Lets Paint The Kettle Black,Do You Have A Bitch On Whats Going On Around The Site Or Any Thing Negative To Report

I totally agree. The same should happen to every "this vs that" thread too. They are pointless, just encourage flamewars and bad feelings.

{It's a little script that can make all the difference.. just add "*vs*" to the banned words list} Apart from possibly blocking mention of CVS I can't see it having any other effect other than stopping all these rubbish ps3 vs 360..and whatever vs some_other_sh**e threads we really have better things to do than read.

 

heres a good example of a "vs" thread that works vvvvvv , mine lol !!

Pay Programs "Clonedvd 2+ AnyDVD" etc. vs Freeware "RipIt4Me" "DVDFab"etc.

http://forums.afterdawn.com/thread_view.cfm/390954

 

Do we really need a daily shower or bath to stay healthy?

Asked by Sarah Murdoch and Karl Stefanovic Today, Nine TV Network, Sydney, Australia

One of the most widely held myths of modern society is that we humans need to shower or take a bath each day (or even more often than that) for good health.

In modern industrial society today we shower and otherwise bathe for mostly social and aesthetic reasons rather than for those of health. The general rule of thumb is: "If you can stand it socially, you can probably get by hygienically." But in saying this, it must be stressed that bathing is necessary as one can get skin diseases and worse from not bathing at all. But the "one per day" frequency of showers and baths is somewhat unnecessary.

Our great grandparents, our grandparents, and perhaps even our parents probably showered or bathed less often than we do now. It was not so many decades ago when entire families routinely bathed in a common bathtub once a week. Families were larger then, so if you were fifth or sixth in the tub - you can imagine.

Standards in the degree of tolerance of body smells emanating from ourselves and others were different then compared to those of today. The advent of indoor plumbing boosted rates of bathing. It also boosted standards of laundry cleanliness. The one (or more) bathroom(s) and the one washing machine per home made cleanliness convenient to average people for the first time in human history. Cultural expectations shifted, especially over the last century or so to demand a cleaner population - ourselves and others.

Yet still today, nations and cultures differ as to the expectations of bathing. Many factors impinge on this behavior: Amount of readily available water (desert countries often have water restrictions), availability of bathing facilities (much of the world does not have easy access to a private bathroom), occupation (physical labour versus office work), lifestyle (the more athletic, the more showers), season of the year (more bathing in hot summer weather than in cold winter weather), age (teenagers bathe most frequently, the elderly least frequently), religion, other cultural beliefs, etc.

Who are the cleanest people on Earth?

The title of "cleanest people on earth" may go to the Australians. However, research is difficult to come by on this point.

According to an October 2006 survey of 400 people conducted by EnergyAustralia (the supplier of electricity for much of Australia), every Australian takes at least one shower each day. Specifically, "62 per cent of people showered once a day, 29 per cent twice a day, and nine per cent showered three times a day".

These figures imply that no Australian goes more than a day without a shower. This is arguably the highest rate of national showering anywhere in the world and qualifies Australians as the cleanest people on Earth. The survey also found that women take slightly longer showers than men (but only less than a minute more) and teenagers take longer showers than people over age 40. Any arguments?

Stephen Juan, Ph.D. is an anthropologist at the University of Sydney. Email your Odd Body questions to s.juan@edfac.usyd.edu.au

 

WHO HAS A LITTLE TAPEWORM RUNNING AROUND IN THERE BODY ?

How much damage does a tapeworm do to the human body?

Asked by George Gomez of Concord, California, USA

Tapeworms produce surprisingly few physical problems for the human body in infected individuals. But it is still to be avoided.

In The Odd Body 3 (2007), it is pointed out that the subject of tapeworms is an often-asked Odd Body Question even though tapeworm infestation is less of a problem in modern industrial societies as the quality of our food is higher. Thank the inventor of the refrigerator for much of this.

Tapeworms come into the body via contaminated food. Many organisms live on and in the human body. A tapeworm can easily survive and thrive indefinitely inside us. A tapeworm in a human can range in length from 1/250 of an inch (.0063 cm) to an incredible 50 feet (15.23 meters)!

Tapeworms have no digestive tract so they must eat food already digested by another animal. That is precisely what they do as a parasite inside our intestines. Tapeworms absorb nutrients directly across their skin (cuticle). They also reproduce inside us. There are many species of tapeworms, not all can infest humans.

