Health Care Reform ruled "Unconstitutional"

This is sure to go all the way to the Supreme Court, so neither opponents or proponents should get too excited, but a Federal Judge has ruled the Health Care Reform Bill unconstitutional. The reason? The individual mandate which would require all Americans to buy Health Insurance.

“Because the individual mandate is unconstitutional and not severable, the entire Act must be declared void. This has been a difficult decision to reach, and I am aware that it will have indeterminable implications.,” he wrote in his ruling...

The suit was filed by the state of Florida shortly after the reform law was signed in March. But since then, 25 additional states and the National Federation of Independent Business joined the case, making it the most high-profile and politically charged lawsuit against health reform.

The individual mandate was always the weakest part of Health Care Reform. Liberal legislators wanted it to avoid "free rides" or people not having health care due to their own actions. But the Constitution has always been harshest in its restrictions on the extension of Federal power over individuals. This is a good call.

That being said, I don't think it will be hard to come up with an amendment to the original bill which does pass Constitutional muster.

It's not the Captain America I imagined as a kid...

...but I have to admit, he looks pretty amazing. From Empire Magazine.

Loyalists & Protesters unify to defend Egypt's museum

During a rebellion/revolution/riot/unrest, there are always debates over whether the crowds defying the government are thugs or heroes. And, as in the American revolution, sometimes the line between the two is a fuzzy one. For those wondering about the protesters in Egypt - and the police - there is an indication that both sides are full of men and women of conscience, as they worked together to defend the Egyptian museum from would-be looters. Even amidst societal chaos, they found common ground on true universal priorities.

When fire broke out on Friday night at the ruling party's headquarters, Khaled Youssef, an Egyptian film director who has made movies critical of government policies, issued an urgent call on the Al Arabiya television channel: "I am calling on the Egyptian army to head instantly to the Egyptian Museum. There is a fire right next to it in the party headquarters," he said in a report relayed by Reuters.

As the fire raged, would-be thieves started entering the grounds surrounding the museum, The Associated Press reported. But other young men, some armed with truncheons taken from the police, formed a protective human chain outside the museum's main gates. "I'm standing here to defend and to protect our national treasure," one of the men, a 40-year-old engineer named Farid Saad, told AP.

AP quoted 26-year-old Ahmed Ibrahim as saying that it was important to guard the museum because it has "5,000 years of our history. If they steal it, we'll never find it again."

Southern Sudan votes 99.57% for Independence!

It has been a LONG time in coming, but the Sudanese finally got a chance to vote for the independence of Southern Sudan. How sure are they of their desire for separation? They voted 99.57% for independence! And unlike most votes of this magnitude, there are no charges of fraud being bandied about in the international press.

Six of the ten southern states registered a 99.9 percent vote for separation, with the lowest vote in favor of secession came in at 95.5 percent in Western Bahr al-Ghazal state, which borders Darfur. The long-awaited referendum produced an overwhelming turnout of 99 percent among voters in the south, one of the poorest and least developed regions on earth.

In northern Sudan, voter turnout was only 60 percent, and a modest 58 percent of voters – southerners who live in the north – were in favor of the oil-rich south breaking away. Many southerners opted to leave their lives and work in the north to move home ahead of the referendum, and the United Nations says it expects another 100,000 southerners to make the north-south journey within the next month. More than 190,000 southerners have flooded back into the south since early October, though the most recent arrivals were not able to participate in the referendum, since they had not registered to vote in either the north or the south.

Keep in mind (and your prayers) that this does not end the matter. The North still wants large portions of the South, and especially their lucrative oil fields. There are a number of issues to be worked out. But the fact that the vote took place - without violence - is a hopeful sign that peace may finally come to this poor war-town nation.

Is bacon the vegetarian kryptonite?

I have always been a carnivore, and even as a dieter I always have to choose a plan that lets me have meat or else it is a lost cause. But I know a number of people who have become vegetarian for health or religious reasons. So, I was interested to see that scientists are finding bacon is often a gateway meal that leads vegetarians back to a more omnivorous lifestyle. What is it about the crispy pig byproduct that makes it so irresistible?

