Nightingale

um...no. evolution is a theory, and a theory doesn't become a fact. Also, gravity isn't a fact, it's a law. To a scientist a theory is a conceptual framework that explains existing observations and predicts new ones. The current consensus among philosophers of science seems to be this: * Laws are generalizations about what has happened, from which we can generalize about what we expect to happen. They pertain to observational data. The ability of the ancients to predict eclipses had nothing to do with whether they knew just how they happened; they had a law but not a theory. * Theories are explanations of observations (or of laws). The fact that we have a pretty good understanding of how stars explode doesn't necessarily mean we could predict the next supernova; we have a theory but not a law. William McComus (Science Prof, USC) lists gravity as a modern example of a well-established law for which no really satisfying theory is available. We can use the Law of Gravity, and even correct it for the effects of relativity (General Relativity), but we don't have any consensus notion of how it functions! Is it geometry or gravitons?

when I was taught evolution in school, it was taught as "this is the best theory we have right now. It is currently the only explanation that fits all the evidence, but like any scientific theory, it is under constant scrutiny and will be revised or dismissed in the face of new evidence."

Dobson advocates the intelligent design theory, I believe. www.focusonthefamily.org

ROFLMAO!

if it just bugged me, I wouldn't think much of it. But it seems to really bug a lot of people. In the last few weeks, I haven't heard a single positive comment about the decorations (other than the few made in this thread), and many, many negative reactions. I only thought of an ordinance because it seemed to irritate so many people.

I had all my holiday shopping done a month ago. Whenever I find something good for someone throughout the year, I pick it up. I'd just like to go to the mall and buy a new pair of jeans without being barraged by holiday stuff weeks before thanksgiving.

see what I mean??! It's everywhere! There's no escape!!!

I used to not shop at offending vendors. However, now there aren't any. if you know of a mall anywhere in southern california that doesn't have christmas stuff up, please let me know. even the damn grocery store has got christmas stuff up.

doubtful. many cities and HOAs already restrict christmas light displays and decor to certain times of the year. This is probably not a freedom of speech issue. Mary- I don't have a problem with stores selling holiday merchandise. That's different from decorations. I've got no problems with any store putting out merchandise whenever they want. It's the stuff that's not for sale that's at issue.

it seems like it's a kind of marketing that most people seem to hate.

not unless they were an asshole or tried to push their views on me, or attacked me instead of the issues. Out of everyone I've met on this board, there's maybe four I wouldn't want to hang out with, and that would depend on if they're different in person than they are online.

well, it was definitely still warm here two weeks before halloween when I was seeing the first decorations go up. In most places, it doesn't feel like december 25th on october 10th, right?

I am so sick of seeing christmas/winter decorations the day after halloween, and even before halloween, when its still warm outside! don't get me wrong, I love the holidays, and I love looking at the decorations, but when they go up at halloween, it's a bit rediculous, and the novelty's worn off way before the christmas season. It's weird looking at christmas trees with fake snow when we should be seeing pumpkins and turkeys. This is just getting stupid. I'm hearing friends and family members and neighbors complain. Even my roommate's kid sister was moaning "christmas already! it's not even thanksgiving!" A friend made an offhand comment about wishing there was a law against it. I got to thinking...why not? If it's something the public wants, the lawmakers should deliver. So... I was thinking maybe a petition to deliver to the city council asking them to pass an ordinance banning winter holiday decorations until the day after thanksgiving. I was curious as to how many people would sign something like that. I've been hearing a lot of complaining about the decorations, but I'm not sure how many people would be willing to sign a petition to do something about it. so... Would you support an ordinance prohibiting winter holiday decorations in retail establishments until the day after thanksgiving?

If you find one without AAD, for around 2K, that's ok. You can almost always have a rigger add a used cypres. talk to the folks on here that work for or own gear stores, so they can keep an eye out for you. That's how I found mine. skybytch gravitygirl dgskydive kamamountz etc... I got my gear when a store was selling off their rental gear because they were getting new stuff.

My rig cost me $1800, and it's a great rig! Silhouette 190, 800 jumps, brand new line set, PDR 176, Javelin container, all made in 1999, cypres with 4 years left that had just had its 8 year checkup.

call your insurance company and ask their advice. if they aren't helpful, call a lawyer, because the guy promised to pay for the damage.

yeah... people need to know to use COOL WHIP instead of the whipped cream in a can, or real whipped cream. Cool whip will shower away and leave no smell behind, unlike canned or real whipped cream.

loch lommond?

school. you could either: 1. stay in the army and take advantages of the provisions the military makes for soldiers to get an education or 2. get out, and go to school. a community/junior college is a good way to get back into the routine of education, and at around $20 a unit, it's not too expensive, which makes it much easier to take out stafford loans (which you're guaranteed to get) and pay your rent and expenses with the loans while you go to school. Additional loans, such as Bank of America's education maximizer loan, are also available, especially if you have a relative willing to be a guarantor. The financial aid office at the school will help you. Also, there are many scholarships out there for former military. After you finish your general education requirements, you can transfer to a four year university and finish up. Hopefully in your time at the JC, you'll find a subject you like and want to major in. Doesn't much matter what it is, most employers just care that you have a degree. Best of luck!!!

{{{{{{{{VIBES}}}}}}}}}}}}

Beethoven's family has been described as poor. "THE Shakespeare of the realm of music, as he has been called, first saw the light on December 16, 1770, in the little University town of Bonn, on the Rhine. His father, Johann Beethoven, belonged to the court band of the Elector of Cologne. The family were extremely poor. The little room, where the future great master was born, was so low, that a good-sized man could barely stand upright in it. Very small it was too, and not very light either, as it was at the back of the building and looked out on a walled garden." -Masters of Music, 1922

are you planning on providing day care for those kids while their parents "get educated?" Baby sitters and day care are damn expensive. I don't know many students who could afford it, myself included, if I had kids. If I had kids, I certainly wouldn't be in law school without a lot of support, which is something many people don't have.

I love a good debate. In real life, as here, I try to deal with the issue rather than attack the person. I try not to be an ass here or in RL.

If you knew a woman who had a total of 8 children, several who had died shortly after birth, and she had tuberculosis, would you mandate she take birth control? If so, you may have prevented the birth of Beethoven. you never know how people's lives will turn out.

me too... but a GWB who has nothing to lose, as re-election is not a possibility in 2008. I wonder who he's going to blow up next. I figure he's now going to start claiming Iran is harboring terrorists.