The Lounge

‘Crimestop means the faculty of stopping short, as though by instinct, at the threshold of any dangerous thought. It includes the power of not grasping analogies, of failing to perceive logical errors, of misunderstanding the simplest arguments if they are inimical to [an authority] and of being bored or repelled by any train of thought which is capable of leading in a heretical direction...’ - George Orwell, 1949. thanks to Nigel http://nige.wordpress.com/2006/09/30/keplers-law-from-kinetic-energy/

it will be interesting to track this book as a barometer of how the reading public is thinking, and to hear some reactions to it the book's publication date is listed as 18 October 2006, in just a few weeks and it is already #9 in overall sales rank at amazon.com. I find this surprising. the book isn't even available yet and it is already #9 in the category of all books it is also the #2 bestseller in the "Religion and Spirituality" books http://www.amazon.com/gp/bestsellers/books/22/ref=pd_ts_b_nav/103-6432418-0205431 The Religion and Spirituality bestseller list goes like this 1. Letter to a Christian Nation by Sam Harris 2. The God Delu…

should misogynist speech be suppressed at a critical forum? if so, what is it? how does one decide if speech is misogynist? [CONTENT WARNING: don't read this thread if you object to presenting, for critical discussion, speech which is possibly misogynist---or more generally, prejudicial to a genetic type of person] For example, consider two verses of a song by Donne http://www.npg.org.uk/live/prjohndonnepoetry.asp If thou be'est born to strange sights, Things invisible to see, Ride ten thousand days and nights, Till age snow white hairs on thee, Thou, when thou return'st wilt tell me All strange wonders that befell thee, And swe…

And doesn't it feel good...

Around the corner I have a friend, in this great city that has no end, yet the days go by and weeks rush on, and before I know it, a year is gone. And I never see my old friends face, For life is a swift and terrible race, He knows I like him just as well, As in the days when I rang his bell. And he rang mine but we were younger then, and now we are busy, tired men. Tired of playing a foolish game, Tired of trying to make a name. "Tomorrow" I say! "I will call on Jim Just to show that I’m thinking of him." But tomorrow comes and tomorrow goes, and distance between us grows and grows. Around the corner, yet miles away, "Here’s a telegram sir…

http://www.theonion.com/content/node/53272

http://www.theonion.com/content/node/52984 It was only a matter of time.

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,2-2366233,00.html Okay, so the PETA videos of poor circus animals get to me, I admit. Same with cows... poor cows! And yes, I too can't stand seeing debeaked chickens crammed into deplorable conditions for the purposes of providing the world with eggs and fried chicken. But seriously... halibut? Now granted, the ramifactions of their action were not considered, and the fish they "liberated" simply met with their deaths. But... why halibut? Why aren't they trying to liberate chimps, or cows, or some other group of animals more worthy of moral consideration? And, to top it off... random acts of vandalism. …

What is the difference between a pet and a slave?.

Many of you have probably read posts Ive made in the past when I was feeling lonely and rejected by other people. However, I have now found the secret to true happiness. I stopped worrying about what other people think, and Ive just decided to avoid conversations with people except for when I need to work with them. I no longer feel the pressure and stress of trying to be accepted by someone. I just dont care anymore, and it feels great!

there are people that kill people and drink thier blood. do you consider them vampires? http://scienceforums.net/forums/showthread.php?t=4758&page=2&pp=20 http://www.cnn.com/US/9802/27/vampire.slayings/ http://www.vampyres.com/portal/modu...hp?op=view&t=70 http://www.trancenet.org/groups/news/9808.shtml http://www.factnet.org/cult_danger_growing.html?FACTNet

So what's the appeal? Lots of people, even some who post here, say they're really "in to" it. So what does it consist of that makes it appealing? Is it just the particular animation style? The deadpan ultraviolence? The submissive/hyperobjectified women? The pedophilia?

Daily Mail 25/9/06 Do you agree???

