tasksource/blog_authorship_corpus · Datasets at Hugging Face

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589,736	male	35	Technology	Aries	05,August,2004	i also read the article about marriage and while i believe it is valid that we need to create and maintain relationships outside of our primary romantic one, there must be a reason why this desire for long-term bonding has consistently been a part of societal structures. also, what is wrong with wanting stability in an ever-changing world? yes, there are bad marriages that can ruin a person but in a healthy relationship where both people contribute,compromise, and share it can enhance your life tremendously.
589,736	male	35	Technology	Aries	05,August,2004	that was beautiful.
589,736	male	35	Technology	Aries	05,August,2004	if you would like to have a better understanding of how i view life and the world- and god knows i know you do - i would recommend that you read 'notes from underground' by fyodor dostoevsky.
589,736	male	35	Technology	Aries	05,August,2004	happy summer solstice everyone!
589,736	male	35	Technology	Aries	05,August,2004	maybe someone in this circle who has a scientific background can explain to me why toxic sludge is good for fish. http://www.washtimes.com/national/20020619-13558.htm
589,736	male	35	Technology	Aries	05,August,2004	a book for and about stupid people http://www.salon.com/books/review/2002/06/19/stupid/index.html
589,736	male	35	Technology	Aries	05,August,2004	i am indeed set on est - so i'm not screwing up the logs! ha, ha! earth years old? come on, man. don't you know that it's earth years young?
589,736	male	35	Technology	Aries	05,August,2004	circle: when you have a moment, please go into 'Team', click onto your name, and make sure you're set for the proper time zone. it defaults to PST, and this is screwing up the logs somewhat. also, feel free to badger members who have been invited, but have not joined. i'll respect the lurkers for now, but i encourage everyone to post every now and again, so that at least i know that you've figured out how. happy birthday to roger ebert, who turned 60 earth years old today.
589,736	male	35	Technology	Aries	05,August,2004	mmmm.... fake chicken patties.
589,736	male	35	Technology	Aries	05,August,2004	Clarification: I mean, laugh at how bad an actor what's his name is as 'I'm a pain in the ass adolescent' Anankin.
589,736	male	35	Technology	Aries	05,August,2004	Like the new graphics. You know, even though I never post, I read frequently. And by the way, 'Episode 2' is pretty entertaining once you can start laughing at Anakin and the nicey-nice, dull storyline. The books have always been delightful, anyways ... buy the paperbacks. Dork y'alls-selves up. Stay in and read on a rainy day. --Thanks; that's my sermon for the month.
589,736	male	35	Technology	Aries	05,August,2004	dog bite boy. dog hate boy. http://www.thedenverchannel.com/sh/news/stories/nat-news-150642220020611-090653.html
589,736	male	35	Technology	Aries	05,August,2004	isn't the universe just wild? http://www.cnn.com/2002/TECH/space/06/13/new.planets/index.html
589,736	male	35	Technology	Aries	05,August,2004	yah, man. john, are you going to actual web page or just the post and publish section? because on the actual web page (go to where it says view web page) - it is flaming - hell, it's raining men. (sorry, couldn't resist)
589,736	male	35	Technology	Aries	05,August,2004	Uh, Ben - I don't see anything different? Were you smoking something at 12:30 this morning?
589,736	male	35	Technology	Aries	05,August,2004	welcome to the flaming new circle of irony! thought i'd make it a little easier for everyone (all two of you) to read. let me know what you think...
589,736	male	35	Technology	Aries	05,August,2004	we can to either live our lives in love or in fear - we must remember that we choose our paths and it is not too late to change.
589,736	male	35	Technology	Aries	05,August,2004	do not ask for whom the bell tolls... http://www.salon.com/news/wire/2002/06/10/supremes/index.html
589,736	male	35	Technology	Aries	05,August,2004	found this in some old emails - thought it was funny - perhaps you will too.. http://www.salon.com/comics/boll/2000/03/16/boll/index.html
589,736	male	35	Technology	Aries	05,August,2004	a funny response to john's desire to play golf all the time.... http://www.salon.com/politics/comics/2002/06/07/climate/index.html
589,736	male	35	Technology	Aries	05,August,2004	oh come on john - how old are you? 33? by the way everyone, have you seen johnathan's play? if not, you are a bad friend and should whip yourself ..... or you can go see his play! not to ruin anything but he doesn't really break the stick.
589,736	male	35	Technology	Aries	05,August,2004	32, huh? Youngster ;) Why don't I support Kyoto? A) I still not accept that there is global warming. We have hard data going back about 100 years. Before that, the information is pieced together from journal entries and assumptions of temperatures and oxygen levels taken from ice cores. 100 years - longer than the average lifespan - is not even a tick on the cosmic clock. The Earth has seen at least one ice age that we know of. Climate changes in cycles. How do we know that if there is indeed global warming that we are the cause. We do not have enough data to state that with any kind of scientific certainty. (I define a scientific certainty as something that happens almost all the time - like gravity; hold an object over the edge a building and let go. 99.9999999999999% of the time it will fall down) B) Let's assume that there is global warming. The first time I recall that term being used, I was in 9th or 10th grade. At that point, the experts said that if we did not do anything, that the polar ice caps would melt within 20 years and that the oceans would rise 100 feet. You know what? That was 17-18 years ago. The last I knew, the Outer Banks are still there. Manhattan is still there. My point is, the have been predicting the apocolypse for nearly 20 years and it has not happened. Again, assuming that global warming is real. What effects will that have, and what will nature do to counter it? If carbon dioxide is the real culprit here, then nature already has a built in ability to fight it - plants and photosynthesis. An oft forgotten fact from your 10th grade biology class is that plants do indeed breath oxygen (as does any living organism). Of course, plants also absorb CO2 and light and convert that to glucose (I think) and oxygen. They release more oxygen than they use. If the temperatures get warmer, the growing season for plants will increase, allowing them more time to do their thing (not to mention increase food production). 'But John, we are cutting down forests and paving over farmland!'. That is so, but that is not what Kyoto addresses. I am for slower, more controled growth, with more green space requirements. C) I am an American. I like the culture and freedom we have. I like the prosperity of the country. Kyoto would severly damage that. By making us reduce our CO2 levels to below what they were 10 years ago, our economy would be wrecked. Yes, there may be an increase in some sectors (those that make the expensive new 'green' technology), but not enough to counter the industries that get destroyed by it (cars and manufacturing). Kyoto does not equitably place a burden on all countries. The US is by far the hardest hit by Kyoto's requirements. Who do you think runs the dirtiest power plants? The US with the EPA hawking ever molecule that comes out of a smokestck or some developing country with no environmental controls at all? Yet, who is forced to make the biggest changes? D) Again, assuming that there is global warming. I have not ever heard anyone discuss what effect the 6 billion humans have on this. We have to be putting out an awful lot of CO2. We have more than doubled the population of the Earth in the last 100 years. That has to have some direct effect as well as many secondary (like more need for resources and manufactured products) E) Because global warming would allow me to play golf all year long.
589,736	male	35	Technology	Aries	05,August,2004	well it looks like someone in the 'bureaucracy' as bush puts it, has some ethics and doesn't owe their job to the oil companies - watch the bush squirm http://www.salon.com/news/wire/2002/06/04/climate_change/index.html?x
