Conservapedia - User contributions [en]

The Simpsons

2012-05-05T23:13:00Z

Gerrard:

'''''The Simpsons''''' is a satirical animated comedy series created by ''Life in [[Hell]]'' cartoonist [[Matt Groening]]. ''The Simpsons'' started on the ''[[The Tracey Ullman Show]]'' in 1987. In December 1989 the show debuted on the [[Fox Network]]. The show was also made into a feature-length movie, which was released on 27 July 2007.

''The Simpsons'' is the longest-running sitcom in the [[United States]], as well as the longest-running animated television series, and is viewed all over the world. It has won 23 Emmy Awards, and is now in its 22nd season, as of 2010.

==Family==
The show revolves around the fictional Simpson family.

===Homer Jay Simpson===
The overweight, balding father of the family. Homer "works" as a safety inspector in the local nuclear power plant - where he usually sleeps, which gets him into trouble with his boss, Mr. Burns. However, many episodes have shown him performing a wide range of other jobs. Homer enjoys a diet mostly centered around donuts and "Duff" beer. Homer is by choice quite lazy but does get pushed into occasionally performing heroic acts for his family.

===Marge Simpson===
Marjorie "Marge" Bouvier Simpson is the mother of the family. Instantly recognizable thanks to her unfeasibly large blue beehive hairdo, Marge provides the foundation for the family. Her relationship with Homer is portrayed as a loving one but frequently exasperating due mostly to Homer's buffoonery. Marge is in many respects the prototypical suburban American mother, as she stays at home and takes care of the family while Homer works. On a few occasions Marge has gotten a job which has sometimes met with horrible results but sometimes with more pleasant ones.

===Bartholomew "Bart" Simpson===
Their son Bart, the eldest child, is a troublemaker and self-proclaimed underachiever. Bart has a mixed relationship with his father. While sometimes harboring a very close relationship with his father, Bart's opinion of Homer is all over the radar, ranging from very affectionate love to deep frustration.

===Lisa Simpson===
The older daughter. Lisa is mostly concerned with being a good student, protecting the environment (although she is involved with other [[liberal]] causes at different points in the show's history such as [[vegetarianism]] or [[recycling]]), and playing the [[saxophone]]. Her high intelligence relative to the rest of her family often makes her feel isolated.

===Margaret "Maggie" Simpson===
A baby who hardly ever talks, instead sucking her [[pacifier]] twice. On a couple of occasions she has proven to have exceptionally high intelligence (for example, when her pacifier was took away during a trip to a [[foster home]], she staged an elaborate plot to get it back).

==Themes==
While The Simpsons has many [[liberal]] themes the basis and morals of the show often portray family centered values in a warped sort of way and many episodes have a strong [[church]] focus. The show also has many episodes which focus on politics. The writers of the show come from both liberal and conservative backgrounds, and this is reflected through the portrayal of American politics on the show. The Springfield [[Republican Party]] is headed by the villainous Mr. Burns and meets in an old castle. Twice they have put forwards candidates for elections: Burns himself ran for governor of the anonymous state Springfield is in, though he eventually lost; while in a later episode Sideshow Bob, though twice convicted for attempted murder, becomes Mayor of Springfield. He is removed from office when it is discovered that he personally and secretly committed large scale voting fraud. Meanwhile, the Springfield Democratic party is led by Mayor "Diamond" Joe Quimby, who is portrayed as a promiscuous, pot smoking, unfaithful and corrupt politician, once admitting openly that he murdered his opponents. Quimby and his family are clearly modeled on the Kennedy family.

The show's portrayal of religion and [[Christianity]] in particular is often given in the form of Ned Flanders, the Simpsons' next door neighbor. A devout Christian, Ned is sometimes overbearing in his faith, but he is consistently shown to be compassionate and decent. In the series' first few seasons Ned was generally loathed by Homer for the perceived (and often real) superiority of Ned's quality of life. Later episodes have shown the two to be quite close at times, with more than a few featuring mutual adventures. Ned's reception amongst Christians has generally been positive due to his strong faith in God, even when faced with obstacles such as a failure of his business, The Leftorium, a hurricane destroying his house and most tragically, the death of his wife Maude. <ref> http://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/2001/february5/1.28.html </ref>.

