Wednesday, November 25, 2009

Is homosexuality a lifestyle?

It is according to many on the religious right, but if you ask any gay or lesbian individual, they'll undoubtedly tell you it's not.

Homosexuality is not a choice, it's a personality trait you're born with, just like some people are born optimists and others pessimists.

Here's a very interesting video on the developments of scientific research into the topic. Twins were analyzed. One is gay and the other straight.

Watch:

Tuesday, November 24, 2009

The US Health Care debacle

Coming from a country that offers health care and seeing how it does work, for everyone, and you still have to option of going the private route, I always thought it was mind boggling that the US didn't have nationalized health care, especially since there are so many working models out there that prove that it can be successfully done.

Today I ready this from Rawstory that supports my thinking:
The United States is the world's richest nation but the only industrialized democracy that does not provide health care coverage to all of its citizens, about 36 million of whom are uninsured.

Several US presidents since Theodore Roosevelt in the early 1900s have sought to overcome the traditional US suspicion of a wider government role in health care.

Washington spends more than double what Britain, France, and Germany do per person on health care, but lags behind other countries in life expectancy and infant mortality, according to the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD).
Makes you wonder why Americans are so afraid of something millions of people enjoy worldwide.

Clearly, the health insurance industry in this country excels at spreading falsehoods and fears in the minds of the population, and it works really well.

I doubt that a public options will ever be set up in the US, and that's unfortunate.

Wednesday, November 18, 2009

Eat more curry!

A new report highlights the benefits of eating foods spiced with curry:
An extract found in the bright yellow curry spice turmeric can kill off cancer cells, scientists have shown.

The chemical - curcumin - has long been thought to have healing powers and is already being tested as a treatment for arthritis and even dementia.

Now tests by a team at the Cork Cancer Research Centre show it can destroy gullet cancer cells in the lab.

Cancer experts said the findings in the British Journal of Cancer could help doctors find new treatments.

Dr Sharon McKenna and her team found that curcumin started to kill cancer cells within 24 hours.
[...]
The cells also began to digest themselves, after the curcumin triggered lethal cell death signals.
Great news for lovers of Indian cuisine, in which curry is a staple.

Tuesday, November 03, 2009

Outrage

In his latest documentary filmmaker Kirby Dick takes aim at the hypocrisy of closeted gay politicians who vote against their community's best interest in order to keep their jobs and powerful positions.

The targets are mostly Republicans, given the despicable practice of the GOP of using gay rights to rile up its base and elect more conservatives.

The information presented is pretty much all in the public domain, out there for anyone wanting to see it, but apparently a lot of conservative voters are more than happy to turn a blind eye on behavior they deem inappropriate, as long as the person doing it votes the way they want them to.

The main criticism of the documentary is that it's not good or useful to out people who haven't decided to come out on their own; that the act of coming out is so personal and life altering that no one has the right to make that decision for you.

I do agree with those statements when they relate to people who do not harm anyone by staying in the closet, but in the case of these sleazy individuals who are just like me and vote against me over and over and over again, I believe they lose their right to privacy, so I applaud this type of action whenever it's warranted.

The information is presented effectively and directly and it's quite the eye opener. An indictment of all those people who will stop at nothing in their quest to gain and keep power.

I wonder how they sleep at night knowing that what they do goes against their own well being and that sooner or later someone might come along who will crush their dream life and job to smithereens .

Grade: 8

101 Dalmatians

I finally saw this Walt Disney classic about the most adorable group of puppies ever assembled!

The movie is very cute, even though it feels dated, which isn't surprising since it's from 1961.

The story is simple, funny, and entertaining and it's narrated from the point of view of the dogs themselves, rather than their human counterparts, which is something I didn't expect.

The only gripe I have is that Cruella De Vil isn't properly punished in the end, but simply stopped for the time being. That left me wanting better closure, but I guess that's how the original story went.

A good movie for the family viewing.

Grade: 7