What have you all dreamt the past night(if you still remeber them that is) ? I'll start. Mine was quite terrible. I dreamed that i had pancreatic cancer. I was feeling sick and all but i wasnt feeling dying, although in my dream i thought a little about if im going to. I was with some friends during the dream but i don't remember much more than that.

What stress relief techniques work for you? I'm currently too depressed to risk going for drugs or alchohol (the latter is an especially bad idea, when accompanied by standing up on a train, belive it or not). I don't have many things to hit (my school gym doesn't have a punch bag ) and supposedly calming activities such as cleaning, are just making me more stressed. Argh!

What kids, dogs & guns too often have in common is that they control their owners rather than conversely. Whaddaya think of that observation? What does this portend in the larger picture of people and society? What might be learned from this unfortunate fact? Are there some people who just never will catch on, regarding these subjects and their common lessons? Any suggestions on improvement and educational procedures or approaches?

From a telephone sampling of more than 2,000 households, university researchers found that Americans rate atheists below Muslims, recent immigrants, gays and lesbians and other minority groups in “sharing their vision of American society.” Atheists are also the minority group most Americans are least willing to allow their children to marry. http://www.ur.umn.edu/FMPro?-db=releases&-lay=web&-format=umnnewsreleases/releasesdetail.html&ID=2816&-Find

I find this quite surprising. A book called God's Universe has risen to #3 spot on amazon general physics bestseller list. this puts it in the distinguished company of people like Brian Greene, Stephen Hawking, Sir Roger Penrose, and recent arrival Lee Smolin. God's Universe has joined an elite club. the book's message, I guess, is that the Big Bang could have been intended----somebody could have made it happen on purpose. Please correct me if I am mistaken about this. Can't say I've read it. what this confirms for me is that we humans are nuts about cosmology. We are incurable fans of the universe. I know I personally love cosmology, am crazy about it. real…

Is it true? Like, if you go only yourself in the bathroom and turn the lights off and bring the candles with you and light them up and place them in front of mirror and that making sure the door is shut......and you look yourself in the mirror and chant "Bloody Mary, Bloody Mary" repeadetly until something happens........lol I dunno

I'm mapping all the zip codes in the US graphically on a map. I've been looking for one, I've found: http://maps.huge.info/zip.htm -- Looks good, but some areas are blank (no zip code) and need to zoom in really far to get to zip codes, hard to keep place (not a big deal really, as long as the info is there). http://maps.huge.info/zipv0.htm -- The old version of above. http://www.melissadata.com/lookups/mapzip.asp -- Can look up zip codes and see a map, but can't see other zip code areas, good for checking I suppose. Sorry, it's kind of random, and I should be able to do it by myself. Mostly I just want confirmation that what I have can work My last pl…

http://www.theonion.com/content/node/52324 Except: I love The Onion.

This link says: There has been no job growth outside of Medical and public employment. Health care cost $2 trillion annually The federal government spends $600 million annually. The World Health Organization ranks the US 37 or 191 countries. Health care is much more expensive than in Mexico who rates ahead of the US. Why is health care in the US so expensive? Why is health care so bad?

Boot camp was quite a bit less difficult than I had anticipated. In fact, it was very easy. I had loads of fun when I wasn't bored to death. I think the best part was Battle Stations, but we're not allowed to talk about that. For those that don't know, I'm a nuclear machinist mate in the U.S Navy. I can't go to "A" school yet, though, because I have a medical appointment in a civilian hospital on Tuesday and I graduated from RTC Great Lakes Summer Camp, err, Boot Camp yesterday. I get weekday liberty starting at 16 00, so I'll be in from time to time.

My family has this game where someone will take part of sentence or a phrase and announce it as "That would be a Good Name for a Rock Group!" Here are a few examples of Improvised Rock Group names my family has conceived: Hair Color: Bald Instant Thong Midnight To'kra Intruder Buck Noxious Vomit Pardone the crudness of some of these, but that is part of whay we find it funny. I'd like to hear some of your ideas for Names of Rock Groups.

TALK LIKE A PIRATE!!!! http://www.talklikeapirate.com/piratehome.html