Random Politics & Religion #00

I have the sudden urge to join/watch a civil war reenactment !

I think we should just watch Glory and enjoy Denzel doing his thing, and remember a simpler time when Matthew Broderick was still relevant in Hollywood.

Because paged:

Brendan Fraser's careers.

Shut your dirty mouth! The first two Mummy movies are absolutely campy joy on celluloid.

A widely used farm chemical that is a key ingredient in a new herbicide developed by Dow AgroSciences "possibly" causes cancer in humans, a World Health Organization research unit has determined.

The classification of the weed killer, 2,4-dichlorophenoxyacetic acid, known as 2,4-D, was made by the WHO's International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC).

The IARC said it reviewed the latest scientific literature and decided to classify 2,4-D as "possibly carcinogenic to humans." That is a step below the more definitive "probably carcinogenic" category but two steps above the "probably not carcinogenic" category.

IARC's findings on 2,4-D have been awaited by environmental and consumer groups that are lobbying U.S. regulators to tightly restrict its use, as well as by farm groups and others that defend 2,4-D as an important agent in food production that does not need more restrictions.

Since its introduction in 1945, 2,4-D has been widely used to control weeds in agriculture, forestry, and urban and residential settings.

In March, IARC said it had found another popular herbicide -glyphosate - was "probably carcinogenic to humans." Glyphosate, the world's most widely used weed killer, is the key ingredient in Monsanto Co's Roundup herbicide and other products.

WHO finds herbicide possibly causes cancer


I hate eating crow.

I really do.

Research harder, ***.

The pesticide toxicity has always been the only real cause for concern with GMO's.

Let's be real specific about what that freedom is, since people don't seem to grasp it.

Freedom of Speech, as enshrined in the Constitution, is about freedom from government persecution for your beliefs. It's not illegal to be a racist, homophobe, Dane Cook fan, whatever. The cops aren't going to show up because you say something, unless your words show a clear and present danger to public safety (fire in a theater, threats, etc).

What it does not mean is that you are free to spout whatever you like without consequence. People can (and will) disagree, you can be fired from your job, banned from forums, and you can be shunned by society as a whole. This is why people with these opinions tend to band together in echo-chambery groups, so they don't have to feel the bite of disapproval. The internet on the whole has made this problem worse, as you can always find a like-minded individual.

The internet used to be about substantive things like massive amounts of porn, socially defunct types and Geocities pages. Now it's all ***up with these SJWs, rednecks, conspiracy theories and gossip.

I long for the good old days, when I could download a filed called "Donkey Kong Country" that is actually a video about a man penetrating a horse on Kazaa using dialup.

Get off my e-lawn you e-youngins.

It's a strange situation when diversity is celebrated and encouraged, but freedom of thought and expression are derided and shut down whenever they inconvenience the "Great Cause".

on Kazaa

Kazaa was like the fourth coming of that type of service.

You want to talk about being a youngin'.

The Senate pushed bipartisan trade legislation to the brink of final approval Tuesday in a combined effort by President Barack Obama and Republican congressional leaders to rescue a measure that appeared all but dead less than two weeks ago.

The legislation cleared a key hurdle on a 60-37 vote, precisely the number needed.

A final vote is expected by Wednesday on the House-passed measure, which would then go to the White House for Obama's signature.

It is one of several measures comprising Obama's second-term trade agenda as the administration works to finalize a 12-nation agreement among countries on both sides of the Pacific Ocean

Another bill, to provide federal aid to workers who lose their jobs because of imports, is also awaiting approval. The rescue plan hatched last week calls for the Senate to pass that measure and the House to follow suit later this week, just before lawmakers begin a July 4 vacation.

Eager to reassure Democrats who expressed doubt about a GOP commitment to pass the follow-up bill, Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio, issued a statement saying the House will vote on it "once it passes the Senate."

The legislation has the support of the administration and business organizations, who say it is necessary to win lower barriers to U.S-made goods around the world.

Opponents include organized labor and most Democrats in Congress, who argue that past global trade deals have resulted in the large scale loss of American jobs — and claim this time would be no different.

Those differences were reflected on the Senate floor.

Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., said the vote demonstrated "we can work together on something that's important for our country."

But Sen. Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio, said it would be a "day of celebration in corporate suites."

The vote in the Senate was similar to an earlier roll call on the same legislation.

Republican Sen. Ted Cruz, a presidential hopeful, flipped his vote from support to opposition, saying it had become "enmeshed in corporate backroom deal making."

He did not say why he initially voted for it.

Democratic Sen. Ben Cardin of Maryland voted against advancing the bill after supporting its passage on the earlier vote. In a statement, he said he did so because the provisions to help displaced workers had been separated, and there was no "clear understanding of the path forward to the president's desk" for the aid package.

In all 47 Republicans and 13 Democrats joined forces to assure the bill's progress.

The negotiating authority that Obama seeks is known as "fast-track." Most recent presidents have said the same power. Without it, the bill's supporters say, other nations would be highly reluctant to make the type of compromises that are necessary to seal global trade deals, because they fear that Congress would demand additional concessions.

The week's maneuvering came a little less than two weeks after the House derailed the trade legislation in a revolt triggered by union-backed Democrats and supported by the party's leader, Rep. Nancy Pelosi of California.

Originally, the trade negotiating authority and program of aid for displaced workers were part of one bill, but subject to separate votes.

Democrats who normally support the aid turned against it in the House, and voted it down. That temporarily derailed the entire legislation, sending Obama, McConnell and Boehner scurrying to come up with a rescue plan.

The revised approach was to separate the trade bill from the aid measure, and rely on a strong Republican vote to pass one of them, and a strong Democratic show of support to approve the other.

Obama has said consistently he wants both measures to reach his desk, but House Democrats have not yet said if they will try to block the aid program as part of a desperate move to persuade Obama not to sign the trade bill he so eagerly seeks.

Nor has Obama said what he would do if only the trade bill passes, and the aid measure remains stuck because Democrats without support.

Keep this up and I'll have SWAT kicking in your doors old man!

RIP Bearshare, Frostwire, Limewire, Kazaa etc.

Keep this up and I'll have SWAT kicking in your doors old man!

Dial-up single-line BBSes with 300baud modems.

Oh, the excitement of seeing a full line of text!

I don't know what you're talking about; I heard about them from a friend. Never touched those "services" myself.

I want my lawyer.

You gotta upgrade to a 2400 baud modem, bro. Downloads pictures in only 15 minutes!

There was something intriguing about waiting for a boob to load on the internet though !

Frostwire

Clearly not her fault. It's society's fault for putting pressure on her to wear them.

Pretty sure this service is still up, but holy ***don't use it.

Napster is still around too I think.