An early Christian manuscript, including the only known text of the Gospel of Judas, has surfaced after 1,700 years, and it portrays Judas Iscariot not as a betrayer of Jesus but as his favored disciple and willing collaborator.

This is some Davinci Code shit here. Crazy.

In Ancient Document, Judas, Minus the Betrayal - New York Times

Remember the whiny, insecure kid in nursery school, the one who always thought everyone was out to get him, and was always running to the teacher with complaints? Chances are he grew up to be a conservative.

TheStar.com - How to spot a baby conservative

LAW enforcement officials, politicians and social scientists have put forward many explanations for the astonishing drop in crime rates in America over the last decade or so, and yet we remain mystified. Studies have shown that while each of the usual suspects — a decline in crack use, aggressive policing, increased prison populations, a relatively strong economy, increased availability of abortion — has probably played some role, none has proved to be as dominant a factor as initially suggested.
Perhaps we have been overlooking something obvious — something that our implicit biases caused us not to notice.

My unusual suspect is foreigners: evidence points to increased immigration as a major factor associated with the lower crime rate of the 1990's (and its recent leveling off).

Fascinating! You mean that all that name-calling and meta-politics actually was bullshit? Who knew!?

Open Doors Don't Invite Criminals - New York Times

Depressed, young people and the Internet — it's a very dangerous mix," said Mafumi Usui, a psychology professor at Niigata Seiryo University

Internet-Arranged Suicides Surge in Japan - Yahoo! News

How is this gonna pass?

NJ Bill making anonymous posts illegal

CHARLESTON, W.Va. - A small-town police chief was accused in a federal lawsuit Thursday of stopping a would-be rescuer from performing CPR on a gay heart attack victim because he assumed the ailing man had HIV and posed a health risk.

I think that man should be charged with a hate crime if they find out the accusation is true.

Suit: W.Va. Police Chief Denied Gay Man CPR - Yahoo! News

Nothing tells you more about Hollywood than what it chooses to honor. Nominated for best foreign-language film is "Paradise Now," a sympathetic portrayal of two suicide bombers. Nominated for best picture is "Munich," a sympathetic portrayal of yesterday's fashion in barbarism: homicide terrorism.
But until you see "Syriana," nominated for best screenplay (and George Clooney, for best supporting actor) you have no idea how self-flagellation and self-loathing pass for complexity and moral seriousness in Hollywood

UGH. So this is the new right-wing rant? Hollywood is out of touch with the rest of the God-loving country? Fuck that.

But expect to see this same argument played out, ad nauseum, on every news and semi-news channel until oscar buzz dies down. They do it every year. Last year they said all the movies portraying rich people were out of touch with middle class americans. Now they say that movies with political themes such as, oh, I dunno.. Brokeback?... Were out of touch with straight, patriotic, non-questioning, content Americans.

I am so proud of Hollywood this year for getting some real thought provoking stuff out there and not some war-time blockbuster bullshit. If Hollywood was so out of touch they wouldn;t have people lining up to see their movies, buying their rags in the grocery store, and doting on celebrity and movie buzz blogs while at work. Gimme a break.

Oscars for Osama

Georgians would be able to use deadly force to defend themselves in public areas such as parking lots and sidewalks under a National Rifle Association bill that passed the state Senate on Thursday.

Yeah, but how are we supposed to defend ourselves against these nutjobs in the GA house?

Bill gives citizens more latitude to defend themselves | ajc.com

Anti-abortion advocates scored a victory Thursday when the state Senate approved three bills supported by Georgia Right to Life.

Chipping away little by little, biding their time till Roe hits the floor of the new ultra-conservative SCOTU.

Senate passes 3 bills sought by Georgia Right to Life | ajc.com

WASHINGTON (AP) - The Senate on Thursday voted overwhelmingly to renew the USA Patriot Act, after months of pitched debate over legislation that supporters said struck a better balance between privacy rights and the government's power to hunt down terrorists.
The 89-10 vote marked a bright spot in President Bush's troubled second term as his approval ratings dipped over the war in Iraq and his administration's response to Hurricane Katrina. Renewing the act, congressional Republicans said, was key to preventing more terror attacks in the United States

Patriot Act Renewed to widespread dismay