Wednesday, April 25, 2018

Lies...*



What do women want?

Online dating apps have been faulted for putting too much emphasis on looks alone. But finding a partner with long-term appeal, it appears that the best way for a man to attract a woman is through the gift of gab.
Researcher found men's prowess as storytellers is a big factor in their perceived status and attractiveness to the opposite sex.

For women, a man's storytelling ability factored greatly in their assessment of whether he would be a more appealing long-term match. For men, while storytelling ability in women seemed to show signs of greater intelligence, it did not translate to them being viewed a more attractive match.
So, while a man is seen as being both more powerful and attractive if he can deliver a good yarn, a woman may not have the same luxury.  
Some may make up the story just to get ahead.https://youtu.be/pxZxidEDkws

Guru...

Image result for court  cartoon

An Indian court has found Asaram Bapu, a spiritual leader who has founded hundreds of ashrams in India, guilty of raping a teenage girl and sentenced him to life in prison.  


The teen's parents had been followers of the guru; they brought her to one of his ashrams to receive spiritual instruction — but instead, he forced her into sex acts, a court in Jodhpur, in the western state of Rajasthan, said on Wednesday. After the girl told her parents what had happened, they contacted authorities.
Asaram is the second high-profile guru who has recently been felled by rape charges. Last summer, spiritual leader Gurmeet Ram Rahim Sing — the "Guru of Bling" — was convicted of rape. That verdict brought violent protests from the guru's followers in two states, Haryana and Punjab, resulting in a military curfew.

Celecoxib...



A prescription painkiller that has been under a cloud for more than a decade is apparently safer than previously believed, a Food and Drug Administration panel concluded.

The drug celecoxib, sold by Pfizer under the brand name Celebrex, poses no greater risk for causing heart attacks and strokes than two other widely used pain relievers, the committee voted at the end of a two-day hearing.  

Based on the committee's conclusion, the FDA may change the advice about the drug's safety that it provides to doctors.

Affair...

Meredith and Luke Chapman
Meredith Chapman with Husband
 An ex-political candidate was shot dead by her lover's wife in a suburban Philadelphia home before the attacker turned the gun on herself, police say.
Jennair Gerardot, 48, broke into the house of Meredith Chapman, 33, and ambushed her as she returned home in the evening.
Investigators say Mrs Gerardot may have worn a disguise. She sent her husband texts revealing her revenge plan.  Both women were dead when police arrived.
More happened to this story than just a younger woman entering into the picture.

DNA...

PHOTO: FBI sketch for the Golden State Killer.



A 72-year-old former police officer has been arrested in the decades-old "Golden State Killer" case in California. He would break into his victims' homes by prying open a window or door while they slept, the FBI said.
He would then shine a flashlight into their faces, tie them up, ransack the house, and rape female victims, the FBI said.

An arrest warrant was issued and a complaint was filed charging DeAngelo with two counts of murder with special circumstances for the murder of a Sacramento couple in 1978, and the capital murders of a couple killed in March 1980 in Ventura County, California. The crimes span 10 counties. More charges are expected

It was discarded DNA that confirmed, "We had our man,"

Stone...




Oliver Stone says the United States has made a mess of the Middle East.

Stone reprised his criticism of the 2003 Iraq war and suggested the U.S. has acted similarly in Libya and Syria, saying: “We had no permission to invade Iraq from the U.N., we did it, and we continue to do this.”
Stone also said you can't make a film critical of US forien policiy.

What wasn't said is the outcome. We invade a country, supported one fraction over another, led  humanity deteriorates to levels not seen in the history. Gus who is ready to bare arms while the peaceful minorities were run over.

The cost to USA, Middle East and the world is un-imaginable. Sadly, some became rich as hundred of thousands were killed, and millions lived in misery.

Waffling...

The cartoonist's homepage, azcentral.com/opinions/benson

After the last shooting in a Waffle House...

Tuesday, April 24, 2018

Pizza...

 Image result for Pizza
Memories Pizza, the shop that became embroiled in the national debate over religious and civil rights and touched off a national media firestorm in 2015, has closed.
Owners Kevin and Crystal O’Connor were the focus of intense criticism and media attention in April 2015 after they told an ABC 57 reporter that they wouldn’t cater a gay wedding because of their religious beliefs, although they added that they would not deny service to any customer in the restaurant.
 The pizza shop owners’ comments soon went viral, and media outlets using Memories Pizza as a focal point.  
The attention, protests and death threats led the store to close for eight days, but the owners subsequently received a flood of donations  more than $800,000  after Glenn Beck’s TheBlaze network backed the O’Connors and set up a GoFundMe account to support them.
Religion is not just one thing. The town has 2200 resident.

Insurance...*

Image result for life insurance skipped paying

When you take out a life insurance policy, you pay premiums in the expectation that when you die your spouse or your children will receive the benefit. But audits of the nation's leading insurance companies have uncovered a systematic, industry-wide practice of not paying significant numbers of beneficiaries.


The beneficiary never comes forward because he or she doesn't know the policy exists.
But the companies know, says Kevin McCarty, the insurance commissioner of Florida, who led the national task force investigating the industry.

The companies don't pay, unless a beneficiary makes a claim.  Companies have actual knowledge in their files that people have died, yet they have neglected to initiate an investigation and pay the claim.

In a little-known series of settlements, 25 of the nation's biggest life insurance companies have agreed to pay more than $7.5 billion in back-death benefits. However, about 35 insurance companies have not settled and remain under investigation for not paying when the beneficiary is unaware there was a policy, something that is not at all uncommon.

You can't scam the Insurance companies, but the Insurance companies may be able to.     Just a thought.

Mental...*

 

Mental illness cannot be blamed for terror attacks, experts say. The overwhelming majority of people with mental illness never turn violent. But mental health disorders may make some people more susceptible to extremist ideology, and in rare cases that ideology can lead to horrific acts.

"Terrorist acts are not caused by mental illness but mental illness can provide a background that's receptive to terrorist activity," said Dr. Raj Persaud, a psychiatrist and professor at London's Gresham College. ".

There's a higher rate of mental health issues among "lone wolf attackers" as opposed to people involved in a terrorist network.

"The driver in Nice is better thought of as a spree killer than a terrorist,"  French prosecutor said that searches of the computer showed he had a clear, recent interest in "radical jihadism" and that he had recently conducted internet searches for Islamic propaganda chants.

"No personality disorder will cause somebody to turn into a terrorist, But these extremist ideologies can suddenly begin to make sense to someone who is deeply disturbed and (may) rationalize all of their anger." Just a thought.