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December 20

mental health

isn't mental health really subjective? how does a mentally healthy person behave? what kind of beliefs does he/she have?

Mental health is as objectively definable as physical health. It means:

  • to think for most of your life that life is worth living and there are some things worth doing,
  • to have more positive than negative relationships with, and effects on, the people around you,
  • to avoid doing things or believing things that thwart your own intentions.

That may sound pretty simple, but real mental illnesses usually interfere with one or more of those things. The types of mental states that are controversial types of mental illness do not (like diagnosing a political opponent of the government with a mental illness solely because he speaks against the government). alteripse 11:15, 20 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]

I don't get that last point; if I intended to buy something, but gave the money to charity, that doesn't make me mentally ill, even though I have thwarted my own intentions. What does it mean? smurrayinchester(User), (Ho Ho Ho!) 16:14, 20 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]
There are lots of examples of self-defeating behavior that thwarts wishes: anxiety attacks or depression or delusional beliefs that keep a person from holding a job or maintaining a marriage, or succeeding in school. alteripse 23:00, 20 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]
I'm no expert on the subject, but I think it would depend on whether (and how) you also intended to give the money to charity. If you wished to both buy the something and donate to charity, and made a rational choice to be altruistic, make a sacrifice this once, and give the money to charity, that would be fine. But if you found that you were constantly denying yourself anything, or living in near-poverty, out of a compulsive desire to give every penny you ever made to charity, that might well be a form of mental illness. Steve Summit (talk) 16:45, 20 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]

Leonard Shoobridge

Reader Peter sent the following question about Leonard Shoobridge who had a poem included in The Book of Bodley Head Verse in 1926. What information & pics do you have on Leonard Shoobridge?

We don't have an article on him currently and a quick Google shows he co-wrote a book on Herculaneum. Capitalistroadster 04:59, 20 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]

Neutral countries in World War II

What kept Hitler from invading Switzerland and Sweden? Dismas|(talk) 06:13, 20 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]

Well, the proposed Nazi invasion of Switzerland was called Operation Tannenbaum, and we have an article on it. The article implies that the reasons it didn't go ahead aren't definitively known, but it suggests the difficulty of fighting in Switzerland (mountainous terrain), and the fact that there wasn't really any military or economic advantage in it. I'd suggest that the "no advantage" reason might work for Sweden, too — Sweden provided Germany with raw materials anyway, so why waste troops fighting it? There wasn't any real reason for Hitler to bother with either Sweden or Switzerland when he had bigger things to worry about. (Although he may well have planned to invade them both later, once he had won the war.) Just my take. -- Vardion 06:54, 20 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]
Hitler sez to the leader of Switzerland, "We have two divisions for every one of yours!" And the Swiss leader replies, "No problem. Each of our soldiers will shoot twice." Halcatalyst 18:30, 20 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]

The vietnamese year

In Vietnam the months of the year are connected with different animals. Which animals? What do they symbolize?

The animals are the rat, the ox, the tiger, the cat, the dragon, the snake, the horse, the goat, the monkey, the rooster, the dog, and the pig. (These are almost the same as the ones in Chinese astrology, except that the Chinese have a rabbit instead of the Vietnamese cat.) I imagine that the meanings used in Vietnam would be fairly similar to the ones used in China, but I couldn't guarantee that. I would guess the months to which these animals are assigned are the traditional months of the lunisolar calendar calendar, not the modern one, but I suppose the names could have transfered to the modern months as well. -- Vardion 08:33, 20 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]

Starting a Religion

I would like to know how to get my religion out to the general public, without the fear of death.(coming from a heavy religious area) If I reach others who are willing to try, I know I can make it work. So if you know how to get it out, then keep it consistant, or if the government can top me, then pleases tell me.

Hmmm. I'm tempted to ask why your omniscient God or Gods didn't bother to explain that part to you...but pardon my rudeness.
More seriously, perhaps you should look at what Falun Gong have done, or maybe the work of Ayatollah Khomeni, two examples of successfully proselytizing under threat of death. More generally, Missionary might have some useful information for you. You could also have a look at, for example, Jesus, Apostles, Gautama Buddha, Mohammed, and Joseph Smith, Jr. to borrow some ideas from your historical predecessors. --Robert Merkel 10:21, 20 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]
Comment: why is it that I can give a plausible answer to a question like this, and can't help the guy working with aluminium who worries that the sparks from grinding steel might damage his work? --Robert Merkel 10:21, 20 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]
This would also depend on where you live. - Akamad 11:13, 20 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]
Scientology seems to have worked surprisingly well. But if you want to have a real impact try dying for your followers and coming back to life. DJ Clayworth 17:39, 20 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]
The easiest thing to do is join up with the Discordians. You could be a pope right away. Halcatalyst 18:25, 20 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]
If you're afraid of death you are probably not the best person to promote a new (or locally new) religion, at least not successfully. AllanHainey 15:53, 21 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]
Buddha managed it. Zoe (216.234.130.130 16:54, 23 December 2005 (UTC))[reply]

crusades & the industrial revolution

i became intrested in the crusades after watchig the movie 'the kingdom of heaven' and i started reading wikipedia's article on the crusades but enventually i got it all muddled up in my mind .can u help

i wanted to make a model of the spinning jenny and a trebuchet for my school exhibition .i ve got around a month to make these models but i need to get started now so please help.

OK, my first advice is that if you are "muddled up in the mind" pick just one of the two devices or you might accidentally make a gadget that hurls bales of wool at your teacher. The two devices have little in common other than being machines. Trebuchets date back to the late Roman Empire if not earlier, while the Spinning Jenny was invented in the middle of the 18th century. Our computers arguably are closer to a spinning jenny than a trebuchet is, and so is our culture. Hint: it will be a lot easier to build a trebuchet than a spinning jenny. There was a great article on trebuchets in Scientific American a few years ago. If you are in the US, your local library probably has it. alteripse 10:56, 20 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]

religion

where is the holy grail?

Lost. Filiocht | The kettle's on 14:35, 20 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]
Read The Da Vinci Code. —Keenan Pepper 16:46, 20 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]
Or wait for the movie. - Akamad 06:42, 21 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]
See the Wikipedia article at Holy Grail. Halcatalyst 18:19, 20 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]
Before you can find out where it is, you first need to decide for yourself if it actually exists. There's still disagreement over that. - Mgm|(talk) 20:38, 20 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]
You also have to decide which theory you accept on WHAT it is.
  • There's a heretical sect believing that Jesus really had a wife and children, and the HOLY GRAIL are those descendents, who need to be protected because there is some mission they have to do, if the human race lets them survive.
  • There's the notion that it is some object that he used, that has mystical powers.

User:AlMac|(talk) 10:56, 21 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]


In Castle Aaarrrgghhh on an island in a lake to be found across the Bridge of Death, which spans the Gorge of Eternal Peril. Be forewarned: its immortal guardians are possessed of fearsome taunting skills. Jwrosenzweig 23:52, 20 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]
Inside a temple in the Canyon of the Crescent Moon in the deserts outside Iskenderun. Be forewarned: there are several fearsome death traps protecting the Grail (which can apparantly be bypassed using clues in the Chronicles of St Anselm). --Canley 00:33, 21 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]
In our minds! or in the Pyramid Inversee. --(Aytakin) | Talk 03:26, 21 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]
In a warehouse of mythological objects, on the shelf above Jason's Golden fleece, next to Thor's hammer. --BluePlatypus 07:47, 21 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]
Found it. It was in the bottom of the kitchen dresser behind the rice. Filiocht | The kettle's on 08:49, 21 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]

self development

how do nurture the youngsters with values and not to focus them only money.? — Preceding unsigned comment added by 219.64.11.37 (talk • contribs)

teach them that reason and science are good values to start with, and also a sense of humour and tolerance.

