Archive for May 6th, 2009
KABUL (Reuters) – Afghanistan’s only known pig has been locked in a room, away from visitors to Kabul zoo where it normally grazes beside deer and goats, because people are worried it could infect them with the virus popularly known as swine flu.
The pig is a curiosity in Muslim Afghanistan, where pork and pig products are illegal because they are considered irreligious, and has been in quarantine since Sunday after visitors expressed alarm it could spread the new flu strain.
“For now the pig is under quarantine, we built it a room because of swine influenza,” Aziz Gul Saqib, director of Kabul Zoo, told Reuters. “We’ve done this because people are worried about getting the flu.”
Full Article
May 6th, 2009
ST. GEORGE – Officials for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints are looking into the posthumous baptism of Stanley Ann Dunham, mother of President Barack Obama.
According to published reports, a temple ritual known as “baptism for the dead” was performed June 4, 2008, for Dunham, who died in 1995, in the Provo temple. On June 11, in the same temple, another temple rite known as the “endowment” was performed for Dunham.”The offering of baptism to our deceased ancestors is a sacred practice to us and it is counter to church policy for a church member to submit names for baptism for persons to whom they are not related,” Scott Trotter, a spokesman for the LDS Church, said. “The church is looking into the circumstances of how this happened and does not yet have all the facts. However, this is a serious matter and we are treating it as such.”
Full TheSpectrum.com Article
[Thanks, Nic!]
May 6th, 2009
Patheos is a newly launched website written by religion experts in easy to understand terms. A cool feature of Patheos is that the information is organized into different layers, so you have the options of Side by Side Comparison, Snapshot Lens, Tree Lens, and a few others.
And if you still can’t find what you are looking for, well, they have an FAQ and Ask An Expert section.
I really like the Side By Side Comparison feature. For instance, here’s a look at Baptists, Methodists, and Presbyterians. You have a choice of seeing the comparison in an overview, and if you want more detail, you can expand a section and then click on a “View Detail”.
Here’s a small snippet from their About page to give you a sense of what they are all about:
The foundation of Patheos is an expansive library of easy-to-read information on world religions unmatched in terms of depth and breadth by any other resource currently available on the Web. All library material is original and produced by the world’s leading theological experts, many from top North American colleges and universities, with author bios and credentials accessible on the site to visitors. Additionally, all library content has been peer-reviewed to ensure the highest level of credibility, objectivity and accuracy.
And yes, I spent a lot of time on this website. 
May 6th, 2009
A friend of mine just got an Akita puppy from one of his friends giving them away. But after only one day, he’s thinking of finding the puppy another owner because he doesn’t know if he has the time or commitment.
His situation reminded me of this story of Japan’s most faithful dog and his statue, and yes, I forwarded him the story.
Loyalty, faithfulness and unconditional love are qualities that have earned dogs the title of “man’s best friend”. One particular Akita dog took these qualities to such an extreme, he has earned a place in the hearts of all Japanese people, and has kept that place for over sixty years!
Nestled amid hoards of harried commuters, a variety of shops and department stores, and a giant television screen that covers half a skyscraper, a life sized bronze statue of a dog can be found at Tokyo’s busy Shibuya Train Station. Despite the diminutive size of the statue in comparison to the massive neon flash of the city, it isn’t difficult to find. Millions of Tokyoites have been meeting at the landmark since 1934 and continue to do so today.
Chu-ken Hachiko (lit. the faithful dog Hachiko) was born in Akita in 1923 and was first brought to Tokyo in 1924. He and his owner, Mr. Eisaburo Uyeno, were inseparable friends right from the start. Each day “Hachi” would accompany Eisaburo, a professor at the Imperial University, to the train station when he left for work. Upon returning, the professor would find the dog patiently waiting, tail wagging. This happy routine continued until one fateful day in 1925, when the professor was taken ill on the job and unfortunately died before he could return home.
Despite the fact that Hachiko was less than two years old at the time, the bond between dog and owner was strong. Hachiko continued to wait each day at Shibuya station for a friend who was never coming back. At times, he wouldn’t return home for days at a stretch.