==Controversy==
During the early years of the show Bart Simpson was criticized for being a poor role model for children. Though The Simpsons is considerably less atheistic than other Fox shows such as Family Guy, recently, it has become quite controversial. Ironically, Marge Simpson, arguably the most wholesome character on the show, has been a highly controversial character.

Marge Simpson has appeared on the cover of Playboy.

In the 2009 Halloween Special, "Treehouse of Horror XX," the writers of the show took a jab at the Eucharist. In one story in this episode, the people of Springfield were zombified and Bart's DNA was a cure. When the Simpsons escaped Springfield, other survivors wanted to eat him, but Marge screams:

::“What kind of civilized people eat the body and blood of their savior?”

Catholic League President Bill Donahue criticized the writers for this line. <ref>http://weblogs.baltimoresun.com/news/faith/2009/10/catholic_league_simpsons_donoh.html</ref>

Some Christian family groups such as the [[Parents Television Council]] criticized the episode ''There's Something About Marrying'' of supporting [[Same-sex marriage]].<ref>[http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/entertainment/4285287.stm Simpsons' gay character is Patty - BBC]</ref>

==Reference==
{{reflist}}

==External Links==

* [http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0096697/ IMDB Website]
* [http://m.apnews.com/ap/db_15996/contentdetail.htm?contentguid=q38A4cHB Vatican gives its approval of the Simpsons]

[[category:Television Shows|Simpsons, The]]

George Dewey

2012-05-05T23:11:31Z

Gerrard: /* Spanish American War */

'''George Dewey''' (1837-1917) was an American admiral, and the naval hero of the [[Spanish-American War]] of 1898.
==Career==
Dewey was born in Montpelier, Vermont; he attended the [[U.S. Naval Academy]] in Annapolis and in 1858 was graduated fifth in a class of fifteen. From 1858 to 1861 he served on various sail and stream-powered warships.
===Civil War===
In 1861, Dewey was assigned as executive officer of the side-wheeler ''Mississippi'' a unit of Admiral [[David G. Farragut]]'s squadron in the New Orleans campaign. While navigating the ship during her run past the forts, Dewey managed by quick maneuvering to avoid the full force of a ramming attack by the Confederate ship ''Manassas'', thus saving the ''Mississippi'' from serious damage. The next year, however, in an attempt to pass the Confederate stronghold of [[Port Hudson]], Louisiana, the ''Mississippi'' ran aground and had to be destroyed. Dewey saw further service on Farragut's flagship, the ''Monongahela'', and as gunnery officer on the ''Colorado'' in the bombardment of [[Fort Fisher]].

Dewey served at at the Naval Academy, surveying expedition off the California coast, on lighthouse duty, and on the European station. Promoted to captain in 1884, he was appointed chief of the Bureau of Equipment in 1889, and in 1895 Dewey became president of the Board of Inspection and Survey, witnessing the trials of ships of the new navy.
==Spanish American War==
In 1897, on the eve of the [[Spanish American War]], Assistant Secretary of the Navy [[Theodore Roosevelt]] had Dewey appointed to command the Asiatic Squadron, which he quickly brought to a high level of discipline and readiness. He took vigorous measures to transport ammunition to the Far East and set up an advanced base at Mirs Bay, on the coast of China, 600 miles from Manila.

After the ''Maine'' mysteriously exploded in Havana harbor on February 25, 1898, war loomed closer. Roosevelt immediately cabled Commodore Dewey in Hong Kong: "Keep full of coal. In the event of declaration of war with Spain, your duty will be to see that the Spanish Squadron does not leave the Asiatic coast and then offensive operations in Philippine Islands." Dewey bought the coal, drilled his crews, refited his fleet, and keep in close touch with the American consul in Manila. When on April 26, 1898, telegrams brought news that war had been declared, he sailed promptly for Manila Bay to attack the Spanish fleet.

