Thanks Nat, I feel much better knowing that someone has found the link. I guess the countries that already allow gays are either heathen or don't have any more birds.

Wow.

I don't live in Arkansas, but I do work for a natural resources management agency that is in touch with wildlife officials there regarding this recent incident. The red-winged blackbird is notorious for having poor night vision. There were reports of fireworks in the area. Wildlife biologists surmise the birds were flushed from a roost by the sound of the fireworks. In flight, they were probably confused by both the sight and sound of the fireworks. This caused them to fly lower than normal, thus hitting trees, buildings and other structures. The necropsy results on the birds show they died from blunt force trauma, similar to striking something at a high speed. Their toxicology reports don't show anything toxic or unusual.

Birds and fish die off in large groups all the time for a variety of reasons that have to do with a sudden, significant change in their environment (air or water temperature change is a huge stress factor for fish) or from something contaminating their environment. Most wildlife is highly adaptable to environmental change, though that is going to be put to the extreme test for some species as we watch climate change progress.

Why are there so many reports of this lately? That is a uniquely human phenomena involving awareness. Once we are all aware of something significant, we become hyper-aware for a period of time and take notice of things we normally wouldn't. That and until the tragic incident in Arizona, it was a relatively slow news period (around the major holidays in most countries) and things that normally wouldn't make the news made the news.

Jake

Gay intern credited with saving Giffords’ life
 

Gay intern credited with saving Giffords’ life

Daniel Hernandez Jr., a 20-year-old University of Arizona student who’d been working as an intern for Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords for only five days, is being credited with saving her life after she was shot on Saturday.

Hernandez, who confirmed that he is gay in an interview with Instant Tea on Sunday morning, is a member of the City of Tucson Commission on Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual and Transgender Issues. “She’s been a great ally to the LGBT community,” Hernandez said of Giffords during the brief interview across a bad connection.

According to the Arizona Republic, Hernandez was standing about 30 feet from Giffords during the “Congress on Your Corner” event outside a Safeway store near Tucson. When the gunshots began, Hernandez ran toward them and began checking the pulses of people who’d been hit. When Hernandez got to Giffords, he used his hand to apply pressure to the entry wound on her forehead. He pulled her into his lap and held her upright so she wouldn’t choke on her blood.

Daniel Hernandez is shown with Giffords in this image from his Facebook page.

Hernandez used his hand to apply pressure to the wound until someone brought clean smocks from the meat department of the grocery store. He stayed with Giffords until paramedics arrived, then climbed into an ambulance with her. On the way to the hospital, he squeezed her hand and she squeezed back. From the Republic:

When they arrived at the hospital, Hernandez was soaked in blood. His family brought him clean clothes because the FBI took his for evidence.

He waited at the hospital while she went into surgery. He needed to tell police what had happened. He overheard people walking by talking about how Giffords had died. He also heard this on NPR. Later, he learned she had lived.

“I was ecstatic,” he said. “She was one of the people I’ve looked up to. Knowing she was alive and still fighting was good news. She’s definitely a fighter, whether for her own life, or standing up for people in southern Arizona.”

The fact that Hernandez was nearby and able to react quickly probably saved Giffords’ life, said state Rep. Matt Heinz, D-Tucson, and a hospital physician. He talked to Hernandez at the hospital after the shooting.

Eight hours after the shooting, Hernandez stood with Giffords’ friends and staff and told them what had happened. The tall, strong 20-year-old said, “Of course you’re afraid, you just kind of have to do what you can.”

They hugged and thanked him. Later, he sat with his mom and sisters and told them about his friends and the staffers who had died that day.

“You just have to be calm and collected,” he said. “You do no good to anyone if you have a breakdown. … It was probably not the best idea to run toward the gunshots, but people needed help.”


http://www.dallasvoice.com/meet-gay-...e-1060085.html

I agree. But tell me this:

http://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-..._4738632_n.jpg

Is THIS irrelevant?

Lol, maybe irreverent. ;)

It made me giggle.

I'll count that as a win. :)

The Pope finally addresses a pressing issue!

Pope rails against rise of un-Christian names

http://www.vancouversun.com/life/4073582.bin

The Pope has warned parents against giving children celebrity-inspired names and urged them to turn to the Bible for inspiration instead.

While names such as Sienna and Scarlett have become fashionable in recent years, Pope Benedict XVI called for a return to tradition.

During Mass at the Sistine Chapel, he said: "Every baptised child acquires the character of the son of God, beginning with their Christian name, an unmistakable sign that the Holy Spirit causes man to be born anew in the womb of the Church." He added that a name was an "indelible seal" that set children off on a lifelong "journey of religious faith".

...

Monsignor Andrew Faley, the assistant general secretary to the Catholic Bishops' Conference, said: "The name is not just a label but it moves us into a deeper significance of what it means to be human as revealed in the person of Jesus Christ.

"Naming children after perfumes, bicycles and countries is putting a limit on their potential. They are not merchandise or commodities.

"When I was a parish priest, if I didn't agree with the name I'd suggest they should give the second name of a saint."

I swear the Pope is like the Tony The Tiger of Catholocism. His antiquated suggestions are a prime example of why Christianity is laughed at.

I want this to be satire, I really, really do.

Cheers
Aj

I know, right? I mean I get that "Apple" and "Blanket" as names for children is incredibly obnoxious - but to say that it limits their potential and endangers their souls?

Really?

The Pope needs a hobby.

I'm assuming (and I don't like that) that he's talking specifically about first names?

A lot of Christians get married and someone usually changes their name, though last name. Does that mess up their faith and or journey? What if a Christan woman marries a Jewish man and takes his last name? Does that automatically seal her to hell?

Maybe I need more coffee.

In the past, before he became pope, they didn't call him "the rat-singer" for nothing ... I wonder if he's bothered to read of global disasters, the rise of poverty, etc. for which he could use his considerable world position to influence. Just my $0.02.
That one, he's always been a dufus.

LMAO! Wax thinks I need more coffee. Sorry folks!

I think you could have ended the question at 'Jewish man'.

Tanker carrying 2400 tons of sulfuric acid capsizes



http://cosmos.bcst.yahoo.com/up/play...p/?cl=23837854

Thanks theo, I don't see the word ugly anywhere in my post. What I see is crazy ass with a look that there is something terribly wrong, and who killed a child among others and I think that's fucking goddamn relevant.

OH, cuz Prince Micheal II is way less obnoxious. ;)