James Vanderzon

Strong is the new skinny

noreply@blogger.com (★) — Thu, 09 Feb 2012 17:22:00 +0000

"While a few have been distracted in the past few decades, by twiggy dysmorphia, strong has always been sexier than thin." -Scott Sonon

Nagasaki 1945 - 2011

noreply@blogger.com (★) — Tue, 07 Feb 2012 07:00:00 +0000

God bless America

noreply@blogger.com (★) — Mon, 06 Feb 2012 07:30:00 +0000

Apparently the White House referred to Christmas Trees as Holiday Trees for the first time this year which prompted CBS presenter, Ben Stein, to present this piece which I would like to share with you. I think it applies just as much to many countries as it does to America ..

The following was written by Ben Stein and recited by him on CBS Sunday Morning Commentary.

My confession:
I am a Jew, and every single one of my ancestors was Jewish. And it does not bother me even a little bit when people call those beautiful lit up, bejewelled trees, Christmas trees. I don't feel threatened. I don't feel discriminated against. That's what they are, Christmas trees.
It doesn't bother me a bit when people say, 'Merry Christmas' to me. I don't think they are slighting me or getting ready to put me in a ghetto. In fact, I kind of like it. It shows that we are all brothers and sisters celebrating this happy time of year. It doesn't bother me at all that there is a manger scene on display at a key intersection near my beach house in Malibu . If people want a crčche, it's just as fine with me as is the Menorah a few hundred yards away.
I don't like getting pushed around for being a Jew, and I don't think Christians like getting pushed around for being Christians. (To be sure Muslims, too, don't like being pushed around - my emphasis) I think people who believe in God are sick and tired of getting pushed around, period. I have no idea where the concept came from, that America is an explicitly atheist country. I can't find it in the Constitution and I don't like it being shoved down my throat.
Or maybe I can put it another way: where did the idea come from that we should worship celebrities and we aren't allowed to worship God ? I guess that's a sign that I'm getting old, too. But there are a lot of us who are wondering where these celebrities came from and where the America we knew went to.
In light of the many jokes we send to one another for a laugh, this is a little different: This is not intended to be a joke; it's not funny, it's intended to get you thinking.
Billy Graham's daughter was interviewed on the Early Show and Jane Clayson asked her 'How could God let something like this happen?' (regarding Hurricane Katrina).. Anne Graham gave an extremely profound and insightful response. She said, 'I believe God is deeply saddened by this, just as we are, but for years we've been telling God to get out of our schools, to get out of our government and to get out of our lives. And being the gentleman He is, I believe He has calmly backed out. How can we expect God to give us His blessing and His protection if we demand He leave us alone?'
In light of recent events... terrorists attack, school shootings, etc. I think it started when Madeleine Murray O'Hare (she was murdered, her body found a few years ago) complained she didn't want prayer in our schools, and we said OK. Then someone said you better not read the Bible in school. The Bible says thou shalt not kill; thou shalt not steal, and love your neighbor as yourself. And we said OK.
Then Dr. Benjamin Spock said we shouldn't spank our children when they misbehave, because their little personalities would be warped and we might damage their self-esteem (Dr. Spock's son committed suicide). We said an expert should know what he's talking about. And we said okay.
Now we're asking ourselves why our children have no conscience, why they don't know right from wrong, and why it doesn't bother them to kill strangers, their classmates, and themselves.
Probably, if we think about it long and hard enough, we can figure it out.. I think it has a great deal to do with 'WE REAP WHAT WE SOW.'
Funny how simple it is for people to trash God and then wonder why the world's going to hell. Funny how we believe what the newspapers say, but question what the Bible says. Funny how you can send 'jokes' through e-mail and they spread like wildfire, but when you start sending messages regarding the Lord, people think twice about sharing. Funny how lewd, crude, vulgar and obscene articles pass freely through cyberspace, but public discussion of God is suppressed in the school and workplace.
Are you laughing yet?
Funny how when you forward this message, you will not send it to many on your address list because you're not sure what they believe, or what they will think of you for sending it.
Funny how we can be more worried about what other people think of us than what God thinks of us.
Pass it on if you think it has merit.
If not, then just discard it.... no one will know you did. But, if you discard this thought process, don't sit back and complain about what bad shape the world is in.
My Best Regards, Honestly and respectfully,
Ben Stein

A List of Don’ts for Women on Bicycles Circa 1895

noreply@blogger.com (★) — Thu, 12 Jan 2012 17:27:00 +0000

The following list of 41 don’ts for female cyclists was published in 1895 in the newspaper New York World by an author of unknown gender. Equal parts amusing and appalling.