589,736	male	35	Technology	Aries	05,August,2004	that is odd that the EPA would send out positions that are not supported by the whitehouse. also, why doesn't bush support the kyoto treaty but more importantly why doesn't john robinson support it?
589,736	male	35	Technology	Aries	05,August,2004	i suppose the question is then, john, at what price security? unlike you, i have never really had a well paying secure position. i've been too idealistic or lazy to really try to support myself and live at the level i would like. how many people do any of us know who do what they love, are truly happy with it, have successful relationships in love and friends, and are financially secure? is it possible? is it wrong to think that life is pointless if it can't be obtained? by ze way, i'm 32.
589,736	male	35	Technology	Aries	05,August,2004	Mir - I have no idea how old you are, but I think we are all seeing the effects of disatisfaction with our current lots in life. I don't know if it falls under the category of 'mid-life crisis', but it seems to be similar. To all those listed below, these are just my observations and are in no way intended to be judgemental. Me - Established in my career (11 years now); Secure in my position and qualifications within my company; Am tired of doing what I am doing and looking for a possible change into computer programming Mir - Not happy with her current lot in life and seeking a change, though aparently unsure of what the change should be. Johnnathan - Working to get by and meet his next goal of an advanced degree in literature; no desire to stay in his current career Scott - Looking at a change to Real Estate; burned out on IT Jimi - Going to school after his immediate post high school education plans fell through Ben - After years of seemingly aimless work, entered the 'mainstream' workforce So, of us 6 in RTG (with the exception of Neal, whom I have not known long enough to observe such details), 5 of us are actively or at least considering career changes. I think that maybe we have been seduced by the American dream where anybody can be sucessful if they find something they truely love. I could stay where I am now and provide for my familys needs for the next 30 years, But, will I be happy? Probably not. Is this a local phenomenon or a cultural event? It is strange that people less than 10 years into a career could be so burned out.
589,736	male	35	Technology	Aries	05,August,2004	Aparently, and I have no text to back this up, the report sent to the UN came from the EPA and not the White House - small but significant difference. President Bush has reaffirmed his opposition to Kyoto (phew). I am a little concerned that some lower level government official (Christine Todd Whitman at the highest) has the authority to send such a report, supposedly representing the view of the President, to the UN when the report does not agree with his opinion / policy. In other words - what the hell is going on in DC?
589,736	male	35	Technology	Aries	05,August,2004	it's amazing how many diversions and distractions we create for ourselves. for those of you at china panda last night (and for those of you who weren't - you should really try it - good vegan buffet, free soda and all under 8 bucks!) you may have overhead johnathan and i discussing basically my life and how incredibly fucked up it is. he had many good points and probably the best was dedicating myself to the now and not existing in the past and future. also, he made an excellent point about graduate school. what is the purpose in going since i don't particularly like to write and i don't know what i want to do with the degree? distraction and diversion. working full time and going to school full time, i won't have a moment to consider life once the heart and soul are dead. it hasbeen said that religion is the opiate for the masses. if so, then psychotherapy serves that role for the intellectuals. there is nothing better they like to do than to analyze things and vanity inevitably leads us back to the self. what a perfect arrangement and we pay for it. all distractions until the big tragedies, the few moments of wonder, and the shoulder twisting times of doubt and then we die. alone.
589,736	male	35	Technology	Aries	05,August,2004	john, don't get my hopes up like that. i actually gasped because i believed for a moment that the bush administration was going to recognize the environmental catastrophe we are currently creating. damn it. what does that mean, we can't do anything about it? of course, we can and there are people out there with proposals on how we could stop it. sigh.
589,736	male	35	Technology	Aries	05,August,2004	Mir, you must be slipping. I just heard that the Bush administration sent a report to the UN agreeing that global warming does exist and that humans are the likely cause for the warming. On the flipside, they say there is nothing we can do about it and proposes no changes in fuel consumption and other generally expressed ideas for combatting this. Talked about mixed signals.
589,736	male	35	Technology	Aries	05,August,2004	I agree Mir, the man should not be tried. They should have removed him from the speech site and barred him from reentry. I don't know what the background of the speech was (i.e. was it a polotical fund raiser or a paid speech), but decorum demanded that the man allow others to hear what Bush was saying. Once he broke that 'rule', he should have been removed, not arrested and charged with a crime.
589,736	male	35	Technology	Aries	05,August,2004	don't let anyone steal your sunshine silly. this is the only life we've got.
589,736	male	35	Technology	Aries	05,August,2004	yes, i'm pregnant! and it's humanity's child, damnit! humanity!
589,736	male	35	Technology	Aries	05,August,2004	OK mir, you seem to have a fetish for desserts. Yesterday it was muffins. Today it is peach pie....... Trying to tell us something? Hrmm? ;-)
589,736	male	35	Technology	Aries	05,August,2004	yes, yes, yes. everyone can edit their own posts. but let's not focus on that. let's focus on sweet, sweet peach pie....
589,736	male	35	Technology	Aries	05,August,2004	I can edit mine, too. I just found it infinitely more amusing to publicly correct myself, thus drawing more attention to how ridiculously underslept I am today (and was last night). Way to kill the joke, Ben.
589,736	male	35	Technology	Aries	05,August,2004	I can edit my previous posts.
589,736	male	35	Technology	Aries	05,August,2004	well, hello johnathan. well, hello johnathan. it's so nice to see you back where you belong. you're looking swell, johnathan - don't know the other lines johnathan.
589,736	male	35	Technology	Aries	05,August,2004	i love panda garden! yum!
589,736	male	35	Technology	Aries	05,August,2004	welcome JLS, at long last. amuse and confuse us with your creative wordplay and perilous pontifications. do you guys not have the ability to edit your posts? that may be a sysop only option, but i was just curious... eeba deeba deeba
589,736	male	35	Technology	Aries	05,August,2004	Johnathan - Welcome Angie - You might be close to the right wording. You could be sleep walking dreaming. ;-D Mir - Have not seen the movie yet. Cannot decide weather to risk it or not. Vin Diesel? He is no Sean Connery or Peirce Bronson.
589,736	male	35	Technology	Aries	05,August,2004	anybody have any opinions on the movie 'triple x'
589,736	male	35	Technology	Aries	05,August,2004	I think I meant WAKING dreams, but I can't be certain. I've GOT to modify my sleep pattern.
589,736	male	35	Technology	Aries	05,August,2004	niort
589,736	male	35	Technology	Aries	05,August,2004	eeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeep My man is here! does the happy Angie dance This sophmoric moment of love-inspired giddiness was brought to you by Angie's Sleep Deprivation, now with 25% more walking dreams! :)
589,736	male	35	Technology	Aries	05,August,2004	now i am here and i expect my life to change. ............ still waiting..... ............
589,736	male	35	Technology	Aries	05,August,2004	ben, i can only imagine the pain you're going through now but let me say, and i think i speak for the whole group, when i say the pain will pass with time, my friend. try to hang on. ' Benji' trainer Frank Inn dies in California
589,736	male	35	Technology	Aries	05,August,2004	WAKE UP!!!
589,736	male	35	Technology	Aries	05,August,2004	so seepy.... must wake up... help.... zzzzzzzzzzzzz
589,736	male	35	Technology	Aries	05,August,2004	The moral is do not talk to Muffin Trees. :-)
