On A Differential Pair

Men with Large Instruments Don't Have to Go Down on Girls

2009-08-31T12:58:00.000-07:00

The title is the subject line of a spam I got today. It was funny; in the beginning. And when I thought about it a little more, it turned sadder and darker by the minute.

This is a very sexist statement: It is coming from the notion that female private parts are dirty. That males with "small instruments" are not "enough", so they have to compensate. That going down on a woman is a sort of compensation...

I want to put this out there:

Men: do you see going down on women as a dirty job? Regardless of the answer, do you do it? How do you feel about it? Do you feel "adequate"? If not, do you think you have to somehow compensate for it? Or just live with the guilt?

Women: do you see going down on women as a dirty job? Regardless of the answer, do you want it? If the answer to the first question was 'yes', do you like it when you receive it? What do you think about men's "size"? If you think size matters, do you see some kind of compensation to take care of the "inadequacy" necessary? If yes, what?

Baby Boomers Hold the Key to Recovery

2009-08-21T18:47:00.000-07:00

I don't know how much this is relevant or close to reality.

Only You. And You. And You.

2009-08-04T13:22:00.000-07:00

Polyamory—relationships with multiple, mutually consenting partners—has a coming-out party.

Secrets

2009-07-21T15:38:00.000-07:00

Some Swinging Related Articles

2009-07-20T18:10:00.001-07:00

I am on this swingers' newsletter which is delivered weekly. There's a section with links to articles related to the matter which are published in the media on the web recently. I am not advocating any of the material as interesting or such. Just wanted to keep track of the "stuff I've read" ; -)

One Night As A Swinger

Open relationships - An introduction

Threesomes, foursomes and moresomes within a marriage

Look Look

2009-07-12T16:07:00.000-07:00

2009-06-30T18:29:00.001-07:00

2009-06-30T17:59:00.000-07:00

عاشقان

سرشکسته گذشتند،

شرمسار ترانه های بی هنگام خویش.

و کوچه ها

بی زمزمه ماند و صدای پا.

سربازان

شکسته گذشتند،

خسته

بر اسبان تشریح،

و لته های بی رنگ غروری

نگون سار

بر نیزه هایشان.

تو را چه سود

فخر به فلک بر

فروختن

هنگامی که

هر غبار راه لعنت شده نفرین ات می کند؟

تو را چه سود از باغ و درخت

که با یاس ها

به داس سخن گفته ای.

آن جا که قدم بر نهاده باشی

گیاه

از رستن تن می زند

چرا که تو

تقوای خاک و آب را

هرگز

باور نداشتی.

فغان ! که سرگذشت ما

سرود بی اعتقاد سربازان تو بود

که از فتح قلعه ی روسبیان

باز می آمدند

باش تا نفرین دوزخ از تو چه سازد،

که مادران سیاه پوش

_ داغ داران زیباترین فرزندان آفتاب و باد _

هنوز از سجاده ها

سربرنگرفته اند!

احمد شاملو. 26 دی 1357

2009-06-06T22:35:00.000-07:00

I loved this pictures. Click on it or here to see the mail page.

Light is an Evil Fiction of the Evolutionists

2009-04-18T08:38:00.000-07:00

I really don't understand the point this kind of people are trying to make. Either they are educated and want to fool their constituents or they, themselves are extremely stupid. I think that is mostly the second one.

And they have every right to explain themselves. The tragedy is when they take the power of government in any level: that is what we had here in the US for the past eight years.

Graphic Iamge: Beating of Girl Raises Ire Over Pakistan Peace Deal

2009-04-06T12:12:00.000-07:00

2009-04-06T07:37:00.001-07:00

2009-04-05T21:50:00.000-07:00

Watch CBS Videos Online

2009-03-26T00:06:00.001-07:00

2009-03-24T11:48:00.000-07:00

View Many More Films at Film Annex

Throw Back the Golden Ball

2009-03-23T13:14:00.000-07:00

I couldn't agree more with this.

The Lost Land

2009-03-23T13:04:00.000-07:00

Has anybody seen this movie? Netflix doesn't have it. Do you know where I could get it from?

What if God Dissappeared?!

2009-03-19T11:31:00.000-07:00

This is where the difference is: we 'atheists' are moral beings because we are human and have empathy. 'Believers' don't commit destruction because they fear gods. Which one are you?

Secrets

2009-01-20T17:54:00.001-08:00

2008-12-05T16:55:00.000-08:00

Dignity won't get your belly rubbed.

-Billy the cat

سازمان افسران حزب توده، دکترمصدّق و رويداد ۲۸ مرداد ۳۲

2008-11-26T13:18:00.000-08:00

By Ali Mirfetros:

Part One

Part Two

Part Three

Part Four

Secrets

2008-11-18T15:37:00.000-08:00

This is fucking cute!

Secrets

2008-11-17T12:05:00.000-08:00

Brett Dennen - Ain't No Reason

2008-11-16T11:22:00.001-08:00

Secrets

2008-11-13T16:05:00.000-08:00

Did You Vote?

2008-11-10T11:31:00.000-08:00

2008-11-09T14:36:00.001-08:00

GEOGRAPHY OF A WOMAN

Between 18 and 22, a woman is like Africa , half discovered, half wild, naturally beautiful with fertile soil.

Between 23 and 30, a woman is like America , well developed and open to trade, especially for someone with cash.

Between 31 and 35, a woman is like India , very hot, relaxed and convinced of her own beauty.

Between 36 and 40, a woman is like France , gently aging; but still warm and a desirable place to visit.

Between 41 and 50, a woman is like Great Britain, with a glorious and all conquering past.

Between 51 and 60, a woman is like Yugoslavia , lost some wars, won some great battles but haunted by past mistakes, still very strong and proud.

Between 61 and 70, a woman is like Russia , very wide and borders are now largely un-patrolled.