  • Make sure you spend with them out on family fun days and show them there's more to the world than money. Encourage artistic endeavors and let them enjoy the countryside and teach them the importance of close friends. Is this question by any chance related to the recent news report about the study that British kids find money the most important thing in life? - Mgm|(talk) 20:41, 20 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]
I think you need to decide which values you want to impart. "Not focusing on only money" is pretty vague, since there are thousands of other values you could instill, not all of them compatible with each other, and not all of them noble. (Side note: when I first typed out this comment, I wrote "install" where I meant "instill." Would that it were that easy!) Chuck 16:17, 21 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]

Love

Do you guys think Love exists? or is it just something biologycal maybe? or is it something more abstract? by the way ... I 'love' all of u wikipedians :)

Love: A term which has no meaning if defined. — John Ralston Saul in The Doubter's Companion
  • At a biological level all feelings are simply a chemical or electrical signal, but I do think "love" exists. How much of it is biologically determined and how much is influenced by our environment, I don't know. - Mgm|(talk) 20:42, 20 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]
You should have went to the love article ;), yes and I think it does exist, but not in a way most of us think of it

CuBiXcRaYfIsH 03:22, 21 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]

Love is something... Love in reality is chemical reactions as described above, but it is also something much deeper in the soul. It is the care that we give to the one we care and cherish. It is not something we tell our girlfriends after 3 months just to get lucky, it is something we have with the one we will always care for. Okay I think I have got in touch with my feminin side for today, now lets go get some beers. hehe --(Aytakin) | Talk 03:24, 21 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]

As much as I respect Wikipedia, I have to say that if you look in an encyclopedia to find out whether or not love exists, you're probably looking for love in all the wrong places. Good luck in your search. (oh, and yes, it most definitely exists). JackofOz 03:28, 21 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]
Love - Akamad 06:40, 21 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]

Various mysteries in Wandering Jew article

In the section on 'The Wandering Jew in Literature' I have been trying to do some disambiguation but I simply can't find a number of the writers named despite my best Googling efforts.

Does anyone know who Koehler, Franzhorn, Oeklers, Klineman and Heller are in this context? --Spondoolicks 18:31, 20 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]

I'd suggest on a slender thread of conjecture the poet Sandra Kohler for the first name, profiled here. But I don't know that she ever wrote about the Wandering Jew. The rest are a mystery to me. Jwrosenzweig 23:46, 20 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]
Update This section came from the 1906 Jewish Encyclopedia. I checked out the online version here and tried looking up all the names. Heller is Seligmann Heller but the rest only appear in this one article. Unless of course they're normally written in a different way. --Spondoolicks 13:47, 21 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]

Lupo 15:58, 21 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]

Well done for finding these - I think it may have been the copy-editor's day off when that article was written in 1906! I have updated the Wandering Jew article (including Ludwig Köhler although you are not 100% sure) and translated that German article on Klingemann. It's still a bit of a hodge-podge at the moment though and should probably be re-written - perhaps with the more obscure works not being highlighted quite so much. --Spondoolicks 11:20, 22 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]

Demarzo

I was looking for Renaissance and I spelled it wrong on the first attempt, I decided I would fix the incorrect spelling and stumbled onto the Francisco Demarzo , after 30 minutes of searching, I have pretty much come to the conclusion that either he didn't exist or is not notable at all. Simarly I tried to find the painting to no avail

Help would be apprearciated

CuBiXcRaYfIsH 22:23, 20 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]

December 21

Vitenam Draft Resitors

ARe there any good sources for this subject (web sources), not on Wikipedia.

You ask for sources not on Wikipedia, but I'll give you the most detailed article I could find here anyway (assuming you're talking about the US draft): Opposition to U.S. involvement in the Vietnam War.-gadfium 04:59, 21 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]

History of the Bong

Hello, I am interested in adding a history section to the bong article. I've searched online and have not had very positive results. I would appreciate links to references that can answer the following questions:

  • Who invented the bong?
  • When was it invented?
  • When did the bong become so ubiquitous in the cannabis culture?

Thank you very much for your time. Triddle 03:40, 21 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]

The bong (as we know it) wasn't really 'invented', since it's really just a simplified Hookah (water-pipe). Nobody knows who inventor of the hookah, but it's been around for centuries. (at least 500 years) Same thing goes for the cannabis. Hashish has been used with hookah's equally long. The word for tobacco used with hookahs is 'shisha', which I think derives from 'hashisha'. So there's no exact answer to this question. As for when people started smoking cannabis in water-pipes in the western world, I'd say the 19th century, and revived during the 60s. --BluePlatypus 07:42, 21 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]

manners

why is it deemed impolite to wear a hat indoors?

This will be one of many possible origins, but I believe that it goes back to the Middle Ages. Taking off your hat while indoors was a sign of respect for the home to which you were visiting and thereby its owners. It was similar to saying "I know your house is well built and I'm in no danger of any leaks dripping on my head so I'll take off my hat." Gallaghp

Horace Mann

I am told that Horace Mann got his ideas for schooling from Prussia. I am told that Prussian compulsory universal schooling was for the purpose of producing "obedient soldiers and uncomplaining workers" If this is so I thirst for details. If not I need to make space in my understanding for more accurate info. Can you help me?

Well, if Mann himself said he was inspired by Prussia, there's no reason to doubt that. (although I'll have to plead ignorance on this point). As for the purpose of the Prussian school system, it's not really an answerable question. It's a matter of opinion and interpretation of history. Having obedient soldiers and uncomplaining workers is certainly part of the ideals of Prussia at that time, for sure. This means just about anything Prussia did could be described as a part of furthering these ideals. But that appears to be an oversimplified way of describing the motives. No doubt the economic realities of industrialization were just as important as lofty ideals. The Spartan system of Agoge may have been an influence as well. --BluePlatypus 10:00, 21 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]

cryptex

what does the cryptex mean?

Try typing "cryptex" into the search field and clicking "Go". —Keenan Pepper 08:12, 21 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]

Impacts of economic activity on climate change

More economic growth, more travel, more industrial production, more energy use. If you want to use it in your homework, go find a source that says something like that. --Robert Merkel 23:29, 21 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]

SKIRRET

I need the definition for the word "SKIRRET" as it applies to Freemasonry.

According to MasterMason.com, a skirret is a string or cord attached to a spool and a centre pin, which is used by builders to ensure a straight line. --Canley 11:47, 21 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]

Blazing Saddles

When I researched for the article Moe's Southwest Grill, I only found one source to explain where the "I Said Posse" item originated from. [3] However, it is also a punchline from a dirty joke. [4] Has anyone seen Blazing Saddles to confirm? It would make sense if it did, because the majority of Moe's menu items are from TV/film. Ross Uber - Talk - Contributions - 19:39, 21 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]

Presidential and VEEP Homestate Requirements

Must the President and Vice President be from different states? If so, has this always been the case? If not, was it ever so?

Thank you, Don Carter

I don't think that they must be from different states, but I do know that, according to the 12th amendment, an elector cannot vote for a Presidential candidate and a VP candidate that are both from his home state. At this website (an article from the Texas Observer) there is information about whether both Dick Cheney and George Bush are both from Texas. (It's in the next-to-last paragraph.) --Think Fast 21:37, 21 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]

If I recall correctly there was a legal challenge to Dick Cheney's residence in Wyoming at the time of the electoral college meeting in January 2001, but it was turned down. David | Talk 23:31, 21 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]
Even before the 12th Amendment, the electors voted for two candidates without specifically identifying them as being for president or VP, and both candidates could not be from the same state as the elector. (See the U.S. Constitution, article II, section 1.) But there was never a requirement that the president and vice president be from different states. It was always possible that two candidates from the same state could win election as president and VP even if one of them would have to do so without his home state's electoral votes. --Metropolitan90 02:28, 23 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]
Also note that there is a tactical advantage to picking candidates from different states; the chances of winning those two states are quite high. If those states are populous, such as California and New York, those two candidates will be well on their way to winning the election just with those two states. StuRat 09:38, 23 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]

American Revolutionary War

I would like any information on the First Pennsylvania Regiment of the Continental Army including a roster of names and battles fought.