Because bacon is one- to two-thirds fat and also has lots of protein, it speaks to our evolutionary quest for calories, Lundstrom says. And since 90 percent of what we taste is really odor, bacon's aggressive smell delivers a powerful hit to our sense of how good it will taste.

"There's an intimate connection between odor and emotion, and odor and memory," Lundstrom says. "When you pair that with the social atmosphere of weekend breakfast and hunger, bacon is in the perfect position to take advantage of how the brain is wired."

Text Message saves lives!

We all know them and hate them. The random text messages sent by your cellular carrier announcing random offers. They tend to come at inopportune times and set off your phone in the middle of the night. But in Russia, one such text message may have saved hundreds of lives. How long until AT&T is advertising them as "anti-terrosist services" and charging a fee for them?

A "Black Widow" suicide bomber planned a terrorist attack in central Moscow on New Year's Eve but was killed when an unexpected text message set off her bomb too early, according to Russian security sources...Security sources believe a message from her mobile phone operator wishing her a happy new year received just hours before the planned attack triggered her suicide belt, killing her at a safe house.

How much snow is on the ground?!

This is a winter to remember! Starting to think about investing in a sled dog team both for transportation and warmth.

Egypt hits their Internet Kill-Switch

The Obama administration has been trying to pass a law giving the President an "internet kill-switch" to allow him to effectively shut down the internet in the case of a national crisis. Presumably, this is to allow us to resist an attack being coordinated over the internet. But as civil liberties groups have reminded us time and time again, the most-common use of such "kill switches" has been to stifle dissent.

Now, Egypt has flipped its "internet kill switch" in an attempt to disrupt protests convulsing the nation. These protests - like the ones in Tunisia last month and Iran last year - have largely been organized over social media (Facebook, Twitter, etc.) which allowed protesters freedom to communicate outside of traditional means.

Before we give our government the power to shut down such a powerful communication medium, we need to decide if there are enough "good" uses for such power to offset the many, many potential "evil" uses for it.

Elmo loves a Big Budget!

From FarLeftSide.Com.

Mariott ending in-room Porn

There aren't that many bright spots in the quest to fight pornography right now. It is becoming more and more prolific on the internet, and is slowly making its way into more and more lives. But here is a major source of hope for those hoping to reduce the influence of pornography on society - Mariott Hotels has announced a plan to end porn on their in-room channels and entertainment systems. A step in the right direction!

Marriott International, one of the nation's leading hotel groups, tells Hotel Check-In that it's pulling access to adult movies from the new hotel rooms it will be opening the next several years...

Marriott's decision also comes after years of discussing whether the availability of adult entertainment in guest rooms - for years, a money maker for hotels - is appropriate and whether secure safeguards exist to keep it away from children

Of course, this doesn't stop guests from locating porn on their laptops or bringing it in with them. But the point here is to protect the innocent, and make it just a little bit harder to bring that kind of darkness into one's life in a moment of loneliness.

This one's for Hug Pug

It is COLD in CT

I just had to share this with our Mod-Blog family. These cans are stored INSIDE at the bottom of our front stairs. Each is a diet soda, and each has EXPLODED in the last week, due to extreme cold (-5 degrees F to 20 degrees F) we have been experiencing. The explosions are surprisingly energetic, embedding ice globs onto and into walls up to 10 to 20 feet away.

Cue (1) people telling me to bring the soda upstairs, and (2) stories of people who know what cold REALLY is (I'm looking in your direction Mr. and Mrs. Bowhunter!)

Jesse Ventura vs the TSA

Former-governor Jesse Ventura is no stranger to controversy. As a former pro-wrestler, you might say he thrives on it. And he has been a tireless campaigner for Libertarian values. So, it should come as no shock that he has decided to take the TSA to court over the new pat-down or scan policies of the Transportation Safety Administration. He has an interesting different take on the situation as he has both a Libertarian angle and an Americans-with-Disabilities Act angle, as he has a titanium hip.

