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    marye
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    When our previous topic hit the 1,000-response mark, sleazy behavior by politicians was eliciting a certain amount of non-astonishment.

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  • TigerLilly
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    Tigers
    There should be a way to fund the "brave guards who patrol" directly. I bet if there was a bit of a salary involved, more local people might be inspired to patrol and help protect tigers. Or we set up a camp locally with a bunch of volunteers to do it. I guess this is risky and dangerous-but I would do it! And my kid :)********************************** By trying we can easily learn to endure adversity -- another man's I mean. Mark Twain
  • cosmicbadger
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    Tiger tiger
    I could write a lot about tigers since I have been involved on and off in tiger conservation for 15 years. 12 years ago at the Year of the Tiger conference in Dallas we were shocked that there were just 7000 left in the wild. Now the latest Year of the Tiger conference announced there are a maximum of 3500..so half have gone in a decade. The unrelenting demand for tiger products from China is undeniable and will lead to their extinction in the wild in the next 30-50 years. I despair at the selfish publicity of the ‘discovery ‘of those tigers in Bhutan. 10 years ago we made similar discoveries in SW Cambodia…tiger signs were common and sightings quite regular. Within 2 years the middle men and traders moved in and the slaughter began. Now there may be just 10 left there. All the publicity about Bhutan will kick off the same process…I wish they had just kept quiet. If you have a new idea Gonzo I am really glad because folks are running out of ideas. The best tiger conservation going on now is in Sumatra where teams of brave guards patrol tiger habitat 24/7 and finally the government has started prosecuting not just the poor people who do the poaching, but also the middle men and big shots who drive the trade. Now even the World Bank has got on the Tiger Conservation Trail, trying to mobilise governments and business to get involved...take a look at their new site http://www.globaltigerinitiative.org/ it has a lot of facts and figures. All good stuff, but the best hope at the moment is committed protection in the places where tigers hang on.
  • johnman
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    yup
    wagwagwagwagwagwagwagwagwag...
  • TigerLilly
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    But Johnman
    as Gonzo said, what is wrong is having a negative opinion before even knowing what Gonzo's contemplating! That is NOT OK!********************************** By trying we can easily learn to endure adversity -- another man's I mean. Mark Twain
  • johnman
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    Thanks, pal
    As always Rene...luv ya...and I would think it's obvious that what brother Gonz is proposin' is a work in progress, not set in stone, though I do concede that ratsnkats has a right to his opinion, miscued as it may be (be it noted that that is only MY opinion, of course).
  • TigerLilly
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    Hear Hear Johnman!
    Gonzo is anything but arrogant!********************************** By trying we can easily learn to endure adversity -- another man's I mean. Mark Twain
  • Anonymous (not verified)
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    katz'n'jammers guy --
    Think you need to read just a teenzie bit closer before you flame my idea I haven't even yet espoused. Though perhaps I was unclear in the phrasing. What I meant was I need to talk to some experts, academic and otherwise, for a couple of months and write a coupe of grant proposals that have a 75% or better shot of working before I can even BEGIN the project. If you're writing under a pseudonym, ratsnkats, care to let us in on who you are??
  • johnman
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    Arrogance?
    Attempting to make a difference is not arrogant, but putting down someone for trying certainly is. I'm gonna paraphrase here....all that it takes for evil to succeed is that good men do nothing.
  • Anonymous (not verified)
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    What arrogance!
    Do you really think you can change an ancient cultural tradition at the snap of your fingers? I agree it's not good that they take the endangered species, but sadly, there will always be a demand. I remember when Condaliza Rice stated the she was going to the Middle East and she would get it all straightened out in a matter of weeks. This feud has been going on for THOUSANDS of years, it's not going to be solved quickly or easily, and neither is the black market trading animal parts. More arrogance, anyone?
  • Anonymous (not verified)
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    Don't worry Lilly,
    I'm not one to throw fairy dust. I'd be be sure to have at least 2 NGOs to monetarily and administratively oversee me. No flights of fancy. Just enough of an idea (at least) to chuck money at and have more than a reasonable chance of success with something to build upon. Sorry to be so cryptic but give it a month or two to gel and the you'll see why. In the meantime, if you have any ideas about snuffing out Tiger penis envy among the less educated oriental cultures, I'm all ears! ~ Just a saint of circumstance, Just a tiger in a trance ~
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When our previous topic hit the 1,000-response mark, sleazy behavior by politicians was eliciting a certain amount of non-astonishment.
