The Great Separation

Please Name Me.

Now for something a little more on the odd side.

Why are These People Allowed to Live?

Stunned. - I know that sounds like a harsh question to ask but go and read this article. 62 guilty in child sex scandal that shocked France.

Here's a snippet:

The 45 victims, many the children and grandchildren of adults who stood trial for attacking them, ranged from a baby of six months to 14-year-olds. They suffered more than 100 separate sexual assaults.

Is 14 to 28 years in prison long enough?

The Power of Google SMS.

Have mercy - this is cool! - Last night while looking around Google for something else I tripped over Google SMS.

For those that don't know, SMS is the acronym for Short Message Service.

I recently got hooked on SMS when a friend sent me a text message.

I was like, "Wow, that's kind of cool."

If you're wondering why this techo-guy hadn't tried it out before, well, the answer is two fold.

One, I didn't see the point in sitting there trying to type on the limited keypad of my Nokia phone to send a short text message.

Two, when I tried to answer my friend with a text message I received an error saying the message couldn't be sent. The same answer I received a couple of other times in the past when I tried to send and SMS to other people. I figured it just wasn't part of my phone plan.

As to the first reason, I have since discovered my Nokia is equipped with this great feature called "Predictive Text." It does just what it sounds like it does. It predicts what word I'm keying in and it's amazing how fast that makes text messaging go. Particularly when you get good.

On the second front, it wasn't my phone plan but the wrong number programmed into my phone to which text messages are sent. That was easily fixed with a phone call to the help center.

Now Text Messaging is a really useful tool for me. I've set up distribution lists that I use for sending out prayer requests, quick info regarding whereabouts, and even alerts on where game nights are being held - that group knows who you are.

Overall I've found it rather useful, sort of a mix between eMail and Instant Messaging.

But man, oh man, did my digital world change last night when I discovered that Google offered an SMS service now in Beta.

As my brother said when I told him about it, "That's kind of scary."

Currently these are the things you can do with it:

• Get local business listings when you're on the road and want to find a place to eat.
• Obtain driving directions to get from point A to point B without having to ask for directions.
• Find movie showtimes and theater locations of movies currently playing near you.
• Check weather conditions and 4-day forecasts to plan your day.
• Study the latest stock quotes and stay on top of the market.
• Get quick answers to straightforward questions.
• Compare online product prices with ones you find in retail stores.
• Look up dictionary definitions to expand your vocabulary or prove a point.

That movie function is sweet. So is that dictionary function - it'll come in handy at game night when disagreements arise during word games.

And that ability to Google a simple query is pretty neat. Last night I tried that function by sending a query asking, "Who was "The Thin Man." It gave me a partial answer from Wikipedia. Not a perfect answer, but in the ball park.

Find out how to do it by clicking over to Google SMS.

Sower of Mystery AIDS Strain Found.

Seeds of Destruction. - This is a must read news article: Mystery AIDS strain 'patient zero' found by Ed Susman.

You may not remember it, but last February there was a slight scare concerning a new strain of AIDS that was resistant to most drugs and appeared to be rather fast acting.

Now the 'patient zero' has been exposed. 'Patient zero' meaning the person with whom the mystery virus started.

Susman reports:

The original source of the infection is a patient in Connecticut who infected the New York man during anonymous rectal intercourse at a sex club in the city on Oct. 22, 2004. Within three months, the New York man was diagnosed with HIV, and his CD4 blood-cell count -- a marker of the health of his immune system -- had been reduced to double digits. A CD4 count above 500 is considered normal for healthy individuals.

Susman goes on to report that the Connecticut man, CT01, has a "life partner" who is not the New York man.

I thought "life partner" used to mean monogamous but then I guess that's not what it means to those practicing the sin of homosexuality and other promiscuous behaviors.

Susman notes that CT01 and his "life partner" both engaged in sex with the New York man who did not have HIV until that point. In fact they both went to New York to engage is sexual sin with other homosexuals that they assumed were all infected with HIV.

Susman writes:

The New York man had sex with at least 10 other partners before he discovered he was infected. Blick said it is possible other infections with that strain may show up later when those men are tested -- if they became infected.

What a loving "community". The math could get dizzying.

The Great Separation continues.

HT: Drudge Report

Lance Archibald's Friends Use Billboard to Marry Him Off.

With friends like these… - This qualifies for an odd news story.

The friends of a 31-year-old bachelor have decided he is such a great guy that he needs to get married. So they secretly set up a billboard and a website for that goal.

The website is www.datelance.com.

J.G. Askar reports for Deseret Morning News:

So, what is behind the billboard ad campaign? Apparently, Archibald has come down with a case of Steve Young Syndrome: He's 31, very eligible, bumping around Utah Valley, but — gasp — he's UNMARRIED!

His friends and co-workers at LogoWorks secured the billboard ad space as part of a campaign replete with a Web site — www.datelance.com — in an effort to rehabilitate this wayward son and get him on the right side of the altar.

What friends won't do for other friends?

Or is that, what friends shouldn't do for other friends?

Well I guess that all depends on what the outcome is.

Egyptian Politician Says Killing Americans Good.

War? What war? - Think Eqypt is an ally? This might change your mind.

The Middle East Media Research Institutie (MEMRI) which monitors Middle East media has a transcript from a July 17, Epytian program where Egyptian MP Hamadein Sabahi said the following:

"When the conflict is directed against the Americans, it is good. Any weapon that kills an American is good. Any gun aiming at the Marines is good. Any kidnapping or slaughtering of an American in Iraq is good."