Tapeworms are simple in design, but ruthless in action. They consist of two organs. The first organ (scolex) anchors the beastie to the wall of the intestine with suckers and hooks. The second organ (proglottid) is really a series of organs that grow out from the scolex with each having full reproductive capability. Proglottids form a chain of varying length. The last segment of the chain eventually breaks off and is passed out with feces.

Tapeworms resist being destroyed by the body's immune system or digestive juices. Tapeworms cause health problems around the world and can even kill since they rob us of nutrients, block our intestines, and take up space in organs that stop them from functioning normally. A tapeworm cyst can settle in the brain, eye, liver, and elsewhere.

Although little is known about the origins of tapeworms in humans, it is well known that some tapeworms live in both animals and humans. Some tapeworms have such a complex life that they are required to live first in an herbivore (such as a cow) and then in a carnivore (such as a human) where it only then can reproduce [Source: Arnold, J. (2001) Scientific sleuths track the origins of tapeworms in humans. ARS U.S. Department of Agriculture, 23 October, p. 1.]

Stephen Juan, Ph.D. is an anthropologist at the University of Sydney. Email your Odd Body questions to s.juan@edfac.usyd.edu.au

 

Mummified body found in front of blaring TV

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Police called to a Long Island man's house discovered the mummified remains of the resident, dead for more than a year, sitting in front of a blaring television set.
The 70-year-old Hampton Bays, New York, resident, identified as Vincenzo Ricardo, appeared to have died of natural causes. Police said on Saturday his body was discovered on Thursday when they were called to the house over a burst water pipe.

"You could see his face. He still had hair on his head," Newsday quoted morgue assistant Jeff Bacchus as saying. The home's low humidity had preserved the body.

Officials could not explain why the electricity had not been turned off, considering Ricardo had not been heard from since December 2005.

Neighbors said when they had not seen Ricardo, who was diabetic and had been blind for years, they assumed he was in the hospital or a long-term care facility.

 

Fast Track to Heaven

A man appeared before St. Peter at the pearly gates. "Have you ever done anything of particular merit?" St. Peter asked.

"Well, I can think of one thing," the man offered. "Once, on a trip to the Black Hills out in South Dakota, I came upon a gang of bikers who were threatening a young woman. I directed them to leave her alone, but they wouldn't listen. So, I approached the largest and most heavily tattooed biker and smacked him on the head, kicked his bike over, ripped out his nose ring, and threw it on the ground." Then I yelled, "Now, back off or you'll answer to me!"

St. Peter was impressed: "When did this happen?"

"Just a couple minutes ago"


Parking spot!

An Irishman late for an important meeting is frantically driving through town looking for a parking spot. Finally in desperation he leans out of the window and looks to the heavens. "Lord," he yells. "If you'll just make a parking spot appear I promise to go to mass every week for the rest of my life and give up Irish whiskey."

Suddenly he spots a parking spot just ahead of him.

He leans back out of the window. "Never mind, I found one myself."


CEO Takes Charge!

A large flywheel company, feeling it was time for a shakeup, hired a new CEO.

This new boss was determined to rid the company of all slackers. On a tour of the facilities, the CEO noticed a guy leaning on a wall. The room was full of workers and he decided it was time to let everyone know that he meant business.

The new CEO walked up to the guy leaning against the wall and asked, "How much money do you make a week?"

A little surprised, the young fellow looked at him and replied, "I make $300.00 a week. Why?"

The CEO then handed the guy $1,200 in cash and screamed, "Here's four weeks' severance pay, now get out and don't come back."

Feeling pretty good about himself, the CEO looked around the room and asked, "Does anyone want to tell me what that goof-off did here?"

From across the room came a voice, "Pizza delivery guy from Domino's."

Dancing Duck!

A circus owner walked into a bar to see people crowded around a table. On the table was an upside down tin cup with a small duck tap dancing on it. The circus owner was so impressed that he offered to buy the duck from its owner. After some wheeling and dealing they settled for $1000 for the duck and it's cup.

Three days later the irate circus owner returned to the bar to confront the man who sold him the duck. "Your duck is a rip-off! I put him on the cup before a whole audience and he didn't dance a single step!".

"Ah!" the duck seller said, "did you remember to light the candle under the cup?"

The flight

Two men dressed in pilots uniforms walk up the aisle of a large passanger jet. Both are wearing dark glasses. One is using a guide dog and the other is tapping his way along the aisle with a cane.

Nervous laughter spreads through the cabin as the men enter the cockpit. The door closes and a moment later the engines start up.