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UK 'Guardian reader' is short hand for middle class liberal type! Ill never quote it again!
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...Is this company saying that nobody can sell music on the internet? I'm confused, and sad.What does this corporation have to gain by bringing people in to "bricks & mortar" stores? Unless they owned the copyrights, state taxes is the only thing to be gotten. Will E72 go forward on the assumption that no decision will be rendered by then ( and an injunction will be issued/) This is insanity!
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this is a classic case of patent trollery, and probably a pretty obscure and meritless one too. But I don't know any more than what's in the article, as I just read about it on Facebook!
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All those people who lost out because people trade music on the internet. Is this their revenge? Those people are pissed and will use anything. You're right, they'll probably lose, but watch out for the next attempt to herd us all into record departments again.
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this may all turn on some far more obscure point of patent law. I just dunno. I know a lot of engineers and let's just say patent trolling is a huge industry and the bane of their existence, and this may have absolutely nothing to do with the usual suspects. Perhaps all will be revealed, perhaps this will vanish and never be heard from again...
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16 years 3 months
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If they shut down the internet for trading music start trading tapes by mail again...
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Here a little more background about U.S. Patent Number 6,247,130, titled “Distribution of musical products by a website vendor over the Internet” Seems some cunning folks had a lot of foresight, so much so that everyone is chosing to pay up instead of fighting it. http://techcrunch.com/2010/10/01/apple-itunes-sharing-sound-settlement/
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Bernie Sanders laid it on the line. Extending Bush's tax cuts for the rich by Congress while cutting programs for the poor by the Republicans now in power.Now these inane assholes like Boehner and Cantor (R) majority leaders in the house and Senate, want to do away with: Social Security Medicare Medicaid Minimum Wage Collective Bargaining And much, much more that effects your children now. If you're not outraged, you're not paying attention (or are one of the rich people making more than a 100 million a year that we should lynch in the public square.) Hey folks! 3 years past on this Wall St scam pulled off by Goldman and not one person has gone to trial, never mind to jail. Bernie Madhoff wasn't guilty of mortgage-backed securities being hedged (all dogs have their day) I am proud that the only independent socialist senator comes from the state where I live. The great State of Vermont where Democracy is real. I know reading these pages not many people care, but I do. See the extended version at www.theDaily show.com
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Yo 'Gonz: how does Vermont's other senator stand on the reverse Robin hood budget philosophy? Here in Kansas we are at the mercy of Republican senators, congressmen as well as a formersenator who is now the governor! Time is slipping backward it seems. Most school districts and Planned Parenthood are about to lose funding. Hey, speed limits are being raised to 75 on select divided highways, so fuel efficiency and $3.76 per gallon gas must not be a concern. Meanwhile, I'm reading and watching about the devastation in many southeastern states, notably in Alabama, with the aftermath of several twisters including a massive 1 mile wide EF5 tornado ripping through Tuscaloosa. TVA did shut down 3 reactors near Huntsville...
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Has started me wondering about my own status as a "natural born" citizen of the USA: I was born relatively close to the Canadian border -- or so I've been told. I have no actual recollection of the event, so I just have the word of those who "know" and my regular birth certificate to authenticate the event -- the attending doctor is long passed away. Obviously, the information that I do have is not to be trusted. As my mother grew up speaking French, in combination with the proximity to the Canadian border, it's entirely possible (likely, even), that I was born in Canada and the rest of this stuff is just a fraud so that I could be eligible to run for POTUS someday -- thankfully, my parents were thinking of my future prospects from the very start. But that's just nutty paranoia. My real concern is that I was a C-section baby (or so I've been told, again no actual recollection of the event). I'm assuming that introduction scalpels to the procedure nullifies the "natural" part of "natural born" without a question. As I'm a white middle-age American male, I'm assuming this stuff wouldn't come up when I'm elected President. In the interests of transparency, I'm raising the issue myself. The best defense, after all, is a good offense. Now, on the question of whether or not I inhaled...