Sin and Christ

I had a question posed to me, and I am looking to you for opinion. If Christ was (and I believe that He was) both divine and human, born of the virgin, did He have the "inbred sin" attributed to Adam's race based upon this humanity?

Do you believe in original sin? --Think Fast 21:26, 21 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]
As I understand it, general Christian doctrine is that original sin decends paternally; the virgin birth then provides the original sin escape clause. — Lomn | Talk / RfC 22:00, 21 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]
Actually, original sin isn't just paternal; it's a human thing. That's why the Roman Catholic Church has the doctrine of the Immaculate Conception - it's commonly misunderstood to refer to Jesus, but it's actually Mary. --George 23:28, 21 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]
  • IOW, Mary's immaculate conception (being conceived without original sin) made it possible for her to be the the human vessel to carry the Christ child, who did not share the "inbred sin" of Adam's race. Halcatalyst 05:15, 22 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]
Original sin refers to the inability of a human being to achieve moral perfection (to carry out God's instructions or to maintain an unashamed relationship with God) by his or her own efforts. It is one of the most fundamental insights of Christianity into human nature and dates back to the early centuries of the church. Orthodox Christian doctrine since the First Council of Nicaea in 325 and the settlement of the Arian controversy is that Jesus was of the same substance as the Father and by that definition (as an aspect of God) did not have the characteristic of original sin that the rest of the human race has. The immaculate conception has nothing to do with the issue of Christ's capability of sin and is largely an aspect of 19th century Roman Catholic Mariolatry. alteripse 01:04, 22 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]
It is an accurate description: it simply refers to worshipping Mary-- praying to her as if she were an aspect of God, which is a pretty common roman practice. What would you offer as an NPOV alternative description? alteripse 22:04, 22 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]
  • The definition on dictionary.com [5] from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition, reads, "excessive veneration or worship of the Virgin Mary." An old Webster's New World Dictionary of the American Language has "worship of the Vigin Mary, regarded as carried to an idolatrous extreme: opprobrious term."
To whom is the rosary prayed? And how much overlap is there between worship and venerate, especially when you toss in sinlessness, evasion of mortality, and ability to answer prayers? A lot of Christians find that a pretty fine distinction, and that degree of worship excessive or extreme but thanks for explaining it more clearly than I could. alteripse 18:57, 23 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]
  • Your argument is all POV, not suited for this reference page or any encyclopedia page, but OK on talk pages. But I'm not interested in any further discussion on the topic for now. No hard feelings, of course. God bless you, and Merry Christmas! Halcatalyst 19:31, 23 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]
No hard feelings. We can agree to disagree. Merry Christmas and may God bless you as well.
We can't have this argument "Mary must have been without sin to have her son similarly begotten" : what about Mary's parents, ad infinitum. Anyway, Roman catholic theologians are not trying to be that logical. One can prefer the stories of Aphrodite born from a brainless shell (correct : sea foam) and having eminent qualities, &c. --Harvestman 21:52, 22 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]

Thanksgiving Day Observed

Because the actual date of the first Thanksgiving Day is unremembered, modern observance of the fourth Thursday in November has been chosen.

Why was the fourth Thursday in November chosen?

How often does November contain five Thursdays?

  • See Thanksgiving -- it discusses the fourth Thursday issue rather completely. As to how often November has five Thursdays, let's see. Thirty days has...ok, November has 30 days, so for there to be five Thurdays, the 29th or the 30th has to fall on a Thursday, so the month has to start on a Wednesday or a Thursday, making a fifth Thursday on either the 30th or 29th respectively. So approximately (though not exactly), 2 out of 7 years has five Xdays, no matter what X is. --jpgordon∇∆∇∆ 22:10, 21 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]
As to the exact answer, the Gregorian calendar happens to repeat with a 400-year pattern (because there are 97 leap years in every 400 years, and 365x400+97 happens to be a multiple of 7, the number of days in a week). In this 400-year cycle it happens that November starts on Monday or Wednesday 56 times each; on Friday or Saturday 57 times each; and on Sunday, Tuesday, or Thursday 58 times each. (Easily computed by running a program such as "cal" on UNIX, on the years 2001 to 2400.) So there are 56+58 = 114 Novembers with 5 Thursdays: that is, it happens 57/200 of the time. --Anonymous, 07:18 UTC, December 22, 2005
Nice. That's 1/1400 less than 2/7. So while you're there -- how more or less common than 1/7 is Friday the 13th? --jpgordon∇∆∇∆ 19:06, 22 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]
If you'd made Friday the 13th a link, you would have found the answer. Actually, by a similar tiny margin, Friday is the most common day for the 13th. -- Anonymous, 00:26 UTC, December 23

hi!

i have heard this statement somewhere " if u think that education is expensive, try Ignorance" can you please explain me what does it mean? Thanks!

I've always understood it to mean two things. First that if you are ignorant then people can more easily take advantage of you. And secondly that with education usually comes a better paying job. Dismas|(talk) 21:57, 21 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]
I've always assumed the saying to work on a societal, not on an individual, level, i.e. if society as a whole thinks that it is spending too much of its budget on education, then it should try the alternative and see which is cheaper/more productive in the long run -- Ferkelparade π 12:53, 22 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]

language

which one is oldest language, French or English?

There isn't really a set date when you can say "This is when English was created," so it's difficult to say. French is a Romantic language (originating from Roman Latin) while English is a hodgepodge of German, Anglo-Saxon, Spanish (another Romantic language), etc. Ross Uber - Talk - Contributions - 22:41, 21 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]
English went through a major transition between Chaucer (ca 1390) and Shakespeare (ca 1600). As a result, Chaucer's Middle English is almost a foreign language to many native English speakers, while Shakespeare's Early Modern English is much more accessible. In graduate school I actually found the contemporary French sources for some of Chaucer's Canterbury Tales easier to read than Middle English. "Old French" was easier to understand than the beginnings of my native tongue. So I could make the argument that English is"older" than French. But I won't. Halcatalyst 05:07, 22 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]
(Please check the Wikipedia articles Old English language and French language - the following is a brief summary.) Old English was being spoken by the 5th century. Middle English was a transition language to Modern English. Middle English is more specifically dated from 1150-1350. Old French is arguably from the 5th-6th centuries. While English borrowed heavily from other languages early on, Old French was mainly three distinct languages (none of them French). They were merged into a common language and became French around 1300. So, if you are talking about modern English and French, English came in around 1350 and French came in around 1300. --Kainaw (talk) 15:11, 22 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]
Another factor is that English nearly died out as a written language after the Norman invasion (1066), becoming a "vulgar" language. Middle English with its west Germanic base was heavily influenced by French as well as by Latin. The Great Vowel Shift was largely responsible for differences between the language of Chaucer and that of Shakespeare. In France, on the other hand, since the early 17th century the French Academy has been a force in the slower evolution of French. So for that reason one might argue that French is older. Halcatalyst 19:04, 22 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]

Environmental Racism - Transporting of toxic waste through US Urban Centers

Good Evening,

I am in the process of researching two topics that refer to Environmental Racism (it is for a paper). In particular, I am most interested in the transportation of toxic waste material through minority (Black) neighborhoods and the impacts of lead poisoning in urban centers. I am also looking into the remedies for these areas (for example legal cases, community solutions and governmental action, etc.) I am focusing primarly on the urban centers of the United States. Any assistance would be greatly appreciated.