The passengers begin glancing nervously around, searching for a sign that this is just a practical joke. None is forthcoming. The plane begins to roll forward and quickly accelerates down the tarmack. Suddenly, the people sitting in the window seats realize they're headed straight for the water at the end of the runway.

As it begins to look as though the plane will plow into the water, panicked screams fill the cabin. At that moment, the plane lifts smoothly into the air. The passengers relax, laughing sheepishly, and soon retreat into their magazines, secure in the knowledge that the plane is in good hands.

In the cockpit, one of the blind pilots turns to the other and says, "You know, Bob. One of these days they're gonna scream too late and we're all gonna die."

 

our turn to bitch


HUMOROUS GUIDELINES FOR LIVING:



Men are always hearing "the rules" from the female side. Now, here are some rules from the male perspective.

Sometimes we are not thinking about you. Live with it.

Sunday = sports. It's like the full moon or the changing of the tides. Let it be.

Don't cut your hair. Ever. Long hair is always more attractive than short hair. One of the big reasons guys fear getting married is that married women always cut their hair, and by then you're stuck with her.

Shopping is NOT a sport. And we are never going to think of it that way.

Crying is blackmail.

Ask for what you want. Let us be clear on this: Subtle hints do not work! Strong hints do not work! Obvious hints do not work! Just say it!

We don't remember dates. Mark birthdays and anniversaries on a calendar. Remind us frequently beforehand and don't assume our forgeting one is failing some sort of love-test.

Most guys own three pairs of shoes - tops. What makes you think we'd be any good at choosing which pair, out of thirty, would look good with your dress?

Men believe that yes and no are perfectly acceptable answers to almost every question.

Come to us with a problem only if you want help solving it. That's what we do. Sympathy is what your girlfriends are for.

If you won't dress like Victoria's Secret girls, don't expect us to act like soap opera guys.

If you think you're fat, you probably are. Don't ask us and force us to lie for reasons of self protection.

If something we said can be interpreted two ways, and one of the ways makes you sad or angry, we meant the other one.

Let us ogle. We are going to look anyway; it's genetic. (It doesn't mean we don't love you anymore. We're hard-wired to ogle.)

You can either ask us to do something or tell us how you want it done. Not both. If you already know best how to do it, just do it yourself.

Whenever possible, please say whatever you have to say during commercials.

Christopher Columbus did not need directions, and neither do we.

The relationship is never going to be like it was the first two months we were going out. Get over it.

ALL men see in only 16 colors, like Windows default settings. Peach, for example, is a fruit, not a color. Pumpkin is also a fruit. We have no idea what mauve is.

If it itches, it will be scratched. We do that.

We are not mind readers and never will be. Our lack of mind-reading ability is not proof of how little we care about you.

If we ask what is wrong and you say "nothing," we will act like nothing's wrong. We know you are lying, but figure you really want to punish us with your inscrutability.

If you ask a question you don't want an answer to, expect an answer you don't want to hear.

When we have to go somewhere, absolutely anything you wear is fine. Really.

Don't ask us what we're thinking about unless you are prepared to discuss the shotgun formation or monster trucks.

You have enough clothes.

You have too many shoes.

Foreign films are best left to foreigners. (Unless it's Bruce Lee or some war flick where it doesn't really matter what they're saying anyway.)

I am in shape. ROUND is a shape.

(Thank you for reading this; Yes, I know, I have to sleep on the couch tonight, but did you know we really don't mind that; it's like camping.)



The following are from a speech that Bill Gates gave to an assembly of college graduates.

Rule 1: Life is not fair - get used to it

Rule 2: The world won't care about your self-esteem. The world will expect you to accomplish something BEFORE you feel good about yourself.

Rule 3: You will NOT make $40,000 a year right out of high school. You won't be a vice-president with a car phone until you earn both.

Rule 4: If you think your teacher is tough, wait till you get a boss.

Rule 5: Flipping burgers is not beneath your dignity. Your grandparents had a different word for burger flipping-they called it opportunity.

Rule 6: If you mess up, it's not your parents' fault, so don't whine about your mistakes, learn from them.

Rule 7: Before you were born, your parents weren't as boring as they are now. They got that way from paying your bills, cleaning your clothes and listening to you talk about how cool you are. So before you save the rain forest from the parasites of your parents' generation, try delousing the closet in your own room.

Rule 8: Your school may have done away with winners and losers, but life has not. In some schools, they have abolished failing grades and they'll give you as many times as you want to get the right answer. This doesn't bear the slightest resemblance to ANYTHING in real life.