The Spanish fleet in Manila Bay consisted of seven old undergunned warships. Dewey had six six modern warships; they had no armor. The entrance to the bay was guarded by three islands fortified with 17 rifled guns. The two channels were reported to be mined. Even if Dewey's squadron managed to get past the island forts and mines, the Spanish ships inside the huge bay, which is 30 miles across. were backed up by 37 shore batteries with heavy guns. When foreign naval officers in Hong Kong learned about Dewey's new mission, they thought he was headed for certain destruction and drank farewell toasts to the doomed Americans. Dewey's fleet had 53 guns larger than 4-inchers; Montojo had only 31. More important, Dewey had ten 8-inch guns while Montojo had none. The difference in range and destructive power gave Dewey an overwhelming advantage.
Dewey passed the islands in the dark; the Spanish gunners were asleep and got off only a few shots, all wide of the mark. Dewey sailed boldly into Manila Bay, ignoring the mines. Dewey figured correctly that in the tropical waters the mines had deteriorated and that their number was probably exaggerated. "I have waited 60 years for this opportunity," said Dewey. "Mines or no mines, I am leading the squadron in myself."

Dewey's aggressiveness dismayed Admiral Patricio Montojo's Far Eastern fleet at anchor off Cavite, south of Manila. He and his men knew the island defenses and mine ruse had failed and that their weak guns were useless. Montojo later claimed he went there because the waters off Cavite were so shallow (7 to 26 feet) that if his ships were sunk, his men could save themselves by swimming ashore. Cavite had shore batteries, but fewer guns with shorter ranges than at Manila, and the gunnery was poor. Dewey had 1,743 sailors men to Montojo's 1,130. In his flagship ''Olympia,'' at dawn on May 1, Dewey led his line of six cruisers in attack on an elliptical course that paralleled the enemy at varying ranges. He closed to 5,500 yards, the effective range for his 8-inch guns. At 5:40 A.M. as the Olympia steamed broadside to the first Spanish ship, Dewey told the ''Olympia'''s captain, "You may fire when you are ready, Gridley." Dewey's nonchalance and confidence made him a celebrity. Dewey broke for resupply (and breakfast) at 7:30 then resumed the attack. All the Spanish ships were destroyed, while not one American sailor was killed, and only eight slightly injured. The ''Olympia'' was hulled five times and her rigging cut, the ''Baltimore'' was hit five times, and the ''Boston'' and the ''Petrel'' received some unimportant hits. The Spaniards had 167 sailors killed and 214 wounded. Dewey's fleet now commanded the harbor, and he told a German fleet to stay back. The Spanish army with 15,000 was trapped as Dewey set up a blockade.

On August 13, 1898, Dewey collaborated with Gen. Wesley Merritt in an amphibious landing and capture of the city of Manila. He remained in the Philippines for a year, cooperating with the army in efforts to suppress Filipino uprisings.

==Hero==
The totality of Dewey's victory brought the world to a sharp awareness of the United States as a naval power. Returning to the United States in 1899, he received a hero's welcome. New York City's September 1899 welcome home celebration for Dewey was a two-day parade served more to promote the potential of American colonialism in Asia than to honor Dewey's heroism in the Philippines. Newspapers transformed Dewey into the epitome of American superiority by highlighting his leadership capabilities and accentuating the strength and masculinity of his features.

The U.S. Congress revived the title of Admiral of the Navy--previously held by only two men--and awarded it to Dewey. In 1900 he was named president of the newly established General Board of the Navy Department, which set basic policy. He served in this post until his death in Washington, January 16, 1917.

Dewey was energetic, competent and vain. He wore spiffy clothes and a glorious handlebar mustache; thanks to inherited wealth he lived in style. He often went horseback riding with Roosevelt in Washington's Rock Creek Park and he was a fellow member of Washington's prestigious Metropolitan Club. Dewey fit the nation's need for a hero, but he was not an innovator, for he invented no new weapons or techniques, planned and executed only one great campaigns, and contributed no new strategic insights to the navy.