Don’t chew gum. Exercise your jaws in private.
Don’t wear white kid gloves. Silk is the thing.
Don’t ask, “What do you think of my bloomers?”
Don’t use bicycle slang. Leave that to the boys.
Don’t go out after dark without a male escort.
Don’t without a needle, thread and thimble.
Don’t try to have every article of your attire “match.”
Don’t let your golden hair be hanging down your back.

Read the full list of don't's here.

Toddlers and Tiaras - WTF?!

noreply@blogger.com (★) — Wed, 11 Jan 2012 15:30:00 +0000

Scary.

A jew, a priest, and a rabbi walk into a bar..

noreply@blogger.com (★) — Mon, 02 Jan 2012 06:11:00 +0000

A jew, a priest, and a rabbi walk into a bar. The bartender says "Is this a joke?"

"Scientific" report: Virgins would be extinct in Saudi Arabia in ten years if women were allowed to drive.

noreply@blogger.com (★) — Tue, 13 Dec 2011 05:09:00 +0000

Repealing the ban on women driving would "provoke a surge in prostitution, pornography, homosexuality and divorce."

Glad that there are some sound-minded men (husbands included) in Saudi Arabia who support the notion of women driving.

The Ark Is Full

noreply@blogger.com (★) — Thu, 03 Nov 2011 06:19:00 +0000

The Sanctity of Marriage

noreply@blogger.com (★) — Thu, 03 Nov 2011 05:46:00 +0000

Sperm cells created from female embryo

noreply@blogger.com (★) — Fri, 28 Oct 2011 02:35:00 +0000

Somewhat old news, but I thought I'd reblog it to remind ourselves of the wonder of science. That it opens up all kinds of positive possibilities for all of us.

Hong Kong

noreply@blogger.com (★) — Tue, 18 Oct 2011 18:26:00 +0000

A beautiful, beautiful place that will always be very special to me.

Hong Kong Time Lords from Euan Preston on Vimeo.

Lesbian couple of 30 years arrested in North Carolina after being denied marriage licence

noreply@blogger.com (★) — Mon, 17 Oct 2011 17:58:00 +0000

Rev. Kathryn Cartledge and Elizabeth Eve, her partner of 30 years, urge GLBT couples in North Carolina to apply for marriage licences, knowing that they are going to be denied. A powerful campaign called "We Do". ( via towleroad )

Cambodia by Moonlight

noreply@blogger.com (★) — Fri, 09 Sep 2011 03:20:00 +0000

The MOONLIGHT, a solar powered lantern, is built and was designed in collaboration with the rural Cambodians it is made to serve. Over 70% of the country has no access to the power grid, so as a result they have traditionally relied on kerosene lamps after dark for tasks like cooking, eating and reading. Those lamps pose a great fire risk, as most rural homes are built from wood and straw. The MOONLIGHT can be rented in rural areas for less than $.08/day, the same amount traditionally spent on kerosene. These photos were taken in villages around Kandal Province, near the Mekong River, the first area to adapt the MOONLIGHT for everyday use.

More images here.

Some Notes On Dating An Artist

noreply@blogger.com (★) — Sun, 28 Aug 2011 08:28:00 +0000

Dating an artist, you’ll do stupid things, inane things. You’ll get concussions in the middle of the park; you’ll sunburn just to watch the pink color surface under your skin. You’ll sit in their clothes, trying to understand the mind that sees twisted branches as ballerinas. You’ll drool into plastic bags and you’ll realize only when it’s pointed out that these behaviors are not normal; most couples do not whistle into each other’s mouths and discuss underwear immediately after sex. Most couples, you realize, say cutesy things like “I love you” after rose petal superficiality and poorly written romance novels; you’ll exchange it between chlorine and argon, because there is something dangerously attractive about an artist who knows the periodic table.

( more notes on dating an artist here )

Bisexuals Just As Real As Normal People, Science Says

noreply@blogger.com (★) — Thu, 25 Aug 2011 08:12:00 +0000

Bisexuality exists. So does homosexuality, and heterosexuality, and pansexuality, and I-fall-for-who-I-fall-for-sexuality, and other sexualities, so let’s stop telling people what they feel is invalid.