Rule 9: Life is not divided into semesters. You don't get summers off and very few employers are interested in helping you find yourself. Do that on your own time!

Rule 10: Television is NOT real life. In real life people actually have to leave the coffee shop and go to jobs.

Rule 11: Be nice to nerds. Chances are you'll end up working for one.



More Rules to live by!

1. Never give yourself a haircut after three margaritas.

2. You need only two tools. WD-40 and duct tape. If it doesn't move and it should, use WD-40. If it moves and shouldn't, use the tape.

3. The five most essential words for a healthy, vital relationship "I apologize " and "You are right. "

4. Everyone seems normal until you get to know them.

5. The only really good advice that your mother ever gave you was, "Go! You might meet somebody! "

6. If he/she says that you are too good for him/her...BELIEVE them.

7. Learn to pick your battles; ask yourself, 'Will this matter one year from now? How about one month? One week? One day?'

8. If you woke up breathing, congratulations! You have another chance!

9. Living well really is the best revenge. Being miserable because of a bad or former relationship just might mean that the other person was right about you.

10. Work is good, but it's not that important.

11. When you make a mistake, make amends immediately. It's easier to eat crow while it's still warm.

 

ANOTHER LOVE STORY

Ohio Teen Shoots Another at Hospital


Feb 19, 6:13 AM (ET)

MANSFIELD, Ohio (AP) - A 14-year-old boy chased down a 15-year-old boy and shot him in the face at the entrance to a hospital's emergency room, where the victim immediately sought treatment, authorities said Monday.

The suspect was tackled by a hospital security guard and placed in handcuffs as he tried to follow the victim inside, said Cindy Jakubick, a spokeswoman for MedCentral/Mansfield Hospital.

The victim was treated at the hospital and then flown by helicopter to Columbus Children's Hospital, where he was in critical condition Sunday night, Jakubick said.

A nursing supervisor in Columbus said Monday she couldn't release more information without the boy's name, which wasn't disclosed by police.

The suspect, whose name wasn't released, was being held in a juvenile detention facility, Mansfield police Sgt. Ken Coontz said. Charges likely won't be filed until Tuesday because of the Presidents Day holiday.

Jakubick said a hospital employee heard several teenage boys arguing near the street, and the altercation then moved toward the hospital in this city about 60 miles northeast of Columbus.

The 15-year-old boy apparently punched the 14-year-old in the face and tried to flee, then was shot once in the right cheek by a .22-caliber semiautomatic handgun, Coontz said.

 

THIS IS WHAT LIFE IS ABOUT,HELPING OTHERS INSTEAD OF SHOOTING THEM..


Teen Rescues 3 From Icy N.Y. Creek
Email this Story

Feb 19, 6:44 AM (ET)

BELLMORE, N.Y. (AP) - Three young brothers who fell through ice into a frigid creek were rescued by a teenage neighbor who heard his mother's frightened screams for help, police said.

The brothers, ages 8, 10 and 16, were out walking around Sunday afternoon when they ventured onto the Bellmore Creek's icy surface, which gave way, plunging them into the water, Nassau County police said.

Area resident Maryann Rosati saw the boys in the water behind her home and yelled for help.

Her 18-year-old son, Thomas Rosati, a high school senior, heard her screams and ran outside to a dock on the creek while his mother called police. He pulled the three boys to safety before police arrived.

"They were like yelling, saying like they're going to die," he recalled. "And I was like, 'You're not going to die. Just grab my hand.'"

The three brothers were evaluated by members of the Bellmore Fire Department before they were released to their father at the scene, police said.

 

Two good stories there Ireland.

 

7. Learn to pick your battles; ask yourself, 'Will this matter one year from now? How about one month? One week? One day?'

So bad at that one but hopefully my stellar aptitude for these later two will balance this out.

8. If you woke up breathing, congratulations! You have another chance!

Verda!...True That...Thank goodness!!!!!!!!!

11. When you make a mistake, make amends immediately. It's easier to eat crow while it's still warm.

Only time to do it!!!!! Right away! It makes life easier Do it all the time!

 

An old Italian woman is riding the elevator in a very lavish New York City office building. A young and beautiful woman gets into the elevator and smelling like expensive perfume turns to the old Italian woman and says arrogantly, "Giorgio - Beverly Hills, $100 an ounce!"

The next young and beautiful woman gets on the elevator and also very arrogantly turns to the old Italian woman and says, "Chanel No. 5, $150 an ounce!"

