe thats adorwable. But to burst their bubble you have to say "We are out of ________ soup" and literally watch their world collapse. I once had to inform a girl we ran out of her soup and she stood there for 20 minutes until we closed because she couldn't think of anything else. Sometimes people stand in the aforementioned line for 20 minutes to an hour and when they finally get to come up to the counter, they don't know what they want. They haven't even looked. What the fuck were you doing in that line? Masturbating? For the love of christ! I also love when someone asks for a dozen bagels. Well there is a deal on 13 bagels, would you like to get another bagel and get $2 off the dozen? Its another earth shattering statement. This is a fucking bagel, not the fate of your first born. Fuck, you people probably spend more time deciding what kind of bagel you want than you do on who is the next president (I am ranting. I have to include some random put down on the current administration.). One of my biggest pet-peeves (because really this is a matter of common decency and politeness) is the people who come in 30 minutes before we close. I don't mind if you order food or drinks that we have at half past 8, but if you come in and fume and fuss at us because we are out of your soup, or your bagel or the pastry you wanted maybe its because if you had gotten your ass in there at a decent time, we'd still have it. Also, if out of the kindness of my heart and the patience conditioned in my soul from dealing with people like you all day, I make a suggestion of something else to soothe your cravings or somewhere else you might try and you snap at me and bitch at me, step off mother fucker. I am only trying to by nice. And to be honest, I am not a mean person. Throughout the day, I try to be very helpful and kind but so many people have this 'bad cop' attitude they have to pull so they don't get 'ripped off'(on fixed prices dumbass). I actually had this one guy ask for my manager because I spent 10 minutes trying to help his senile mother choose a soup and he wanted it to go faster. Get the stick out of your ass, I can see it poking up through your esophagus as you open you fat trap to spew out bullshit. But people come in literally at 5 till 9 and order a pizza or whatever for here. Did you grow up in a cave or did your mother just neglect to teach you manners? I mean come in and if you see us closing, get it to go or at least ask or acknowledge you are late. Its like people come in literally at 5 after 9 (we close at nine but we don't start breaking down until 5 after) and want us to put everything back out and server them because it is their sovereign right to be there. Newsflash: No its not. Now I am outlining everything that is wrong with customers, which isn't to say there aren't good ones; its just easier and much more entertaining it outline the bad ones. And next time you are in a store, think about if you can just pick the onions off, or if it will kill you to be short 2¢ or to fold that shirt back up before just leaving it on the floor. | |
topic: Rants | |
[reply] [2 comments] |
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| New Andromeda Feature: Profile Privacy | August 30, 2006, 5:07AM |
by: eon |
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As an additional feature for our Andromeda members, profile privacy settings are now available. Profile Privacy allows you to broadly describe who may (or may not) view your profile. For instance, you could set it so that only people who are logged into the site with a valid account may view your profile. Or if you wanted a more strict setting, you could make it so that your profile is only viewable by members who you have added as a friend. To view this new setting: Control Panel -> Experience -> Profile Privacy The default setting is 'Show to Everyone'. The other settings are: Show to Members Only, Show to Friends Only and Show to No One. Andromeda membership entitles you to many additional features and benefits on the site. Find Out More About Andromeda Membership ---- This feature is fully operational as described, but should still be considered in testing phases. I intend to add a few other small things to the way it works. Please let me know if you find any bugs in the new feature. Thank you! | |
topic: Site News | |
[reply] [18 comments] |
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| People, Religon, God(s)... Are any of us right? | August 30, 2006, 3:13AM |
 by: Bob_The_Angry_Flower |
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There are many different religions out there. Some religions have the human race exalted to their god(s), while nature and all others are given to us, and others dictate the respect of all nature; humbleness, and enlightenment, and still others which have their god a malevolent watchman demanding worship in exchange for a peaceful living (disobeying this may lead to sickness, natural disasters, or the destruction of all mankind); but which god(s) is/are the real one(s). If you look at the religious history of each religion you'll find many similarities, such as the beginning of the world, many religions have a single god creating/representing the world (God [Christianity], Gaia [Greek], Tellus [Roman], etc..). Also many religions have a great flood (Christianity, Greek, Roman, Hinduism, Utnapishtim, etc..), the story of a devastated earlier civilization. But the most striking similarity in a religion based in the belief of a god, is the punishment for disbelief in that god. There anywhere between like 25 - 100someodd religions out there depending on whether we're gonna get specific or just look at the different basic beliefs and lifestyles; and according most of those religions everybody else is wrong. How can that be, I mean you cant just dismiss the billions of believers for different religions, you believe in you god probably just as much as they believe in theirs, you just can't go ahead and say me and my billion "brothers" are right, while you and your billion have got it all wrong; that’s the basis behind religious wars, people just need to realize what’s going on (read on I don't wanna give everything away just yet). Well with the most followed religion being Christianity at about 1.5 billion believers, and the population if the earth being approx. 6.5 billion, that leaves 5 billion people having it all wrong according to the Christians, how can 5 BILLION people be wrong? 5 billion... that how much money Bill Gates has OK, 5 billion is a lot of money and hell of a lot of people, how can they all be wrong? Well... I don’t think anybody's right, or wrong; we're all basically in between. Looking at these similarities in religion you have to wonder how they these civilizations, thousands of years, and miles apart, came up with these amazingly similar stories of creation, destruction and, death. Society changes, the human race as a whole changes... right? You can’t deny that, simple fact. Rulers of ancient cultures were often believed to be incarnations of gods, or were talked to by the gods, or were somehow imbuned with their power; and were given power over the civilization accordingly. Nowadays most societies would not wholly accept and absolute dictator (In a place where they'd have a choice) under the protection of god, and let them control their lives in that way. Societies have changed, and the religion has changed to fit that society’s values and beliefs. Now imagine the cause effect pattern extending tens, hundreds, of thousands of years, across hundreds of societies, and civilizations, all extending from the same origin, the story and the god we're seeking is the same but has been distorted in a way to better fit the society that the specific culture has created, and stuff like creation and the great flood etc… are just events too big to beyond recognition. Take Islam, Christianity, and Judaism; if you've read each religion's holy book, respectively the torah, the bible, and the quran, they are just add-ons to the last one; the same book with, MODIFICATIONS, Jehovah, God, and Allah are the same person, but their characteristics, and actions are ones that fit that society. None of us are wrong yet none of us are completely right, we will never know the complete truth, somewhere in the religions of today there are fragments of truth, and who knows, maybe one of them has got it all right, but we just have to learn to work together. We are all reaching for the same thing yet we all believe everybody else is completely wrong. Let us not stand alone and be helpless, let us build a ladder of friendship between everyone, religious, non-religious and everywhere in between. The 3 biggest causes of war are land, resources and religion. If everybody were to just live in peace in the realization that we are ALL brothers a lot of shit would stop happening. But mankind just hasn't been able to fully mature enough this level of acceptance, there will always be prejudice; religious and beyond. Hell even I'm a hypocrite, I’m actually Christian, I've laughed at religious beliefs of other people and I still can't come to terms the fact that some people just are the way they are (super religious, retardism, physical disabilities, homosexuality, etc…), but maybe someday I can live with complete tolerance; and maybe someday... just maybe, the whole world can just get along, and discover a path to truth and salvation, or whatever you believe in. | |
topic: Philosophy | |
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