The Akita became a familiar sight to commuters as he kept his vigil for over ten years. On March 8, 1935, Hachiko finally went to meet his master. He died on the very same spot he last saw his friend alive.
Full Article from FabulousTravel.com
And I learned form Wikipedia that a movie about the dog with Richard Gere will be coming to theaters in August of this year.
May 6th, 2009
Using the Labor Department’s local area unemployment statistics, Slate presents the recession as told by unemployment numbers for each county in America. Because the data are not seasonally adjusted for natural employment cycles throughout the year, the numbers you see show the change in the number of people employed compared with the same month in the previous year. Blue dots represent a net increase in jobs, while red dots indicate a decrease. The larger the dot, the greater the number of jobs gained or lost.
Check out the interactive map here, but below are the first and last months.
May 6th, 2009
- Well, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recently stated that the swine-flu is no more dangerous than the regular flu. What concerns me is that the next time the CDC provides a warning the public will just ignore it since the swine-flu seemed to be a bunch of hype. It will all probably turn into some kind of Hurricane Katrina event. The National Weather Service issues warnings for people to take cover, but people don’t take the warning seriously because “all the other hurricanes” weren’t as bad as first reported and it was nothing but media-hype. Then “the big one” hits (Katrina), fingers get pointed for blame, and then people take warnings very seriously. So seriously that when the next hurricane comes towards land (Rita), large cities are evacuated (Houston) but then we find that the damage isn’t what was anticipated.
- All that to say, one day the CDC will issue a warning, no one will take it seriously, and many will die. Just a thought.
- I just checked my 401k and it’s up over 18% for the year, but that doesn’t make up for the beating that it took for the last year and half.
- I usually never provide investment advice, heck, at one point I could get fired for doing so, but I feel pretty confident in recommending a mutual fund specialized in the energy services sector, such as the Fidelity Select Energy Service mutual fund. Think about it, one of the largest platforms for both parties in last year’s election was energy independence, and now we have a new administration that continues to send a strong message about investing into new and renewable energy. When I last check, that fund’s rate of return for the year was about 24%.
- How you bury a Baptist deacon who loved fishing. Link
- You know, I feel sorry for Miss USA. She actually wins the pageant but certainly isn’t getting any attention as all of that is going towards the runner-up, Miss California.
- I still don’t know what all the fuss is about regarding Miss California’s answer that she doesn’t support gay marriage. Whether one agrees with that view or not, she answered it eloquently, I thought.
- But something sure doesn’t seem right, even moral or ethical, about the Miss California Pageant paying for her breast implants before the Miss USA Pageant. Does stuff like this go on all the time?
- Miss California has also stated that her Christian faith is being mocked because of the racy modeling photos of her in nothing but panties as a 17-year-old are starting to surface. Well, Miss Cali, like it or not, it’s all about perception, and a 17-year-old in nothing but pink panties isn’t the most representative perception of a young Christian lady.
- Just so she can get some attention since no one else is giving it to her, here’s Miss USA, Kristen Dalton from North Carolina – she’s the one on the right.
- So now Bristol Palin is going to be a spokesperson for the Candies Foundation to help raise awareness for teen pregnancy prevention. It’s been interesting following this little saga. When the father of her child started going on talk shows, the Palin camp released a statement that said, “Bristol’s focus will remain on raising Tripp, completing her education, and advocating abstinence,” even though Bristol herself said in a Fox News interview that abstinence is not realistic at all. It seems a bit contradictory, and that her mother is trying to speak for her.
- Some may think that Bristol has her own say in the matter since she’s 18 and is considered an adult, but all daughters do their best to please and not disappoint their mothers. And if you are 18-years-old without a high school education, no other immediate means of making money to care for you and your baby, being thrown in the the national spotlight, and are fully dependent on your parents, well, then you really don’t have a say in things.
- I’m certainly not against Bristol trying to prevent teen pregnancy.
- My stitches are in a spot that prevents me from stretching, reaching out, and bending over.
- It’s been forever since I’ve seen a new Jill Wagner commercial.
- How to make a Nigerian money scammer go away
- I’m amazed by OtherDogGeeding’s loyalty.
- Grace
May 6th, 2009