Thank you

Anna Ellis-Muhammad 22:55, 21 December 2005 (UTC)~~

Kevin Drum, the resident blogger at the Washington Monthly, has posted on several occasions on lead poisoning related issues; use Google's advanced search to get them. I'd also have a poke around using Technorati's blog search and see who if there's any other bloggers who post regularly on the topic (a quick search suggests there are a number).
I presume you've also done some searching with LexisNexis and some basic googling, which seems to turn up a number of useful links straight away on lead poisoning.
With regards to the transportation of toxic waste through black neighbourhoods, one thing to consider is whether this actually has any health impacts - there's no doubt that lead poisoning is damaging a lot of kids; I'm not so sure about waste in sealed containers. In any case, some of the research tools I've suggested will probably turn up all manner of useful sources.
Good luck with your project. --Robert Merkel 23:27, 21 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]
Anectdotal memories from reading stuff about this kind of topic over the years, but not remembering which sources.
  • The actual transport is not the main problem, because very little leaks ... the huge disasters of this kind are typically when a railroad car derailment is carrying dangerous stuff, and they have to evacuate a goodly distance around, and this could be anywhere when it hits.
  • The high risk is the stuff that is there in the neighborhood all the time.
    • Do you know how come New Orleans got contaminated in aftermath of Hurricane Katrina and the flooding. It was not the transport, but the storage, of chemical facilities getting flooded, the sewage disposal getting flooded, etc. etc.
    • There was something similar in New York after the WTC came down ... asbestos dust in the air, to be breathed by people in the neighborhood.
  • Poor neighborhoods tend to have older buildings, which tend to have environmental hazards not found in newer buildings.
    • Lead based paint, peeling off walls. Little children put stuff in their mouths.
    • Asbestos
  • There is also an issue with respect to where high power electrical lines go. There is allegedly some health hazards associated with living in close proximity to them, or having schools for young children, or day care centers where children spend a lot of time each day in close proximity.
  • Stuff becomes secret or confidential if it is involved in a law suit, or some interests lobby the government. Often some settlement is to pay off litigants provided they promise to keep their mouths shut. It can be very expensive for people to get legal representation and research claims, so many people not even try it.
  • Radioactive waste is being transported to Yucca Mountain to be buried underground. Some scientists say that it has not been proven that this is safe. Alleged risks associated with earthquake, comparable to if a tornado hits a nuclear power plant. Also issues about storing too close together and need to inspect for leaks. I not know enough science to know how legitimate this is. Due to fear of terrorism, where this stuff gets trucked through which neighborhoods is national secret. I have not yet heard if there have been any spills of that in transit.

User:AlMac|(talk) 10:08, 22 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]

Why does the question make the assumption that all poor urban areas in the United States are black? Is there some free housing plan for whites, hispanics, asians, native americans... that keeps them out of the poor black neighborhoods? --Kainaw (talk) 19:05, 22 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]
No, but the demographics are such that in general most poor urban areas in most parts of the country are overwhelmingly African American. In a few, limited parts of the country these assumptions don't hold (you get different demographics in many parts of California, for example). --Fastfission 01:11, 23 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]
I believe the pt is that this is not racism, per se, but rather discrimination against the poor. In cases where the poor are hispanic, Asian, Native American, or white, the same discrimination occurs. In cases where the blacks, hispanics, Asians, Native Americans, or whites are middle class or rich, they are able to file suit and stop environmental degradation. Over time, polluters figured out that they can get away with polluting poor areas, while middle class or rich areas are able to defend themselves. Therefore, they target poor areas. An example of poor white areas which have been targeted is strip mines in Appalachia, which have scarred the land and polluted the water supply. I wouldn't expect to see a strip mine anytime soon in Beverly Hills. StuRat 09:27, 23 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]
If the post was not about racism against blacks, why did the question specifically state "minority (Black) neighborhoods"? It is clear that the author believes that only blacks are the poor minority.

December 22

What ever happen to?

picie straws and rootbeer koolaid

You can still buy Pixie Straws at stores that specialize in old-fashioned candies. Zoe (00:38, 22 December 2005 (UTC))

Dalrymple Arbuthnot

"Baronet of Edinburgh"? Do Baronets have territorial titles? Zoe (216.234.130.130 00:38, 22 December 2005 (UTC))[reply]

  • List of Baronetcies - looks like it. This seems to be the specific Baronetcy. I get the impression it's very rarely used, though... Whitaker's doesn't mention it. I don't have anything like a Debrett's or DNB to hand to check, but someone on one of the relevant WikiProjects probably does. Shimgray | talk | 01:25, 22 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]
  • This and this suggest that, as far as I can tell, he's not (Arbuthnot, (Baronet of Edinburgh)), but (Baronet (Arbuthnot of Edinburgh)), if that makes sense. Shimgray | talk | 01:35, 22 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]
    • Thanks, Shimgray. Using "Baronet" in front of the name is very rare, isn't it? User:Zoe|(talk) 04:07, 22 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]
      • You usually see it just as Bt after the name. For Trivia's sake, it might as well be noted that his title is actually not Baronet Arbuthnot of Edinburgh: he (like all other baronets) is simply "Baronet Lastname", with a disambiguating location tacked on: properly, there should be a comma between the Lastname and the "of God-Knows-Where" as a sort of recognition that the title ends at the comma, so that our titular friend is properly "Sir Dalrymple Arbuthnot, Bt, of Edinburgh", or "Sir Dalrymple Arbuthnot, Bart, of Edinburgh". - Nunh-huh 06:50, 22 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]
        • Aha! So, to put it in terms that we'd all recognise - he's Baronet Arbuthnot, with a disambiguation added! :-) Shimgray | talk | 14:39, 22 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]
          • But despite my carelessness above, he'd never be called Baronet Arbuthnot: He's Sir Dalrymple Arbuthnot, Bart" on an envelope" and "Sir Dalrymple" (first name, not surname!) in direct address. (The exceedingly rare female baronet would be "Dame Florence Henderson, Btess" and "Dame Florence".) But yes, the placename is disambiguation, not part of the title. - Nunh-huh 20:37, 22 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]

wall surrounding pyramid

Does anyone know what the thirty-foot wall surrounding the base of the great pyramid is called? Thank you very much.

Jack Lord

Question;, Did the Actor Jack Lord wear a wig or hairpiece?

Not according to this site. Dismas|(talk) 09:18, 22 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]

islam-christian dogma

22-12-05. As a Christian in Australia I would hope that well informed Muslims and Christian should have an intellectual look at each others beliefs. For example most Christians acknowledge the Nicene Creed and most Muslims have the Koran.l How about some dialogue about -GOD-ALLAH] How much do we hold in common? THE ONE GOD

The Reference Desk is not a general discussion forum. Unless you have a specific question, please take your theological debate somewhere else. —Keenan Pepper 06:15, 22 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]
If you google islam christianity similarities you will get a whole bunch of links. It seems similarities between the two are common. - User:Akamad Merry Christmas to all! 07:33, 22 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]

Well if you are going to mention some similarities, perhaps they should be accompanied by a reminder of a few minor differences.

  1. Followers of only one of the two in recent centuries have killed thousands of people in the name of their concept of god.
  2. Only one of the two teaches that unbelievers do not need to be treated with the same love, respect, and charity that fellow believers deserve and that it is ok to lie to them, kill them, and abuse their hospitality in the name of their concept of god.
  3. Followers of only one of the two teach that females should be restricted from public life and kept concealed in the name of their concept of god.
  4. Followers of only one in recent centuries have, in the name of their concept of god, been willing to put people to death for insulting their religious figures or having the wrong kind of sexual relations or thinking about changing religion.

A large number of people think these differences are far more important to the rest of us who share this earth with them than the theoretical similarities. alteripse 11:47, 22 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]

Um, guys, let's not start a flame war. As Keenan said, this is not a discussion forum to debate the merits or otherwise of Islam or Christianity, though I'm sure we've all got our strong opinions on both. Might I suggest we draw this discussion closed at this point?--Robert Merkel 13:37, 22 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]


LINES OF CHATALJA

I am a student of history and I am in a fix about the location of the Lines of Chatalja. i wonder if you can tell me what and where these lines of Chatalja are.