With the collaboration of journalist Frederick Palmer as ghostwriter, who used the reports of Dewey's aide, Nathan Sargent, his autobiography appeared in 1913.

==Bibliography==
* Brody, David. "Celebrating Empire on the Home Front: New York City's Welcome-home Party for Admiral Dewey." ''Prospects'' 2000 25: 391-424. Issn: 0361-2333
* Chadwick, French Ensor. ''The Relations of the United States and Spain: The Spanish-American War'' (1911) [http://books.google.com/books?id=cNdBAAAAIAAJ&printsec=frontcover&dq=inauthor:French+inauthor:Ensor+inauthor:Chadwick&lr=&num=30&as_brr=0 online edition]
* Graves, Ralph. "When a Victory Really Gave Us a New World Order." ''Smithsonian'' 1992 22(12): 88-97. Issn: 0037-7333 Fulltext: [[Ebsco]]
* Spector, Ronald. ''Admiral of the New Empire: The Life and Career of George Dewey.'' 1974. 220 pp.
===Primary sources===
* Dewey, George. ''Autobiography of George Dewey, Admiral of the Navy'' (1913) [http://books.google.com/books?id=jQFFP96-o3cC&printsec=frontcover&dq=intitle:Autobiography+intitle:of+intitle:George+intitle:Dewey+intitle:Admiral+intitle:of+intitle:the+intitle:Navy&lr=&num=30&as_brr=0 full text online]

====notes====
<references/>
{{DEFAULTSORT:Dewey, George}}
[[category:United States History]]

Well sorted

2012-05-05T23:09:57Z

Gerrard:

'''Well sorted''' is a term in [[geology]] referring to grades of [[sedimentary rock]] in which all the grains are of roughly equal size.

=Sources=
*Pellant, Chris. ''The Complete Book of Rocks and Minerals'', Dorling Kindersley Inc.: New York (1995), p. 251

[[category:geology]]

Well sorted

2012-05-05T23:09:33Z

Gerrard:

'''Well sorted''' is a term in geology referring to grades of [[sedimentary rock]] in which all the grains are of roughly equal size.

=Sources=
*Pellant, Chris. ''The Complete Book of Rocks and Minerals'', Dorling Kindersley Inc.: New York (1995), p. 251

[[category:geology]]

Eddie 'the eagle' Edwards

2012-05-05T23:06:54Z

Gerrard:

'''Michael Edwards''' (born 5 December 1963), more commonly known as Eddie "The Eagle" Edwards, is a British athlete who was the first ever person to represent Great Britain in ski jumping at the 1988 Olympics in Calgary . Although he consistently came last, he became a popular 'underdog' throughout the world, and in particular within the UK where he became something of a folk hero.
[[Category:Sportspeople]]
[[Category:Folk Heroes]]

Trinity Church

2012-05-05T23:06:30Z

Gerrard:

'''Trinity Church''' was founded in 1697 and remains an active [[Episcopal]] church in the heart of [[Wall Street|the Financial District]] in Lower (southern) [[Manhattan]] in [[New York City]]. Its address is [[Broadway]] and [[Wall Street]].

Many famous Americans worshipped at Trinity Church or are buried in its cemetery, including [[William Bradford]], [[Hugh Williamson]], [[Alexander Hamilton]], [[Robert Fulton]], and [[Albert Gallatin]].
==Further reading==
* Jackson, Kenneth, ed. ''The Encyclopedia of New York City'' (1995), [http://www.amazon.com/Encyclopedia-New-York-City/dp/0300055366/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1240594479&sr=8-1 excerpt and text search]

[[category:Churches]]

[[Category:New York City]]

Cameo

2012-05-05T22:58:23Z

Gerrard:

In popular usage, a '''cameo''' happens when a famous person makes a brief appearance (or only plays a minor role) during a longer event.

