1. Nietzsche Family Circus. Read it.

2. Science always goes down better with some cat.

3. Somehow I'm not surprised.

4. Beck, who has a regular audience of some 2.5 million viewers on his nightly show, has even "re-floated militia conspiracy theories of the 1990s alleging a secret network of government-run concentration camps," said the SPLC.

Oh. Great.

5. Brilliant.

Still Backlogging

1. I almost lost this link, but all I had to do to find it again was google "LED sheep."

2. Were they trying to help an injured sea turtle, or were they really trying to create a sea turtle/stingray hybrid....

3. Why is it that I find little dogs in clothing irritating yet find this so endearing?

4. So this clinic is pretty unethical what with the parading as something it's not (a medical facility). But when you have this many red flags popping up so early in your visit there, it's kind of your own damn fault for walking willingly into their trap:

I’m filling out a form. It’s only two pages long and doesn’t ask the usual personal and medical information. One page asks for my name, contact info, date of birth and date of my last period. The other is a disclosure form. It notifies me that the people I’m about to talk to do not have psychological degrees and have not gone to medical school. The volunteers, the form says, should not be considered a substitute for professional counseling. Oh, and the pregnancy test I’m about to take, the form tells me, should not be considered a clinical diagnosis.

Now I know women can be panicky when they're facing an unplanned pregnancy. But still. Honestly. If you still think you should trust these people with your health after reading that, you have to take most of the blame for whatever bullshit they throw at you. You, after all, asked for it. It's not like they're the only option in town.

5. The question is, do any of these soldiers actually give a shit about the goat?

Backlog!!

1. So museum officials and patrons take it in stride when creationists criticize secular science museums, but atheists criticizing the Creation Museum is frowned upon and "ruins the experience" for the other museum-goers?

2. That is clearly Vet Wrap, not "splints", on that frog's legs.

3. OH MY GOD, THOSE SICK BASTARDS CUT OFF DOGS' NOSES AND MOUNTED THEM ON-- ...Oh. I see what you did there.

4. Well, it sucks that the Seattle Lucy exhibit was pretty much a failure, but I'm damn glad I got to see it. I also find it amusing that my favorite parts of the exhibit were also Johanson's.

5. So...crusty.... Yet somehow...compelling....

1. They had already been banned from schools as teachers said they were “too distracting” for other pupils - so they have never learnt to read or write, one of their biggest regrets in life.

Holy shit.

Thank god nothing like that happens now. Thank you, ADA/IDEA.

2. I'm not the most sedentary person in the nation!

3. This study involves some categorization/conception of religious belief that I found pretty interesting. Including this definition and analysis:

Fundamentalism (the belief that there is one set of religious teachings that clearly contain the essential, inerrant truth) was linked both to greater homophobia and racism. So fundamentalist religion generates group cohesion that's sufficiently powerful to overcome the non-racist message of conventional Christianity.

4. Sweet.

This especially kind of blows my mind:

So many Americans claim no religion at all (15%, up from 8% in 1990), that this category now outranks every other major U.S. religious group except Catholics and Baptists.

Not that I think non-believers should take over and/or start converting. But I can't help but think this will mean increased visibility and therefore increased societal acceptance.

5. So yeah. Old news:

The controversy erupted when media reported that a nine-year-old girl from the northeastern Brazilian state of Pernambuco had had an abortion to remove twin fetuses. The girl and her family learned she was 15 weeks pregnant when she went to hospital complaining of pains.

The girl, who has not been identified, told authorities her step-father had sexually abused her since age six. The 23-year-old step-father is currently in police custody.

Here's the kicker:

Upon learning of the abortion, the regional archbishop excommunicated the doctors, as well as the girl's mother. He did not excommunicate the step-father, saying the crime he is alleged to have committed, although deplorable, was not as bad as ending a fetus's life.

Holy.

Fucking.

Shit.

Sometimes I truly hate this world.

1. Why do I find animals scratching themselves so amusing?

2. Interesting.

3. Ding dong the witch is dead. An era has truly come to an end.

4. So I talk about wanting to get armor for my horse, but this is even more ridiculous.

5. Yay Missouri!

1. Score! Now I just need to find a way to get a photo taken with/near one.

2. This has got to be the most professional journalism I've witnessed in a long time....

3. Horse milk is still drunk in Kazakhstan, usually fermented into an alcoholic drink known as koumiss.

Ewwww.

4. So. Much. Processed. Meat.

5. Like their aquatic counterparts, pet chickens don't have very long life expectancies, usually hanging on for just a few days or weeks.

Hmm. I'd imagine a dead baby chicken would be a bit more difficult/complicated/traumatic to dispose of than a goldfish. I don't think it'd flush easily.

1. I'm so excited to move back!

2. Oy.

3. Somewhat related to the above.

4. Vote for Xenu! Make (more) fun of Scientologists!

5. So you're saying I'll be less anxious if I convince myself to believe in God? Hmm....

Nope. Still not worth it.