They are near Istanbul. Filiocht | The kettle's on 11:42, 22 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]

christ's birthday

On what day of the week was Christ born

It was not recorded by anyone. alteripse 12:11, 22 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]
December 25, 1AD was a Monday. --Canley 12:32, 22 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]
Early Egyptian theologians believed he was born on May 20. A common theory is that December 25 was chosen because people were celebrating the winter solstice and it was proving difficult to kill off the pagan holiday. So, the Catholic church made it a Christian holiday and encouraged people to celebrate it. --Kainaw (talk) 14:56, 22 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]
It is not known exactly when he was born, othern than that it was not in the winter. For one thing, shepards would not have been "keeping watch over their flocks at night" in the winter. - Pureblade | Θ 20:48, 22 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]
Please correct me if I'm wrong, but... Weren't the sheperds were from an area that it now in modern Turkey? Sheep are kept there all year round, right? Also, they saw a star - not the birth. Does the Bible state that the star appeared the instant he was born or does it say that a star appeared to signify his birth (at or around a time convenient for a star to appear)? There is a lot of wiggle-room in what I know of the story. --Kainaw (talk) 22:27, 22 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]
I had thought that it was not a REAL star but either a supernova or a bunch of planets in conjunction. User:AlMac|(talk) 06:30, 23 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]
There is a high probability that they saw a supernova, I heard this somewhere too. helohe (talk) 07:41, 23 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]
There has for the last couple of centuries in the West been a popular intellectual game whereby someone takes an improbable or miraculous story from the Bible and postulates a naturalistic cause. It sort of sounds like science but it isn't quite because there is usually nowhere near enough evidence to support or refute the hypothesis. The hypotheses range from the plausible to the ridiculous (like extraterrestrial atomic bombs destroying Sodom). In most cases all we have is a one sentence mention of an event, with few details. By the rules of the game you assume (a) the story describes a literally true event and (b) that you have to incorporate as many details from the Bible as possible. You get extra points if you can rope in at least one shred of extra-Biblical historical or scientific evidence (this doesnt make it necessarily true, or even convincing, of course). This game can be amusing, but the intelligent reader never forgets that it is a parlor game. Occasionally the proposer hits the jackpot and his explanation becomes widely accepted in popular or academic circles for a generation or two (like the theory that Noah's flood describes the formation of the Black Sea). alteripse 08:02, 23 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]
If the supernova theory was true, we would expect records from around the world of a supernova at about that time. One problem with such a theory is that a supernova, like anything in the sky (except at the poles), will appear to change position as each hour passes. Thus, it "pointing the way to Bethlehem" doesn't seem very plausible, unless the way was due North, which doesn't correspond with what the Bible said. It could only point the way for a brief moment in time, then would point elsewhere. Typical supernova bright enough to be seen by the naked eye happen every few centuries and are visible for a few days.
As for the other part, the Black Sea deluge theory seems to have a great deal of evidence to support it, but perhaps a bit less to show that it was the basis for the Noah's Ark story. I suspect that a great many things found in ancient literature, such as the Bible and the Iliad, are based on a grain of truth. The Trojan War, for example, does appear to have happened and the site of ancient Troy has been found in Asia Minor (now part of Turkey). The Temple of David also appears to have existed, with the modern Wailing Wall being the only remaining part. Thus, we should neither accept the contents of ancient books as true or reject them as false, but should investigate each as a possibility.StuRat 08:41, 23 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]
Might it have been a comet instead of a supernova? Zoe (216.234.130.130 16:59, 23 December 2005 (UTC))[reply]
You're still faced with the same problem of the comet moving across the sky as the Earth turns on its axis. As alteripse said, these theories tend to be based on a great deal of speculation. — Trilobite 20:56, 23 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]

chicanery

Chicanery is not listed in Wikipedia. This word appears in politics, and in the titles of books, but what does it really mean? And has its meaning been changed/corrupted over time? American Heritage Dict. says 1)Deception by trickery or sophistry. 2)A trick; a subterfuge.

"Chicanery" isn't in Wikipedia because Wikipedia is not a dictionary. Wiktionary is a dictionary, however, and it has chicanery. — Lomn | Talk / RfC 14:44, 22 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]

Iceland

Do you know of any famous Iclanders? Thank you for your help.--209.214.57.57 15:42, 22 December 2005 (UTC)AnonymousInsert non-formatted text here[reply]

Björk. --130.242.128.144 15:54, 22 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]
See Category:Icelandic people and List of Icelanders. —Keenan Pepper 17:13, 22 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]

Macdonalds and war

Who said that two nations with a macdonalds in them have never been at war? (Or something like that?) Is there a formal name for such a belief/philosophy? And does wikipedia have an article on it?--81.79.212.253 16:54, 22 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]

See McDonald's#Emblem for globalization. Zoe (216.234.130.130 17:39, 22 December 2005 (UTC))[reply]

It's an amusing notion - which I thought must certainly be false. But apparently Iraq is Happy-Meal free. This page quotes a column by James Langton calling the phenomenon the "Golden Arches Theory of Conflict Prevention". - Nunh-huh 22:20, 22 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]
And it was Thomas Friedman of The New York Times who apparently came up with the idea in 1996, as quoted in Langton's column and this web site. The war between the U.S. and Panama in 1989 is the only exception known at the time of Friedman's column, but since then there was the Kosovo War in 1999 between NATO and Yugoslavia, and the Kargil War in 1999 between India and Pakistan, both of which violate the Golden Arches Theory. --Metropolitan90 02:18, 23 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]
I think if the theory were true, the only wars would be against small chunks of rock in the middle of the sea, and if McDonald's keeps on going, maybe not even there. smurrayinchester(User), (Ho Ho Ho!) 17:50, 23 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]

American Military Bases in Iraq

How many military bases are being built in Iraq? When the US military forces finally leave Iraq does the Bush administration plan on turning the military bases over to Iraqi forces? If not does anyone know what the Bush administration plans on doing with them? Also, I have heard that Bush is building a billion dollar embassy in Baghdad. This seems way too large and out of scale and perspective to me. Can anyone shed some light on the issue?

Anyone who claims to know what the future will hold is only guessing. Using the past as an example, how long did it take to pull out of, say, Germany or Japan? (check a list of American military bases if you don't get the joke.) As for what you've heard about Bush building an embassy, he has spent very little time in Iraq. I doubt he built anything more than a little tower out of beer cans while he was there. Are you referring to an embassy that Congress would vote to budget for construction? You can check the official U.S. Embassy of Iraq hompage --Kainaw (talk) 19:02, 22 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]
Building an embassy which is impervious to suicide bombers and other ground and air attacks might very well take a billion dollars. In particular, I would say it should be built underground with remote control (by wire) guns above ground which can be used to kill any attackers before they infiltrate the compound. To put it in perspective, that's only a few dollars per US taxpayer and insignificant relative to the cost of the war so far. StuRat 08:00, 23 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]

Political Climate in 1950s

How did McCarthyism, Dynamic Conservatism, Politics of Consensus, Consumerism, Civil Rights and Southeast Asia war impact the political climate of the 1950s?


They ensured a consensus where conservative parents dynamically watched their children very closely to ensure that, no matter what their skin colour, they did their own homework before they were allowed to watch their brand-new TV. --Robert Merkel 00:11, 23 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]

December 23

Pennsylvania geography

Do you know 10 major rivers in Pennsylvania?

No, not personally anyway. An atlas might. --Robert Merkel 00:11, 23 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]
See List of Pennsylvania rivers. Zoe (216.234.130.130 00:16, 23 December 2005 (UTC))[reply]

Removal of a foreign leader

Does the United Staes have a law prohibiting the assassination or removal of foreign leaders.

The issue seems to have been addressed thru executive orders. See [6]. - Nunh-huh 02:30, 23 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]
I believe the current policy is that it's only permissable to target leaders of other countries for assassination during a war, or what passes for a war these days, since we no longer seem to bother to have the Senate declare war. StuRat 05:39, 23 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]
It is the function of the President to declare war. It is the function of the Senate to pay for it.
Not according to the Constitution. User:Zoe|(talk) 01:39, 24 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]

The US has had policies and laws that get changed as a result of events, and reaction to them.