According to the lawsuit, Ventura received a hip replacement in 2008, and since then, his titanium implant has set off metal detectors at airport security checkpoints. The lawsuit said that prior to last November officials had used a non-invasive hand-held wand to scan his body as a secondary security measure.

But when Ventura set off the metal detector in November, he was instead subjected to a body pat-down and was not given the option of a scan with a hand-held wand or an exemption for being a frequent traveler, the lawsuit said.

The lawsuit said the pat-down "exposed him to humiliation and degradation through unwanted touching, gripping and rubbing of the intimate areas of his body."

It claims that under TSA's policy, Ventura will be required to either go through a full-body scanner or submit to a pat-down every time he travels because he will always set off the metal detector.

Outrage has become somewhat muted (or numbed) since the original flare-up around Christmas. It'll be interesting to see if this is a catalyst for more activism, or if the American people are too tired of the issue to care at this point.

Happy birthday, Quizwedge!

Happy birthday to beloved Mod-Blogger QuizWedge. May today be a day of presents and cake, and may this upcoming year be one of love and laughter!

Leave your birthday wishes below in the comments.

Breaks my heart.

Political cartoon by Lisa Benson from Townhall.Com.

Welcome to the Siberia, USA

There are many signs that this has been an unusually cold winter. The temperature hit -5 degrees F in my back yard this morning, and my car refused to start. But nothing really brought home just how extreme these temperatures are like the news that the waves are freezing down the Jersey Shore! And Cape May, for those unfamiliar with the area, is the southernmost point of the NJ shoreline.

Are "Bath Salts" the new designer drug?

There is an old joke that asks, "Who was the first person to look at a slimy snail and think, 'That looks tasty!'" But human ingenuity knows no bounds when it is trying to fill it's belly. And unfortunately, it appears it is equally brilliant in finding ways to destroy the brain. Consider this: evidence that next wave in the Drug War is bath salts. I can't imagine anyone willingly snorting something as random as this, "just to see what happens". And yet, this scourge is so widespread that many states are considering emergency bans.

Sold under such names as Ivory Wave, Bliss, White Lightning and Hurricane Charlie, the chemicals can cause hallucinations, paranoia, rapid heart rates and suicidal thoughts, authorities say. The chemicals are in products sold legally at convenience stores and on the Internet as bath salts and even plant foods. However, they aren't necessarily being used for the purposes on the label...

Ryan said cathinone, the parent substance of the drugs, comes from a plant grown in Africa and is regulated. He said MDPV and mephedrone are made in a lab, and they aren't regulated because they're not marketed for human consumption. The stimulants affect neurotransmitters in the brain, he said.

"It causes intense cravings for it. They'll binge on it three or four days before they show up in an ER. Even though it's a horrible trip, they want to do it again and again," Ryan said.

Do I resemble that remark?

From SheldonComics.Com.

Tests don't just evaluate learning - they cause it!

As a student, I had a fairly common wish. "Why can't we just LEARN the material, rather than having to waste so many class periods on stressful and pointless testing?" After all, if we eliminated testing, would that give every teacher back hours and hours of teaching time? It makes sense, and it is a welcome fantasy for an exam-weary student.

But new research indicates that test-taking actually makes us learn and allows us to retain knowledge more easily in the future. It even surpasses "mind mapping" and other learning techniques beloved of teachers for their ability to connect different ideas together.

In the experiments, the students were asked to predict how much they would remember a week after using one of the methods to learn the material. Those who took the test after reading the passage predicted they would remember less than the other students predicted — but the results were just the opposite...

The students who took the recall tests may “recognize some gaps in their knowledge,” said Marcia Linn, an education professor at the University of California, Berkeley, “and they might revisit the ideas in the back of their mind or the front of their mind.”

When they are later asked what they have learned, she went on, they can more easily “retrieve it and organize the knowledge that they have in a way that makes sense to them.”

