via 2leep.com latest links on 2/21/10
24 Most Disturbing Manipulated Images Ever A collection of strangest photo manipulation examples that obviously freak you
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February 21, 2010
24 Most Disturbing Manipulated Images Ever
24 Most Disturbing Manipulated Images Ever A collection of strangest photo manipulation examples that obviously freak you
more...
This is exactly how I feel about the whole Tiger Woods situation
via Planet Atheism by Jeff Satterley on 2/21/10
It's off-topic here, but I'm getting tired of seeing this nonsense all over the news. Here's how to figure out if Tiger Woods owes you an apology: 
I actually heard someone on CNN say that Woods has had a worse fall from grace than O.J. Simpson did. Seriously... (From Cynical-C Blog.)
Cinema boycott could send Alice in Wonderland down the rabbit hole
Alice in Wonderland should have enchanted cinemagoers this spring and earned tens of millions of pounds at the box office as the latest 3D blockbuster. Instead, the Disney film could disappear down the rabbit hole, as a boycott means that it may not be coming to a cinema near you.
A dispute between Disney and two of Britain’s biggest cinema chains, Odeon and Vue, means that the film will not be shown in about 40 per cent of cinemas. Today is the last day that a compromise can realistically be reached, though neither side is likely to break the impasse.
The dispute began when Disney stated that it would bring Alice out on DVD within 12 weeks instead of the customary 17 to try to stem the abrupt decline in DVD sales, traditionally the biggest earner for studios.
A shorter gap between the film’s launch at the cinema and on DVD would mean that advertising campaigns would be fresher in consumers’ minds and could also curb sales of pirate DVDs.
Bob Iger, the chief executive of Disney, believes that he must break cinemas’ insistence on strict DVD delays and has chosen Aliceas his battleground. He knows that British cinemas are more powerful than their continental counterparts (they take about 60 per cent of box-office receipts compared with 50 per cent elsewhere in Europe) and is using a film that would be expected to perform well in Britain.
Directed by Tim Burton, Alice was partly shot here and features a British cast including Helena Bonham Carter, Alan Rickman and Stephen Fry.
While other studios wait to see if Disney is successful before adopting a similar strategy, cinemas are outraged after spending millions of pounds on 3D equipment in the belief that studios’ terms would remain the same.
They are also irritated because, while DVD sales in Britain declined by about 10 per cent last year, cinema takings were up by 11 per cent. A senior cinema executive told The Times: “There is nothing wrong with our business model. [The studios] are coming to us and saying, ‘We’ve got a broken model on our side and we want you to pay for it.’ ”
Cineworld, a third British cinema chain, has angered rivals by refusing to join the boycott after a visit from Bob Chapek, Disney’s president of distribution, who reassured it that Disney wished to shorten the window for only two or three films a year. The DVD release for Alice was extended to 13 weeks.
Odeon issued a tart response, saying that it was dropping plans to show Alice “as a result of Disney’s insistence on reducing at short notice the theatrical window on a major 3D title”.
]Disney tried to shorten the window for Up, the Pixar animation, last year, but relented when cinemas said that they would drop Upand A Christmas Carol.
Disney declined to comment, but is understood to be resolute. A cinema industry source said it is prepared to risk about £10 million in lost revenue.
Hurt Locker stomps all over Avatar at the British Film Awards
Feb. 22 (Bloomberg) -- “The Hurt Locker” was the big winner of this year’s British Academy Film Awards, or Baftas, as director Kathryn Bigelow repeatedly defeated her ex-husband James Cameron, maker of “Avatar.”
Bigelow’s Iraq-war movie scooped six prizes at the British equivalent of the Oscars. She became the first woman to clinch the best-director Bafta, beating Cameron and Quentin Tarantino, among others. “Avatar” won two Baftas (for production design and special visual effects).
“I would like to dedicate this to never abandoning the need to find a resolution for peace,” said Bigelow.
Bigelow and Cameron face off again on March 7 at the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences awards, known as the Oscars. The Baftas, started in 1947 and honoring films produced worldwide and shown in U.K. cinemas, are now held before the Oscars, and seen as a walkup to the Hollywood event.
Bigelow’s movie shows a bomb-disposal unit operating in the aftermath of the 2003 U.S. invasion of Iraq. The elite squad is led by a zealous new sergeant who, in his thrill at dismantling explosives, sometimes seems to overlook the value of human life.
