fragments, 1/19/04

Synchronicity is a postmodern term for sign or omen.

(no subject)

I think John Edwards made a tactical mistake. He may have made quite an impression on the large African-American population in Detroit had he stood on the same stage as the Rev. Al Sharpton. His message would have resonated here.

He could have made a showing in the caucus tomorrow. But now. . . ?

(no subject)

I ran across someone's journal and came upon this sentence:

It seems my notion of using Spam as a divination tool is going to be cool.

At first I thought the universe was directing me to immediately add this person to my friends list. Then I realized that the capitalization was random and that he did not mean to use a canned meat product as a way to determine the future.

Okay, this is a bit odd.

Skulls found before being sold at discount chain

Human skulls encased in ceramic have been found among clay pots, baseballs and other items purchased at auction by an Ohio discount store chain.

[...] A warehouse employee of the Marc's chain found them while looking through a box purchased at auction January 15 in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. A figurine fell and broke, disclosing a skull enshrouded in ceramic.

[...] At the time of the January 30 discovery, the ceramic items were at least one week away from making the shelves at Marc's, a northeast Ohio chain of discount stores where closeouts and low prices are favored over shopper comforts.

(no subject)

What does it mean to study psychic phenomena? A long-held, common-sense assumption is that the worlds of the subjective and objective are completely distinct, with no overlap. Subjective is "here, in the head," and objective is "there, out in the world." Parapsychology then is the study of phenomena suggesting that the assumption of a strict separation between subjective and objective may be wrong. Human experience suggests that some phenomena occasionally fall between the cracks, and are not purely subjective nor purely objective. From a scientific perspective, such phenomena are called "anomalous" because they are difficult to explain within current scientific models.

In spite of what the media often imply, parapsychology is not the study of anything considered weird or bizarre. Nor is parapsychology concerned with astrology, UFOs, searching for Bigfoot, paganism, vampires, alchemy, or witchcraft.

Many scientists have viewed parapsychology with great suspicion because the term has come to be associated with a huge variety of mysterious phenomena, fringe topics, and pseudoscience. Parapsychology is also often linked, again inappropriately, with a broad range of "psychic" entertainers, magicians, and so-called "paranormal investigators." In addition, some self-proclaimed "psychic practitioners" call themselves parapsychologists, but that is not what we do.

Many feel that the strangest, and most interesting, aspect of parapsychological phenomena is that they do not appear to be limited by the known boundaries of space or time. In addition, they blur the sharp distinction usually made between mind and matter.

Parapsychology FAQ

Interesting banter going on over in challenging_god

Omniscience and Free Will: Are They Compatible?

I'm thinking of pitching a scientific study involving DXM as a summer study project. Whaddya think?

Rhine Research Center at Duke University

( Abstract of one of their studies )

( portions from the DXM FAQ that are relevant )

See also that one of their research projects "explor[ed] ESP as expressed through motor automatisms, which, if genuine, reflect a dissociative state of consciousness expected to be psi-conducive" (under "Motor Automatisms as a Vehicle for ESP Expression").

yes, I'm webcrawling.

Mathematician Warren Weaver, in his book, Lady Luck: The Theory of Probability, recounts a fascinating tale of coincidence that stretches our traditional notions of chance to their breaking point. The story originally appeared in Life magazine. Weaver writes:

All fifteen members of a church choir in Beatrice, Nebraska, due at practice at 7:20, were late on the evening of March 1, 1950. The minister and his wife and daughter had one reason (his wife delayed to iron the daughter's dress) one girl waited to finish a geometry problem; one couldn't start her car; two lingered to hear the end of an especially exciting radio program; one mother and daughter were late because the mother had to call the daughter twice to wake her from a nap; and so on. The reasons seemed rather ordinary. But there were ten separate and quite unconnected reasons for the lateness of the fifteen persons. It was rather fortunate that none of the fifteen arrived on time at 7:20, for at 7:25 the church building was destroyed in an explosion. The members of the choir, Life reported, wondered if their delay was "an act of God."

Weaver calculates the staggering odds against chance for this uncanny event as about one chance in a million.

The Mystery of Chance

by way of prema

Introverted (I) 81.82% Extroverted (E) 18.18% Imaginative (N) 62.16% Realistic (S) 37.84% Emotional (F) 64.1% Intellectual (T) 35.9% Easygoing (P) 58.82% Organized (J) 41.18% Your type is: INFP

( Error: Irreparable invalid markup in entry. Raw contents behind the cut. )

Frightening, frightening stuff.

Feds Win Right to War Protesters' Records

In what may be the first subpoena of its kind in decades, a federal judge has ordered a university to turn over records about a gathering of anti-war activists.

In addition to the subpoena of Drake University, subpoenas were served this past week on four of the activists who attended a Nov. 15 forum at the school, ordering them to appear before a grand jury Tuesday, the protesters said.

Federal prosecutors refuse to comment on the subpoenas.

( Read more... )

Representatives of the Lawyer's Guild and the American Civil Liberties Union said they had not heard of such a subpoena being served on any U.S. university in decades.

Those served subpoenas include the leader of the Catholic Peace Ministry, the former coordinator of the Iowa Peace Network, a member of the Catholic Worker House, and an anti-war activist who visited Iraq in 2002.

They say the subpoenas are intended to stifle dissent.

"This is exactly what people feared would happen," said Brian Terrell of the peace ministry, one of those subpoenaed. "The civil liberties of everyone in this country are in danger. How we handle that here in Iowa is very important on how things are going to happen in this country from now on."

The forum, titled "Stop the Occupation! Bring the Iowa Guard Home!" came the day before 12 protesters were arrested at an anti-war rally at Iowa National Guard headquarters in Johnston. Organizers say the forum included nonviolence training for people planning to demonstrate.

The targets of the subpoenas believe investigators are trying to link them to an incident that occurred during the rally. A Grinnell College librarian was charged with misdemeanor assault on a peace officer; she has pleaded innocent, saying she simply went limp and resisted arrest.

(no subject)

I think God enjoys the process of choice.

(no subject)

The Massachusetts split decision ruled that civil unions consign same-sex couples to second-class status, and that marriage is the only way to go. But there is a danger of the courts leading society in a direction it is not ready to go. Gay rights is a civil rights issue, but there is a difference between sexual orientation and race. Affirmative action laws apply to African-Americans; they don't apply to gays and lesbians. Maybe someday society will come to an expanded view of gender and gay marriage will be affirmed, but that evolution should emerge from society, not from the courts.

Bad Timing

I say, But the law and the courts are part of society.

( another interesting tidbit from that article )