  • There was an allegation or belief that the CIA tried to assassinate Castro, then failed. Then there was an allegation or belief that Castro was behind Oswald's assassination of JFK. This led to a law against the US doing this kind of thing in the future, without acknowledging whether or not any such thing had been done in the past.
  • There have been a number of allegations before and during the War on Terrorism, that the CIA and other US paramilitary departments, deliberately targeted various people for military action.
    • The embassy of China in Bosnia, where rebel radio had been broadcasting from inside the safety of the embassy, and US bombed the source of the radio signals.
    • Bunker busting bombs aimed at bunkers where Saddam was thought to be that nite.
    • The Iran Contra scandal which was not just weapons to Iran, but also mining Contra harbors with damage to Europena shipping. Apparently there was some US President finding saying that the US laws and International laws did not apply, if we were not caught in the act of doing whatever, but of course we were caught later.

User:AlMac|(talk) 16:47, 24 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]

Langston Hughes' "Weary Blues"

When was this poem composed and where was it first published?

Written in 1923, the poem won an award from Opportunity magazine in 1925 (which then published it). It became the title of Hughes' first volume in 1926. --Kainaw (talk) 03:16, 23 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]

hours of all beatles recordings

If one were to continiously play every recorded Beatles song, how many hours or days would it take to complete?

You could find a Beatles Discography and add it all up ;)

CuBiXcRaYfIsH 07:39, 23 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]

You'd also have to be careful about definitions of "recording". Do you count the Christmas records? The BBC radio sessions? --Robert Merkel 09:22, 23 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]

The Simpsons - Lisas Intro

At the start of the simspsons, does lisa's solo change for each episode? id swear its different everytime

kthnx

See Simpsons#Opening_sequence-gadfium 08:44, 23 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]

She plays several different peices, including the Simpson's theme song. StuRat 09:04, 23 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]

Scientology/LSD

This question was left at the Scientology talk page. I have moved it here and notified the anonymous poster. -Parallel or Together? 10:39, 23 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]

I have heard that people who have used LSD are not able to join the COS.

Is this true?

If so, why? — Preceding unsigned comment added by 24.5.74.143 (talk • contribs)

They will gladly take their money. Perhaps it would even be a head start. alteripse 12:05, 23 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]

POV
POV
Bias all the way
Oh what fun it is to write
In the neutral kind of way

(That said, I agree with the letter of the statement if not the intent. I don't think that previous drug use would preclude someone from joining, although they might have more cleansing to do.) WAvegetarian (talk) (email) (contribs) 15:09, 23 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]

You know, if you couldn't tell my POV, it would have been a wasted, ineffective sentence, wouldn't it? Why don't you relax and enjoy the refreshing diversity of clearly owned opinion here at the ref desk instead of caviling at the occasional POV that doesnt match yours (it's not like most of the answers don't express some pov)? And if you want to testify how the scientologists saved your sanity and you feel almost "clear" after only $15000 worth of treatments... I won't censor you. alteripse 18:46, 23 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]

Mahabharata novel

Hello, this is KeeganB. Years ago I was browsing at a bookstore and I found a book by an Indian author. According to the description on the book's back it was a retelling of the Mahabharata set in modern times and dealing with issues that India is (or was) dealing with. I don't remember the title, and I'm hoping this book sounds familiar to some one here. Any ideas?

This page talks about a "modern-day Mahabharata-revisionist retelling", The Great Indian Novel, by Shashi Tharoor. Zoe (216.234.130.130 17:04, 23 December 2005 (UTC))[reply]

homework help with an essay

my english teacher has given me this weird topic to write an essay on

"In all Commonwealth societies, customs and traditions help people to navigate a passage through life. In your experience, does this statement ring true?"

please help me with it by giving me a few ideas or atleast a start because the word limit is 1200-1500 words .please help me

This is indeed a slightly weird topic, so I guess you can be excused for asking homework questions :). I'd probably tackle it by arguing that while customs and traditions do indeed help one navigate through life, this is not only true in Commonwealth countries but basically in all societies anywhere, anytime - after all, societies are mainly defined by a set of common customs and traditions, and it's a bit hard to see what should make the Commonweatlh countries special in that respect. -- Ferkelparade π 12:16, 23 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]

The only weird part of the topic is the word "Commonwealth" because the statement is equally true of non-Commonwealth societies and the inclusion of the word almost implies the teacher thinks not. If you want to be a smart-ass, write on that aspect, which might make it entertaining, but you had better be a good judge of your teacher's receptiveness for foolishness. If you want to play it straight, just describe some customs and traditions in your society that "help people navigate a passage through life". The latter phrase includes things like: how a newborn is welcomed into the famly, how a newborn or small child is welcomed into society, how a child is taught to get along with others outside the family, how a child is protected from the hazards of early life, how a child becomes a member of the society in a formal sense, how a person deals with sexual feelings in adolescence, how a person is taught the basic information needed to be a functioning member of that society, how a mate is found, how a job is found, how a person establishes a new household, how a person deals with loss of family members, how retirement is handled, how diability or illness are handled, how death is handled. You have your whole essay right there. You are welcome. alteripse 12:25, 23 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]

I think I would write "no", because I haven't experienced "all Commonwealth societies". The teacher's wording leaves much to be desired. Zoe (216.234.130.130 17:05, 23 December 2005 (UTC))[reply]

Within the context of the question, the teacher is only interested in Commonwealth nations, not all of humanity. So what you looking for is some kind of a "net change" depiction of how culture, child rearing, and adult society, varies across those nations. User:AlMac|(talk) 04:55, 25 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]

Will Amerie release a new single in 2006?

do u know if amerie is going to release a single in 2006?? if so can u post it in her artical thanks

Why don't you post this question on her official web forum? Zoe (216.234.130.130 17:07, 23 December 2005 (UTC))[reply]

i tried but i can't get in

Why don't you post this question on her official web forum? Zoe (216.234.130.130 17:07, 23 December 2005 (UTC))

i tried but they won't get me in

IMPERIALISM- AFTERMATHS THOSE ARE BEING FELT TODAY

Q-What is it that keeps the developed nations from accepting the responsibility for the sorry state of affairs in the developing and the under developed nations? Why is there a strong reluctance to undo the faults of past? Being more specific, the current stand off at WTO is an example of the strong headedness of the few developed nations.

Consider the quality of education to new generations of future leaders, with respect to all that which the nation did in other nations in the past. It is largely absent. We were there, we are no longer there, is about all that is commuincated. Then as the new ignornant generation elects new leaders, the leaders are expected to carry out the wishes of their voters, which does not include doing something about something that the voters are ignorant about. The victim nations need to lobby through the foreign office of the former imperial nation, to try to get some chunk of text added to secondary school text books that describes the damage done, that has not yet been resolved, in the eyes of the developing nation. User:AlMac|(talk) 16:53, 24 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]

Music and Emotions

Music and generate emotions, for example, Handel's Hallelujah Chorus creates a feeling of majesty and the (Star Wars') Imperial March creates a sinister feeling. I want to know, it the emotions generated by a piece universal? And also are those emotions inheriant or learned?

They're certainly not universal. I've never experienced any sinister feelings from (I presume you're talking about Elgar's) Imperial March, so that's a counter-example already. I believe feelings evoked by music are both inherited and learned. JackofOz 00:20, 24 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]
Actually I think he/she meant William's Imperial March. —Keenan Pepper 01:56, 24 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]

Arrest authority for game warden

Who is authorized to arrest a game warden? JR end70.248.27.114 22:26, 23 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]

This depends which country you're in. In the UK, formal arrest can only be made by a constable. A member of the public can only makean arrest on a person who is obviously commiting an arrestable offence, and then must hand the person into the custody of a constable. Game wardens have no additional legal rights under law in the UK. --Gareth Hughes 22:34, 23 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]

How about in the United States?