Makes you wonder doesn't it?

FTC Probing Rockstar Games.

It's just sex in the oval off… - Oh, wait a minute that was another investigative probe.

On July 7, I posted that Rockstar Games's title, "GTA: San Andreas," had some mini sex games hidden in the game.

Since then the ESRB board changed the games rating from "Mature" to "Adults Only." That sent a lot of retailers out to pull the game from their selves.

Now the U.S. House of Representatives has voted 355 to 21 ordering the Federal Trade Commission to find out whether or not Rockstar Games deceived the ESRB board who hands out the ratings for games.

CNSNews.com reports:

"Ratings are meant to help parents protect their kids," said Rep. Joe Pitts (R-Pa.). "We should all be concerned when game makers try to circumvent these ratings to get sexually-explicit or violent material into the hands of kids. The video game arrived in stores with violent and suggestive scenes, but without sexually explicit material. However, Rockstar Games provided a free download to activate sexually explicit scenes - a clear deception,["] Rep. Pitts and other critics say.

Well, I agree we should all be concerned by the type of video games that millions play, but I think Pitts needs to check his facts.

For one thing Rockstar Games, according to everything I've read, never provided a download to activate the code they admittedly coded into the game and later hid. That download was provide by some a game player who wrote the game modification unlocking the code.

Secondly, the game was labeled for "Mature" players not children. Although I know children play it and no stringent label is going to keep them from playing such games. That will take diligent and intelligent parents and responsible companies who recognize the powerful influence of video games.

Frankly I don't see how an investigation will do much good. At the very least it will be a waste of taxpayer money when common sense is a lot cheaper – however short in supply it is in Washington.

Britain's Queen a Doctor Who Fan.

Who knew? - Ananova™ reports that the Queen has ordered DVD copies of the latest Doctor Who Series. Apparently she's a big fan:

The monarch has followed the show since it began in 1963 with William Hartnell as the first of nine actors to play the time-travelling hero.

I knew there was a reason I liked her.

Vietnamese Government Demolishes Part of Mennonite Church.

They hate you because of me - Back on November 11, 2004, I posted about the arrest of the Rev. Nguyen Hong Quang in Vietnam. He was arrested with the charge of "inciting others to resist officers of the law doing their duty." The real reason was that he had been documenting Human Rights Abuses.

Since that time, he's been in prison and his wife and children have continued in their work at their church.

Jeremy Reynalds, Special Correspondent for ASSIST News Service, reports the following new developments in these Christians' lives:

Christian Persecution Roundup.

They hate you because of me - Here are four news items concerning our brothers and sisters in Christ who face persecution and even death today because they name the name of Jesus.

AsiaNews reports, Two Christians sentenced to three years in prison:

Two Laotian Christians, Khamchan and Vangthong, were arrested three months ago and later sentenced to three years in prison.

Lao Foreign Ministry spokesman Yong Chanthalangsy said the two were accused of “illegal possession of weapons”, but the Paris-based Laotian Movement for Human Rights (Mouvement laotien pour les droits de l'homme or MLDH) reported instead that Khamchan and Vanthong were sentenced because of their Christian faith.

Reuters reports, Cambodian police break up Vietnam refugee protest.

The protestors, around 30, were Montagnards who are seeking asylum in Cambodia from the persecution they face in Vietnam. They attempted to protest their treatment in front of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees in Phnom Penh.

Reuters reports police treated it like a riot and broke it up:

However, human rights workers said the way Cambodian police went about sending them back did not bode well.

"They dragged them into the trucks," said Naly Pilorge, director of human rights group LICADHO. She said at least three human rights observers had seen police wielding electric batons to force the Montagnards, including women and children, on board.

Donna M. Huges has a must read article on the NationalReviewOnline titled, "How Can I be Sold Like This?".

It details the horrors which women are facing when they attempt to escape North Korea and seek help in China. Needless to say China isn't known for their Christian charity and isn't very accommodating. Which says a lot about the conditions of North Korea if people are willing to seek refuge in China. Kind of like jumping out of the fire into the frying pan.

Hughes writes:

An estimated 200,000 North Koreans have escaped to northeast China. Some of them are looking for food. Some of them are fleeing for their lives from prison camps or political persecution. Some of them are Christians who the Kim Jong-Il regime targets for the worst torture. Some of them are relatives of an arrested person, fleeing for their own safety because when one person is accused of a crime, all members of the family are arrested and imprisoned.

She goes on to detail the prostitution, slavery, and death these women face as they struggle to just survive.

Finally, Igor Rotar reports for Forum 18, UZBEKISTAN: Charity worker faces secret police death threats:

After a secret police raid on her home, interrogations, death threats and a large fine in June, and a 15 day prison sentence for her father, Tashkent-based Protestant Marina Kalinkina told Forum 18 News Service that secret police pressure has not let up. On 11 July, secret police officers again interrogated her about what they claim was illegal religious activity as part of her work for Bridge of Friendship, a registered charity she leads. One officer told her that if she dared to complain about her treatment to international organisations it would only make things worse for her. Begzot Kadyrov of the government's religious affairs committee defended the secret police actions, claiming that Kalinkina is using her charitable work as an opportunity to preach. "In other words, she is doing the work of an unregistered religious organisation, and that is forbidden under Uzbek law," he told Forum 18.

Don't fail to hold our brothers and sister before the throne of the Living God.

The Great Separation continues.