After 70, she becomes Tibet .. Off the beaten path, with a mysterious past and the wisdom of the ages... Still desirable but only those with an adventurous spirit and a thirst for spiritual
knowledge and true love dare visit there.

GEOGRAPHY OF A MAN

Between 1 and 78, a man is like Iran , ruled by a dick.

2008-11-06T19:49:00.000-08:00

In case you were out of positions for tonight, I want to say a good night and good luck to you :-)

2008-11-06T13:48:00.001-08:00

If I'm not fucking you, why the fuck do you care...

Joke

2008-10-22T11:55:00.001-07:00

Little John came into the kitchen and told his mom, "Mom, i want a bike for my birthday".
Mom said, "John, go to your room and think about how you behaved this year. Then write a letter to God and tell him why you deserve a bike for your birthday". John sat down to write a letter to God.

Letter No.1 : Dear God, I have been a very good boy this year and i would like a bike for my birthday, and i want a Red one, Your friend, John.

John knew he had not been a good boy that year, so he tore up that letter and started a new one.

Letter No.2 : Dear God, I have been an "OK" boy this year. I still would like a bike for my birthday.

He knew that was not true either, so he tore up that one and started another.

Letter No.3 : Dear God, I know i have not been a good boy this year. But i promise i will be a good boy if you give me a bike for my birthday.
He knew he can never be a good boy and that letter wont get him a bike. So, he tore up that one too.

He went out of the house, walked down the street to the church and went up to the altar. He looked around to see if anyone was watching him. He bend down and picked up the statue of the Virgin Mary, slipped it under his shirt, ran out of the church, down the street, into his house and up to his room. He began a new letter to God :

Dear God, I HAVE GOT YOUR MOM. IF YOU WANT TO SEE HER AGAIN, SEND ME A RED BIKE. Signed, YOU KNOW WHO!

2008-10-21T21:48:00.000-07:00

It just cracks me up when I see stuff like this.

And with a little search, I found the complete version.

Secrets

2008-10-06T16:01:00.000-07:00

Hollywood Declares Themselves

2008-10-05T09:49:00.001-07:00

Register to Vote

2008-10-02T14:09:00.000-07:00

The path to Auschwitz was paved with indifference.

-Ian Kershaw

And please vote NO on prop 8 in california.

Secrets

2008-10-02T13:16:00.000-07:00

2008-09-22T06:20:00.000-07:00

If you hate a person, you hate something in him that is part of yourself. What isn't part of ourselves doesn't disturb us.

Herman Hesse

بدون شرح

2008-09-20T11:04:00.000-07:00

2008-09-20T04:21:00.001-07:00

امام خیمنی در نوفل لوشاتو گفته :

در ایران اسلامی علما خودشان حکومت نخواهند کرد و فقط ناظر و هادی امور خواهند بود. خود من نیز هیچ مقام رهبری نخواهم داشت و از همان ابتدا به حجره تدریس خود در قم برخواهم گشت.

مصاحبه با خبرگزاری رویتر، نوفل لوشاتو، 5 آبان 1357

در جمهوری اسلامی کمونیستها هم در بیان عقید خود آزاد خواهند بود.

مصاحبه با سازمان عفو بین الملل، نوفل لوشاتو، 10 نوامبر 1978

در جمهوری اسلامی زنان در همه چیز حقوقی کاملاً مساوی با مردان خواهند بود.

مصاحبه با روزنامه گاردین، نوفل لوشاتو، 1 آبان 1357

در حکومت اسلامی رادیو، تلوزیون، و مطبوعات مطلقاً آزاد خواهند بود و دولت حق نظارت بر آنها را نخواهد داشت.

مصاحبه با روزنامه پیزا سره، نوفل لوشاتو، 2 نوامبر 1978

در منطق اینها آزادی یعنی به زندان کشیدن مخالفان، سانسور مطبوعات و اداره دستگاههی تبلیغاتی. در این منطق تمدن و ترقی یعنی تبعیت تمام شریان های مملکت از فر هنگ و اقتصاد و ارتش و دستگاه های قانونگذاری و قضایی و اجرایی از یک مرکز واحد. ما همه اینها را از بین خواهیم برد.

سخنرانی برای گروهی از دانشجویان یرانی در اروپا، نوفل لوشاتو، 8 آبان 1357

ما همه مظاهر تمدن را با آغوش باز قبول داریم.

سخنرانی برای گروهی از ایرانیان، نوفل لوشاتو، 19 مهر 1357

برای همه اقلیت های مذهبی آزادی بطور کامل خواهد بود و هر کس خواهد توانست اظهار عقیده خودش را بکند.

کنفرانس مطبوعاتی، نوفل لوشاتو، 9 نوامبر 1978

نه رغبت شخصی من و نه وضع مزاجی من اجازه نمی دهند که بعد از سقوط رژیم فعلی شخصاً نقشی در اداره امور مملکت داشته باشم.

مصاحبه با خبرگزاری اسوشیتد پرس، نوفل لوشاتو، 17 نوامبر 1975

دولت اسلامی ما یک دولت دموکراتیک به معنی واقعی خواهد بود. من در داخل ین حکومت هیچ فعالیتی برای خودم نخواهم داشت.

مصاحبه با تلوزیون NBC ، نوفل لوشاتو، 11 نوامبر 1978

من نمی خواهم رهبر جمهوری اسلامی آینده باشم. نمی خواهم حکومت یا قدرت را بدست بگیرم.

مصاحبه با تلوزیون اتریش، نوفل لوشاتو، 16 نوامبر 1978

در جمهوری اسلامی زن ها آزاد خواهند بود. در تحصیل هم آزاد خواهند بود. در کارهای دیگر هم آزاد خواهند بود.

مصاحبه با هفته نامه گاردین، نوفل لوشاتو16 نوامبر 1978

پس از رفتن شاه من نه رییس جمهور خواهم شد، نه هیچ مقام رهبری دیگری را به عهده خواهم گرفت.