Soul

has it been settled if we have a soul? or we are just products of our brain?

No, this has not yet been settled, and most likely never will. - Akamad Merry Christmas to all! 23:49, 23 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]
It's not even a question of it being "settled". It's outside the scope of the things that human science can prove, or disprove. One either believes in souls, or one does not. That is all, really. JackofOz 00:23, 24 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]
However, you might like to read the article on Consciousness. Halcatalyst 01:18, 24 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]
Do we have an article on the experiments of people losing a few grams of weight at the point of death? User:Zoe|(talk) 01:43, 24 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]
  • A few weeks ago a woman was discissing her recent book on the subject on the Daily Show. I can't remember any of the details of that, but a quick web search turned up another book, Beyond Death: Empirical Evidence of the Human Soul, by Timothy Owe. [7]
You might also be interested in reading on the philosophy of mind which, while not directly concerned with souls (that's the realm of metaphysics and theology), does have to deal with a similar problem: Whether "mind" is a different sort of thing from physical matter. --George 03:27, 24 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]

December 24

Jason Alexander Playing Gandhi?

Hi all...

on Mahatma_Gandhi#Artistic_depictions, someone has wrote that Playbill recently gave the news that jason Alexander of Seinfeild fame was going to lose 90lbs to play the role of Mahatma Gandhi. Can someone confirm this for me? I googled and googled and googled, but no result. Thanks --Spundun 01:05, 24 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]

Playbill Online has no mention of that at all, and I couldn't find any other sources of this "news", so I removed it from the article. —Slicing (talk) 02:18, 24 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]
While I hate to give credit to any intentional Wikipedia hoax/inaccuracy, that one was actually damnably inventive. -- The Confessor 00:45, 25 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]

publishing a book

How would a 15-year-old go about getting a book published? How would one start this process, and what types of books are on demand nowadays and therefore more likely to be published?

--Shadarian 02:46, 24 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]

The most labor-intensive way is to make manuscripts and send them out, unsolicited, to editors at major publishing companies. Sometimes, the rejection slips will contain constructive criticism. You can also consider paying a vanity press company to publish your book, or do it yourself using the instructions at Wikibooks:Bookbinding.--Joel 03:11, 24 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]
Reading Publishing will give you a good start. Spoiler warning: it isn't easy for anyone, far less for a teenager, to become an author unless s/he has something really unique to offer. The question you ask -- "what types of books are on demand nowadays and therefore more likely to be published?" -- would stump even most people in the publishing industry. Good luck. Halcatalyst 03:19, 24 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]
  • Whatever you do, don't share your age if the publish doesn't ask. Let your manuscript speak for itself. Publishing is basically he same no matter what your age. You need a story written down and printed on paper per the submission guidelines of the publisher you want to submit to. Try to find books that are similar to your own and note their publisher. Those are your best bet. http://www.writing-world.com has loads of information regard submitting your work to publishers and the cover letter that should accompany your manuscript. You should also make sure your book has had a few extra eyes look at them. I had great experiences with http://www.critiquecircle.com myself. That site allows you to share your work with other writers and get constructive criticism on how you could improve it. Finally, if you decide to go the self-publishing route, I can recommend http://www.lulu.com They don't have huge upfront costs and only charge for ISBN numbers and additional services. If you spend the time to learn the system and do the publishing yourself there, you can safe A LOT of money. Probably a good thing for a 15-year-old. The last two sites I mentioned have extensive forums where fellow users share publishing knowledge. Hope this helps. - Mgm|(talk) 20:18, 24 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]

Addresses of Prime Ministers

Hi.all Wishing U Merry Christmas and New year./ I want to know the Official Office Addresses of Presidents and Prime Ministers of various countries.can anyone help me.

The address for the President of the United States is:
President George Bush
1600 Pennsylvania Ave NW
Washington DC 20500-0001
Dismas|(talk) 15:19, 24 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]
The address for the Prime Minister of the UK is
The Rt Hon Mr A. Blair
10 Downing Street
London
SW1A 2AA
[[Sam Korn]] 15:21, 24 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]
Hate to be a nitpicker, but you never use "Mr" after "Rt Hon". And you should use his postnominals. It's "The Rt Hon Tony Blair MP"
You might have to be more specific, otherwise this list will get very long. - Akamad Merry Christmas to all! 01:07, 25 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]

lets say i`ve been arrested for defrauding the chruch what i want to know is does the chruch count as a chartible orgnization therefore can the prosecutor argue that it is.

In the USA, all churches are organizations that can receive charitable contributions. This definition is part of the income tax code. User:AlMac|(talk) 17:44, 24 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]
I don't think the criminal codes of the US generally distinguish between defrauding a person and defrauding a corporation (let alone between profit and non-profit corporations). The prosecutor may go after you with more zeal for defrauding a church. alteripse 19:24, 24 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]
allegecly defrauding, until convicted, unless got a good defense. User:AlMac|(talk) 04:58, 25 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]


Wired magazine list reference: Mothers of/Fathers of

From the Wired magazine article on Wikipedia: "...lists more than 230 people known as fathers and mothers of idea, movement, or invention." > For a kids' book of lists I'm writing, I'd like to see that article for research, but I can't find it on the Wikipedia site. Can you send me a link to it or tell me how I might search for the article/string/stub that is mentioned in the Wired magazine article. > Thanks. > Jim Buckley Shoreline Publishing Group jbuckley@shorelinepublishing.com

List of people known as father or mother of something-gadfium 00:54, 25 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]

C19 US trader with plains natives

Can you name a C19 US trader with plains natives? I have some of the letters of his name (it's a crossword clue with 10 letters. _ O _ A _ C _ E _ O

Many thanks --212.137.234.232 22:05, 24 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]

I ran those letters through a piece of software on my machine (TEA Crossword Helper 2.6) that checks such patterns against an internal dictionary, and it came back with comanchero... which, given it's obvious surface relation to a particular Indian tribe, would appear to be correct. -- The Confessor 00:37, 25 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]

December 25

Wallis Simpson, Queen of the Golden Gummet?

The indepth article on the abdication crisis precipitated by Edward VIII's affection for Wallis Simpson quotes from a letter calling her a 'Queen of the Golden Gummet,' and infers from that description that the letter-writer was referring to a preference for female sexual partners.

Being quite fascinated with lesbians (heh!), I immediately began searching for any other online documentation that would provide a more in-depth perspective into the nature of this description and its history, only to find that Wikipedia is basically the only source of note... a Google search for gummet and lesbian finds nothing else of note.

Can anybody help me out here?

Thanks in advance, -- The Confessor 00:32, 25 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]

Toorak

What is the origin of the name Toorak? It doesn't sound Aboriginal to me, but that could be because I'm used to New South Welsh Aboriginal names. —DO'Neil 00:37, 25 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]

The only entymological data I've been able to find is on this page. -- The Confessor 00:44, 25 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]
Must be the silly season. You're confusing "etymological", which is about word origins, with "entomological", which is about the study of insects. Cheers JackofOz 23:19, 25 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]

Chechnya?

