Richard Dawkins Demonstrates Laryngeal Nerve of the Giraffe

Richard Dawkins Demonstrates Laryngeal Nerve of... by blindwatcher

Blaming the Victim

I never thought of it like this

"The worst part of this whole bit of nonsense is that Dr. Kornfeld appears to be pulling the old "blame the victim" gambit. I've written many, many times the dark side of the "empowerment" that promoters of "alternative medicine" like to tout when they ascribe near magical powers (actually, there's no "near" about it) to lifestyle, diet, and the like is that, if you are responsible for being in perfect health, you are likewise responsible if you aren't in perfect health. It's something I've referred to as the "illusion of control," and it's very pernicious. Kornfeld is not as blatant about it as Robert O. Young has been in expressing this idea, but it's the same basic undercurrent to the same basic idea, namely that if you are sick it is your fault. You are to blame. Not nature. Not a "germ." Not genetics. You."

 

Priests wanted

Do you want to be a celibate purveyor of Medieval authoritarianism, superstition, and misogyny?

There’s an app for that

"The Catholic Church in Ireland is going high-tech in a bid to reverse a dramatic decline in the number of priests.

An establishment viewed as a bastion of tradition is turning to a new app to encourage more "applications." The app, says the church, is "designed to promote vocations to the priesthood.""

via Dispatches from the Culture Wars

Nice Quote

"I regard romantic comedies as a subgenre of sci-fi, in which the world operates according to different rules than my regular human world. For me, there is no difference between Ripley from “Alien” and any Katherine Heigl character. They are equally implausible. They’re all participating in a similar level of fakey razzle-dazzle, and I enjoy every second of it."

by Mindy Kaling
from Flick Chicks, A guide to women in the movies

Parking fee sa mall

Meron na naman pala panukala na ipagbawal ang pagsingil ng parking fee sa mall.  Siyempre madaming pabor na Congressmen kasi nadarama nila ang problema na ito dahil sa karamihan sa kanila ay may kotse at kailangan magbayad ng parking.  Pero kung titingnan mo, ang talagang tatamaan nitong panukala kung maisabatas ito ay ang mga tao na walang kotse.  Kung aalisin ang bayad sa parking,  at kakailanganin ng mall na i-maintain ang kanilang parking area,  tataasan nila ang singil ng renta sa kanilang shops sa loob ng mall na magtataas ng singil sa kanilang mga itinitinda.  So sa halip na yung mga may kotse na gumagamit ng parking ang nagbabayad para ma maintain ang parking areas ng mall, lahat ng tao na namimili sa mall ang magbbayad dito.  I subisdize ng mga walang kotse ang mga may kotse.

Kagaya ito ng mga panukalang i subsideize ng gobyerrno ang presyo ng langis.  Pag ni subsidize ng gobyerno ang presyo ng langis, ang mas makikinabang ay ang mga may kotse.  I subsidize ng mga walang kotse ang langis na ginagamit ng mga may kotse.  Gaya rin ito ng pag subsidize sa bayad sa MRT,  yung mga hindi sumasakay sa MRT ay siyang nagbabayad sa kakulangang bayad ng mga sumasakay sa MRT. 

Hindi naman lahat ng subsidy ay masama,  itong column ni Atty. Pangalangan ay sinuri ang mga dahilan sa pag subsidize sa MRT, kailangan lang natin pag-isipan kung makakbuti nga ba ito sa karamihan.

Putang Ama

Pano nila ni justify sa sarili nila ang ginagawa nila?  Pera o relihiyon?

"Up to 300,000 Spanish babies were stolen from their parents and sold for adoption over a period of five decades, a new investigation reveals.

The children were trafficked by a secret network of doctors, nurses, priests and nuns in a widespread practice that began during General Franco’s dictatorship and continued until the early Nineties. "

Kung ano anong scandal ang lumalabas na ginawa ng simbahang katolliko sa mga bansa na malaki ang impluwensiya nila.  Di ko alam kung matutuwa ako o matatakot na wala pang lumalabas na balita tungkol sa Pilipinas.

Academia

I always chuckle every time I hear the quip "Competition in academia is so vicious because the stakes are so small." but this "Cops eye internal politics in slay of PUP exec" is ridiculously extreme.

Kapal

Hahahahahaha. 

"Senator Panfilo Lacson on Sunday insisted that businessman Roberto "Bobby" Ongpin be held accountable for allegedly a government bank for personal and financial gain regardless of who his backer was."

 Pero si Sen. Lacson nung may kaso siya na kailangan niyang harapin?  Nagtago siya.

Billy Ray Bates as coach

I'am a fan of the Black Superman and I wish this works out for him and his team.

FORMER PBA import Billy Ray Bates has been hired as the skills coach of the AirAsia Philippine Patriots in the ASEAN Basketball League (ABL), whic opens its brand-new season in January of next year.