This definitely reflects my experience coaching a Bible Quiz Team. Those students who study the most often do more poorly than those who study a little, but are sure to attend each and every practice. Actually quizzing engages the material and forces you to recognize what you do and do not know.

Star Wars vs Blizzard

This is NOT mine. :-)

Snowy trench run from Aaron Dabelow on Vimeo.

Does anyone actually use paper Yellow Pages anymore?

Found online. Could not find the original source. We put ours RIGHT in the recycling bin these days.

Superstreets, not just for Superman

City planners are now singing the praises of what they call "Superstreets". These streets feature no left turns. Basically, all turns are right turns to enter or exit the street and then periodically there are U-turns set up for if you want to go the opposite way. Current studies have shown that traveling these streets is 20% faster and you are 40% less likely to have an accident.

Why is Tunisia important?

The question has been asked again and again - why should Americans care about Tunisia? After all, their main contribution to our culture was to serve as the shooting location for Tatooine in the Star Wars movies. The so-called Jasmine Revolution has been going on for days now, but still is not garnering much attention in the US press.

CNN has up a good explanation of why this is important, and why a revolution in this tiny nation could have far-reaching implications for the world.

It might be too soon to predict a populist revolution erupting throughout North Africa anytime soon following the example of Tunisia. But these recent social uprisings in a region of the world important to Europe and the United States should serve as a warning call that state stability achieved through intensified political oppression, economic marginalization and social injustice are certain guaranties of the kind of societal uncertainty from which future instability occurs without any guarantee of a democratic outcome.

Mother's experience may produce phobias in children

Okay, this is a weird one. Scientists have found that the experiences of mothers during pregnancy may influence the behavior of their offspring. This may explain why many human babies appear to be born with a phobia of snakes and spiders, prior to any experience with them.

The newborn crickets whose mothers had been exposed to a spider were 113 percent more likely to seek shelter and stay there. They were also more likely to freeze when they encountered spider silk or feces — a behavior that could prevent them from being detected by a nearby spider. Overall, these newborns had better survival rates than other newborn crickets, eaten by the wolf spiders for the sake of science.

At the risk of freaking out pregnant mothers even more then normal, it makes me wonder just how many other behaviors are influenced by maternal experience. It should encourage fathers to do whatever they can to minimize the stress of their wives during this fragile time.

Different teams, same strategy

From Townhall.Com. And all too true.

Surprise! You're on a dating site!

Online dating is more popular than ever before, and is becoming big business, but there are plenty of people happy to keep their social interactions "in real life" only. One website is ready to change all of that and create profiles for everyone scraped from publicly available databases.

Jordan said the site would soon host some 340 million profiles after scraping information from social networking sites, e-mail registries, mailing lists, marketing surveys, government census records, real estate listings and business websites to create new dating profiles.

Gotham Dating Partners hoped to position itself as a dating service as well as a "public information source" for individuals and corporations needing accurate information on US citizens, Jordan said.

The site announced that the changes would "in no way affect our international clients". But Jordan said any online, public information - including information about Australians - would be used.

Jordan did not expect to face any privacy issues by aggregating publicly available information, stating: "If the information is public, there are no privacy issues."

This concept has "bad idea" written all over it. It would instantly make stalking an effortless activity. Can you imagine the terror for victims of rape, when their attackers can find all about them so easily?

Here's hoping the CEO comes to his senses soon. If not, now is the time to go thru ALL of your privacy settings on ALL social networking sites and LOCK THEM DOWN. This is a good place to start.

Tunisia had a revolution! Did you notice?

"Revolution" is a big word for Americans. Our own nation was founded by a Revolution where our founding fathers wrested control from a monarchy to found a Republic. So, whenever another country cries "Revolution", we are usually quick to sit up and take notice. But not so much with Tunisia, the north-easternmost country in Africa and a neighbor to Libya.