Besides “Avatar” -- the 3-D adventure film that is nominated for nine Oscars -- “The Hurt Locker” was up against three other rival pictures: “Up in the Air,” byJason Reitman; “Precious” by Lee Daniels; and “An Education” by Lone Scherfig, whose female lead, Carey Mulligan, took home the best-actress trophy.
‘Single Man’
Colin Firth snagged the best-actor prize for his role as the mourning lecturer in Tom Ford’s first-ever feature, “A Single Man.” He is also an Oscar nominee.
Firth thanked Ford for making him “better groomed, more fragrant and more nominated than one has ever been before.”
He said he was on the verge of sending Ford an e-mail turning the part down when “a man came to repair my fridge. I don’t know what’s best for me, so I would like to thank the fridge guy.”
Firth and Mulligan both worked the red carpet outside the Royal Opera House, where the black-tie ceremony was held. So did a pony-tailed Mickey Rourke, last year’s best-actor winner. Stars in high sandals and sleeveless gowns braved the chill and heavy downpours to sign autographs and pose for a keen media pack.
This year, movie royalty was upstaged by a real-life blue-blood: Prince William, grandson of Queen Elizabeth II, who last night was named president of the Baftas, succeeding filmmaker Richard Attenborough.
Smiling Prince
Greeted by a curtseying woman as he stepped out of his chauffeured limousine, the smiling prince shook hands with his future subjects, a queue of excited teenagers in winter hoods. While he stuck to protocol and signed no autographs, Prince William allowed his face to be snapped next to theirs with a variety of cell phones.
Mulligan, who at 24 won the best-actress Bafta and is up for an Oscar in the same category, wore a black-and-white floral gown, her hair extra-short and blond. Before the ceremony, she praised the richness of her role in “The Education,” the true story of an ace student who is seduced by a married man.
“It’s always rare when you read a female character that has that much of a journey,” she said, noting that it was “usually men” in pivotal movie parts, and “you’re the girlfriend or the sister or the daughter.”
The lineage of motorcycles I have owned…what should I get next?
I was feeling kind of nostalgic for no real reason other than it’s a Sunday and a little rainy outside. So I decided I’d do a quick post with a list of the bikes I’ve owned over the years. I’m thinking it’s time for me to get something again as I am without a bike!
Okay, the first bike I ever road was a friend’s Trail 50. I’m not sure if my parents knew I’d be riding the thing. I stayed over at his house for the weekend and of course we thought we should drive around the country on the thing.
It looked like this one…
I had a blast on the thing, so I decided that I would talk my parents into helping me get a motorcycle. I was probably 12 at the time? So that summer I mowed the lawn of this guy in town that was always gone. I think I got paid $50 a month. So at the end of the summer I had a whopping $150. Now I know that doesn’t seem like much now…but in 1980 something…well it still wasn’t much but people weren’t gauging you for old as crappy bikes. So my pops went into town to the bike shop and found a 1969 Trail 90 for $150 Not only was it bigger = faster than my friend’s trail 50…well it was going to be MINE!
Now as you can see, the Trail 90 is quite the racing machine! Mine was bright ass yellow AND the seat was covered in flowers! It was a perfect representation of 1969. This thing was a tank. Now I couldn’t technically leave the lawn…but my lawn was tiny..so we happened to be neighbors with a junk lot (I know…prime real estate) so about 3 of us kids in the neighborhood made little circles around the lot. Hard to believe the owner was cool with this. Now I’m sure it would be a legal nightmare! He was very good to us though and treated us like family. Likewise we were pretty good about cleaning up our messes etc.
Well as luck would have it I think I ran over an engine part one too many times and cracked the case of the trusty Trail 90. I drove it for a while having to fill it up with oil before each ride. Then one day my father took pity on me and started looking in the Thrifty Nickel. I’m not sure how much time went by before he found someone selling a 1970 Honda CL 175 for $50! Now keep in mind it hadn’t been running in many years, but the guy had to leave town for some reason. We went out to the guys house and $50 later I had a new bike.