مصاحبه با روزنامه لموند، نوفل لوشاتو، 9 ژانویه 1979

Secrets

2008-08-29T17:55:00.000-07:00

... I envy him/her.

2008-08-20T14:06:00.000-07:00

A nation is a society united by delusions about its ancestry and by common hatred of its neighbors. - William Ralph Inge

Designer Bijan, Beverly Hills on NBC Television

2008-08-20T12:05:00.001-07:00

Gin Splash

2008-08-18T17:55:00.001-07:00

Ingredients:
- 3 1/2 oz White Cranberry & Peach juice (Ocean Spray)
- 1 1/2 oz Plymouth Gin
- Peach slices

Add ice and peach slices in a tall glass. Pour gin and white cranberry and peach juice. Stir and serve.

Peaches

2008-08-18T17:53:00.000-07:00

August is National Peach Month. Peaches are the third most popular fruit grown in the United States with the state of California producing approximately 80 percent of the total U.S. produce.

Yellow peaches are ready-to-eat when soft and juicy; they'll yield slightly to gentle palm pressure and have a balance of sweet and tart favors. Some like them when slightly Þrm, when they'll be a little more tart. White peaches, naturally less tart, are sweet and can be ready-to-eat when still Þrm and crunchy. Both varieties will taste sweeter and juicier as they soften. While the red blush of a peach is beautiful, it doesn't tell whether the fruit is ripe. Instead, look for a uniform yellow background color, (golden yellow on yellow peaches, creamy yellow on white peaches) with no green around the stem. To store peaches, simply allow them to ripen and soften at room temperature. Place peaches in the refrigerator only when they have reached your desired level of ripeness. (Source: California Tree Fruit Agreement)

It's All About Looks

2008-08-18T11:23:00.000-07:00

And in China more than any other place ;-)

After the little-Chinese-singer-girl controversy, now there's more crap out about fireworks:

MSNBC
updated 10:16 a.m. PT, Mon., Aug. 11, 2008

Part of the elaborate Olympics fireworks show broadcast to the world in the opening ceremony was altered, done digitally in 3-D computer graphics, according to several news reports.

While the dramatic display actually happened as portrayed on television, members of the Beijing Olympic Committee said it was necessary to replace live video with computer-generated imagery because the city’s hazy, smoggy skies made it too difficult to see, according to The Beijing Times, which first reported the story.

Committee members also said they were concerned that the helicopter pilot who would have flown overhead to film the fireworks would have been at risk by making him try to follow the firework route, according to a quote from a committee member reported in a Daily Telegraph story.

NBC broadcasters Matt Lauer and Bob Costas made mention of the alteration as it aired.

"You’re looking at a cinematic device employed by Zhang Yimou here," Lauer said. "This is actually almost animation. A footstep a second, 29 in all, to signify the 29 Olympiads."

Costas responded, "We said earlier that aspects of this Opening Ceremony are almost like cinema in real time. Well this is quite literally cinematic."

It took planners almost a year to create the 55-second sequence which appeared to be more than two dozen footprints amidst fireworks in the sky, said Gao Xiaolong, head of the visual effects team for the ceremony, in the Daily Telegraph story.

Even those at the city’s new Bird’s Nest National Stadium, where the Olympics are being held, viewed the computer-generated footage from their seats as they watched on the stadium’s giant television screens, said Britain’s Sky News in a story.

Stunned viewers thought they were watching the string of fireworks filmed from above by a helicopter, said SkyNews.com. But in reality they were watching a 3-D graphics sequence that took almost a year to produce.

There were some real fireworks going on outside the stadium. But the footprint display was inserted into the coverage electronically at exactly the right moment, the Daily Telegraph said.

Meticulous efforts were made to ensure the sequence was as unnoticeable as possible, the newspaper reported Xiaolong as saying. They sought advice from the Beijing meteorological office as to how to recreate the hazy effects of Beijing’s smog at night, and inserted a slight camera shake effect to simulate the idea that it was filmed from a helicopter.

Seeing how it worked out, it was still a bit too bright compared to the actual fireworks, Xiaolong said in comments that appeared in the Daily Telegraph. But most of the audience thought it was filmed live so that was mission accomplished.

Because the only organization in control of all Olympics footage is Beijing Olympic Broadcasting, the feed went out to everyone broadcasting the event, including NBC, which has exclusive rights in the United States to show the games. NBC's online coverage is being delivered by the MSN Network, NBCOlympics.com on MSN. (Msnbc.com is a joint venture of Microsoft and NBC Universal.)

During Friday night’s opening ceremony, the network averaged 34.2 million viewers, making it the biggest television event since the Super Bowl, according to the Associated Press.

The network has been criticized itself for the 12-hour tape delay in showing the opening ceremonies, which it did because of the time difference between China and the United States, driving some viewers to other Web sites around the world to see the event live.

Junk Mail

2008-08-18T10:46:00.000-07:00

As a way of "fighting" ;-) junk mail I have started ripping off the prints which indicate any information which regards me, stuffing the prepaid envelope and sending it back. This sounded cool when I read it somewhere recently, online.

Free Love

2008-08-15T21:23:00.001-07:00

Well, we have forgotten our roots, it looks...

Living the Dream

2008-08-13T17:32:00.000-07:00

Last night I dremt of going to the US: I was very very excited in the dream.

I woke up in the morning and realized that I am living my dream; ten years now...

I was not happy.

اعدام

2008-08-09T15:59:00.000-07:00

اعدام حل مساله نیست. اعدام پاک کردن تمام اشتباهاتی است که یک جامعه می‌کند تا کسی دست به قتل بزند.

America's Fastfood lineup

2008-08-01T17:28:00.000-07:00

I was surprised to see my favorite Chipotle is lower than McDonald's and Burger King. It looks that being owned by McDonald's means sitting lower in health factors...