On December 17, a 26 year old Tunisian man named Mohamed Bouazizi reached the end of his rope. An unemployed university graduate, Bouazizi had become a seller of fruits and vegetables in the southern Tunisian town of Sidi Bouzid. When authorities confiscated his wares to punish him for selling without a license, Bouazizi set himself on fire...Bouazizi’s suicide struck a chord with other frustrated Tunisians. Thousands took to the streets in Sidi Bouzid to protest widespread unemployment, government corruption and lack of opportunity. Another frustrated youth in Sidi Bouzid, Lahseen Naji, killed himself by climbing an electricity pylon while crying out “No for misery, no for unemployment!” before grasping the high voltage line. The Tunisian government responded by sending baton and teargas-wielding reinforcements to the city and by promising future economic development projects...The director of Mr. Ben Ali's presidential security force was arrested in the afternoon, and after nightfall army special forces battled armed units loyal to the former president that had holed themselves up in the presidential palace on the outskirts of Tunisia...Tunisia's caretaker prime minister said a new coalition government would be announced Monday that includes members of the country's opposition and some leaders, like himself, from the previous regime—a move that could fill the country's power vacuum and help stabilize the tense North African country.

But America has barely been paying attention, distracted by the shooting in Tucson and the NFL playoffs. Now is the time to catch up with your knowledge of Tunisia as this revolution is expected to have international repercussions, and may trigger other revolutions across Africa.

Star Trek tech on the way!

There are times when I wonder whether the technological revolutions of the 90s and 2000s would have happened without Star Trek to inspire them. Just look at the cell phone in your hand - it's likely a combo flip-communicator/tricorder. It can even operate as a Universal Translator... more or less.

The next Star Trek tech on the way is the deflector shield, soon to be protecting interstellar probes, and maybe even missions to other planets.

UK scientists working at Rutherford Appleton Laboratory near Oxford and the universities of York and Strathclyde have tested a “mini-magnetosphere” enveloping a model spacecraft in the lab. It turns out that their prototype offers almost total protection against high energy solar particles. By mimicking the natural protective environment of the Earth, the researchers have scaled the protective magnetic bubble down into an energy efficient, yet powerful deflector shield.

There are days I think the best thing we could do for innovation and science education would be for the Federal Government to sponsor the next Star Trek series.

Are pistachios the next terror weapon?

Peanuts are a major part of my diet these days - a low-carb snack that I can have pretty much anytime - but I have never been big on the other nuts out there. But I was still horrified to learn how dangerous the pistachio can be. Did you know a single load of these terrorist kernels could sink or burn the ship carrying them?!

When the water content in pistachios gets too large, fat-cleaving enzymes kick in. The fat-cleaving enzymes produce free fatty acids, and those fatty acids are broken down when the nut takes in oxygen and spits out carbon dioxide. During that process it also spits out water, which makes more fat-cleaving enzymes kick in. What's more, that process of breaking down the fatty acid, taking in oxygen and putting out carbon dioxide has a more common name; burning. The process gives off a lot of heat, and that heat builds and builds until the entire bunch of nuts catches fire and sometimes explodes.

Remember this the next time you pick up a bag of these horrible nuts. You may be taking your life into your hands.

Banks accounting for unpaid mortgages as "income"?

There is a fundamental difficulty with regulating banks in the modern age. Unlike days past, banks often no longer derive value from tangible assets like gold and silver, but instead are number-engines creating value out of mathematics. That is not to say what they do is illusory - not at all! - but it means it is easy to game the system by tweaking the way the engine runs.

For example, Forbes is reporting that even after accounting-rules changes, many banks are still allowed to count mortgages as "income" even if no one is paying them... until the house is actually foreclosed upon. This means that banking giants like Bank of America and Chase can continue creating value from these properties (in the eyes of shareholders) even though they no longer have any real benefit to the company.

I can't help wondering if this explains a number of anecdotes I have heard of late from people trying to buy short sales (i.e. homes not actually foreclosed upon) where the bank showed very little interest in selling. After all, a sale is a real loss (assuming they sell for less than the mortgage is worth) whereas a continued unsold property is producing phantom income for the balance sheet.

