Nightingale

No... Agnostics are undecided between belief and non-belief. An athiest believes that there is no supreme being. A theist believes that there is a supreme being. Agnostics believe that there is a possibility of a supreme being, but acknowledge that they do not have enough evidence to decide either way. Agnostics believe that both theists and athiests have made up their minds prematurely, because there is not enough evidence to make a decision about the issue with any reasonable amount of certainty. What it comes down to is that agnosticism is a statement about knowledge, whereas theism/atheism are statements about belief. An athiest does not believe, while an agnostic does not know.

Hehe. I wouldn't have a problem with the anti-choice groups that distribute "health" information, if their information was accurate. It usually isn't, and it's usually designed to frighten rather than to inform. When I was in college, no non-academic club received funding (sports teams weren't considered clubs). The clubs that were funded were clubs that were related to degrees offered at the school. This situation was because LMU is a catholic school, and the administrators were taking heat because one of the funded student clubs was the AGLA (Association for Gay and Lesbian Awareness, LMU's gay/straight alliance). So, the school just decided that no funding was permited for clubs that weren't directly related to classes. The ironic situation was that the school's decision pissed off so many students that the AGLA became probably the best funded club on campus. Students went out of their way to support the club's fundraisers as a way to offset the university's lack of support. Maybe the same will happen with the christian club in question here.

I believe there are non-religious types that are also anti-abortion. Their arguments are based on, gasp, HEALTH, reasons. The health of the mother and the baby...... Actually, evidence indicates that there are fewer risks to the mother from abortion than from giving birth. Breast cancer risk is temporarily increased after a term pregnancy (resulting in the birth of a living child). Induced abortion is not associated with an increase in breast cancer risk. The level of scientific evidence for these conclusions was considered to be "well established" (the highest level). -American Cancer Society Women aged 15-24 had an increased risk of pregnancy-associated death due to diseases of the circulatory system, reflecting their elevated risk of death from cerebrovascular disease--primarily intracerebral hemorrhage and hemorrhagic stroke--after giving birth. -Gissler Met al., Pregnancy-associated mortality after birth, spontaneous abortion, or induced abortion, 1987-2000, American Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology, 2004 Among 51,430 nulliparous women--a population that is believed to be at highest risk for preeclampsia--the rate of the disorder among those with a history of abortion was 2.6%. The rate was 2.9% among women without a history of abortion, The risk of preeclampsia among women who had never been pregnant was 2.9%. Therefore, the risk of preeclampsia during subsequent pregnancies was reduced in women who had previously had an abortion. -Preeclampsia Not Linked to Prior Miscarriage, Abortion OB/GYN News, Sept 15, 2001 by Kathryn Demott And the most significant statistic of all: "In the U.S., the fatality risk with mifepristone (RU-486) is slightly less than 1 per 100,000 cases, compared with 0.1 per 100,000 for surgical abortion... Pregnancy itself carries a fatality risk of 11.8 per 100,000." -Consumer Reports quoting the FDA. The risk of pregnancy is 118 times higher than the risk of abortion.

Disclaimer: I am not a lawyer. This is not legal advice and should not be relied upon. I did a small amount of research and found the code section, although I make no guarantees that it is correct. Consult a lawyer as to the proper information and interpretation. A.C.A. § 27-14-307 ARKANSAS CODE OF 1987 ANNOTATED Copyright; 1987-2006 by the State of Arkansas All rights reserved. *** CURRENT THROUGH THE 2006 FIRST EXTRAORDINARY SESSION *** *** ANNOTATIONS CURRENT THROUGH JUNE 29, 2006 *** TITLE 27. TRANSPORTATION SUBTITLE 2. MOTOR VEHICLE REGISTRATION AND LICENSING CHAPTER 14. REGISTRATION AND LICENSING -- GENERALLY SUBCHAPTER 3. PENALTIES AND ADMINISTRATIVE SANCTIONS GO TO THE ARKANSAS CODE ARCHIVE DIRECTORY A.C.A. § 27-14-307 (2006) § 27-14-307. False evidences of title or registration It is a felony for any person to commit any of the following acts: (1) To alter, with fraudulent intent, any certificate of title, registration certificate, registration plate, manufacturer's certificate of origin, or permit issued by the office; (2) To forge or counterfeit any such document or plate purporting to have been issued by the office or by the manufacturer; (3) To alter or falsify, with intent to defraud or mislead, or with intent to evade the registration laws, any assignment upon a certificate of title or upon a manufacturer's certificate of origin; (4) To hold or use any such document or plate knowing it to have been so altered, forged, or falsified. § 27-14-302. Penalty for felony Any person who is convicted of a violation of any of the provisions of this chapter or by the laws of this state declared to constitute a felony shall be punished by imprisonment for not less than one (1) year nor more than five (5) years or by a fine of not less than five hundred dollars ($500) nor more than five thousand dollars ($5,000), or by both such fine and imprisonment.