As luck would have it we slapped in new plugs (that’s right a TWO cylinder) and the thing fired up! Wholly smokes! This was the first time I had a bike with a clutch! Damn a clutch is a tough concept for a 13 year old! My old man had an interesting technique to teach me. He drove me out of town about a mile. Had me jump on the bike, said “well…if you want to get back home you better figure out how the clutch works”. He walked home…and beat me back home. But after a couple of hours I could slip that sucker with the best of them. This would become my Jr. High Motorcycle. Most of my friends had dedicated Dirt Bikes like XR’s and Xl’s…meanwhile I’m driving this road bike on the dirt roads and tearing the hell out of it. Here’s an actual picture after one of my “super fancy” paint jobs”.
I have to admit the thing served me well. Right up until I managed to break both arms riding it. Not the bike’s fault at all. Six Months after I was sort of patched up we slapped some new gauges on ‘er and she worked just great again…even if she pulled heavy in one direction LOL. In the meantime my pops had traded something for a 1974 KZ400 that was somehow justified as going to be mine when I was big enough.
I have no real idea what that was all about. With this little bike he drove from Idaho to Seattle many times…in the rain…on a 400…I can’t imagine the hell that must have been. Anyway…back to the Thrifty Nickel….we found a 1976 CB750f for just $400.
This turned into my highschool bike and was awesome. I drove it to work for two years rain or shine in Seattle. That means mostly I drove it in rain. Then the clutch went out. Sure I tried to fix it myself first…managed to screw that up big time. Then ended up trading her as is for a lousy IBM 286 PC! Ugh…hate myself for it. But alas. Then after college I wanted another bike and came across this thing. A 1983 CB1100f…finally a bike I had read about in the magazines growing up.
Also a fantastic bike…thing rode like a dream….
I took the bike to Vegas with me and used it commute for a couple of years. Then one day during 115 degree heat in Vegas it ate a valve. It wasn’t the best or newest bike…so it wasn’t cost effective to fix it. But I met this shop that really liked the bike and agreed to trade some work on a newer bike if I gave them mine for parts. Next thing I know I own a new bike…a 1995 GPZ1100.
Another great solid bike…I put 30k miles on this one before I finally decided to sell it (well everything ran well). So I went a few years without a bike and thought hey…why not get something I’ve always wanted even if it’s still. So…next hardtail chopper.
While this is not the one I bought…it looks equally as dangerous. I ended up with this nightmare that had a springer front end that didn’t ever belong on it. No rear shocks…no front break..and NEVER ran on more than 3 of its 4 cylinders. I rode it from Phoenix to Tucson at 40 miles an hour. Luckily I found someone just as stupid as me that wanted it. and they still love the thing.
Lastly I thought I would recapture some nostalgia and pick up another 1983 CB1100f…only this time the one I ended up with had some major problems and it never ended up running…hello EBAY..and goodbye bike.
So today…do I buy another sport bike? I do love how they handle but I hate how they depreciate…or do I look at something like an Indian for a decent re-sale value? Or do I just keep investing the cash into the market and retire a couple years earlier?
Amphetamines – a brief history of tweakers…and famous tweakers.
Amphetamines
History Of Amphetamines
First synthesized in 1887 Germany, amphetamine was for a long time, a drug in search of a disease. Nothing much was done with the drug, from its discovery (synthesis) until the late 1920's, when it was investigated as a cure or treatment against a variety of illnesses and maladies.
These included epilepsy, schizophrenia, alcoholism, opiate addiction, migraine, head injuries, and irradiation sickness, among many others.
In 1927 it was found to raise blood pressure, enlarge nasal and bronchial passages, and stimulate the central nervous system.
In 1932, amphetamine was marketed as Benzedrine in an over-the-counter inhaler to treat nasal congestion (for asthmatics, hay fever sufferers, and people with colds).
In 1935 physicians successfully used it to treat narcolepsy (a condition characterized by brief attacks of deep sleep that can occur at anytime of the day).
In 1937 amphetamine was found to have a positive effect on some children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). People with ADHD have difficulty concentrating.
When given amphetamine, some people with ADHD notably improve their concentration and performance. Instead of making ADHD sufferers more jumpy, as might be expected, amphetamine calms them down.
By 1937 amphetamine was available by prescription in tablet form.
In 1965 all amphetamines became illegal in the U.S. unless a person had a doctors prescription.
In 1970 The Controlled Substances Act severely restricted the legal production of injectable methamphetamine.