589,736	male	35	Technology	Aries	05,August,2004	Thanks! For posting that article, Mir. That is ..... I just cannot find the words. Why is this happening at this time. This is a throw back to the sixtys where something like this could and did happen. There is no sense for it today.
589,736	male	35	Technology	Aries	05,August,2004	this is too funny... must share www.muffinfilms.com
589,736	male	35	Technology	Aries	05,August,2004	Kafka in Tulia By BOB HERBERT ulia is a hot, dusty town of 5,000 on the Texas Panhandle, about 50 miles south of Amarillo. For some, it's a frightening place, slow and bigoted and bizarre. Kafka could have had a field day with Tulia. On the morning of July 23, 1999, law enforcement officers fanned out and arrested more than 10 percent of Tulia's tiny African-American population. Also arrested were a handful of whites who had relationships with blacks. The humiliating roundup was intensely covered by the local media, which had been tipped off in advance. Men and women, bewildered and unkempt, were paraded before TV cameras and featured prominently on the evening news. They were drug traffickers, one and all, said the sheriff, a not particularly bright Tulia bulb named Larry Stewart. Among the 46 so-called traffickers were a pig farmer, a forklift operator and a number of ordinary young women with children. If these were major cocaine dealers, as alleged, they were among the oddest in the U.S. None of them had any money to speak of. And when they were arrested, they didn't have any cocaine. No drugs, money or weapons were recovered during the surprise roundup. Most of Tulia's white residents applauded the arrests, and the local newspapers were all but giddy with their editorial approval. The first convictions came quickly, and the sentences left the town's black residents aghast. One of the few white defendants, a man who happened to have a mixed-race child, was sentenced to more than 300 years in prison. The hog farmer, a black man in his late 50's named Joe Moore, was sentenced to 90 years. Kareem White, a 24-year-old black man, was sentenced to 60 years. And so on. When the defendants awaiting trial saw this extreme sentencing trend, they began scrambling to plead guilty in exchange for lighter sentences. These ranged from 18 years in prison to, in some case, just probation. It is not an overstatement to describe the arrests in Tulia as an atrocity. The entire operation was the work of a single police officer who claimed to have conducted an 18-month undercover operation. The arrests were made solely on the word of this officer, Tom Coleman, a white man with a wretched work history, who routinely referred to black people as 'niggers' and who frequently found himself in trouble with the law. Mr. Coleman's alleged undercover operation was ridiculous. There were no other police officers to corroborate his activities. He did not wear a wire or conduct any video surveillance. And he did not keep detailed records of his alleged drug buys. He said he sometimes wrote such important information as the names of suspects and the dates of transactions on his leg. In trial after trial, prosecutors put Mr. Coleman on the witness stand and his uncorroborated, unsubstantiated testimony was enough to send people to prison for decades. In some instances, lawyers have been able to show that there was no basis in fact none at all for Mr. Coleman's allegations, that they came from some realm other than reality. He said, for example, that he had purchased drugs from a woman named Tonya White, and she was duly charged. But last April the charges had to be dropped when Ms. White's lawyers proved that she had cashed a check in Oklahoma City at the time that she was supposed to have been selling drugs to Mr. Coleman in Tulia. Another defendant, Billy Don Wafer, was able to prove through employee time sheets and his boss's testimony that he was working at the time he was alleged by Mr. Coleman to have been selling cocaine. And the local district attorney, Terry McEachern, had to dismiss the case against a man named Yul Bryant after it was learned that Mr. Coleman had described him as a tall black man with bushy hair. Mr. Bryant was 5-foot-6 and bald. In a just world, this case would be no more than a spoof on 'Saturday Night Live.' Instead it's a tragedy with no remedy in sight. The NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund, the William Moses Kunstler Fund for Racial Justice, the Tulia Legal Defense Project and a number of private law firms are trying to mount an effort to free the men and women imprisoned in this fiasco. The idea that people could be rounded up and sent away for what are effectively lifetime terms solely on the word of a police officer like Tom Coleman is insane.
589,736	male	35	Technology	Aries	05,August,2004	Mir - Post the article. The site requires a log on. Thanks!!
589,736	male	35	Technology	Aries	05,August,2004	good ole texas http://www.nytimes.com/2002/07/29/opinion/29HERB.html
589,736	male	35	Technology	Aries	05,August,2004	A look at a Saturday game of Road to Glory. urlLink Dork Tower
589,736	male	35	Technology	Aries	05,August,2004	blush I'm such a terrible influence. I just want to drag you down with me! Muuhaahaahaa! Since you made me eat it in Risk, silly monkey. Bailed me out, then took me out. Damn. :) Much fun tonight, lady and gents. Looking forward to seeing you all again soon...
589,736	male	35	Technology	Aries	05,August,2004	okay, as you may have noticed - i did not quit smoking but today is another day, my friends. starting this very moment - i will stop smoking tobacco. yeah.
589,736	male	35	Technology	Aries	05,August,2004	Congratulations, John & brood. And now, for your collective gustatory pleasures: Andalusian Gazpacho - serves 4 1 piece baguette, 2' long, crust discarded 2 cloves garlic 2 teaspoons salt 2 teaspoons sherry vinegar, or to taste 1 teaspoon sugar 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin, optional 2-1/2 lbs ripe tomatoes, cored & quartered 1/2 cup mild extra-virgin olive oil garnish: finely chopped red & green bell peppers Soak bread in 1/2 cup water 1 minute, then squeeze dry & discard water. Mince garlic & mash to a paste with salt using flat side of large knife. Blend garlic paste, bread, vinegar, sugar, cumin & half of tomatoes in food processor until tomatoes are very finely chopped. Add remaining tomatoes with motor running &, when very finely chopped, gradually add oil in slow stream, blending until as smooth as possible, about 1 minute. Force soup through a seive into a bowl, pressing firmly on solids. Discard solids. Chill until cold, about 3 hours. Season with salt & vinegar before serving in bowls or glasses. Can be chilled up to 2 days. Eat you up some Hanover tomatoes for poor little old homesick me. There are no good tomatoes grown by these damned Yankees.
589,736	male	35	Technology	Aries	05,August,2004	I was over my brother's house changing the oil in my car. I learned that Nissan to use a small size oil filter that my brother's oil clamp would not grip. They also like to hide the oil filter in a place where there no grip. It is amazing how tight the filter gets. I was pounding on it to loosen it to no avail. Finally my I asked my brother for a large grip wrench. He had none. Though he came up with the next best thing. A monkey wrench. At first I did not think this would work do the tight space, but sure enough my older brother's tenacity prevailed and he saved the day and got the oil filter off. Now one might ask why I not just take it to a Jiffy Lube. Well, they screwed me the last time and I feel better about doing it myself. So the lesson I learned to day is to have the correct tools for my car to change the oil. And now I think I will go clean up. Thanks for 'listening'.
589,736	male	35	Technology	Aries	05,August,2004	congratulations, annakin! i mean, john... heh...
589,736	male	35	Technology	Aries	05,August,2004	I've always been fond of 'Shootin' at the walls of heartache, bang bang...I am the warrior.'
589,736	male	35	Technology	Aries	05,August,2004	or another song to contemplate 'i'm not lisa. my name is julie. lisa left you many years ago. my eyes are not blue but i still love you.'
589,736	male	35	Technology	Aries	05,August,2004	i think since it's friday afternoon and a fairly dreary day we should try to recall the wisdom of hall and oates 'i can't go for that. no. no. no can do.'
589,736	male	35	Technology	Aries	05,August,2004	wow! that's great news john!