"He's a legend in the PBA so we believe he can share and teach whatever he knows to our players," said team owner and sports patron, Mikee Romero, also the president of Harbour Centre. "He was my basketball idol during his first PBA stint, so I want to help him start a new career."

Kwentong Barbero

Katatapos ko lang basahin yung Ligo na u, Lapit na me, ni Eros S. Atalia, at hindi ko siya masyado nagustuhan.  Magaling ang pagkakasulat niya, hindi ka ma bore sa kuwento habang binabasa mo siya, wala rin akong problema sa katapusan niya na walang resolusyon yung relasyon ng bida at ng kanyang ka MU.  Hindi ko siya nagustuhan dahil sa walang kinahinatnan yung bida.  Siguro nga gaya ng paliwanag nung nagsulat, ganyan talaga ang buhay, di naman laging may punto.  Kaya lang,  gusto ko ng libro na may kahihinatnan yung kuwento, yung mga karakter, may growth baga, may pinagkatandaan.  Sabi ko nga sa kaopisina ko ang una kong naisip ko ng papatapos ko na basahin yung libro, parang kang nakinig sa isang kakwentuhan mo, nikuwento yung lovelife niya, tapos habang nagkuwentuhan kayo, kung ano anong pilosopiya, pagninilay nilay, kataran taduhan na  naikwento niya.  Entertaining, pero sa huli, ganun lang yon.  Kwentong barbero.

FIGHT CORPORATE GREED! BOYCOTT PAL!

The sight of bedlam and confusion in NAIA’s Terminal 2 greeted us last September 27 as we watched the news on TV.  The reason is not Typhoon Pedring but a man-made disaster:  the mass termination of some 2, 600 employees of the Philippine Airlines.

While many passengers were understandably irate at the inconvenience, occasions missed, or loss of opportunities caused by cancelled flights, we believe and feel that things much bigger are at stake in what happened at the airport that day.

The first is our sense of justice.  For ten years, from 1998 to 2008, the employees of PAL, organized as PALEA, agreed to suspend their CBA rights so that PAL, then in the abyss of bankruptcy, could survive and recover.   When PAL recovered and started to profit big like last years’ P 3 billion, PALEA started to negotiate for a new CBA.
Lucio Tan’s reply is yes but after outsourcing 2, 600 jobs,  meaning terminating 2, 600 workers as regular workers, and rehiring them to three outsourced companies  owned by Lucio Tan also as contractuals with pay almost half what they used to get.  After sacrificing, the employees have been disposed of.

At stake here is our sense of rights, human rights, labor rights.
The right to decent job, to job security is part of the right to work which is a basic human right, enshrined in international human rights covenants – the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (IESCR, 1976) and in our Constitution.  But in the case of PAL, Lucio Tan brushed this aside,  and Government through DOLE and the Office of the Executive Secretary became a willing partner by putting “management prerogative “ over fundamental rights.   When PALEA staged a protest action, the protesting workers were thrown out of the airport and summarily dismissed and denied of separation pay and other legitimate entitlements.

At stake here is our national pride, our identity with this institution called PAL.  Despite the Government’s decision to privatize PAL, we all grew up knowing that it is our nation’s flag carrier, our symbol in the sky, our representative in global aviation.  We take pride in the excellent ability of its pilots and ground crew to provide safe and comfortable air travel and to respond effectively during emergencies and unexpected mishaps.  Now this national symbolism is heavily tainted by a bare-faced and shameless oppression of our very own Filipino workers.

At stake here is our sense of solidarity and caring for fellow Filipinos, fellow workers and fellow human beings.  What is a few hours of inconvenience or of flights delayed compared to months, even years of having no jobs or source of regular income for 2, 600 workers and their families if they lose in this fight?   We all know what accompany the loss of job of a breadwinner:  children unable to continue with their studies, less food on the table, little buffer against sickness, accidents, disaster and other misfortunes, and lowered dignity for the jobless parents and adult in the families.  ALL THIS – TO MAKE THE SUPER-RICH LUCIO TAN EVEN RICHER.

We cannot allow this injustice to happen to our PALEA brothers and sisters!  We support PALEA!  We are all PALEANS!

BOYCOTT PAL!

Alliance of Progressive Labor (APL)

The reason we should all defend freedom of expression

Iran actress sentenced to one year in jail

 "Actress Marzieh Vafamehr has been sentenced to a year in jail and 90 lashes for her role in a film about the limits imposed on artists in the Islamic republic, an Iranian opposition website reported Sunday.

"A verdict has been issued for Marzieh Vafamehr, sentencing her to a year in jail and 90 lashes," Kalameh.com reported"

 Religious limits to freedom of expression should not be allowed.

3 months kasama si lola

TANGINA THIS! VIDEO! # 4