I don't know who they think is reading medical journals, but it's certainly not children. Who the hell is the target audience of this piece?
I also liked this gem from the article: "After conducting a literature review..." What?!? You're writing a story about a fake person. How long could that literature review possibly be? What's listed in his Works Cited section, The Night Before Christmas?!
And ok, I'll play your little game that this is supposedly real research. I get it. It's Christmas. Blah blah blah. But just because it's Christmas doesn't mean you can blur the lines between correlation and causation. In the article he was implying that Santa was responsible for children being obese -- because the countries that celebrate Santa are also the fattest, and Santa "promotes" that obesity is ok. Obviously Santa doesn't CAUSE obesity. It's more that Western countries are the ones that celebrate Santa and they're also the ones that are more obese. I can't believe I even stooped to the level of questioning the soundness of research on a fake, lame, festive research article (in an actual medical journal, no less).
At the orders of North Korean leader Kim Jong-Il, a new campaign is starting against "untidy and foreign" hairstyles. Official media said last month that men should keep their hair short and women should have it tied up. (Full Story)
Well, this seems reasonable. And it definitely should be a top priority for North Korea, considering everything there is going so well already. It's not like they have more important things to worry about... And look at Kim Jong-Il's ridiculous hair! Like he has any room to talk. Besides, I don't know why he's so upset about people's hair...probably most people's hair is falling out from malnutrition anyway, so keeping the hair short is a moot point (I know... inappropriate)
I just like the title of this article: "WHO to send swine flu vaccine to poor countries." (With WHO, of course, being the World Health Organization.)
And after seeing the headline, it should be of no surprise that this scenario played out in my mind:
Person 1: Who is sending the swine flu vaccination to poor countries?"
Person 2: WHO
Person 1: Yeah, exactly, who is sending the vaccines?
Person 2: WHO
Person 1: Yes, that's what I said. So who is it?
Person 2: WHO!!!
Person 1: Quit mocking me! You don't have to get rude!
Sarah Palin was seen on vacation in Hawaii this week wearing an old McCain for President visor, but she blacked out the letters on the visor! Despite her efforts, you could still see the faint outline of McCain's name. Is she really that cheap that she can't just buy a new visor?! While we're on the subject of her apparel, she was also wearing a t-shirt that said: "If you don't love America..." (on the front) ,"then why don't you get the hell out" (on the back). Classy! (Full Story)
Nice title, Washington Post...do us all a favor, and just don't even try to be funny.
In Dallas, Texas, a four year old boy (a pre-kindergartner) was suspended for having long hair -- which the school says violates their dress code. His father said the school district is "more concerned about his hair than his education." He added, "I don't think it's right to hold a child down and force him to do something...when it's not hurting him or affecting his education." (Full Story)
Maybe people would stop messing with Texas, if Texas stopped messing with people.
A New Zealand church created a very odd billboard that shows Mary and Joseph in bed after what seems to be a disappointing round of sex. The caption on the billboard is "Poor Joseph. God was a hard act to follow." (There's a picture of the billboard in the article linked below). For those keeping tabs, this church's billboard is talking about Mary and Joseph having sex, implying that god and Mary had sex, and that Joseph is sloppy seconds. The church says the billboard was aimed at "challenging stereotypes" about the birth of Jesus Christ. They said they were satirizing the literal interpretation of the Christmas conception story. The church's vicar said, "What we're trying to do is to get people to think more about what Christmas is all about. Is it about a spiritual male God sending down sperm so a child would be born, or is it about the power of love in our midst as seen in Jesus?" Um, I don't really think anyone thinks of Christmas in terms of that first option. 'Let's celebrate god sending his sperm down!' And I don't think even the most liberal translations of the bible would say that god and Mary had sex and that god literally "planted his seed" in Mary. I really don't get what the church's message is, exactly, in regards to that billboard. But what I do know...the church definitely shouldn't have been surprised that the billboard was vandalized within a few hours. (Full Story)
More than 1,200 followers of a multi-religious sect in India have pledged to marry female sex workers who want to escape exploitation. (Full Story)
Yeah, because nothing says "I escaped exploitation" quite like marrying a cult member* you just met. I don't think this is necessarily the best way to address this issue...
*Ok, so they're not actually considered a "cult". They're just a "multi-religious sect" in which 1,200 members signed pledges to marry sex workers "following a call" from their "chief", who commands a huge "following" and has had rape and murder charges brought against him. So, you be the judge.
This guy is known as the French Elvis?! Do French people even know what Elvis looked like? Maybe they just call him the French Elvis because he's a musician that hasn't aged terribly well...
A Chilean Olympic weight-lifter gave birth to a baby boy during a training session, and she had no idea she was pregnant. The baby was born three months premature. A week earlier she had participated in a weight-lifting competition and had won. (Full Story)
The discussion that followed:
Heather: Well, that's going to be another episode on TLC's "I Didn't Know I Was Pregnant".
Eagan: I mean, I can imagine fat people not noticing (kind of), but someone so buff...it just seems odd
Heather: Maybe she thought she was just developing a really huge six pack...
There have been a lot of un-Canadian Canadian stories in the news lately. Canada's top soldier, the chief of the defense staff, acknowledged that the country's military had been aware that prisoners it handed over to Afghan authorities risked being abused. His acknowledgment contradicted the government's position and his own testimony that he gave the previous day. The government of Canada had used national security laws and court hearings to stall and limit an investigation into the prisoner transfers. (Full Story). It's certainly not Canadian to turn over prisoners when you know they risk getting abused and trying to cover it up. But in their defense, it certainly was Canadian of that General to come out and tell the truth.
Then there was news that Canada recalled a diplomat from Tanzania for spitting on a policeman and journalist. (Full Story)
And now the Liberal Party of Canada is having to apologize for showing a fake picture of Conservative Prime Minister Stephen Harper being assassinated. The Liberal Party website had been hosting a photo contest where readers could create images of Harper in fictional situations. The contest had been designed to criticize the PM's reluctance to attend climate talks in Copenhagen by showing locations that he would rather be in. And someone submitted a picture of Harper's head digitally placed on Lee Harvey Oswald's body as he is shot by Jack Ruby. The Liberal Party spokesperson said they do screen the pictures, but somehow this one slipped through the cracks. (Full Story)
What has happened to you Canada? Canadians need to come together, hold hands, eat some Timbits, watch some hockey, build an inukshuk, go to the doctor for free, and then they'll start acting Canadian again.
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