In 1971, there were 31 amphetamine preparations being distributed by 15 pharmaceutical companies. Legal production was over 12 billion pills a year.
Crystal Methamphetamine, more potent and easier to make than amphetamine, was first synthesized in Japan, in 1919. The crystalline powder was soluble in water, making it a perfect candidate for injection. It is still legally produced in the U.S.,
and sold under the trade name Desoxyn.
During World War II, amphetamines were widely used to keep the fighting men going. During the Viet Nam war, American soldiers used more amphetamines than the rest of the world did during WWII.
In Japan, intravenous methamphetamine abuse reached epidemic proportions immediately after World War II, when supplies stored for military use became available to the public.
In the United States in the 1950s, legally manufactured tablets of both dextroamphetamine (Dexedrine) and methamphetamine (Methedrine) became readily available and were used non medically by college students, truck drivers, and athletes.
As use of amphetamines spread, so did their abuse. Amphetamines became a cure-all for such things as weight control to treating mild depression.
Popular Personalities who were speed users include:
John F. Kennedy (shot amphetamine occasionally)
Adolph Hitler (took daily injections and tablets)
Ted Haggard (enjoyed meth and gay sex)
Charlie Parker (benzedrine in his coffee)
Lenny Bruce
Judy Garland
Johnny Cash
Elvis Presley
Medical Use Today
Today these drugs are generally used to treat attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). They are also useful in the treatment of narcolepsy.
In the past, doctors recommended amphetamines to control weight problems, because they decreased the appetite and increased a persons energy.
While this may work, it may also cause the user to become addicted to the drug. Because of this, amphetamine use for weight loss is strongly discouraged by doctors, in all but some very severe cases.
Amphetamines And Cocaine
In 1914 the U.S. federal government classified cocaine as a narcotic (which it is not) and outlawed it. The only way a person could get it after that was with a prescription, or illegally.
In the 1920s cocaine use declined, and that decline was to become more so in the 1930s, when amphetamine (speed) became popular among drug users.
Amphetamine was appealing to cocaine users because the high it produced was much like that of cocaine. It did not deliver quite the same peak, but its effects lasted longer. More significantly, it was cheap, readily available and legal. The cost of the amphetamines was as low as 75 cents per thousand tablets at wholesale as recently as the 1960s.
With the appearance of legally obtainable amphetamine, cocaine use declined considerably. Cocaine use remained low until all amphetamines, including meth became illegal (without a prescription) in 1965 when amendments to the federal food and drug laws were passed.
These laws were passed to stop the trade in black market amphetamines, barbiturates and other psychoactive drugs. It became hard for users to get legally manufactured amphetamines.
Because amphetamines were made illegal people started, and continue, to manufacture amphetamines in home labs. It was also the beginning of a new wave of cocaine popularity that also continues to this day (the first wave of cocaine popularity began in the 1880s and pretty much died by the mid 1930s).
Help stop the senseless slaughter of animals in the name of religion! Gadhimai results in 250,000 animals slaughtered!
Gadhimai is the name of one of the Hindu goddesses of power,[1] though the term usually refers to the world's biggest animal sacrifice conducted at the Gadhimai temple area in centralTerai of Nepal.
Animals are sacrificed as part of the Hindu festival, with the hope that the sacrifice will lead to the fulfillment of wishes by the goddess.[2] It is estimated that more than 250,000 animals were killed during the period of sacrifice in 2009[3] while 5 million people visited Gadhimai during the festival.[4] This centuries-old tradition is observed every five years in Gadhimai premises located in the village of Bariyapur of Bara District of Nepal near the border with India.
Male domestic Asian water buffaloes (Bubalus bubalis)(locally called "PaaDa") are the preferred species to offer to the goddess. Several other species including male goats(Khasi), chickens(Murgha), Pigeons(Parewa), Ducks(Batakh) and some rats(Moos), are also killed.[5]
Several animal-rights activists protest against this event before and during every Gadhimai festival. The 2009 event drew the attention of celebrities like Maneka Gandhi and Brigitte Bardot, who raised their voices against the killings.[6] Nepal government officials say they cannot stop the centuries-old tradition, despite opposition from animal-rights activists from Nepal and India. Animal rights activists say they are not looking for the practice to end overnight.[7]
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