About three floors later, the old Italian woman has reached her destination and is about to get off the elevator. Before she leaves, she looks both beautiful women in the eye, bends over and farts....... "Broccoli - 49 cents a pound!"

 

Ireland, I dont know were you get this stuff but I sent it to everybody I know, this is so true, especially the woman who think they smell good with the stuff that smells like roach spray.

 

Girl, 8, makes 100 prank 911 calls

Feb 20 2:26 PM US/Eastern





SHEBOYGAN, Wis., Feb. 20 (UPI) -- No charges will be filed against an 8-year-old Wisconsin girl who made more than 100 prank calls to emergency operators last week.

Lt. Jim Risseeuw of the Sheboygan County, Wis., Sheriff's Department said the unidentified girl was traced with the help of AT&T and TracFone, which identified the phone's owner as the girl's mother, the Sheboygan Press reported Tuesday.

The woman had stopped using the phone but all cell phones can call 911 even if they don't have active service.

Risseeuw said the third-grader identified herself to dispatchers as "Matthew" when she made the calls, some of which contained profanities, the report said.

However, he said because of her age, she won't be charged.

"At this point, the matter was corrected," Risseeuw said. "We'll leave it for the parents to deal with."

 

MY BITCH OF THE DAY,AS IT MUST BE THE FOOD THEY EAT..

Teen 'sport killings' of homeless on the rise

MILWAUKEE, Wisconsin (CNN) -- All Nathan Moore says he wanted to do was smoke pot and get drunk with his friends.

Killing Rex Baum was never part of the plan that day in 2004.

"It all started off as a game," Moore said.

The 15-year-old and his friends were taunting the homeless man -- throwing sticks and leaves -- after having a couple of beers with him.

No big deal, Moore says, but he's sorry for what came next.

It was a mistake, he said, a sudden primal surge that made him and his friends Luis Oyola, 16, and 17-year-old Andrew Ihrcke begin punching and kicking Baum.

"Luis says 'I'm gonna go hit him,' We're all laughing, thought he was joking around,'" but he wasn't, Moore concedes. "We just all started hitting him."

They hurled anything they could find -- rocks, bricks, even Baum's barbecue grill -- and pounded the 49-year-old with a pipe and with the baseball bat he kept at his campsite for protection.

Ihrcke smeared his own feces on Baum's face before cutting him with a knife "to see if he was alive," Moore said.

After destroying Baum's camp, the boys left the homeless man -- head wedged in his own grill -- under a piece of plastic where they hoped the "animals would eat" him.

Then, Moore says, they took off to grab a bite at McDonald's.

Baum's murder was indicative of a disturbing trend.

A National Coalition for the Homeless report says last year, there were 122 attacks and 20 murders against the homeless, the most attacks in nearly a decade. (Coalition report on 2006 homeless attacks)

Police found Baum's body two days after the teens attacked him.

They bragged about it around town. Police picked them up and they described what happened.

Ihrcke told police that killing "the bum" reminded him of playing a violent video game, a police report shows.

All three teens pleaded no contest to first degree reckless homicide charges and went to prison.

Moore recently turned 18 at Columbia Correctional Institution in Portage, Wisconsin, where he is serving a 15 year sentence.

"When [the beating] stops, you say, 'What did we just do?'" he told CNN. "There's no rational explanation." (Watch teen explain how "game" became tragedy Video)
Teenage 'amusement'

"It's disturbing to know that young people would literally kick someone when they're already down on their luck," said Michael Stoops, the executive director of the Washington-based National Coalition for the Homeless. "We recognize that this isn't every teenager, but for some this passes as amusement."

Criminologists call these wilding sprees "sport killing," -- largely middle-class teens, with no criminal records, assaulting the homeless with bats, golf clubs, paintball guns. (Watch how nights are cold, fearful for Milwaukee homeless Video)

Some teens have even taped themselves in the act. Others have said they were inspired by "Bumfights," a video series created in 2002 and sold on the Web that features homeless people pummeling each other for the promise of a few bucks.

A segment called "Bum Hunter," hosted by a Crocodile Hunter-like actor wearing a safari outfit, shows him "tagging" homeless people by pouncing on them and binding their wrists.

The distributors of "Bumfights" have claimed they've sold hundreds of thousands of copies.

But the company has had to deal with a couple of legal issues unrelated to the Baum case.

Last year, three former homeless stars of "Bumfights" won a civil suit against filmmakers. Santa Monica attorney Mark Quigley, who represented Rufus Hannah, known as "Rufus the Stunt Bum" to series' fans, said he is unable to disclose the amount of the settlement.