589,736	male	35	Technology	Aries	05,August,2004	CONGRADULATIONS JOHN!
589,736	male	35	Technology	Aries	05,August,2004	My wife and I went to see her doctor this morning. She is pregnant. That was not a surprise. What was surprising was finding out that we are having twins. Time to rearrange the house again!
589,736	male	35	Technology	Aries	05,August,2004	well... maybe ... tie me up? oh forget it. :)
589,736	male	35	Technology	Aries	05,August,2004	Um yeah... Mir We will tie you up if you start acting like that. ;-)
589,736	male	35	Technology	Aries	05,August,2004	thanks alot ben.
589,736	male	35	Technology	Aries	05,August,2004	urlLink http://www.angryflower.com/keepsm.gif
589,736	male	35	Technology	Aries	05,August,2004	Good going. May the Force be with you.
589,736	male	35	Technology	Aries	05,August,2004	still cigarette free. determined to beat it this time.
589,736	male	35	Technology	Aries	05,August,2004	Now it is the next day. How are you doing Mir?
589,736	male	35	Technology	Aries	05,August,2004	almost 8 hours and no cigarettes! yipee.
589,736	male	35	Technology	Aries	05,August,2004	thanks neal!
589,736	male	35	Technology	Aries	05,August,2004	You have my support on quiting smoking. Habits are hard to change. I wish you well in your attempt and may it be successful.
589,736	male	35	Technology	Aries	05,August,2004	ah ha! you are too crafty for me angie! and yeah, that is kinda sick but extremely funny..
589,736	male	35	Technology	Aries	05,August,2004	Click on the word 'this'
589,736	male	35	Technology	Aries	05,August,2004	oh wow, that' s really sad about his dad. today, i have quit smoking - i have smoked my last cigarette! and i may be grouchy for a while you lousy sons of bitches but i'm sure i have your support.
589,736	male	35	Technology	Aries	05,August,2004	what this angie? i don't see any link.
589,736	male	35	Technology	Aries	05,August,2004	University of Connecticut physics professor Ronald Mallett, 57, said in April that after years of study, he hopes to begin experiments this year leading to genuine time travel, involving probably no more than a neutron or two at first but laying the groundwork for transporting larger objects. Mallett believes his theory is solid (straight from Einstein's Theory of Relativity), but that amassing the amount of energy necessary even to move small objects may be impossible with current knowledge. Mallett said he's been thinking about time travel since age 10, when his father died, because he wanted to go back in time to warn his dad of the dangers of smoking. [Boston Globe, 4-5-02] urlLink - news of the weird
589,736	male	35	Technology	Aries	05,August,2004	Check urlLink this out. It's terrible, but terribly amusing. Or maybe I'm just cruel or something. :)
589,736	male	35	Technology	Aries	05,August,2004	Well, Not depress but not happy about the way they are taking all this homeland security. Can we say police state.
589,736	male	35	Technology	Aries	05,August,2004	if you're not depressed already... urlLink http://www.aclu.org/congress/l110101a.html
589,736	male	35	Technology	Aries	05,August,2004	(CNN) -- An adventure company that books $20 million trips to the international space station and an engineering firm that designs experimental rockets have teamed up to offer $98,000 flights into space. http://www.cnn.com/2002/TECH/space/07/24/cheap.rocket/index.html Who wants to go to space? Any takers?
589,736	male	35	Technology	Aries	05,August,2004	LONDON (AP) -- Astronomers are carefully monitoring a newly discovered 1.2-mile-wide (2 km) asteroid to see whether it is on a collision course with Earth. http://www.cnn.com/2002/TECH/space/07/24/asteroid.encounter.ap/index.html
589,736	male	35	Technology	Aries	05,August,2004	That gives a whole new meaning to Death by Chocolate.
589,736	male	35	Technology	Aries	05,August,2004	Yeah, but what a way to go.. :)
589,736	male	35	Technology	Aries	05,August,2004	willy wonka he is not. http://www.salon.com/news/wire/2002/07/24/chocolate/index.html
589,736	male	35	Technology	Aries	05,August,2004	can you get yogi's and boo-boo's autograph for me while you're in yellowstone?
589,736	male	35	Technology	Aries	05,August,2004	can you hear me now? good. Bell South telemarketer Maria del Pilar Basto became a hero, calling Leonardo Diaz to sell him more minutes for his out-of-minutes wireless phone, and happening to reach him as he was trapped in a blizzard in the Andes Mountains and had almost given up hope of being rescued (Bogota, Colombia). http://www.newsoftheweird.com/archive/index.html
589,736	male	35	Technology	Aries	05,August,2004	blush Sorry the movie was so tedious. I enjoyed discussing cultural relativism, though, once I figured out what the hell it was. :)
589,736	male	35	Technology	Aries	05,August,2004	i tell you what people - the circle of irony is filled with amazing and interesting folk.. don't let anyone tell you otherwise. yessiree. anycow, last night i had a splendid time at the house of a member of the circle of irony and would recommend to others that you too explore your friendships and broaden your horizons. love is in the air, my friends!
589,736	male	35	Technology	Aries	05,August,2004	thank you for your response, tree. we could all learn from your example! this is only a small part of following my path, but in my own life, here's mine - i'm making another foray to yellowstone, albeit a brief one, in august. faerieland eluded me once. it will not do so this time. perhaps the call i'm hearing is merely symbolic of my own arrogance, vanity, or romanticism of points West... regardless, i have a deep need to complete this particular journey, if for no other reason than to return with photographs of this semi-mythical place, to prove to the world of its existence and beauty. anyway. that's my two cents. on a completely different note, i got the position / promotion i applied for with Wachovia. woo hoo
589,736	male	35	Technology	Aries	05,August,2004	quack.
589,736	male	35	Technology	Aries	05,August,2004	Thanks for the encouraging words and advice! I know what I love to do, and that in and of itself is a step in the right direction. It's just not an easy field to break into, so I feel like I'm paddling upstream sometimes. But I keep going, 'cause I don't have any choice but to do so. To give up would not be in keeping with my character. I may be frustrated and cry and scream and get angry and think the world unjust, but I collect myself and keep trying, 'cause that's me. :) I'll be fine, trust me. I was just having a college student moment of self-doubt-induced panic. :)
589,736	male	35	Technology	Aries	05,August,2004	Hi, y'all. Just read the postings from the 21st & have to say thanks for the props, and (after 'Nice to meet you, Angie lass') DO WHAT YOU LOVE OR LOVE WHAT YOU DO. It took me five years in Richmond, miserable and aimless, aware of something missing that I could never identify, to get where I am. Think on it now. You may still have plenty of time, but it will fly by. Decide what you want and go get it, girl. I know that you can do it. It's smart to have a fall-back field, but unless you make your dreams a priority they'll become your second choice. So don't forget the training for your chosen path (as well as the practical path), and start laying plans now to meet your goals. And Mir, I don't know CUNY law school but I do have a friend in Columbia law school (an NYU master's in poetry who's becoming a lawyer to please his traditional Chinese parents). But enough about subverted intentions.
589,736	male	35	Technology	Aries	05,August,2004	topic of discussion - how has post modern philosophy destroyed culture, the arts and society? or has it?
589,736	male	35	Technology	Aries	05,August,2004	I have mixed feelings about the death penalty. There's the part of me that says if it were MY family member/spouse/lover/friend murdered so horribly, I would want swift, brutal, American-style justice. But I don't really believe that. I don't feel that I, as a human with such limited understanding of the nature of life and existence, have the power or right to decide who lives and who dies - nor do I WANT that responsibility. A friend of mine related a story to me once. One teenaged boy had been killed by another, intentionally and doubtlessly. The state was attempting to get the death penalty, but the mother of the victim fought against it, saying, 'Why should two mothers have to lose their sons?' Food for thought. Speaking of which, I'm REALLY hungry...