Should parents of young children tip more?

Here is a hard question for you. Should parents of young children tip MORE at restaurants? On the one hand, when a family has young children, that tends to be the time of life when they have the least disposable income. On the other hand, it also tends to be the time of life when children are the least controlled and most disruptive. One waiter argues that if you ask the restaurant staff to deal with your children's misbehavior, you should compensate them for their trouble.

What do Mod-Bloggers think? We have a number of young parents reading this blog, so this single, childless guy is interested to know what they think.

The Costs of Vacation

This was far too profound NOT to post. Thanks to PhdComics.

Say it ain't so, Tastykake!

If you grew up in the Philadelphia metropolitan area, it is likely that Tastykake was a treasured part of your childhood. In my pre-weight-loss era of life, Krimpets alone just about made up one of my Food Groups. I still enjoy their sugar-free options. So, it is with sorrow that I read that Tastykake is considering selling out in the face of growing challenges in their financial situation.

Tasty Baking Co. president and chief executive Charles Pizzi said in a statement that "unanticipated operational challenges" related to its new bakery in Philadelphia's Navy Yard had lowered projected savings for the fourth quarter of 2010 by $3 million to $10 million.

The company's shares plunged more than any other on the Nasdaq, giving up 37 percent of their value and hitting a 52–week low of $3.83 before closing at $4.05.
The company cited a bankruptcy filing by the owner of the A&P, Super Fresh and Pathmark grocery chains and rising commodity costs as contributing factors to the financial squeeze and said it was looking at all options.

I truly hope Tastykake can pull out of the death spiral and be restored to its former glory. Otherwise, I hope any would-be buyer would keep around the old brand in some form, instead of just adding any signature offerings to their own line-up.

Southern Sudan voting for Independence

My family spent the weekend watching the History channel's series The Revolution about America's split from England. So, it is with no small interest that I read Southern Sudan is ready to vote for independence from the North. But, like our Declaration of Independence, this vote may not be the end of the matter. The South contains 80% of Sudan's oil wealth, and the North has shown plenty of willingness to shed blood in order to protect their interests. Here's hoping the will of people prevails, and that the international community stands behind the vote.

States try to tax the Internet, the Internet leaves

It is no secret that State tax collectors hate the internet. For years, they have been furious that they have been denied the sales taxes for internet sales that they collect from brick-and-mortar stores. And the Supreme Court has ruled that states can only tax internet businesses that had a "physical presence" in the state wishing to tax them.

But the States are not giving up, and now Illinois is ready to pass a law to tax Amazon.com and other companies that do business in the state. The only problem? Companies are ready to abandon Illinois entirely rather than pay taxes there!

After the Illinois law was passed yesterday, Amazon immediately fired off an e-mail to Illinois members of it “associates program” threatening to boot them from the program, which pays them marketing and referral fees on sales, should Quinn sign the bill.

Meanwhile, Scott Kluth, Founder and President of Chicago-based CouponCabin.com, told Forbes today that he would move his seven-year-old business and his 48 employees across state lines if Quinn signs the bill.

It should be noted that this would not only take sales from affiliates, but it would also take jobs out of Illinois. Not the best way to serve the people of your state in the middle of a Recession.

If you want to get hired, keep this in mind...

In this economy, odds are you are either (1) seeking a job or (2) clinging to the job you have with both hands. That means roughly half of our Mod-Blog readership may be in the job market at the moment. So, an article with tips on how not to sabotage yourself at an interiew seems timely!

If you're asked to offer up your personal weaknesses, answer the question: "Don't say things like 'I don't know when to leave to go home,' 'I'm too dedicated,' and 'I tend to accumulate too many accomplishments.' It makes me want to throw up when I hear that. I'm interested in your honest responses."

And if you really don't want the job:

"The most problematic job candidate I had was someone who knew the CEO of the company, and made sure to tell that to the interviewer at least three times during the interview."