Also, in July 2006, a California judge ordered "Bumfights'" producers Ryan McPherson and Zachary Bubeck to spend 180 days in jail for failing to perform community service related to guilty pleas they previously entered to charges of staging illegal street fights.

"Bumfights" directors did not answer CNN's request for an interview.
Attacks across the nation

Incidents of teen-on-homeless violence dotted the map last year. Florida racked up at least six such attacks in 2006. (Homeless attack across U.S.)

In Lauderhill, four teens were arrested after they allegedly videotaped themselves beating, dragging, and stealing from a homeless man.

The victim has not been found, but the four face one charge each of strong-armed robbery.

Earlier this month, teens in Corpus Christi, Texas, videotaped themselves attacking a homeless man.

Commander David Torres said police arrested a 15-year-old and are looking for at least one more teenager and a 22-year-old who described on tape what they were about to do before they jumped on the man. (Read full story)

On the other side of the nation, former Oregon State University student Joshua Grimes stands accused of shooting and injuring a homeless man from his perch in a fraternity house window.

He has not yet entered a plea, but, according to a police report, he cried to detectives after the October shooting, telling them, "I didn't mean to shoot him."

At least three homeless people in Kalamazoo, Michigan, reported being attacked by teens on bicycles during a 10-day span in October, according to the homeless coalition.

In Huntsville, Alabama, six teens -- one of them 13 -- beat a homeless man with golf clubs, the coalition reported. But perhaps the most shocking of these examples was 2006's first recorded case of teen-on-homeless violence.

On January 12 in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, a surveillance camera captured two teens beating a homeless man with bats.

Prosecutors say 17-year-old skateboarder Tom Daugherty, 18-year-old Brian Hooks, a popular hockey team captain, and a third unseen teen, Billy Ammons, a high school dropout, assaulted two more homeless men that night.

One of them was 45-year-old Norris Gaynor. A witness, Anthony Clarke, told police and CNN last year that he saw the three teens approach Gaynor as he slept on a park bench. Daugherty began whacking Gaynor with a bat, Clarke said. (Watch two teenagers beat a cowering homeless man with bats Video)

As Gaynor lay dying, Ammons shot him with yellow paintballs, later remarking that the beating felt like "teeing off," police said.

Gaynor was beaten so badly his own father didn't recognize him. Facing life in prison, the teens face trial for murder later this year. They have each pleaded not guilty to one count of first-degree murder and two counts of attempted murder. (Read full story)
Lingering questions

Stoops and Brian Levin, a California State University hate crimes expert, say common themes run through teen-on-homeless violence. The attackers are almost always boys, peer pressure and mob mentality sweep away caution, and parents don't suspect their children could be capable of such actions.

Laura Simpson didn't. Her son, Justin Brumfield, is serving an 11-year prison stretch in California.

In August 2005, Brumfield and William Orantes, both 19, beat 56-year-old Ernest Adams with bats. Adams emerged from a coma three weeks later with dents in his skull, permanent scars and no vision in one eye, the Los Angeles Times reported. Orantes is serving a three-year sentence.

Simpson, a sixth-grade teacher, says she is still tormented by her son's actions and wonders if her son's irritability was more than typical teenage moodiness.

She has other questions: Was her son, a natural follower, just succumbing to peer pressure? Was he that into "Bumfights"? Did he see the fear in Adams' eyes when he raised the bat to strike him?

In a sad irony, she had adopted him; his mother was a homeless drug addict, a revelation he had learned not long before the beating and which his attorney used to explain his rage.

Her son has told her he is sorry for what happened, but her questions remain unanswered.

"As a parent, of course you're going to question yourself," she said. "It was just hard to comprehend. The first thing was, 'Not Justin. There has to be a mistake,'" she said. "You think you know everything that's going on and you don't."

When the mob mentality takes over, even the perpetrators may not comprehend what's going on.

Back at the prison in Wisconsin, Nathan Moore seems baffled by his own actions. Killing Rex Baum now registers like a "blur" or "dream," he says.

Moore and his friends knew Baum from around town. Life had been painful for the homeless man from the start; alcohol eased it. As a kid growing up in Milwaukee, when his home life became too rocky, a neighboring family took him in. He drifted through school and a brief stint in the military, his friends say, a wanderer, a loner. (Audio Slide Show: Remembering Rex Baum)

Homeless for years, he defied Wisconsin winters by constantly walking around the city, bundled in a coat patched with duct tape. For a few dollars, he pumped gas, shoveled snow off driveways, and walked neighborhood dogs.