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i also read the article about marriage and while i believe it is valid that we need to create and maintain relationships outside of our primary romantic one, there must be a reason why this desire for long-term bonding has consistently been a part of societal structures. also, what is wrong with wanting stability in an ever-changing world? yes, there are bad marriages that can ruin a person but in a healthy relationship where both people contribute,compromise, and share it can enhance your life tremendously.

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that was beautiful.

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05,August,2004

if you would like to have a better understanding of how i view life and the world- and god knows i know you do - i would recommend that you read 'notes from underground' by fyodor dostoevsky.

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05,August,2004

happy summer solstice everyone!

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05,August,2004

maybe someone in this circle who has a scientific background can explain to me why toxic sludge is good for fish. http://www.washtimes.com/national/20020619-13558.htm

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05,August,2004

a book for and about stupid people http://www.salon.com/books/review/2002/06/19/stupid/index.html

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05,August,2004

i am indeed set on est - so i'm not screwing up the logs! ha, ha! earth years old? come on, man. don't you know that it's earth years young?

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circle: when you have a moment, please go into 'Team', click onto your name, and make sure you're set for the proper time zone. it defaults to PST, and this is screwing up the logs somewhat. also, feel free to badger members who have been invited, but have not joined. i'll respect the lurkers for now, but i encourage everyone to post every now and again, so that at least i know that you've figured out how. happy birthday to roger ebert, who turned 60 earth years old today.

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05,August,2004

mmmm.... fake chicken patties.

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05,August,2004

Clarification: I mean, laugh at how bad an actor what's his name is as 'I'm a pain in the ass adolescent' Anankin.

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Like the new graphics. You know, even though I never post, I read frequently. And by the way, 'Episode 2' is pretty entertaining once you can start laughing at Anakin and the nicey-nice, dull storyline. The books have always been delightful, anyways ... buy the paperbacks. Dork y'alls-selves up. Stay in and read on a rainy day. --Thanks; that's my sermon for the month.

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dog bite boy. dog hate boy. http://www.thedenverchannel.com/sh/news/stories/nat-news-150642220020611-090653.html

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05,August,2004

isn't the universe just wild? http://www.cnn.com/2002/TECH/space/06/13/new.planets/index.html

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05,August,2004

yah, man. john, are you going to actual web page or just the post and publish section? because on the actual web page (go to where it says view web page) - it is flaming - hell, it's raining men. (sorry, couldn't resist)

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05,August,2004

Uh, Ben - I don't see anything different? Were you smoking something at 12:30 this morning?

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welcome to the flaming new circle of irony! thought i'd make it a little easier for everyone (all two of you) to read. let me know what you think...

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05,August,2004

we can to either live our lives in love or in fear - we must remember that we choose our paths and it is not too late to change.

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05,August,2004

do not ask for whom the bell tolls... http://www.salon.com/news/wire/2002/06/10/supremes/index.html

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found this in some old emails - thought it was funny - perhaps you will too.. http://www.salon.com/comics/boll/2000/03/16/boll/index.html

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a funny response to john's desire to play golf all the time.... http://www.salon.com/politics/comics/2002/06/07/climate/index.html

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05,August,2004

oh come on john - how old are you? 33? by the way everyone, have you seen johnathan's play? if not, you are a bad friend and should whip yourself ..... or you can go see his play! not to ruin anything but he doesn't really break the stick.

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32, huh? Youngster ;) Why don't I support Kyoto? A) I still not accept that there is global warming. We have hard data going back about 100 years. Before that, the information is pieced together from journal entries and assumptions of temperatures and oxygen levels taken from ice cores. 100 years - longer than the average lifespan - is not even a tick on the cosmic clock. The Earth has seen at least one ice age that we know of. Climate changes in cycles. How do we know that if there is indeed global warming that we are the cause. We do not have enough data to state that with any kind of scientific certainty. (I define a scientific certainty as something that happens almost all the time - like gravity; hold an object over the edge a building and let go. 99.9999999999999% of the time it will fall down) B) Let's assume that there is global warming. The first time I recall that term being used, I was in 9th or 10th grade. At that point, the experts said that if we did not do anything, that the polar ice caps would melt within 20 years and that the oceans would rise 100 feet. You know what? That was 17-18 years ago. The last I knew, the Outer Banks are still there. Manhattan is still there. My point is, the have been predicting the apocolypse for nearly 20 years and it has not happened. Again, assuming that global warming is real. What effects will that have, and what will nature do to counter it? If carbon dioxide is the real culprit here, then nature already has a built in ability to fight it - plants and photosynthesis. An oft forgotten fact from your 10th grade biology class is that plants do indeed breath oxygen (as does any living organism). Of course, plants also absorb CO2 and light and convert that to glucose (I think) and oxygen. They release more oxygen than they use. If the temperatures get warmer, the growing season for plants will increase, allowing them more time to do their thing (not to mention increase food production). 'But John, we are cutting down forests and paving over farmland!'. That is so, but that is not what Kyoto addresses. I am for slower, more controled growth, with more green space requirements. C) I am an American. I like the culture and freedom we have. I like the prosperity of the country. Kyoto would severly damage that. By making us reduce our CO2 levels to below what they were 10 years ago, our economy would be wrecked. Yes, there may be an increase in some sectors (those that make the expensive new 'green' technology), but not enough to counter the industries that get destroyed by it (cars and manufacturing). Kyoto does not equitably place a burden on all countries. The US is by far the hardest hit by Kyoto's requirements. Who do you think runs the dirtiest power plants? The US with the EPA hawking ever molecule that comes out of a smokestck or some developing country with no environmental controls at all? Yet, who is forced to make the biggest changes? D) Again, assuming that there is global warming. I have not ever heard anyone discuss what effect the 6 billion humans have on this. We have to be putting out an awful lot of CO2. We have more than doubled the population of the Earth in the last 100 years. That has to have some direct effect as well as many secondary (like more need for resources and manufactured products) E) Because global warming would allow me to play golf all year long.