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I had been wondering why all of a sudden everyone was going on about Bertha 'Test me, test me why don't you arrest me..' mutters Pres. Obama under his breath to noone in particular '...at least I've got my own friggin' hair'
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Just wondering how you knew that the correct pronunciation of "birther," at least where I think that I was born, is "berthah" ;-)
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The Donald, master of apprentices, is after POTUS' grades now.... I imagine many of our European and UK friends are getting prepped for the big wedding tomorrow morning (3 am TV coverage in the central USA). Any Furthur folks on the guest list? Sir Elton, Sir Mick and Sir Paul perhaps?
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Maybe you could be POTUS, but could your wife be FLOTUS? Ask GTed if you could be elected dog-catcher in Kansas wearing a tie-dye. Speaking of Kansas, I have night-mares about that place. It was a terribly muggy summer night and I was driving 10 Tibetan Buddhist monks through a thick cloud of grasshoppers at 65 mph. It was sort of like Men In Black. The monks, who won't step on an ant, were freaking out. Have to say the people in Kansas were nice, specially in Topeka and Lawrence. but that state is so Red it's a permanent sunrise/sunset. A for the other Vt. Senator, let there be said that Pat Leahy (other Sen (D VT) is a noble public servant , especially on Constitutional rights, a war he regularly loses, but puts up a valid defense. Dick Cheney told him to go fuck himself around '03 and he just took it. Curled my toes man. No Vermonter would have bent over for that but, you know, it's their game of power and prestige (goddamn recording devices) Back to Maine, my biggest fear would be for a snowmobile to zip across the border in Febrary with a suitcase of Ebola virus carried by some drunkard for $100. Thom Clany did something close to that. Well, I think this proves I have ADHD and I'll be picking up my script of 30mg Adderall after seeing the Dr. in the morning.
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Is it time to talk about politics? Do we really need to discuss this? Well, I was just adding my two cents. Do what you want with it.I don't know how Rod Blagojevich is either. Dwoop.
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this current events forum is as good a place as any to discuss politics....even if the subject IS evil....there are other forums here for the discussion of other topics......just sayin'....(~};=
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I'm not sure that there IS a "north" of Caribou...but look on the map for Eagle Lake. It's where my mom's family is from, and everyone there is related to everyone else there (apologies to my northern Maine cousins).
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Just in case you missed it. Pakistan agrees to withdraw 18 billion from Swiss banks that it took as aid (mostly economic). Wonder what they could have done to help their own people during the flood in that country last year Do you feel any safer? I don't.. Neither does our government. ~ Dear doctor please help me I'm damaged There's a pain where there once was a heart. ~
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I feel as vulnerable as ever! Like the calm before the storm... "It's got no signs or dividing line and very few rules to guide"
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...Len Blavatnik to see what his plans are for the vault, assuming, that is, that he knows that he owns one. And what it is....
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is being planed by a British Group, National, aaccoarding to the Guardian for May 12.Apparently proceeds go to a charity.
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17 years 4 months
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Used to play for silver, now we play for lives.... I see Spain has been suffering from quakes lately.... ...dug by heel a shallow grave, laid his body down...
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Goes from the penthouse suite at the Sofitel in Manhattan to the first-class section of an Air France jet at JFK and then BANG! He is being b*** f***** buy a gang of bikers at Rikers this evening. You have to ask why the richest man in the world didn't order up a 1k hooker instead of going after the maid. Boner pills and coke? What is that rotting smell coming from Sarcozy's office in Paris? I guell we'll never know the real story. The bigger they come, the harder they fall, eh Dominique? Been chipping up rocks from dawn till doom While my rider hides my bottle in the other room
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The jury is still out on that one, whether he is really guilty, or it was a set-up from Sarkozy, or someone else, in order to get him out of action with his pro-Euro stance, or as a serious contender to replace Sarkozy. Der Spiegel (reputable news sourse) said yesterday that he had a pretty strong alibi for the time that the alleged rape took place. We have to wait and watch this one still.********************************** I am not young enough to know everything. Oscar Wilde
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it's a little too perfect, and on the other, the guy is clearly no prize either. I doubt there are any good guys in this sleazy saga, but one suspects a)there is quite a bit else going on and b)the Law & Order screenplay is virtually complete already.