I think guns should be allowed in national parks, but there should be severe penalties for firing them in a manner other than in self defense. There is no other valid reason to fire a weapon in a national park. We need to find an appropriate balance between protecting nature and protecting ourselves.

No, I don't think so. You have to get the CD. I don't know of anywhere that sells individual tracks. Probably the only individual track you could get would be an orchestral version off of iTunes or something... however, that would be an orchestral arrangement and include the melody. Karaoke arrangements don't include the melody, because the singer provides it. Singing to an orchestral arrangement can sound a little odd, because you end up with double melody. The singer can't do anything differently than the melody already in the arrangement, so you're pretty limited.l

You're welcome. I just googled "karaoke phantom opera" and that popped up. I've used that brand of karaoke music before, and it's quite good.

You can get it here. http://www.acekaraoke.com/spsd1185eg.html

My rules: 1. Family comes first. 2. Friends are the family you choose. See rule #1. 3. Never make up your mind absolutely. New evidence must be taken into account. 4. Listen to your instincts. Your brain is trying to tell you something. 5. Life's too short to drink bad wine. 6. A job is something you have that gives you money so you can have a life. When the job becomes your life, you have a problem. Keep priorities straight. 7. Travel. You can learn more in a week of travelling than you can in a year of school. It's a big planet. Go see it. 8. If you adopt a pet, you are accepting a responsibility. No denial of medical treatment because it's expensive, no finding the pet a new home because it's inconvenient. 9. If you think you can't do something, you're probably right. 10. Nobody ever looked back on life and said "I wish I spent more time vacuuming."

I'm a strong opponent of affirmative action in an educational setting, at least the way it's currently implemented. IMO, affirmative action sets students up for failure, because the standards are different for AA students than regular students. Then, the students are graded by the same standard as everyone else, and they don't do as well, because they didn't have the skills to begin with. What Harvard is doing with this program is not AA. They have not altered their admission standards. They're simply giving people who meet their already high standards the opportunity to get an education they otherwise couldn't afford. I'm all for this. Education is usually the best way out of poverty, and if Harvard (a private institution) wants to assist in this, good for them.

I would say that I'm thankful for my family, my friends, and that I've only got one more day left of law school classes.

Well, I'm not making anything. I'm bringing the wine. Two bottles of Jermann Pinot Grigio One bottle of Downing Family Zinfandel

Real. From a local tree farmer. Mainly because when people stop buying real trees grown locally, those green spaces end up going away. "Christmas tree farms stabilize soil, protect water supplies and provide refuge for wildlife while creating scenic green belts. Often, Christmas trees are grown on soils that could not support other crops. "A benefit to the atmosphere, real Christmas trees absorb carbon dioxide and other gases, emitting fresh oxygen... One acre of Christmas trees produces the daily oxygen requirement for 18 people. With approximately one million acres producing Christmas trees in the United States, that translates into oxygen for 18 million people every day. For every real Christmas tree harvested, three seedlings are planted in its place. "Real Christmas trees are a recyclable resource. Artificial trees consist of plastics and metals that aren't biodegradable. When disposed of, the artificial trees will never deteriorate. Their effects on our environment are evident and will remain for countless generations." http://www.christmas-tree.com/real/realchristmastrees.html

Ugh. I'm not doing BarBri. $3000 to sit and watch videos, or sit and watch some boring guy give a lecture isn't my thing. My bar review class started three weeks ago. It's more expensive than BarBri, but welll worth it I think. We get: Practice former bar exam essays and performance segments graded by actual bar exam graders (with extensive feedback) Personal tutoring Extensive outlines, tapes, and workbooks, with instructors that actually go over your answers to make sure you understand. Classes eight hours a day, four days a week, only twenty people per class. Oh... intensive work on multistate questions and the six day PMBR multistate class is also included. BarBri... no thanks.

So where do all of these complete skeletons that we see in museums come from? Another" We think this is what it looked like" fraud perpetuated upon the unknowing public. Like Kallend said... the skeletons you see in museums are usually many dinosaurs of the same species put together, and quite often, the real bones are not the ones on display, simply because the real bones are too fragile and can't be put into a full skeleton display like that. Many paleontologists, including the ones I've worked with, believe that even when museums label things properly (and they usually do... people just don't read them) bones shouldn't be put into different skeletons to make complete ones, primarily for the exact reason illustrated by you: people get fooled into thinking that the skeletons come out of the ground that way. From an article about the Smithsonian's Triceratops exhibit: "The bones in the original 1905 Triceratops mount were not from just one individual, but rather the mount was a composite of the bones of at least ten different animals... There still is no known complete skeleton of Triceratops anywhere." you can read the rest of the article here, if you like: http://www.mnh.si.edu/highlight/triceratops/

Um, I'm not sure which dinosaurs you've been digging up, but I've worked on about ten digs, and we've NEVER, not even once, found a skeleton that could be called "virtually intact". More often, we find pieces here and there, sometimes half a skeleton if we're really lucky. The finds you hear about, like "Sue" are really, really rare. That's why they make the news.