More than 100 people came to Baum's funeral. Someone sent a newspaper clip of the story to Moore in prison.

"Every day I wish I could take it back," he said. "I seen [the] repercussions among everyone. I didn't think about any of this when [the beating] was going on."

 

MY BIGGEST BITCH OF THE DAY IN THE USA
Eric Morath / The Detroit News
Gas costs back on road to $3

The steady climb to higher spring gasoline prices is under way and a repeat of last year's $3 a gallon is a strong possibility.

The average price for a gallon of regular in Metro Detroit reached $2.28 Monday, according AAA Michigan. That's up 38 cents from a month ago and the highest price at the pump since Dec. 4.

Statewide, the average price for a gallon of gas is $2.30.

Pump prices are more than a dime higher than at this time last year, fueling concerns that Michigan drivers again could soon pay $3 a gallon -- as they have the past two summers.

"Things might stay stable for a week," said AAA spokesman Jim Rink, noting prices are only up 3 cents from a week ago. "But once we get into March, prices will go up and hit a peak in late May."

Rink said it's not a certainty that prices will top three bucks, but the fact they reached that level the past two years shows the market can sustain that price during the summer driving season.

The higher cost to make summer fuel, higher gas demand and speculators -- those who buy and sell oil as an investment -- push pump prices higher during the spring months, Rink said.
http://www.detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070220/BIZ/702200329/1148/AUTO01

 

HUMOROUS TEE-SHIRTS AND BUMPER STICKERS





T-Shirt Sayings:

My husband and I have religious differences: he thinks he's God and I don't.

I don't suffer from insanity, I enjoy every minute of it.

Some people are alive only because it's illegal to kill them.

I used to have a handle on life, but it broke.

Don't take life too seriously, you won't get out alive.

You're just jealous because the voices only talk to me.

I'm not a complete idiot, some parts are missing.

God must love stupid people, he made so many.

The gene pool could use a little chlorine.

It is as bad as you think and they are out to get you.

Consciousness: that annoying time between naps.

MOP AND GLOW - Floor wax used by Three Mile Island cleanup team.



Bumper Stickers for Women

SO MANY MEN, SO FEW WHO CAN AFFORD ME.

COFFEE, CHOCOLATE, MEN... SOME THINGS ARE JUST BETTER RICH.

DON'T TREAT ME ANY DIFFERENTLY THAN YOU WOULD THE QUEEN.

WARNING: I HAVE AN ATTITUDE AND I KNOW HOW TO USE IT.

OF COURSE I DON'T LOOK BUSY ... I DID IT RIGHT THE FIRST TIME.

ALL STRESSED OUT AND NO ONE TO CHOKE.

I CAN BE ONE OF THOSE BAD THINGS THAT HAPPENS TO BAD PEOPLE.

HOW CAN I MISS YOU IF YOU WON'T GO AWAY?

DON'T UPSET ME! I'M RUNNING OUT OF PLACES TO HIDE THE BODIES.

IF YOU WANT BREAKFAST IN BED, SLEEP IN THE KITCHEN.



Run Jesse, Run! (Bumper sticker for Jesse Jackson for president... placed on the front bumber.)

I used to be schizophrenic, but we're okay now.

I'm perfectly normal; you can ask any of my psychiatrists.

The trouble with the gene pool is that there is no lifeguard.

If at first you don't succeed, skydiving isn't for you.

Old age comes at a bad time.

In America, anyone can be president. That's one of the risks you take.

 

SOME OF YE MIGHT HAVE A BITCH OVER THIS ARTICLE

Ballmer repeats threats against Linux


Steve Ballmer has reissued Microsoft's patent threat against Linux, warning open-source vendors that they must respect his company's intellectual property.

In a no-nonsense presentation to New York financial analysts last Thursday, Microsoft's chief executive said the company's partnership with Novell, which it signed in November 2006, "demonstrated clearly the value of intellectual property, even in the open-source world."
Steve Ballmer Steve Ballmer

The cross-selling partnership means that Microsoft will recommend Suse Linux for customers who want an environment mix of Microsoft and open-source software. It also involves a "patent cooperation agreement," under which Microsoft and Novell agreed not to sue each other for patent infringement.