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well it looks like someone in the 'bureaucracy' as bush puts it, has some ethics and doesn't owe their job to the oil companies - watch the bush squirm http://www.salon.com/news/wire/2002/06/04/climate_change/index.html?x

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05,August,2004

that is odd that the EPA would send out positions that are not supported by the whitehouse. also, why doesn't bush support the kyoto treaty but more importantly why doesn't john robinson support it?

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05,August,2004

i suppose the question is then, john, at what price security? unlike you, i have never really had a well paying secure position. i've been too idealistic or lazy to really try to support myself and live at the level i would like. how many people do any of us know who do what they love, are truly happy with it, have successful relationships in love and friends, and are financially secure? is it possible? is it wrong to think that life is pointless if it can't be obtained? by ze way, i'm 32.

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Mir - I have no idea how old you are, but I think we are all seeing the effects of disatisfaction with our current lots in life. I don't know if it falls under the category of 'mid-life crisis', but it seems to be similar. To all those listed below, these are just my observations and are in no way intended to be judgemental. Me - Established in my career (11 years now); Secure in my position and qualifications within my company; Am tired of doing what I am doing and looking for a possible change into computer programming Mir - Not happy with her current lot in life and seeking a change, though aparently unsure of what the change should be. Johnnathan - Working to get by and meet his next goal of an advanced degree in literature; no desire to stay in his current career Scott - Looking at a change to Real Estate; burned out on IT Jimi - Going to school after his immediate post high school education plans fell through Ben - After years of seemingly aimless work, entered the 'mainstream' workforce So, of us 6 in RTG (with the exception of Neal, whom I have not known long enough to observe such details), 5 of us are actively or at least considering career changes. I think that maybe we have been seduced by the American dream where anybody can be sucessful if they find something they truely love. I could stay where I am now and provide for my familys needs for the next 30 years, But, will I be happy? Probably not. Is this a local phenomenon or a cultural event? It is strange that people less than 10 years into a career could be so burned out.

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Aparently, and I have no text to back this up, the report sent to the UN came from the EPA and not the White House - small but significant difference. President Bush has reaffirmed his opposition to Kyoto (phew). I am a little concerned that some lower level government official (Christine Todd Whitman at the highest) has the authority to send such a report, supposedly representing the view of the President, to the UN when the report does not agree with his opinion / policy. In other words - what the hell is going on in DC?

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it's amazing how many diversions and distractions we create for ourselves. for those of you at china panda last night (and for those of you who weren't - you should really try it - good vegan buffet, free soda and all under 8 bucks!) you may have overhead johnathan and i discussing basically my life and how incredibly fucked up it is. he had many good points and probably the best was dedicating myself to the now and not existing in the past and future. also, he made an excellent point about graduate school. what is the purpose in going since i don't particularly like to write and i don't know what i want to do with the degree? distraction and diversion. working full time and going to school full time, i won't have a moment to consider life once the heart and soul are dead. it hasbeen said that religion is the opiate for the masses. if so, then psychotherapy serves that role for the intellectuals. there is nothing better they like to do than to analyze things and vanity inevitably leads us back to the self. what a perfect arrangement and we pay for it. all distractions until the big tragedies, the few moments of wonder, and the shoulder twisting times of doubt and then we die. alone.

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05,August,2004

john, don't get my hopes up like that. i actually gasped because i believed for a moment that the bush administration was going to recognize the environmental catastrophe we are currently creating. damn it. what does that mean, we can't do anything about it? of course, we can and there are people out there with proposals on how we could stop it. sigh.

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Mir, you must be slipping. I just heard that the Bush administration sent a report to the UN agreeing that global warming does exist and that humans are the likely cause for the warming. On the flipside, they say there is nothing we can do about it and proposes no changes in fuel consumption and other generally expressed ideas for combatting this. Talked about mixed signals.

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I agree Mir, the man should not be tried. They should have removed him from the speech site and barred him from reentry. I don't know what the background of the speech was (i.e. was it a polotical fund raiser or a paid speech), but decorum demanded that the man allow others to hear what Bush was saying. Once he broke that 'rule', he should have been removed, not arrested and charged with a crime.

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05,August,2004

don't let anyone steal your sunshine silly. this is the only life we've got.

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05,August,2004

yes, i'm pregnant! and it's humanity's child, damnit! humanity!

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05,August,2004

OK mir, you seem to have a fetish for desserts. Yesterday it was muffins. Today it is peach pie....... Trying to tell us something? Hrmm? ;-)

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05,August,2004

yes, yes, yes. everyone can edit their own posts. but let's not focus on that. let's focus on sweet, sweet peach pie....

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I can edit mine, too. I just found it infinitely more amusing to publicly correct myself, thus drawing more attention to how ridiculously underslept I am today (and was last night). Way to kill the joke, Ben.

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05,August,2004

I can edit my previous posts.

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well, hello johnathan. well, hello johnathan. it's so nice to see you back where you belong. you're looking swell, johnathan - don't know the other lines johnathan.

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05,August,2004

i love panda garden! yum!

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welcome JLS, at long last. amuse and confuse us with your creative wordplay and perilous pontifications. do you guys not have the ability to edit your posts? that may be a sysop only option, but i was just curious... eeba deeba deeba

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Johnathan - Welcome Angie - You might be close to the right wording. You could be sleep walking dreaming. ;-D Mir - Have not seen the movie yet. Cannot decide weather to risk it or not. Vin Diesel? He is no Sean Connery or Peirce Bronson.

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05,August,2004

anybody have any opinions on the movie 'triple x'

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05,August,2004

I think I meant WAKING dreams, but I can't be certain. I've GOT to modify my sleep pattern.

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05,August,2004

niort

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*eeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeep* My man is here! *does the happy Angie dance* This sophmoric moment of love-inspired giddiness was brought to you by Angie's Sleep Deprivation, now with 25% more walking dreams! :)

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05,August,2004

now i am here and i expect my life to change. ............ still waiting..... ............