Having been an interviewer more recently than an interviewee, one other tip I'd put out there is to be polite and considerate to everyone. I have had candidates seek out the "important person" in the room and speak only to him/her, ignoring and/or refusing to make eye contact with anyone else. Since "anyone else" probably includes your future peers, this was always an instant red flag for me.

39% of Pregnancies in NYC End in Abortion?!

I really, really, really hope this is a case of a statistic taken out of context and misunderstood. Because the idea that almost 40 out of every 100 fetuses in NYC are aborted is just monstrous. Whether you're Pro-Choice or Pro-Life, can we all agree that abortion should be a last resort and not commonplace?!

In 2009, there were 225,667 pregnancies in the City with 126,774 resulting in live births and 87,273 resulting in abortions. In addition to those abortion numbers, there were 11,620 spontaneous terminations.
Forty-six percent of all births in the Bronx result in abortions—the highest among the five boroughs, according to the report.
Blacks had the highest number of abortions with 40,798 with Hispanics having the second highest at 28,364, according to the report.

Will Tea Party Republicans keep their promises?

We've seen the pattern again and again. A movement arises with high ideals, gains power, gets elected, and quickly sells out its ideals in order to gain additional power. It's been seen on the Left and the Right and in the Middle. Now the question is will the Tea Party follow the same course or will they be able maintain some level of intellectual honestly? And perhaps more importantly, can they stay honest without sacrificing actual accomplishment?

Republicans campaigned coast to coast on, among other things, a promise to cut $100 billion out of the federal budget.

But now they are talking about cuts as slim as $30 billion, blaming the change on the fine print that no one read -- or if they read, did not understand.

It turns out the $100-billion figure meant $100 billion from a budget that President Barack Obama proposed, which was never passed. And now that the fiscal year is nearly half over, well, there's just no way ...

They say no War Plan survives contact with the Enemy. My guess is we should prepare for some disappointment.

Are your Facebook friends actually your friends?

It is comforting to be able to share your thoughts on social networking sites like Facebook and Twitter, but it can also be dangerous. Not only because people may use the information against you, but also because virtual friends may not be your friends at all. They may ignore your cry for help, or even make fun of you for it.

Simone Back, 42, posted a last message on the social networking site at 10.53pm on Christmas Day saying: "Took all my pills be dead soon bye bye everyone."
Some users of the site even taunted the 42-year-old over her final status update instead of trying to save her, calling her a “liar” and saying the fatal overdose was “her choice”...
While some Facebook friends from out of town begged online for her address and telephone number so they could get help, none of those who lived closer did anything to help.
Several friends taunted the charity shop worker as she lay dying on the floor of her flat. Just minutes after the post a “friend” replied “She ODs all the time and she lies.”

It is yet another reason to be cautious of virtual relationships. And another reason to get out of the house and into a church/synogogue/etc. to find people who really care about you.

Can you be angry at a hypothetical?

As a Christian, I have often been questioned by unbelievers who have one simple question, "How can you believe in a God who allowed _________?" You can fill in the blank with some wrenching personal experience, whether it be 9/11, a divorce, a death, a miscarriage, or something even worse. While many atheists claim their beliefs are purely logic-based (and perhaps some are), a new study shows that for many unbelief comes as much from anger as anything else.

People unaffiliated with organized religion, atheists and agnostics also report anger toward God either in the past, or anger focused on a hypothetical image - that is, what they imagined God might be like - said lead study author Julie Exline, Case Western Reserve University psychologist.

In studies on college students, atheists and agnostics reported more anger at God during their lifetimes than believers. A separate study also found this pattern among bereaved individuals...

And younger people tend to be angrier at God than older people, Exline said. She says some of the reasons she's seen people the angriest at God include rejection from preferred colleges and sports injuries preventing high schoolers from competing.

There is a very old saying among Christians, that people are born with a God-sized hole in their heart. Humans seem to have an instinctive intuition that there is a higher being, and even those who deny His existence still have strong feelings toward Him.