In a clear threat against open-source users, Ballmer repeated his earlier assertions that open source "is not free," referring to the possibility that Microsoft may sue Linux sellers. Microsoft has suggested that the Linux operating system infringes some of its intellectual property, but it has never named the patents in question.

"I would not anticipate that we make a huge additional revenue stream from our Novell deal, but I do think it clearly establishes that open source is not free, and open source will have to respect the intellectual-property rights of others, just as any other competitor will," Ballmer said.

"But I don't want to eliminate in your minds the notions of risk of pricing that comes from competition with open source. We are higher-priced, but we bring greater value," he added.

Alongside the renewed threat over intellectual property, Ballmer was also bullish over winning large corporate accounts against Linux vendors.

"We have done very well versus Linux on the desktop and on the server, and I am hopeful that we will build share, particularly in Web servers and high-performance clusters, from Linux in the next year," he told analysts.

But Red Hat's chief executive was not impressed. Addressing a Merrill Lynch conference on Monday, Matthew Szulik urged his customers to use up their open-source coupons from the Microsoft-Novell partnership. These coupons entitle them to support and maintenance for Novell's Suse Linux Enterprise Server.

"We certainly expect that there will be those cases where customers will consume those coupons," Szulik said. "We're certainly encouraging one or two customers to consume all of them; let's get this over with."

As of January, Microsoft had already sold 35,000 open-source coupons out of the 70,000 it has committed to make available each year as part of the five-year partnership.

Deutsche Bank and Credit Suisse Group and American International Group are among those to take advantage of the Microsoft-Novell collaboration to roll out a mixed infrastructure of proprietary and open-source software.

Richard Thurston of ZDNet UK reported from London.
http://news.com.com/Ballmer+repeats+threats+against+Linux/2100-7344_3-6160604.html?tag=nefd.top

 

HD DVD Cracking Software Released
By Jennifer LeClaire
February 20, 2007 9:04AM


It is not likely that the movie industry will consider SlySoft's HD DVD cracking software to be a boon -- judging by its past responses to similar software -- but SlySoft maintains that, behind closed doors, the movie industry is "likely pleased" that users will now be able to make "unlimited use" of the HD DVD platform with the AnyDVD HD software.

















Over the weekend, SlySoft launched the first version of its HD DVD cracking software designed to let consumers decrypt HD DVD movie discs and rip them to a hard drive.
Specifically, the AnyDVD HD software cracks the Advanced Access Content System (AACS), a specification for managing content stored on the next generation HD DVDs. A consortium of companies, including IBM, Microsoft , Intel, Panasonic, and Sony , developed the spec and license it to manufacturers in an effort to protect video content.

"Officially, the film industry and the AACS consortium is, of course, not very happy about this development," SlySoft said in a published statement. But the company also said that, behind closed doors, the movie industry is "likely pleased" that users are now able to make "unlimited use" of the HD DVD platform.

Beyond Cracking

It is unlikely that the film industry will consider the cracking software to be a boon to the industry -- judging by its responses to such software in the past -- but AnyDVD HD does far more than crack encryption. It lets consumers adjust the speed of an HD DVD drive to reduce its noise level. And the software lets consumers remove subtitles, FBI warning messages, and the RPC region code that would otherwise prevent them from watching movies on any HD DVD player.

AnyDVD HD also comes with a file ripper designed to make it easier for consumers to store the movies on their hard drives. And, according to SlySoft, the "magic file replacement" feature even lets consumers remaster commercial movie discs.

The Antiguan developer, which also produces several other copy protection cracking software tools, said it plans to develop a similar program to crack Blu-ray copy protection. Blu-ray discs have an added layer of protection beyond AACS. A beta version of the Blu-ray cracker will reportedly be available in the first quarter.

SlySoft's claims about it software appear to be accurate. The company has a track record for its ability to hack CD and DVD copy protection and let consumers clone the files.

Copy Protection

Adrienne Downey, a senior analyst at Semico Research, said she is not surprised that SlySoft cracked HD DVD encryption, or that it's selling the software directly to consumers.

"Consumers can find a key on the Internet to crack just about any software these days," she said. Unless the AACS devises a new system for copy protection, which would also require a change on the hardware side, SlySoft's $79 program could leave HD DVD open to piracy, Downey noted.

Although some industry analysts believe the film and music industry will eventually scrap complex copy-protection schemes, concerns over piracy could instead lead the movie industry to develop a distribution model in which consumers download content and pay for a predetermined viewing time before access expires, Downey suggested.

"There would be a huge consumer backlash against something like that," she concluded. "But it may be the best way to protect the content."