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ben, i can only imagine the pain you're going through now but let me say, and i think i speak for the whole group, when i say the pain will pass with time, my friend. try to hang on. ' Benji' trainer Frank Inn dies in California

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WAKE UP!!!

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05,August,2004

so seepy.... must wake up... help.... zzzzzzzzzzzzz

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05,August,2004

The moral is do not talk to Muffin Trees. :-)

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05,August,2004

Thanks! For posting that article, Mir. That is ..... I just cannot find the words. Why is this happening at this time. This is a throw back to the sixtys where something like this could and did happen. There is no sense for it today.

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05,August,2004

this is too funny... must share www.muffinfilms.com

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Kafka in Tulia By BOB HERBERT ulia is a hot, dusty town of 5,000 on the Texas Panhandle, about 50 miles south of Amarillo. For some, it's a frightening place, slow and bigoted and bizarre. Kafka could have had a field day with Tulia. On the morning of July 23, 1999, law enforcement officers fanned out and arrested more than 10 percent of Tulia's tiny African-American population. Also arrested were a handful of whites who had relationships with blacks. The humiliating roundup was intensely covered by the local media, which had been tipped off in advance. Men and women, bewildered and unkempt, were paraded before TV cameras and featured prominently on the evening news. They were drug traffickers, one and all, said the sheriff, a not particularly bright Tulia bulb named Larry Stewart. Among the 46 so-called traffickers were a pig farmer, a forklift operator and a number of ordinary young women with children. If these were major cocaine dealers, as alleged, they were among the oddest in the U.S. None of them had any money to speak of. And when they were arrested, they didn't have any cocaine. No drugs, money or weapons were recovered during the surprise roundup. Most of Tulia's white residents applauded the arrests, and the local newspapers were all but giddy with their editorial approval. The first convictions came quickly, and the sentences left the town's black residents aghast. One of the few white defendants, a man who happened to have a mixed-race child, was sentenced to more than 300 years in prison. The hog farmer, a black man in his late 50's named Joe Moore, was sentenced to 90 years. Kareem White, a 24-year-old black man, was sentenced to 60 years. And so on. When the defendants awaiting trial saw this extreme sentencing trend, they began scrambling to plead guilty in exchange for lighter sentences. These ranged from 18 years in prison to, in some case, just probation. It is not an overstatement to describe the arrests in Tulia as an atrocity. The entire operation was the work of a single police officer who claimed to have conducted an 18-month undercover operation. The arrests were made solely on the word of this officer, Tom Coleman, a white man with a wretched work history, who routinely referred to black people as 'niggers' and who frequently found himself in trouble with the law. Mr. Coleman's alleged undercover operation was ridiculous. There were no other police officers to corroborate his activities. He did not wear a wire or conduct any video surveillance. And he did not keep detailed records of his alleged drug buys. He said he sometimes wrote such important information as the names of suspects and the dates of transactions on his leg. In trial after trial, prosecutors put Mr. Coleman on the witness stand and his uncorroborated, unsubstantiated testimony was enough to send people to prison for decades. In some instances, lawyers have been able to show that there was no basis in fact none at all for Mr. Coleman's allegations, that they came from some realm other than reality. He said, for example, that he had purchased drugs from a woman named Tonya White, and she was duly charged. But last April the charges had to be dropped when Ms. White's lawyers proved that she had cashed a check in Oklahoma City at the time that she was supposed to have been selling drugs to Mr. Coleman in Tulia. Another defendant, Billy Don Wafer, was able to prove through employee time sheets and his boss's testimony that he was working at the time he was alleged by Mr. Coleman to have been selling cocaine. And the local district attorney, Terry McEachern, had to dismiss the case against a man named Yul Bryant after it was learned that Mr. Coleman had described him as a tall black man with bushy hair. Mr. Bryant was 5-foot-6 and bald. In a just world, this case would be no more than a spoof on 'Saturday Night Live.' Instead it's a tragedy with no remedy in sight. The NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund, the William Moses Kunstler Fund for Racial Justice, the Tulia Legal Defense Project and a number of private law firms are trying to mount an effort to free the men and women imprisoned in this fiasco. The idea that people could be rounded up and sent away for what are effectively lifetime terms solely on the word of a police officer like Tom Coleman is insane.

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Mir - Post the article. The site requires a log on. Thanks!!

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good ole texas http://www.nytimes.com/2002/07/29/opinion/29HERB.html

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05,August,2004

A look at a Saturday game of Road to Glory. urlLink Dork Tower

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*blush* I'm such a terrible influence. I just want to drag you down with me! Muuhaahaahaa! Since you made me eat it in Risk, silly monkey. Bailed me out, then took me out. Damn. :) Much fun tonight, lady and gents. Looking forward to seeing you all again soon...

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okay, as you may have noticed - i did not quit smoking but today is another day, my friends. starting this very moment - i will stop smoking tobacco. yeah.

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Congratulations, John & brood. And now, for your collective gustatory pleasures: Andalusian Gazpacho - serves 4 1 piece baguette, 2' long, crust discarded 2 cloves garlic 2 teaspoons salt 2 teaspoons sherry vinegar, or to taste 1 teaspoon sugar 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin, optional 2-1/2 lbs ripe tomatoes, cored & quartered 1/2 cup mild extra-virgin olive oil garnish: finely chopped red & green bell peppers Soak bread in 1/2 cup water 1 minute, then squeeze dry & discard water. Mince garlic & mash to a paste with salt using flat side of large knife. Blend garlic paste, bread, vinegar, sugar, cumin & half of tomatoes in food processor until tomatoes are very finely chopped. Add remaining tomatoes with motor running &, when very finely chopped, gradually add oil in slow stream, blending until as smooth as possible, about 1 minute. Force soup through a seive into a bowl, pressing firmly on solids. Discard solids. Chill until cold, about 3 hours. Season with salt & vinegar before serving in bowls or glasses. Can be chilled up to 2 days. Eat you up some Hanover tomatoes for poor little old homesick me. There are no good tomatoes grown by these damned Yankees.

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I was over my brother's house changing the oil in my car. I learned that Nissan to use a small size oil filter that my brother's oil clamp would not grip. They also like to hide the oil filter in a place where there no grip. It is amazing how tight the filter gets. I was pounding on it to loosen it to no avail. Finally my I asked my brother for a large grip wrench. He had none. Though he came up with the next best thing. A monkey wrench. At first I did not think this would work do the tight space, but sure enough my older brother's tenacity prevailed and he saved the day and got the oil filter off. Now one might ask why I not just take it to a Jiffy Lube. Well, they screwed me the last time and I feel better about doing it myself. So the lesson I learned to day is to have the correct tools for my car to change the oil. And now I think I will go clean up. Thanks for 'listening'.

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congratulations, annakin! i mean, john... heh...