( full article here, worth a good thought.)

Reflections

noreply@blogger.com (★) — Wed, 04 May 2011 13:19:00 +0000

Reflections is a campaign by Novartis, for a new drug called the Exelon Patch, a prescription medicine for the treatment of mild to moderate Alzheimer's dementia.

This series of touching photographs is by Tom Hussey.

Read the full article here.

Ten Tiny Houses with a Green Heart

noreply@blogger.com (★) — Tue, 03 May 2011 13:13:00 +0000

See the other seven here.

The New Language of Revolution -by Marina Mahathir

noreply@blogger.com (★) — Tue, 03 May 2011 06:50:00 +0000

(Marina Mahathir is the daughter of Malaysia's former prime minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad)

Sunday, February 20, 2011
The New Language of Revolution

Who would have thought it? Only less than two months ago, nobody, least of all me, would have dreamed that the new language of revolution would be Arabic. For so long the language of rebellion has been Spanish or Eastern European, maybe Indonesian.

But Arabic? No, Arabic was the supposed language of piety. It is what you use to show that you're more religious than anyone else. Thus you can begin a speech with long passages in Arabic without bothering to translate and have everyone assume that you were invoking God's name. Arabic is the language of choice when you wanted to name your children so that they will grow up pious and good, although it is difficult to prove that they actually will.

Arabic was also the language by which you exclude people. You tell people they can only read the Quran in Arabic, regardless of whether they understood it or not, because to read it in languages you actually did understand was not the same. Thus God's word was available to an exclusive few, instead of to all humanity.

Arabic was also the language of us and the Other, the ummah and the kafir. About what was haram and halal. Who was with us, and who was not.

But since January 2011, Arabic has become a different language. It has become the language of revolt and rebellion, and of freedom. Suddenly the whole world knows that the Arabic word for liberation is 'tahrir'.

Those of us on Twitter also learnt the word 'Yalla!' (roughly, Viva!). Other new words for us:

Amal = Hope
Democratiyyah = Democracy
Karamah = Dignity
Kefaya! = Enough!

(For an extensive list of Revolutionary Arabic, take a look here.)

How important is it to have this new language of revolution? To me, it is hugely important because language represents mindsets. So when language changes, mindsets also change. And with these new Arabic words we are learning, we are also learning about a new kind of Arab.

Previously we knew of only two kinds of Arabs. One was the fantastically wealthy Arab oil sheikh who goes to Harrods in London and buys up everything without bothering with the price tags. The cartoon stereotype is of the Arab sheikh in his white jubah and red and white headress, being chauffeured in his sleek limousine accompanied by his four wives. Over here, as always, we looked on this wealth as somehow God-given and we bow and scrape as they threw us a few coins here and there. That, we thought, is what we want to be because after all they are Arabs, they guard the Holy Cities and surely it must be all blessed by God.

The other stereotype is of the very holy Arab, intoning away on all the evils of the world, all of which seem to emanate from the West. These men ( for they are almost always men) in their long beards we worship because they seem holy and they seem to do the 'right' things, beginning with putting women under covers, and they must surely be guaranteed a place in heaven. Oh we all must strive to be like them! And we shall start by emulating their clothing!

My, how things have changed! Now we know that the oil sheikhs keep most of their people living at under USD2 a day while they build palaces for themselves and their families. We know that when they take over the leadership of their countries, they often do away with elections and stay for decades (Ben Ali of Tunisia, 23 years; Mubarak of Egypt, 30 years; Gaddafi of Libya, 42 years; Bouteflika of Algeria, 23 years; Saleh of Yemen, 32 years), during which time they enriched themselves while their people starved.

We are also now learning that to stay in power, these dictators can be viciously brutal. Although the Tunisian and Egyptian revolution was relatively peaceful (relative being the operative word), the response to the protests in Bahrain and Libya have been astoundingly ruthless. In Bahrain , the Army (comprising mostly non-Bahrainis in the rank and file) have fired live ammunition at protestors at funerals, refused to allow ambulances to pick up the wounded and even fired teargas and bullets into hospitals. There are extremely graphic photos of the dead and wounded which have been posted on Twitter by eyewitnesses.

In Libya , Gadaffi's army has used mercenaries from other African countries to shoot at their own people. When such governments feel the need to use foreign mercenaries to kill their own people, surely this means that they know they are not legitimate governments?