Secrets

2008-07-08T15:17:00.000-07:00

All-You-Can-Eat, Nude-Bar

2008-07-02T13:22:00.000-07:00

When you see the full-nude bar on the block is advertising for all-you-can-eat pizza and salad, --with those dancing people with signs on the street-- you'd understand that the economy is really f@#$ed up.

The First Published Map of the World Happiness

2008-07-01T07:52:00.001-07:00

Gay Scientists Isolate Christian Gene

2008-06-24T17:22:00.001-07:00

Didn't I tell ya!

Secrets

2008-06-23T18:13:00.000-07:00

WHAT WE ARE ......... A bunch of monkeys

2008-06-23T16:28:00.001-07:00

I totally believe in this. I was thinking about this lately. It's scary!!

Salman Rushdie on Forum

2008-06-20T15:43:00.000-07:00

Click here to listen to the program. It was interesting how he mentions Khomeini as the "Khomeini project"!

بيست و یکمين کنفرانس بين المللی وحدت اسلامی

2008-06-20T14:36:00.000-07:00

رئيس مجمع تشخيص مصلحت نظام: جهان اسلام امروز بيشتر از هر زمان دیگری نيازمند وحدت و بيداری مسلمانان است

No Gays in Iran...

2008-06-19T11:53:00.000-07:00

... at least he didn't say "there are no Iranian gays"; or did he?!

Carpet High

2008-06-16T14:12:00.000-07:00

Persian rug always have been a huge fascination for me. I even remember the time that I seriously was considering a courier somehow in relations with it.

And I always admire the modern movement which has made this old art form to thrive in recent years. This video is about one of the people who have a lot to do with that movement.

Secrets

2008-06-09T15:14:00.001-07:00

Hearts and Minds

2008-06-05T17:05:00.000-07:00

Once you have them by the balls, their hearts and minds will follow.

-Unknown; quoted by General Patton and Lindon Johnson

DNA Explodes Greek Myth About Women

2008-06-02T12:32:00.000-07:00

Click the title. ... from Guardian.

Secrets

2008-05-19T12:18:00.000-07:00

A Good Day for California

2008-05-15T15:06:00.000-07:00

It is a bright, new day. The supreme court of California legalized gay marriage.

Secrets

2008-05-12T17:59:00.000-07:00

When God Was a Woman

2008-05-08T12:09:00.000-07:00

By Richard N. Ostling

To mark Earth Day last week, four women and two men stood on a hilltop outside Mount Horeb, Wis., literally praying to Mother Earth. "Sacred Earth Power, bring healing to planet Earth," intoned barefoot Selena Fox, priestess of Circle Sanctuary. Worshipers responded with a crescendo chant, "Clean soil. Clean soil," then pledged to do a variety of ecological good deeds and joined in a hug. Similar nature worship was part of Earth Day festivals from Boston, where the Goddess Gospel singers performed on the waterfront, to Berkeley, where devotees drummed and sang for a crowd.

The ceremonies were part of a growing U.S. spiritual movement: Goddess worship, the effort to create a female-centered focus for spiritual expression. Most participants are women who seek a deity other than God the Father, and a faith less patriarchal than the Judeo-Christian tradition seems to offer. Adherents claim the movement involves as many as 100,000 U.S. women.

Though such ancient goddesses as Isis or Astarte are often invoked, most worship occurs in the name of a vague generic "Goddess," often depicted as Mother Earth or Gaia in line with environmental awareness. "The Goddess is not just the female version of God. She represents a different concept," says Merlin Stone, author of When God Was a Woman. While the Judeo-Christian God is transcendent, the Goddess is located "within each individual and all things in nature," she says.

Various groups follow a mixed brew of Wicca (witchcraft), paganism, New Age ideas and evocations of female power, some inspired by Native American and African traditions. Though a minority enacts malevolent spell casting and magic (not Satanism, these worshipers insist), most embrace benign beliefs, especially harmony with nature. While some draw upon ancient rituals, others invent new ones.

Despite Christianity's centuries of opposition to paganism, some old-line churches are opening up to the Goddess. A witch teaches in an institute at the Roman Catholic Holy Names College in California. A book by two United Methodist pastors proposes experimental Bible readings about the crucifixion that replace Jesus with Sophia (Wisdom), a name for the divine personality used by Goddess-minded Christians.

Movement advocates say Goddess worship restores a prehistoric belief that was eradicated in Europe and the Middle East around 6,000 years ago by patriarchal invaders. The prepatriarchal utopia is portrayed as egalitarian, peace loving and "gynocentric." New scholarly backing for the creed comes from archaeologist Marija Gimbutas in The Language of the Goddess (Harper & Row) and the forthcoming Civilization of the Goddess. The author contends that worship of the "Old European Great Goddess" goes back to 25,000 B.C., though Gimbutas' major evidence stems from farming cultures in southeastern Europe from 6500 B.C. on, especially their ubiquitous female statuettes.

There are numerous skeptics, including female religious thinkers. Carole Fontaine of Andover Newton Theological School, for one, complains that feminist writers delete historical evidence that is "embarrassing or contradictory." Carol Meyers of Duke University argues that there is no proof that the figurines cited by Gimbutas were objects of worship, much less representations of a single Goddess. None of that, however, has deterred adherents. Whether they are reviving a vanished faith or inventing a new one, it is the gender of the deity that counts.