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I've always been fond of 'Shootin' at the walls of heartache, bang bang...I am the warrior.'

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05,August,2004

or another song to contemplate 'i'm not lisa. my name is julie. lisa left you many years ago. my eyes are not blue but i still love you.'

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05,August,2004

i think since it's friday afternoon and a fairly dreary day we should try to recall the wisdom of hall and oates 'i can't go for that. no. no. no can do.'

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05,August,2004

wow! that's great news john!

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05,August,2004

CONGRADULATIONS JOHN!

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05,August,2004

My wife and I went to see her doctor this morning. She is pregnant. That was not a surprise. What was surprising was finding out that we are having twins. Time to rearrange the house again!

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05,August,2004

well... maybe ... tie me up? oh forget it. :)

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05,August,2004

Um yeah... Mir We will tie you up if you start acting like that. ;-)

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05,August,2004

thanks alot ben.

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05,August,2004

urlLink http://www.angryflower.com/keepsm.gif

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05,August,2004

Good going. May the Force be with you.

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05,August,2004

still cigarette free. determined to beat it this time.

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05,August,2004

Now it is the next day. How are you doing Mir?

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05,August,2004

almost 8 hours and no cigarettes! yipee.

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05,August,2004

thanks neal!

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05,August,2004

You have my support on quiting smoking. Habits are hard to change. I wish you well in your attempt and may it be successful.

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05,August,2004

ah ha! you are too crafty for me angie! and yeah, that is kinda sick but extremely funny..

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05,August,2004

Click on the word 'this'

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05,August,2004

oh wow, that' s really sad about his dad. today, i have quit smoking - i have smoked my last cigarette! and i may be grouchy for a while you lousy sons of bitches but i'm sure i have your support.

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05,August,2004

what this angie? i don't see any link.

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05,August,2004

University of Connecticut physics professor Ronald Mallett, 57, said in April that after years of study, he hopes to begin experiments this year leading to genuine time travel, involving probably no more than a neutron or two at first but laying the groundwork for transporting larger objects. Mallett believes his theory is solid (straight from Einstein's Theory of Relativity), but that amassing the amount of energy necessary even to move small objects may be impossible with current knowledge. Mallett said he's been thinking about time travel since age 10, when his father died, because he wanted to go back in time to warn his dad of the dangers of smoking. [Boston Globe, 4-5-02] urlLink - news of the weird

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05,August,2004

Check urlLink this out. It's terrible, but terribly amusing. Or maybe I'm just cruel or something. :)

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05,August,2004

Well, Not depress but not happy about the way they are taking all this homeland security. Can we say police state.

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05,August,2004

if you're not depressed already... urlLink http://www.aclu.org/congress/l110101a.html

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05,August,2004

(CNN) -- An adventure company that books $20 million trips to the international space station and an engineering firm that designs experimental rockets have teamed up to offer $98,000 flights into space. http://www.cnn.com/2002/TECH/space/07/24/cheap.rocket/index.html Who wants to go to space? Any takers?

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05,August,2004

LONDON (AP) -- Astronomers are carefully monitoring a newly discovered 1.2-mile-wide (2 km) asteroid to see whether it is on a collision course with Earth. http://www.cnn.com/2002/TECH/space/07/24/asteroid.encounter.ap/index.html

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05,August,2004

That gives a whole new meaning to Death by Chocolate.

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05,August,2004

Yeah, but what a way to go.. :)

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05,August,2004

willy wonka he is not. http://www.salon.com/news/wire/2002/07/24/chocolate/index.html

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05,August,2004

can you get yogi's and boo-boo's autograph for me while you're in yellowstone?

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05,August,2004

can you hear me now? good. Bell South telemarketer Maria del Pilar Basto became a hero, calling Leonardo Diaz to sell him more minutes for his out-of-minutes wireless phone, and happening to reach him as he was trapped in a blizzard in the Andes Mountains and had almost given up hope of being rescued (Bogota, Colombia). http://www.newsoftheweird.com/archive/index.html

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05,August,2004

*blush* Sorry the movie was so tedious. I enjoyed discussing cultural relativism, though, once I figured out what the hell it was. :)

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05,August,2004

i tell you what people - the circle of irony is filled with amazing and interesting folk.. don't let anyone tell you otherwise. yessiree. anycow, last night i had a splendid time at the house of a member of the circle of irony and would recommend to others that you too explore your friendships and broaden your horizons. love is in the air, my friends!

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05,August,2004

thank you for your response, tree. we could all learn from your example! this is only a small part of following my path, but in my own life, here's mine - i'm making another foray to yellowstone, albeit a brief one, in august. faerieland eluded me once. it will not do so this time. perhaps the call i'm hearing is merely symbolic of my own arrogance, vanity, or romanticism of points West... regardless, i have a deep need to complete this particular journey, if for no other reason than to return with photographs of this semi-mythical place, to prove to the world of its existence and beauty. anyway. that's my two cents. on a completely different note, i got the position / promotion i applied for with Wachovia. woo hoo

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05,August,2004

quack.

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05,August,2004

Thanks for the encouraging words and advice! I know what I love to do, and that in and of itself is a step in the right direction. It's just not an easy field to break into, so I feel like I'm paddling upstream sometimes. But I keep going, 'cause I don't have any choice but to do so. To give up would not be in keeping with my character. I may be frustrated and cry and scream and get angry and think the world unjust, but I collect myself and keep trying, 'cause that's me. :) I'll be fine, trust me. I was just having a college student moment of self-doubt-induced panic. :)

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05,August,2004

Hi, y'all. Just read the postings from the 21st & have to say thanks for the props, and (after 'Nice to meet you, Angie lass') DO WHAT YOU LOVE OR LOVE WHAT YOU DO. It took me five years in Richmond, miserable and aimless, aware of something missing that I could never identify, to get where I am. Think on it now. You may still have plenty of time, but it will fly by. Decide what you want and go get it, girl. I know that you can do it. It's smart to have a fall-back field, but unless you make your dreams a priority they'll become your second choice. So don't forget the training for your chosen path (as well as the practical path), and start laying plans now to meet your goals. And Mir, I don't know CUNY law school but I do have a friend in Columbia law school (an NYU master's in poetry who's becoming a lawyer to please his traditional Chinese parents). But enough about subverted intentions.

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05,August,2004

topic of discussion - how has post modern philosophy destroyed culture, the arts and society? or has it?

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05,August,2004

I have mixed feelings about the death penalty. There's the part of me that says if it were MY family member/spouse/lover/friend murdered so horribly, I would want swift, brutal, American-style justice. But I don't really believe that. I don't feel that I, as a human with such limited understanding of the nature of life and existence, have the power or right to decide who lives and who dies - nor do I WANT that responsibility. A friend of mine related a story to me once. One teenaged boy had been killed by another, intentionally and doubtlessly. The state was attempting to get the death penalty, but the mother of the victim fought against it, saying, 'Why should two mothers have to lose their sons?' Food for thought. Speaking of which, I'm REALLY hungry...