Woman Killed by Stray Dogs in Bulgaria
I'd heard it was bad over there, but I though it was exaggerated.
Like in this comic (which admittedly is about Romania, but hey, it's a problem in most of the area, I guess)






















Sore Thumbs Online

She went to walk her own dog in the small village she lived in. She's British...so...I don't really know why she was there. Doesn't matter, though.
A pack of stray dogs attacked her. They ate the meat from her legs, then, with the bones jutting from her ruined, eaten stumps, they left her bleeding to death. It's kind of hard to imagine worse ways of dying than watching your legs get eaten, then hoping that maybe, since the dogs left, that you might survive, horribly crippled, and then bleed to death anyway. False hope is bitter.

So...to those people overly attached to your cute little doggies...they are still animals, and if they have to, they will kill you. Except lapdogs. They'll just bite really annoyingly and bark until maybe you die from it.
Also, I lost the link, but packs of stray dogs are acting much like wolves in the de-militarized parts of Cyprus. So. Remember they are animals, not people. Even if they were people, of course, you probably still should not entirely trust them. People with that many sharp teeth would be inherently a little untrustworthy. Hehhe.


China's African Misadventures
You may have heard of China's spending spree in Africa. They prop up evil governments and etc. Usual business.
It turns out, Africa is still a really screwed up continent that even the Chinese have trouble with.


The (Impossible) American Dream
You may have heard recently that the American dream has failed - that children no longer grow up to be richer than their parents, etc., etc. It turns out to be mostly bullshit. Unsurprisingly. Also, the thing about black children growing up in the middle class and ending up poor...is kind of true, except that it ignores the fact that the size of the black middle class has doubled since the 70s, which was the generation being observed. It turns out that in this country, things are at least somewhat meritocratic - if you start out rich, there's no guarantee you'll end up that way, and if you start poor, it's not guaranteed you'll stay there, either. So unless every black family had six kids, four of whom grew up to be prosperous, and two which were utter failures, you'd have to conclude the system is working for somebody. Groups don't just double in size by accident. (except trailer trash. Oh! Insult! Except they're due to lots of accidents. heheh.)


Dickey: The Truth About Illegal Immigrants
According to this guy, the cities with the most immigrants, illegal or otherwise, are also the safest cities. Of course, there's no mention of what, exactly, they meant by safest - lowest murders per capita, lowest numbers for property crimes, what? I'm pretty sure the places listed - border towns, mostly, New York City, and Honolulu - have all got some problems with theft. Mostly the border towns. They sure as hell do.
Also, he doesn't demonstrate that the immigrants themselves make these places "safer". It could very well be that there is an increased police presence, or that other measures are being taken to deal with that community, that keep the "safeness" level where it is. I'd really like to believe him, because I like immigrants, think they make our country better and stronger, and generally dislike any sort of government controls, especially ones on where people are allowed to go - but he really fails to make the case. Too bad.

Hmm...I actually looked the thing up, and I'm not sure what he's referring to - here's a list of the safest/least safe cities for 2006 and 2007 from the Wikipedia article about the company that made his list. Apparently there is quite a bit of controversy over their methods: even the FBI says not to trust them.


Finally, because the first link is terrible, and the last depressingly stupid, here is a good story.
A Mexican man was walking over the borderlands. He came across a little boy on the side of the road, holding the mirror of his van. He had been camping with his mom, and driving back on Thanksgiving, she had left the road. The fall destroyed the van and took her life, but left the boy unhurt and alone. Though the man could not understand the boy, nor the boy him, he decided that he would help. Even knowing that he would be deported for doing so, he stayed, made a fire, gave the boy his sweater, and found some food in what was left of the van.

They were found the next day by hunters. The boy was returned to his uncle, and the man was sent to Mexico, where his own seven children depend on him. He does not regret what he did.
I'm really glad there are people like this in the world. We need more of them.

Feds' budget tricks hide trillions in debt - MSN Money
Did you know that, even during the "surplus" years at the end of Clinton's presidency, our national debt still grew? Funny thing. Our budget is all lies.

Also, because everyone needs some levity:

Karate Cat

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Fake shark fins may be infiltrating the Taiwan market
I didn't know there was such a thing. I suppose I'm glad, though - it seems a waste to kill a shark just for its fin, so being able to make a substitute is a good thing. Especially if most people can't tell the difference.


Millions in Sales From 3 Simple Words - New York Times
Have you seen those shirts (and everything else) that say, "life is good"? I'm sure you have. They have been irritating me for several years now. I'm not sure exactly why - I used to know. Maybe it's the drawing. That's irritating. Maybe it's the ignorance. Life, for me, actually has been pretty good. Outstanding, even. But I know it's not that way for everyone. Hmm...



What Would Jesus Buy? - Movie - Review - New York Times
It's not an actual pastor in the movie, but that seems to be the norm for documentaries these days - Michael Moore pionered the not-actually documentable documentary, and since so many people gave him money, it's inspired a whole wave of movies claiming to document things that don't exist.
Whatever. It seems like it might be a funny movie - this 'performance artist' goes around as Reverend Billy (Though I think Pastor Chuck would be more appropriate) and his congregation, and warns people of the coming "shopocalypse". It's trying to make people question what it is they believe in, and what they're doing. Christmas is not supposed to be about buying stuff, after all. True, we did receive a great gift, but we certainly didn't get it for being "nice". And the level of spending is really getting out of hand. Perhaps this year it will be less so, but there's always the future.

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Race, genes, and intelligence. - By William Saletan - Slate Magazine
William Saletan is not afraid of controversy. I suppose this is common knowledge by now. He will be writing a series of articles about the different characteristics of the various races - backed by what is supposedly solid research. And yes, he does say that race has an impact on intelligence - blacks tend to have lower IQs, whites about 'average' (100 or so), and East Asians higher than that. You may want to read it.

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Urban Legends Reference Pages: Obnoxious Airline Passengers
This is just a collection of stories of dubious verity - but all entertaining. The sort of stories you wish were true.



This is an awesome video. The dancing alone makes it worth watching. It's Indian. But the supposed subtitles are really the meat of the thing. You should see it.


Language Log: Autour-du-mondegreens: bunkum unbound
Believe it or not, this is a serious webpage by a serious scholar of linguistics...who just happens to enjoy bad internet videos. He passes it off as a linguistic exercise...and you know, it is. Lucky guy.

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