With reporting by Michael P. Harris/New York and Elizabeth L''Hommedieu/San Francisco

Find this article at:
http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,972894,00.html

Secrets

2008-04-28T16:01:00.000-07:00

The Redemptive Power of Music, and Friendship

2008-04-23T02:30:00.000-07:00

Territorial Changes of Iran in the 19th Century

2008-04-21T00:33:00.000-07:00

ذغال اخته و گوجه سبز

2008-04-20T01:00:00.000-07:00

I remembered of some of the links I had from a while ago among my bookmarks about the fruits are pretty popular in Iran and are hardly known here:

ذغال اخته

Can Eric

فرهنگ واژگان جواتی

2008-04-20T00:51:00.001-07:00

from iranian.com

Balls

2008-04-15T17:32:00.000-07:00

Amigo, the only thing in this world that gives orders is balls. Balls. You got that?

Tony Montana-Scarface

secrets

2008-04-15T16:04:00.000-07:00

Scientists take drugs to boost brain power: study

2008-04-14T12:29:00.000-07:00

It looks that the most "reasonable" parts of the society are bending for the "demands" of the rat-race.

World Leaders

2008-04-09T15:51:00.000-07:00

This is really cool:

http://www.thefirstpost.co.uk/9576,features,world-leaders-episode-1

These are episodes based on the current heads of the states who are/have been visible in the show going on.

شاهتوت

2008-04-08T16:43:00.000-07:00

There are some fruits that I miss from back home. شاهتوت is one of 'em. The white توت is another one. Sorry girls, zalzalak is not on the list.

Wikipeida calls شاهتوت black mulberry. Does anybody know of any orchards in the bay area or, sag khord, northern California who have شاهتوت ?

All About Weapons

2008-04-03T17:07:00.000-07:00

I was bored out of my mind today at work; I think the economic downturn is showing up. Anyways, I started reading about weapons on Wikipedia. These are some of the links I could kill some time with:

List of individual weapons of the U.S. Armed Forces

List of martial arts weapons

Gun laws in the United States (by state)

I hope you have something to do ; )

Destiny

2008-04-03T13:20:00.000-07:00

Destiny: A tyrant’s authority for crime and fool’s excuse for failure.

Dance

2008-04-03T13:10:00.000-07:00

I would believe only in a God that knows how to dance.

Friedrich Nietzsche

FITNA

2008-04-01T08:35:00.000-07:00

This is the movie which drew uproar from islamic fundamentalists.

http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-2950045777974098302&hl=de

It is true and disturbing.

secrets

2008-03-31T12:14:00.001-07:00

Dimeghraatiiah

2008-03-31T11:53:00.000-07:00

Click on the link above and see this lioness roar.

Ahmadinejad in Making

2008-03-24T11:07:00.000-07:00

Mafia's 'Ten Commandments' found

2008-03-18T13:08:00.000-07:00

This is really interesting. I don't know how these people earn money if "9. Money cannot be appropriated if it belongs to others or to other families. "

I wonder how far this idea of "others" would go.

SMS Jokes

2008-03-18T12:24:00.000-07:00

همیشه پشت سر هر مرد موفق ، زنی هست که نتوانسته جلوی موفقیتش را بگیرد

اصفهانیه با زیر پیراهنی میره تو برف ، ازش می پرسن:چرا لختی ، میگه: دوتا پنی سیلین دارم که تاریخش داره تمام میشه

مباني کامپيوتر: آن بخش از يك سيستم را كه ميتوان با چكش خرد كرد، سختافزار و آن قسمت را كه فقط ميتوان به آن فحش داد، نرمافزار ميگويند!!

به غضنفر ميگن چراگوشات قرمزه ؟ميگه اخه چش خورده/بهش ميكن كي اخه تو رو چش ميزنه.ميگه اون چش نه؟چش شلوار خورده

سه تا پیر زن می خوان واسه خودشون شوهر پیدا کنن آگهي می دن با یکی ازدواج کنید 2تا جایزه بگیرید

در پی اختلاف نظر علما در مورد اینکه شب چهارشنبه سوری 22 است یا 29. روز 22 اسفند یوم الشک و از 22 تا 29 اسفند هفته ی وحشت اعلام شد

3 نفر ميميرن . خدا گفت اولي بره بهشت . دومي بره جهنم . سومي بره طويله !!! پرسيدن چرا ؟ خدا گفت :اولي زن داشت دنيا براش جهنم بود . دومي مجرد بود ، دنيا براش بهشت بود . سومي زنش مرد ولي خاک بر سر بعدش رفت يه زن ديگه گرفت

shekspear mige: ya be andazeye arezoohatoon talash konid ya be andazeye talashetoon arezoo konid. tarjomeye torki: agar nemitooni goh bokhori, goh mikhori goh bokhori.

آخرين کلمات يک ديوانه: من يه پرنده‌ام،
آخرين کلمات يک غواص: نه اين طرفها کوسه وجود نداره،
آخرين کلمات يک خبرنگار: بله، سيل داره به طرفمون مياد،
آخرين کلمات يک شکارچي: مامانت کجاست کوچولو؟،
آخرين کلمات يک جهانگرد در آمازون: اين نوع مار رو ميشناسم، سمي نيست،
آخرين کلمات يک متخصص آزمايشگاه: اين آزمايش کاملاً بي خطره،
آخرين کلمات يک نارنجک‌انداز : گفتي تا چند بشمرم؟،
آخرين کلمات يک متخصص خنثي کردن بمب : اين سيم آخري رو که قط كن

جملات رمانتيک ويژه پيچوندن :
- آرزوي من خوشبختي توست، با من باشي يا نباشي فرقي نميکنه!!
- خودم هم نمي دونم چيکار ميخوام بکنم.نميخوام تو به آتيش من بسوزي!!!
- تو هم خوشگلي،هم باهوشي،هم زرنگي.. .آدمهايي خيلي بهتر از من گيرت مياد!!
- ما مدلهاي ذهنيمون با هم فرق ميکنه!! هيچ پروسيجري براي تلفيق اين دو مدل نداريم!!
- تاکيد مداوم بر برخي جملات شريعتي:"اگر عشق دوام يابد،به ابتذال ميکشد

