I love conspiracy theories. The stories often have a smidgen of truth in them, but are amplified until they become larger. So we are now reading lots of news stories about the genitalia stealing witches in Africa and that mobs are going around killing the witches in Africa. Actually, the problem, called Koro, is a [...]

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Anyone who’s done any poking into the topics of mythology, religion, and religious history is most likely more than familiar with the name Joseph Campbell. Easily the greatest mythologist of our time, Campbell also made a name for himself as a great storyteller, speaking on the topics that popularized his works. Near the end of [...]

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I am sure you have seen the late night TV adverts, “Need a few bucks till payday, give us a call”. In concept it is an unsecured loan payable in usually less than 14 days. It sounds good, you have a bill to pay but your bank account is dry. All you need is proof [...]

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Part Two of this on going series will focus on the reasons why the Ebay Feedback system is treating sellers and buyers unfairly. However, most recent Ebay policy changes with regard to eliminating the capability for a seller to defend his or her own terms and conditions makes it more unfair for the seller. In [...]

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Victor is having a meeting at his office and when it is over he asks that Victoria and Adam stay for a few minutes. Victoria tells Victor and Adam that she done her homework and she doesn’t think this new company will work. She gives her proposal to Victor and he says this is very [...]

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Kim sees Chris talking to a nurse and asks him if he has his eye on a young nurse. He says well a nursing student. She tells him she is there to pick him and his father up for dinner. Chris tells her he forgot all about that and now he has a date. When [...]

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Chelsea is daydreaming that Daniel goes to see her and apologizes to her for taking himself off her case. In her daydream she hears him tell her he is falling in love with her. Hope brings her back to reality when she calls her name. Max pours Nick a refill on his coffee while Nick [...]

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There were road closures in Darwen, Lancashire , UK earlier this week following an asbestos fire at a factory in the area. The fire was started in the early hours of the morning, and roads had to be closed off just as the morning traffic was set to begin. The former furnishings factory, located in [...]

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The full text of the speech can be found here and here. Key issues from an Offstumped perspective that standout from the speech. – There is a high degree of confidence in the BJP about the next election – The Narendra Modi model of Minimum Government and Maximum Governance seems to be the template the BJP [...]

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We’ve all seen cringe-worthy sports moments.  There the soccer play who gets a ball right to his, the football player who gets them stomped on by a 350 pound man wearing cleats, the fan who goes to vault a fence and only gets one leg over before coming to a manhood crushing stop.  Although they [...]

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According to the Asbestos Disease Awareness Organization, the United States Senate declared the week commencing 1 st of April the start of Asbestos Awareness Week. This comes after the Senate passed a bill that states “that the Senate urges the Surgeon General, as a public health issue, to warn and educate people that asbestos exposure [...]

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Van Morrison is back. In his first album since 2005, Morrison shines with a bluesy, soulful collection of songs which make up the short, but sweet, “Keep it Simple.” Far from simple, however, the album is chalked full of beautiful instrumentation, a wide array of musical influences from the classic blues that has always inspired Morrison’s music, to Celtic and folk melodies.

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Los Angeles, CA–Several thousand protesters have written, faxed or called Fox News executives to protest its launch of a new reality show called Bad Dads. According to Reuters, in Bad Dads child support collector Jim Durham “functions as a sort of ‘Dog the Bounty Hunter’ for tracking deadbeats…It’s ambush reality TV.” Fathers & Families, the [...]

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This discussion about lifting the ban on Hitler’s Mein Kampf in Germany, I mean. And although it’s nothing new when foreigners like me are dismayed about the fact that Mr. Psycho Man’s manifesto is still unavailable here (at least not openly and through the “proper” channels), I vaguely remember having read parts of it once [...]