In most cases, cameo roles are used in movies. For example, [[Alfred Hitchcock]] often appeared in his own movies. A more recent case of a cameo was [[Chris Gardner]]'s appearance in ''The Pursuit of Happyness'' [sic], a movie about a period of Gardner's life. Stan Lee, the creator of a number of popular [[comic book]] characters, often appears in the movie adaptations of his characters' stories. [[Stephen King]] is also known for his cameo appearances in movies based on his books or short stories.<ref>http://www.horrorking.com/cameo.html</ref>

==References==
<references/>

[[Category:Movies]][[Category:Theater]]

Parliamentary government

2012-05-05T22:56:39Z

Gerrard:

A '''''parliamentary government''''' (cabinet-parliamentary [[government]]) is one in which members of an [[executive]] branch (the cabinet and its [[leader]] - a [[prime minister]], [[premier]], or [[chancellor]]) are nominated to their positions by a [[legislature]] or [[parliament]], and are directly responsible to it; this type of government can be dissolved at will by the parliament (legislature) by means of a [[no confidence vote]] or the leader of the cabinet may dissolve the parliament if it can no longer function.

[[Category:Forms of Government]]

Parliamentary government

2012-05-05T22:56:12Z

Gerrard:

A '''''Parliamentary government''''' (cabinet-parliamentary [[government]]) is one in which members of an [[executive]] branch (the cabinet and its [[leader]] - a [[prime minister]], [[premier]], or [[chancellor]]) are nominated to their positions by a [[legislature]] or [[parliament]], and are directly responsible to it; this type of government can be dissolved at will by the parliament (legislature) by means of a [[no confidence vote]] or the leader of the cabinet may dissolve the parliament if it can no longer function.

[[Category:Forms of Government]]

L S Lowry

2012-05-05T22:54:48Z

Gerrard:

'''Laurence Stephen Lowry''' (L S Lowry) (1887-1976) was an artist born in Stretford, [[Lancashire]], north-west [[England]]. Although classically trained, his best known works are painted in a naive style - often referred to as 'matchstick men' - which depicted urban life in industrial Lancashire (especially Salford) in the early twentieth century. Lowry also painted a large number of works in and around [[Sunderland]].

[[Image:Laurence Stephen Lowry AT-WORK.JPG|240px]]

==Further information==
*[http://www.thelowry.com/ The Lowry Salford Quays]

{{DEFAULTSORT:Lowry, L S}}
[[Category:Artists]]
[[Category:Painters]]

Ant

2012-05-05T22:51:29Z

Gerrard: /* Ants in Fiction and the Bible */

[[Image:Harvester-ants.jpg|thumb|205px|right|19th century [[Europe|European]] naturalists were wrong about ant behavior. The [[Bible]] was correct about ant behavior.<ref>http://ed5015.tripod.com/BWilliamsvsAnon71to73.htm</ref>]]
'''Ants''' are social [[insects]] that live in highly organized colonies that include workers, drones, and [[queen]]s. Considered a highly successful insect, ants have colonized all parts of the world except for [[Greenland]], [[Antarctica]] and [[Iceland]]. Ants are classified part of the ''Hymenoptera'' family of species with [[bee]]s and [[wasp]]s and this similarity is evident in their similar social structure. There are over 12,000 known species of ants in the world [http://atbi.biosci.ohio-state.edu:210/hymenoptera/tsa.sppcount?the_taxon=Formicidae].

== Colony organization ==

Highly organized, ant colonies are coordinated by the release of [[pheromones]] - chemical signals passed between individuals that allow information to be passed around the colony. Pheremones can be used for such diverse purposes as: marking trails, identifying which task group an ant belongs to, triggering alarms, and even spreading confusion among invading colonies.

Most ant colonies have male and female ants in highly specialised roles, such as queen, worker, etc. Some species of ant do not have any males at all, and reproduce asexually<ref>[http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/sci/tech/7998931.stm BBC News: Ants]</ref>.

== Relationship with humans ==

While commonly seen as pests, ants actually have many benefits for human agriculture including pest control, and aerating soil, and even collecting seeds for farmers. They also regarded as food by many cultures - ant larvae known as ''escamoles'' in parts of Mexico are regarded as a kind of [[caviar]], and can sell for as much as $80 per kilo [http://cornellcollege.edu/biology/insects2005/9richardisaac/e%20is%20for%20escamoles.htm]. Remarkably, in some parts of the world Army Ants are even used as rudimentary sutures, their powerful jaws clamping wounds together to assist healing [http://www.ewma.org/pdf/fall04/Historical_Aspects.pdf].