گونه جوادها را بشناسيم؟ ?) تفريح رفتن با وانت رو خيلي مي پسندن ?) شلوار پارچه اي رو با کتوني مپوشن ?) پشت مو حتما مي ذارن ?) عاشق رنگ قرمز پر رنگ هستن ?) تو کافي شاپ آب دوغ خيار سفا رش ميدن ?) خوانندگان مورد علاقه شان جواد يساري . عباس قادري وداوود بهبودي ?) با موبايل روشن ميرن تو کتاب خونه ?) لباس كاموايي رو ميذارن تو شلوارشون

رشتي با احساس از زنش ميپرسه شب عروسيمون يادت مياد زن:آره, چقدر جات خالي بود

اگر یه نقطه آبی روی دیوار دیدی، بدون یه مورچه است که شلوار لی پوشیده! اگر یه نقطه قرمز روی دیوار دیدی، بدون یه مورچه است که ماتیک زده! اگر یه نقطه سبز روی دیوار دیدی، بدون گشت ارشااد مورچه هاست که اومده هردوشون رو بگیره

Life on Earth 'began on a radioactive beach'

2008-03-14T15:34:00.000-07:00

By Nic Fleming, Science Correspondent

Life on Earth began on a radioactive beach, a scientist claimed today.

Bondi Beach, Sydney - Life on Earth 'began on a radioactive beach'
According to computer models, deposits could collect at a beach's high tide mark in sufficient quantity to trigger fission reactions

The sifting and collection of radioactive material by powerful tides could have generated the complex molecules that led to the evolution of carbon-based life forms - including plants, animals and humans.

While radiation may seem an unlikely candidate to kick-start life because it breaks chemical bonds and splits large molecules, it also crucially provides chemical energy needed to generate some of the basic building blocks of life.

Zachary Adam, an astrobiologist at the University of Washington in Seattle, has suggested the collection of radioactive material on a beach as a new theory for the origins of life - to be added to the existing long and varied list of hypotheses.

One is its emergence from a "primordial soup" of simple organic chemicals accumulated on the surface of bodies of water within the hydrogen-rich early atmosphere - formulated in the 1920's by English geneticist J. B. S. Haldane and Russian biochemist Alexander Oparin.

Others include early life forming in inorganic clay, the initial energy coming not from chemical reactions but from sunlight or lightening and the arrival of microscopic seeds of terrestrial life on chunks of meteorites or comets, and the intervention of a divine, intelligent designer.
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In work highlighted in this week's New Scientist magazine, Mr Adam suggests the more powerful tides generated by the moon's closer orbit billions of years ago compared to today could have sorted radioactive material from other sediment.

According to his computer models, deposits could collect at a beach's high tide mark in sufficient quantity to trigger the self-sustaining fission reactions - as occur in natural seams of uranium.

Mr Adam demonstrated in laboratory experiments that such a deposit could produce the chemical energy to generate some of the molecules in water which produce amino acids and sugars - key building blocks of life - when irradiated.

A deposit of a radioactive material called monazite would also release soluble phosphate, another important ingredient for life, into the gaps between sand grains - making it accessible to react in water.

Mr Adam told the New Scientist: "Amino acids, sugars and [soluble] phosphate can all be produced simultaneously in a radioactive beach environment."

For the original article click on the title of the post.

America's Unfaithful Faithful

2008-02-25T16:33:00.000-08:00

A major new survey presents perhaps the most detailed picture we've yet had of which religious groups Americans belong to. And its big message is: blink and they'll change. For the first time, a large-scale study has quantified what many experts suspect: there is a constant membership turnover among most American faiths. America's religious culture, which is best known for its high participation rates, may now be equally famous (or infamous) for what the new report dubs "churn."
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The report, released today by the Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life, is the first selection of data from a 35,000- person poll called the U.S. Religious Landscape Survey. Says Pew Forum director Luis Lugo, Americans "not only change jobs, change where they live, and change spouses, but they change religions too. We totally knew it was happening, but this survey enabled us to document it clearly."

According to Pew, 28% of American adults have left the faith of their childhood for another one. And that does not even include those who switched from one Protestant denomination to another; if it did, the number would jump to 44%. Says Greg Smith, one of the main researchers for the "Landscape" data, churn applies across the board. "There's no group that is simply winning or simply losing," he says. "Nothing is static. Every group is simultaneously winning and losing."

For some groups, their relatively steady number of adherents over the years hides a remarkable amount of coming and going. Simply counting Catholics since 1972,for example, you would get the impression that its population had remained fairly static - at about 25% of adult Americans (the current number is 23.9%). But the Pew report shows that of all those raised Catholic, a third have left the church. (That means that roughly one out of every 10 people in America is a former Catholic, and that ex-Catholics are almost as numerous as the America's second biggest religious group, Southern Baptists.) But Catholicism has made up for the losses by adding converts (2.6% of the population) and, more significantly, enjoying an influx of new immigratns, mostly Hispanic.

An even more extreme example of what might be called "masked churn" is the relatively tiny Jehovah's Witnesses, with a turnover rate of about two-thirds. That means that two-thirds of the people who told Pew they were raised Jehovah's Witnesses no longer are - yet the group attracts roughly the same number of converts. Notes Lugo, "No wonder they have to keep on knocking on doors."

The single biggest "winner," in terms of number gained versus number lost, was not a religious group at all, but the "unaffiliated" category. About 16% of those polled defined their religious affiliation that way (including people who regarded themselves as religious, along with atheists and agnostics); only 7% had been brought up that way. That's an impressive gain, but Lugo points out that churn is everywhere: even the unaffiliated group lost 50% of its original membership to one church or another.

The report does not speculate on the implications of its data. But Lugo suggests, "What it says is that this marketplace is highly competitive and that no one can sit on their laurels, because another group out there will make [its tenets] available" for potential converts to try out. While this dynamic "may be partly responsible for the religious vitality of the American people," he says, "it also suggests that there is an institutional loosening of ties," with less individual commitment to a given faith or denomination.