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Sunday's unprecedented wave of protests by thousands of Palestinian demonstrators at Israel's borders and checkpoints along the Palestinian territories showed that the so-called Arab Spring has arrived at Israel's doorstep. Be-Be is getting backed up against a wall. Odds are on a Palestinian State that takes a chunk of Israel while Iran continues to keep the "Zionist non-entity" in it's gun-sights.
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"The devil made me do it," but the "60s made me do it." These must be the same guys who believe that one can be "cured" of homosexuality.
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The F4 or F5 twister that tore through there yesterday and more violent weather there today was a monster. If there is still anybody alive in the wreckage may they be found and treated as soon as possible!
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Jeezum', Obama departed from the holy writ, talked about going back to the 1967 lines outlining a Palestinian state (actually referring to them as a jumping off point for negotiations) and the heavy guns circled the wagon in Washington DC. You can only take "Never Again" so far, then it becomes a cliche. If Bashar Al-Assad gets his just desserts in Syria then surely a reckoning is in store in Israel. I find Obama's comments freshening though I'm sure his handlers underestimated the Right Wing in Israeli politics. These people have way too much influence in our country -- and the best that money can buy.
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Vibes to the MO tornado victims, that destruction is so very sad. And I agree with you about Obama's stance being refreshing. The unleashed backlash though has my mouth hanging open at the venom. ********************************** I am not enough to know everything. Oscar Wilde
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I am pretty tickled at Obama making such a sensible statement. Moreover the founder of the Parents Circle (bereaved families on both sides, Israelis and Palestinians) thought it was great also. (They're a Rex Foundation grantee, which is how it happens to be on my radar.)
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So it's another Memorial Day Weekend and Marye will encourage the usual platitudes and while there is no doubt they are due I watched the uncut version of Apocalypse Now this weekend and was set to thinking -- Though it sounds lame and cliche, What if they threw a war and nobody came? Or they decided to all go home after they shot the baddest Ayatollah's eyes out and threw him in the ocean? But nobody is going home... we got Khadhaffys and Al-Awalakis and Al--Zawahiris left to kill, not to mention the total extermination of the Big Al. On and on, obscenities within obscenities. They are protecting our way of life except our way of life has become very lopsided lately. And the usual people profit. So this Bud goes out to a retired Major from the Green Beret from a couple towns over. He's totally fucked up as he sits there fondling that string of over 50 human ears (whats left of them). It ain't far to the VA Hospital where he gets his Klonopin and the rest of the psychmeds that don't make him forget. He's got an arsenal and is just looking for a way to use it. It seems a natural death would seem like cowardice to him and his apples that haven't fallen far from the tree. I guess Colonel Kurtz knew.
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Angela Merkel is pulling the plug on 17 nuclear reactors after the amazing meltdown experiences in Japan following the devastating earthquakes and a tsunami. Best wishes to Germany in leading the way for development of alternative energy sources. Growth of wind and solar energy will be expensive. Wind power start-up costs in the US have been enormous. Russia will certainly be a supplier of natural gas, but how reliable is this ??
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that was all over the various global news channels last night--along with the irony that it was going to mean a big boost in at least short-term biz for all the nuclear plants in Germany's neighboring countries. Along with such interesting tidbits, to US audiences, as the fact that France gets something like 75% of its current power from nukes, so this is a non-trivial issue.
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it is not trivial at all! The CDU is threatening us with higher energy costs overall, while this transition is made, BUT I am glad to live here, where the people have said "no more nuclear energy" and have been heard!********************************** I am not young enough to know everything. Oscar Wilde
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Cell phones (and television and radio broadcasts as well, I think) declared by IARC to be class 2B, possibly carcinogenic to humans. I have to admit that when I saw this headline out of the corner of my eye, I thought it said "possibly hallucinogenic to humans." More study is indicated for both of these claims, I think.
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Finally, the Stanley Cup has begun! The Canucks will kick ass!!!
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They won with 1:18 left and left a lot of bad blood (literally) on the ice when a one of 'em bit a Bruin. I predict a fired-up Bruins win in 6!!!
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Wasn't that a great game ! I hope it goes 7, more games to watch, but I'm not putting money on it.
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as in literally, gonzo??********************************** I am not young enough to know everything. Oscar Wilde
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heeheeeheeeee!!!!