I've tried to find it, but I can't find why Russia won't just let Chechnya be it's own country....why? Why? Thanks, Ruby

I do not know the answer to this either, but you might check to see if the Russian constitution even permits part of the nation to secede from the union.
I checked the WP article on Chechnya and there are reasons given there. Have you studied that article?
  • The Russian constitution does not allow part of the nation to leave.
    • If Chechnya wanted their independence by methodology that is legal within the Russian system, one way to do it, without the blood bath that the rebels chose instead, would be to lobby to get the constitution amended to legalize their independence.
  • Oil Pipelines, and Oil Reserves are important to the Russian economy, so Russia would be hurting if Chechnya was allowed to secede.
  • Let's look at a map. Would the removal of this part of the country cripple the rest of the country?
    • A parallel is Quebec which does have the right, under the Canada constitution to get their independence. Looking at a map, if they split off, it could destroy Canada, which is why the total nation of Canada made such dramatic efforts to identify what was the grievances of the Quebec independence movement, and try to fix the problems.
      • And yes, there has been some violence there, but not as serious as rest of the world, with independence movements. Eskimo Indians living in Quebec were inspired by the Quebec independence movement, and just as Quebec wanted independence from Canada some Indian tribes wanted their territory being independent from Quebec and there was some sit down protest blocking major river bridges to protest some development of lands that were ancient burial grounds.
    • Another parallel is Northern Ireland and the Irish Republican Army. How long has that conflict been going on? Why doesn't Britain just grant independence, like they done with India and other Commonwealth nations? Well one reason is that the Rebels do not speak for the whole population. There was a vote a long time ago, and the losing side became sore losers.
        • One reason the Brits don't grant independence to Northern Ireland is that, for every person who wants it become part of the Republic of Ireland, there's another person who was born there and calls it home and thinks of themself as British first and Irish second. As much as I want the land of my forbears united once more, I can't deny the Northern Irelanders who consider themselves British that this is their right too. JackofOz 23:27, 25 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]
      • Perhaps like with Puerto Rico in the USA there should be additional such votes every generation or so.
        • If you look at US History, you will find that there was an assassination attempt against a US President by someone involved in the Puerto Rico separist movement. By granting vote in Puerto Rico every generation or so, whether to go Independent, become one of the states of the USA, or continue with their present status (which is how all the votes have gone), the political interests that favor a change ,,, they move into the civilian debate arena to try to convince their fellow citizens of the rightness of their position. This debate is extremely peaceful when compared with how other nations have not allowed their separist interests to have such a peaceful dispute resolution approach.
  • If Russia gives into the Chechnyan ethnic minority, then there are many other ethnic minorities in Russia that would also demand independence.
  • Russia, and the Former Soviet Union, has a long history of not looking favorably upon independence movements. The natural knee jerk reaction is military.
Consider civil wars in other nations. The same question could be asked of many other nations. For example, the American civil war ... how come the North did not let the South just secede from the Union of the states? Why did they have to fight a bloody civil war? Look at the death rate at the battle of Gettysburg in the context of the history of warfare of the time. That was catastrophic! Of course it happened because the military leaders trained troops in tactics based on gunpowder weapons development in history prior to this war, and the art of war of the time had real lousy command and control for communications between the military leaders.

Also look at the terrorism by the British against the Americans in the War of 1812 and the horrible stuff done on the US side, like letting all the criminals out of jail in some Canadian cities, and encouraging them to join in the looting.. The same question could be asked. How come the British Monarchy wanted to fight the US Revolutionary war over again? I have read that part of the reason is they were scared by what they were seeing happen in France with its revolution and did not want to see that happen in Britain. That makes no sense to me. It would have been much easier to declare war on France, and try to effect a regime change there.

But just as the British leaderhip of a couple centuries ago were totally ignorant about the form of government that today we know as Democratic, and the Monarchy had no idea how to achieve the kind of wonderful marriage we do have today, there are governments around the world today, France and Australia for example, struggling with the aspirations of its Islamic civilian population clashing with traditional former values of those nations.

User:AlMac|(talk) 05:06, 25 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]

Re British trying to effect a regime change in France: have you looked at the Napoleonic Wars article?-gadfium 07:17, 25 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]
Thanks. I knew a little about the subject, that it took a huge coalition to defeat Napoleon, and that there was no regime change in the sense of Republic back to Monarchy. User:AlMac|(talk) 08:00, 25 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]

Quelle était la situation de la Jamaïque en 1800 ?

Geographically, a tropical island in the Caribbean. Politically, a colony of Great Britain. Economically, poor with subsistence farming and some large European-owned plantations with slaves. Psychologically, there was lots of ennui seasoned with some existential angst that year. What else did you want to know? alteripse 12:50, 25 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]

S'il vous plaît consultez fr:Wikipédia:Oracle, ici parlons seulement anglais. (did that make any sense?) —Keenan Pepper 12:55, 25 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]

I think it's missing a "nous" - "ici nous parlons seulement anglais." --HappyCamper 14:03, 25 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]

valenc

what is the religion of Valencia?

Valencia is a city in Spain, which has been almost exclusively Christian (Roman flavor) since about 1492. alteripse 15:57, 25 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]

translation

can u guys give me the translation of this 'christus vinchit cristus reinghtat christus cristus e emperat" & "kyrie elesion krie eleson" & wHAT LANGUAGE IS IT????

The first is horribly misspelled Latin, the second is equally mangled Greek.

I presume the original of the first line is Christus vincit, Christus regnat, which means "Christ has conquered; Christ reigns". The second line is more obscure and seems either post-Latin, or too mangled for me to recognize although obviously it continues the theme of the first line with three of the words suggesting "Christ rules from..." or "Christ rules and..."

The second quote is obviously intended to be Kyrie Eleison, Lord have mercy, one of the oldest phrases in Christian liturgy. And a Merry Christmas to you. alteripse 15:55, 25 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]

absolutism

I think that even if we get to a point of knowing 'everything there is to know' and get to the last frontier...maybe we are being decieved and that is not so. what do you think?

ps. philosphy can be a mental health hazzard, like I read in a question in the science reference desk about creationism vs evolution.

That's a rather unanswerable question, I think. To give you a place to start, though, you might want to read about philosophical skepticism. Arguments of that sort can be used to assert that we can never even possibly know everything - indeed, that we may not ever be able to know much of anything at all. The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy also has a very fine article on skepticism [8]. That should occupy your brain for a while. :) --George 05:25, 26 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]

3rd 4th century visigoth society & slavery

I have searched in many places and cannot discern whether the Visigoth in Dacia in the time of Constantine had slaves, as did the Roman Empire and a lot of societies of that era. I am interested in the time frame of 325AD, as I have written a novel which is in the Historical Reconstruction genre, and being able to site this fact would be very helpful.

Czech Slovak Splitting

Why did Czechoslovakia split into 2 countries, Czech Republic and Slovak Republic? Why is the revolution called "Velvet"

Velvet Revolution gives some info. - Akamad Merry Christmas to all! 00:00, 26 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]

December 26

Did Fidel Castro ever attend Harvard?

Did Fidel Castro ever attend Harvard?
Mary Ann Mulet

Not according to Fidel Castro. Perhaps you were thinking U of Havana? Also, I've removed your e-mail address. See "How to Ask a Question" up top. Jasongetsdown 01:10, 26 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]

who wrote Brave New World?

First sentence of Brave New World. —Keenan Pepper 02:17, 26 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]

Law

Review and comment whether the existing laws in the following areas are adequte to protect a claimant injured by a defective product:- 

  1) Contractual liability.
  2)Liability under the tort of negligence and.
  3)Criminal liability.
There's no clear answer here. Ralph Nader would likely say #3 only (at least if it were beefed up), while more market-oriented people would say 1 and 2 are sufficient. Surely data exist for this sort of thing—for example, look at countries with strong corporate liability laws vis-a-vis those that don't, and see whether there's a significant difference in the relevant categories of causalties. --zenohockey 04:09, 26 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]

Nepolianic Wars

Date of war with Russia

Napoleon (note spelling) invaded Russia in 1812. See the article on Napoleon's Invasion of Russia. --zenohockey 04:13, 26 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]

Music in Leon the Professional

There is this really cool scene in leon the professional where the crazy police cheif guy breaks into the guy's apartment and kills his entire family to the music of beethoven. There is this quote - "I like these calm little moments before the storm; it reminds me of beethoven" Then he kicks down the door and murders the entire family with beethoven's music in the background. At the end he corners the guy that is holding out on him and says "you don't like beethoven - you don't know what you're missing" then he kills him.

I love this song as it is so powerfull and fits the scene so perfectly. However, it is not listed in the credits and I can not find it anywhere. Has anyone that has seen this movie recognize it?--God of War 07:15, 26 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]

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