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By Hugh McNichol April 30, 2008 – Rudy Giuliani, Nancy Pelosi, John Kerry, Ted Kennedy and a host of other high profile politicians, actors, and social advocates need to clearly understand that the practice of Catholicism is a committed lifestyle of faithful and loving adherence to the Church’s regulations and teachings. It is indeed the [...]

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By Jefferson Flanders Shouldn’t Bill Moyers broadcast more of his Jeremiah Wright Jr. interview aired last week on PBS? Based on comments made by Barack Obama’s former pastor in his National Press Club appearance in Washington on Monday, some of Wright’s more controversial comments may have been edited out of the program, Bill Moyers Journal. [...]

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In an interview last year, Cardinal Avery Dulles alluded to what he considered the greatest difficulty the Catholic Church will face in the 21st century…that is the growing trend towards the lack of Catholic identity within our own Catholic Church. Perhaps the reason for this malaise is the fact that over the past four decades [...]

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An Offstumped exclusive for Blogger News Network (BNN) courtesy Shri Sudheendra Kulkarni - the full text of speech by Shri L.K. Advani, Leader of the Opposition and the BJP led NDA’s candidate for next Prime Minister of India,  at the CII National Conference and Annual Session 2008 in New Delhi on 30th April 2008. The speech [...]

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By Honey Gillard What does Victoria’s Secret Aussie Angel Miranda Kerr dream of? An environmentally-friendly home and three kids, se revealed in an exclusive interview with A Current Affair. “Ten years from now hopefully I’ll be living in a solar-powered house with my vegetable garden out the back,” she said. “And I’m hoping it will [...]

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Local residents have expressed concern and demanded further information about the impending demolition of church from which asbestos was recently removed. Contractors began removing asbestos from the St. Aidan’s site earlier in the week, sparking concerns among local residents. The rectory of the church and two garages are being demolished, and as part of this [...]

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The recent references to Louis Farrakhan, Nation of Islam leader, reminded me of the days when we were interacting with Black Muslims, as they were called, during our student days while living in Harlem. Contrary to the image of hate of whites, we found our Muslim neighbors cordial once the ice had been broken. Within [...]

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It took some 20 years, but finally Rev. Jeremiah Wright said something that got Barack Obama’s goat: Wright called him a politician. That was the last straw. Obama was moved to take Wright to task for his lost week-end (rather, the week-end Wright probably destroyed his chances of becoming president) spent dissing all those white voters in MA and [...]

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It is strange that Nalini who was the Indian conspirator responsible for the killing of Rajiv Gandhi is getting a privileged attention.  It was surprising when Priyanka paid a visit recently to this (dis) honourable lady at the prison. Now , predictaly, it is reported that an application has been made to the High Court [...]

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The study reported below looks pretty sound but it is a typical example of how medical research tends to be conducted in its own little bubble without reference to other evidence on the question examined. There could, for instance, be no group that disconfirms the “dirty environment” hypothesis more strikingly than Australian Aborigines. They commonly [...]

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There seem to be very few defenders of comprehensive freedom of speech. The Left defend their right to say their stuff and attack the rights of others while Christians attack “obscene” speech and often lose in defending their own speech. The end result is that everybody feels somewhat restricted in what they can say. Even [...]

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Over the last few weeks there have been an alarming increase in the number of disruptions in the Indian Banks due to failure of technology. Most of the Indian Banks are now on a “Core-Banking Software Platform” and the branches are totally dependent on the Central server and also the connectivity. It was observed that [...]

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CNN IBN which is trying to steal a march over NDTV in Poll related coverage in India has come up with the first pre poll election survey regarding Karnataka Polls. Covering a sample size of 5124 , CNN IBN is going to town with its prediction that Congress would form the next Government in Karnataka [...]

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Welcome to the meat of the future: lab grown meat. No, it’ not science fiction, and it’s not tofu burger. It is growing meat from a cell similar to how scientists grow tissue cultures, but in this case, it would be taking stem cells, manipulating them to produce muscle in tissue culture, resulting in sheets [...]

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