ROFLMAO! I've seen Patrick Stewart live, and he's a really funny guy. Wouldn't know it from his role on ST:TNG, though.

Hmm... Rainbow Sherbert. Sweet, but not overly so, and with just enough variety to keep things interesting without being too unpredictable.

hehe. you're right. Years ago, a guy I was dating gave me a gorgeous birthstone ring for my birthday. I have a terrible habit of biting my nails, but when I was wearing that every day, I didn't bite, I guess because I knew the ring attracted attention to my hands, so I tried to keep them looking nice. Course, after we broke up, I didn't wear it anymore, and went back to chewing my nails. hmm... maybe I should go buy myself a pretty ring to wear when i finally start getting a paycheck again. It seemed to work before. The lab created emeralds are really pretty, and not too expensive.

I think a huge incentive would be if, for every year served, $25,000 in federal student loans would be forgiven. I see people coming out of law school and med school, and even college, with $100K plus in federal loans. Sure, there are military scholarships while you're in school, but not much assistance after the fact, when people realize "OMG, I've got a $2000 student loan payment every month!" Seems like a lot of people would jump at the chance to help pay down their loans.

I think a draft is a bad idea. If you put people in a combat situation who haven't signed up, haven't agreed, don't think it's right, and don't want to be there, that seems like a recipe for disaster.

You're welcome.

Well, I figure that if I put the information right there, then even laziness isn't an excuse.

Is it psychologically healthy for a 5 or 6 year old to still be sucking on his moms tits? Richards According to most research, yes. "There is no evidence that breastfeeding a child beyond infancy is harmful. Quite the opposite is true: breastfeeding benefits toddlers and young children, both nutritionally and psychologically. Breastmilk remains a valuable source of protein, fat, calcium, and vitamins well beyond two years of age. (1) Immunities in breastmilk become more concentrated as nurslings mature; (2) at the same time, the likelihood of allergies decreases. (3) Mothers who nurse past infancy derive benefits as well, including a decreased risk of breast and ovarian cancer the longer she continues nursing. (4) Breastfeeding is a warm and loving way to meet the needs of toddlers and young children. It not only perks them up and energizes them; it also soothes the frustrations, bumps and bruises, and daily stresses of early childhood. In addition, nursing past infancy helps little ones make a gradual transition to childhood. In fact, prolonged nursing is associated with better social adjustment. (5) Breastfeeding past infancy is as old as humanity. Still common in Western cultures as recently as a hundred years ago, the practice then underwent a sharp decline. Now, extended breastfeeding is becoming more popular, and medical professionals are beginning to recognize how valuable it is. While the American Academy of Pediatrics acknowledges the value of breastfeeding for the entire first year of life, (6) the US Surgeon General has stated that it is a lucky baby who continues to nurse until age two. (7) The World Health Organization emphasizes the importance of nursing up to two years of age or beyond. (8) What's more, the number of mothers currently nursing past infancy has created a nationwide market for a book on the subject, which includes an entire chapter on nursing past age four. (9) Some people are upset, if not shocked, to learn that children can nurse for so long. Curiously, these same people are hardly surprised to see kindergartners sucking their thumbs or fingers. The truth is that the need to suck, like many other dependency needs, does not disappear overnight, and often lasts longer than we as a society are willing to accept. Indeed, the average age of weaning around the world is 4.2 years. (10)" footnotes: 1. Sally Kneidel, "Nursing beyond One Year," New Beginnings 6, no. 4 (July-Aug 1990): 100. 2. See Note 1. 3. See Note 1. 4. Center for Breastfeeding Information, "Breastfeeding Fact Sheet--1991," (Franklin Park, IL: La Leche League International, 1991). 5. See Note 1, p. 101. 6. Committee on Nutrition, American Academy of Pediatrics, "Follow-up on Weaning Formulas," Pediatrics 83 (1989): 1067. 7. Antonio Novello, MD, US Surgeon General, "You Can Eat Healthy," Parade Magazine (11 Nov 1990): 5. 8. "Innocenti Declaration on the Protection, Promotion and Support of Breastfeeding" (1 Aug 1990), adopted by 32 governments and 10 UN and other agencies at a WHO/UNICEF meeting cosponsored by USAID and SIDA. 9. Norma Jane Bumgarner, Mothering Your Nursing Toddler (Franklin Park, IL: La Leche League International, 1990). 10. Ester Davidowitz, "The Breastfeeding Taboo," Redbook (July 1992): 114.

Apollo Diamonds is now selling cultured diamonds directly to the public. Just email them and they send you back an email telling you how to purchase. The web store isn't operational yet (at least, as of three weeks ago).