Lugo would not speculate on whether such a buyer's market might cause some groups to dilute their particular beliefs in order to compete. There are signs of that in such surveys as one done by the Willow Creek megachurch outside Chicago, which has been extremely successful in attracting tens of thousands of religious "seekers." An internal survey recently indicated much of its membership was "stalled" in their spiritual growth, Lugo allowed that "it does raise the question of, once you attract these folks, how do you root them within your own particular tradition when people are changing so quickly."

The Pew report has other interesting findings; the highest rates for marrying within one's own faith, for example, are among Hindus (90%) and Mormons (83%)). The full report is accessible at the Pew Forum site.

Best Preacher Ever

2008-02-25T13:43:00.001-08:00

I want to go to his church.

عکسی که ۲۵ سال سانسور شد

2008-02-21T07:34:00.000-08:00

نفر سمت راست گوشه، ابوالحسن بنی صدر است . او که با ۱۱ میلیون رای نخستین رئیس جمهور ایران شده بود، با جمله تاریخی آیت الله خمینی در 25 خرداد 60:" 35 میلیون نفر بگویند بله، من میگویم نه." کنار زده شد . 7 تن از مشاورانش اعدام شدند ، هزاران تن از هوادارنش به زندان رفتند و خودش رهسپار تبعید شد.

درست بالای سر خمین ی، مرد روحانی با عمامه سفید آیت الله لاهوتی ا ست. او که از زندانیان با سابقه قبل از انقلاب به همراه منتظری و طالقانی بو د، بعد از پیروزی انقلاب از سرسخت ترین هواداران رئیس جمهور بنی صدر، به شمار میرفت . به فاصله 2 ماه پس از کنار زدن بنی صدر توسط لاجوردی به زندان اوین برده شد و اعدام شد. جمله معروف او خطاب به سران حزب جمهوری (بهشتی، خامنه ای و رفسنجانی) این است: "حاکمیت تک حزبی است که صدای پای فاشیزم را به گوش میرساند . وای به حال آن انقلابی که 8 درصد به 80 درصد حکومت کنند . اگر زور میتوانست آدم را جای خودش بنشاند ، پیش از شما زورمندتر از شما بودند. شما جز اینکه خفقان ایجاد کنید و برای مردم مشکل درست کنید کار دیگری نمیکنید ."

نفرایستاده میان آیت الله مطهری و لاهوتی، صادق قطب زاده است. او که به همراه ابراهیم یزدی و بنی صدر راه انقلاب را در پاریس هموار کرده بود، 24 شهریور 1361، به اتهام توطئه انفجار جماران ، زندانی و اعدام شد . آیت الله منتظری بعدها در خاطراتش نوشت:

"بعدا شنيدم آقاي حاج احمد آقا در زندان سراغ آقاي قطب زاده رفته و به او گفته است شما مصلحتا اين مطالب را بگوييد و اقرار كنيد و بعد امام شمارا عفو مي‎كنند ، ولي او را اعدام كردند . بعدها از طريق موثقي شنيدم كه جريان ريختن مواد منفجره در چاه نزديك محل سكونت مرحوم امام بكلي جعلي است و واقعيت نداشته است."

پی نوشت : آن که در کنار بنی صدر ایستاده ، صادق طباطبایی است . سخنگوی دولت مهندس بازرگان بود . بعد به بازرگان پشت کرد و به صف حکومتی ها پیوست . در سال 61 به دلیل قاچاق 3.75 پوند تریاک توسط پلیس آلمان دستگیر و در دادگاه دوسلدورف به 3 سال زندان محکوم شد . با پادرمیانی وزیرخارجه آلمان و مصونیت سیاسی به عنوان عنصر نامطلوب از آن کشور اخراج شد . او همچنان به حمایت از جمهوری اسلامی ادامه میدهد.

Love? War? Which One Is Stronger?

2008-02-20T17:45:00.000-08:00

Bart Ehrman, Questioning Religion on Why We Suffer

2008-02-20T15:21:00.000-08:00

Tribunal of General Mehdi Rahimi

2008-02-19T13:44:00.003-08:00

Forough's Funeral

2008-02-19T13:44:00.001-08:00

Iranian Opposition is so intellectual !

2008-02-19T06:30:00.001-08:00

secrets

2008-02-18T16:51:00.000-08:00

and ...

Archbishop's 8 March centennial message: Let Sharia Law govern women's lives, Amen!

2008-02-18T13:20:00.000-08:00

Azar Majedi was born in Iran, and is a leading opponent of the regime. She chairs 'OWL', the Organization for Women's Liberation – Iran. She is the Editor of the feminist journal Medusa, and the author of Women's Rights vs Political Islam. www.azarmajedi.com

Perhaps Rowan Williams, the Archbishop of Canterbury thought his statement about Sharia Law would be received enthusiastically as a well-intended effort to reduce racism and tension in society. However, his proposal got him into trouble. He was attacked from right and left. Those who saw their "white Christian culture" under threat asked for his resignation. Women's rights activists and secularists attacked him for the negative effects of Sharia Law on human rights, particularly the disastrous effects of such a practice on women in so-called Muslim communities. In response to harsh criticism he tried to qualify his proposal by stating that he did not mean the whole Sharia Law, but only family matters. He has just missed the point.

The status and rights of women in Islam is the Achilles heel of this religion, and I must add, ideology. Misogyny is the trade mark of Islam. The veil is its banner, and gender apartheid its main pillar. Moreover, today a very active reactionary political movement has based its ideology on Islam, namely political Islam. Anywhere they gain power the first thing they do is victimize women, strip them of all their rights, force them under the veil and segregate them in society. The same movement that laments lack of tolerance for Sharia law in western societies is terrorizing the population in societies under its rule to obey Sharia Law, observe the veil and gender apartheid and punishes the defiant by flogging, cutting their limbs and execution.