Meanwhile, the OIC and individual Muslim countries have been completely silent. Deathly silent. Could it be that they are shocked that people in these countries are actually demanding 'Western' things like freedom and rights? Could it be possible that the educated and the uneducated, the rich and the poor, the Muslim and the Christian and men and women are actually standing together and saying they want their 'leaders' out? That they actually want a say in how their lives are run? (Oh my, the Star actually published an article by an actual Egyptian today talking about how peaceful the protests were! Could it be that our vocabulary about protest is changing too?)

And predictably our ulama have nothing to say. Why, Al-Azhar University (where we have 6000 students) and the Grand Mufti of Egypt were discredited for supporting Mubarak. And then Yusof Al-Qaradawi, the exiled Islamic leader returns to lead prayers at Tahrir Square and says, well, pretty revolutionary things. (Except he still didn't say that women should be equal to men, even though women were very much part of the revolution...sigh..).

But our ulama remain silent. Instead they spend their time worrying about how Valentine's Day is going to rot our morals, instead of condemning Muslims who spill their own people's blood. I'm sorry but they don't hold any moral authority anymore to me.

Wael Ghonim speaks to the crowd at Tahrir Square after being released after 10 days by the police

Yup, today we have a new Arab. He (and she) is young, internet-savvy, demanding a say in how their countries are run. They want room for everyone, regardless of religion, gender, race or class. They want to speak, and to breathe. Is it any wonder that one of the initiators of the Egyptian revolution is a Google executive called Wael Ghonim? Or a young woman called Asmaa Mahfouz?

So now, do we follow the examples set by these Arabs, just as we so diligently followed before?

Newly-formed Thai airline recruits ‘Ladyboys’ as air hostesses

noreply@blogger.com (★) — Sat, 12 Feb 2011 16:29:00 +0000

A newly-formed Thai airline has recruited transsexuals as air hostesses, in a pioneering move it believes will be copied by other carriers.

PC Air, which has yet to take to the skies, selected three “Ladyboys” in its first round of hiring this week to promote equal opportunities for what is dubbed the “third sex” in Thailand.
Peter Chan, the new airline’s boss, is enthusiastic about his groundbreaking move because of the opportunities it would afford transsexuals.
“I think these people can have many careers – not just in the entertainment business – and many of them have a dream to be an air hostess,” he said. “I just made their dream come true. Our society has changed. It’s evolution. I’m a pioneer and I’m sure there will be other organisations following my idea.”

Full article here.

Mammoth Supply Company: Enormously sexist and homophobic

noreply@blogger.com (★) — Wed, 29 Dec 2010 18:04:00 +0000

I have to call you out on this - I'm sorry Mammoth, and a shame that you are a New Zealand company (this isn't Kiwi wit, c'mon!), but this is terribly sexist and homophobic. I'm a bloke and I don't see the humour in it.

( via )

The Orang Utan

noreply@blogger.com (★) — Tue, 30 Nov 2010 18:57:00 +0000

Whenever I'm at the Singapore Zoo, I get the most distracted and enchanted by the orang utan. Watching this video of the orang utan using tools, tying knots, rowing boats, washing themselves.. reminds me again & again how closely related we are.

Never forget that you are just a great ape.

I've since bookmarked this as my new favourite site: BBC Earth's Life Is

When Did YOU Choose to be Straight?

noreply@blogger.com (★) — Mon, 22 Nov 2010 08:57:00 +0000

Travis Nuckolls and Chris Baker take to the streets of Colorado Springs, asking strangers if they think being gay is a choice:

Stephen Hawking says universe not created by god

noreply@blogger.com (★) — Fri, 24 Sep 2010 03:31:00 +0000

"Because there is a law such as gravity, the universe can and will create itself from nothing," he writes. "Spontaneous creation is the reason there is something rather than nothing, why the universe exists, why we exist.
"It is not necessary to invoke God to light the blue touch paper and set the universe going."

Full article here.

In his latest book The Grand Design Hawking sets out to contest Sir Isaac Newton's belief that the universe could not have been created out of chaos.

Cookies are god's way of showing that he loves you

noreply@blogger.com (★) — Thu, 26 Aug 2010 06:12:00 +0000

( via ) <-- You should follow. She is beyond awesome.

The most extensive collection of Hitler emoticons ever.

noreply@blogger.com (★) — Tue, 10 Aug 2010 15:14:00 +0000

( via )