So, one main reason to oppose Sharia law is the way it treats women. Rowan Williams' promise that he only means the family code of Sharia law is no comfort to any woman living under the threat of losing her rights, nor to any girl who is frightened by "honor violence," forced marriage and veiling. In fact it only exposes his ignorance.

It may be argued that the Archbishop's intention is to combat racism. Let us examine whether his proposal is anti-racist. One might argue that he has taken Muslim's demands and culture into consideration, particularly when Muslims are increasingly being stigmatized. This assumption is false. Historically, the fight against racism has meant fighting for equality, not for differentiating; equality before the law and in social, economic and political sphere. Anti-racism has been about integration not segregation. The civil rights movement in America was not about creating a set of different laws for blacks, but treating blacks and whites equally. The essence of the long battle against racial apartheid in South Africa was to create one system and one law for all citizens, which treated them equally.

However, it is not only the Archbishop who espouses this upside-down approach to racial equality. This is a political trend. For this trend the meaning of anti-racism has changed from equality to differentiation, from integration to segregation. We owe this falsification to post modernism, which gave rise to cultural relativism and a high socio-political status to the concept of multi culturalism in this deformed interpretation of it.

Some misled section of the "intelligentsia," academia and political institutions have played a significant role in defending these concepts as progressive, libertarian, egalitarian and anti-racist. Reactionary political forces, such as political Islam have been the only beneficiaries of this trend. For decades gross violations of human rights in societies under Islam were neglected and even justified by these mal-formulated theories. Only when these brutal practices made an inroad into western societies in the form of terrorism, particularly after September 11, some outcries began to be heard.

Multiculturalism is racism; cultural relativism is racism; this should be recognized once and for all. By defining different laws for different citizens on the basis of such arbitrary concepts such as culture or religion, we leave the lot of the weakest sections of that so-called "cultural community" to the mercy of the self-imposed leaders of that community. We deprive these weakest sections of the protection of the law and society. Women under Islam are downtrodden and deprived of any rights. Leaving them under Sharia law will only victimize them further.

There are many fallacies involved in such an approach. One which is seemingly very liberal is the assumption that members of the "Muslim communities" will voluntarily resort to Sharia law. If Muslim women or children had any choice or voice, they would tell the Archbishop to keep these proposals to himself. The question of choice is non-existent in a hierarchical and deeply male chauvinist community. Allowing Sharia Law to be practiced will cut off the poor voiceless women from any protection and make life much more difficult for the young women who struggle with backward traditions at home.

Giving the Archbishop's intention the benefit of the doubt is the best case scenario. The other, to my opinion most probable scenario is that he is cunningly trying to strengthen the grip of religion and religious institutions on the society as a whole. By assigning a stronger position to Islam in "Muslim Communities" he is trying to foster the position of the church and Christianity in the wider society. If one accepts the role of Islam and Islamic laws in one community, by the same token, they should accept the role of Christianity and the Church of England in the larger community. His defense of Sharia Law is a clever step towards revitalizing the role of Church in the wider society.

And finally, as a veteran women's rights activist and one who has suffered first hand under a brutal Islamic state; as an activist who has fought hard against Islam and political Islam for liberty and equality, I am very indignant by Rowan Williams' proposal. We do not need to establish Sharia law in any form or shape. We need a secular, free society, free from racism, misogynism and inequality. We need to rid the society from religion and religious establishment, be it Muslim, Christian, Judaism or anything else.

14 February, 2008

Business of Death

2008-02-18T13:15:00.001-08:00

Last Lecture

2008-02-12T09:55:00.001-08:00

Dr. Randy Pausch - from Oprah

Drink Personality

2008-02-06T21:44:00.000-08:00

Before you order a drink in public, you should read this! Seven New York City bartenders were asked if they could 'nail' a woman's personality based on what she drinks. Though interviewed separately, they concurred on almost all counts.

The results:

PART A: WOMEN - DRINKS, WHO THEY ARE, & YOU!

Drink: Beer
Personality: Causal, low-maintenance; down to earth.
Your Approach: Challenge her to a game of pool.

Drink: Blender Drinks
Personality: Flaky, whiny, annoying; a pain in the ass.
Your Approach: Avoid her, unless you want to be her cabana boy.

Drink: Mixed Drinks
Personality: Older, more refined, high maintenance, has very picky taste; knows EXACTLY what she wants.
Your Approach: You won't have to approach her. If she's interested, she'll send YOU a drink.

Drink: Wine (does not include White Zinfandel)
Personality: Conservative and classy; sophisticated yet giggles.
Your Approach: Tell her you love to travel and spend quiet evenings with friends.
Drink: White Zinfandel
Personality: Easy; thinks she is classy and sophisticated, actually, she has NO clue.
Your Approach: Make her feel smarter than she is...this should be an easy target.

Drink: Shots
Personality: Likes to hang with frat-boy pals and looking to get totally drunk... and naked.
Your Approach: Easiest hit in the joint. You have been blessed. Nothing to do but wait, however, be careful not to make her mad!

Drink: Tequila
No explanations required - everyone just KNOWS what happens there.

PART B: MEN - DRINKS & WHO THE MEN ARE!

THEN, there is the MALE addendum --
The deal with guys is, as always, very simple and clear cut:

Domestic Beer: He's poor and wants to get laid.
Imported Beer: He likes good beer and wants to get laid.

Wine: He is hoping that the wine will give him a sophisticated image to help him get laid.

Whiskey: He doesn't give a damn about anything but getting laid.
Tequila: He is thinking he has a chance with the toothless waitress.

White Zinfandel: He's gay!!!

All Men Are Pigs ;)

2008-02-05T16:34:00.000-08:00