== Intelligent design ==

Creation scientists see the complex social behavior of ants to be evidence for an [[intelligent design]]er. <ref>[http://www.christiananswers.net/kids/insects.html Incredible insects of the rain forest]</ref>

== Ants in fiction and the Bible ==

Ants have often been cited in [[pagan]] [[parable]]s as well as [[secular]] stories for their hard work. For example, in [[Aesop]]'s fable about the ant and the grasshopper. They are also mentioned in the Bible:
<blockquote>
''Go to the ant, thou sluggard; consider her ways, and be wise: Which having no guide, overseer, or ruler, provideth her meat in the summer, and gathereth her food in the harvest.'' [[Proverbs]] 6:6-8 (KJV)
</blockquote>
Observe that the Bible gets the gender of worker ants correctly whereas Aesop's ant character was originally personified using the incorrect masculine pronouns.

[[Category: Insects]]

==References==
{{reflist|2}}

==External Links==
*[http://www.ento.csiro.au/education/insects/hymenoptera.html Hymenoptera: ants, bees and wasps]

Ant

2012-05-05T22:51:06Z

Gerrard: /* Intelligent Design */

[[Image:Harvester-ants.jpg|thumb|205px|right|19th century [[Europe|European]] naturalists were wrong about ant behavior. The [[Bible]] was correct about ant behavior.<ref>http://ed5015.tripod.com/BWilliamsvsAnon71to73.htm</ref>]]
'''Ants''' are social [[insects]] that live in highly organized colonies that include workers, drones, and [[queen]]s. Considered a highly successful insect, ants have colonized all parts of the world except for [[Greenland]], [[Antarctica]] and [[Iceland]]. Ants are classified part of the ''Hymenoptera'' family of species with [[bee]]s and [[wasp]]s and this similarity is evident in their similar social structure. There are over 12,000 known species of ants in the world [http://atbi.biosci.ohio-state.edu:210/hymenoptera/tsa.sppcount?the_taxon=Formicidae].

== Colony organization ==

Highly organized, ant colonies are coordinated by the release of [[pheromones]] - chemical signals passed between individuals that allow information to be passed around the colony. Pheremones can be used for such diverse purposes as: marking trails, identifying which task group an ant belongs to, triggering alarms, and even spreading confusion among invading colonies.

Most ant colonies have male and female ants in highly specialised roles, such as queen, worker, etc. Some species of ant do not have any males at all, and reproduce asexually<ref>[http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/sci/tech/7998931.stm BBC News: Ants]</ref>.

== Relationship with humans ==

While commonly seen as pests, ants actually have many benefits for human agriculture including pest control, and aerating soil, and even collecting seeds for farmers. They also regarded as food by many cultures - ant larvae known as ''escamoles'' in parts of Mexico are regarded as a kind of [[caviar]], and can sell for as much as $80 per kilo [http://cornellcollege.edu/biology/insects2005/9richardisaac/e%20is%20for%20escamoles.htm]. Remarkably, in some parts of the world Army Ants are even used as rudimentary sutures, their powerful jaws clamping wounds together to assist healing [http://www.ewma.org/pdf/fall04/Historical_Aspects.pdf].

== Intelligent design ==

Creation scientists see the complex social behavior of ants to be evidence for an [[intelligent design]]er. <ref>[http://www.christiananswers.net/kids/insects.html Incredible insects of the rain forest]</ref>

== Ants in Fiction and the Bible ==

Ants have often been cited in [[pagan]] [[parable]]s as well as [[secular]] stories for their hard work. For example, in [[Aesop]]'s fable about the ant and the grasshopper. They are also mentioned in the Bible:
<blockquote>
''Go to the ant, thou sluggard; consider her ways, and be wise: Which having no guide, overseer, or ruler, provideth her meat in the summer, and gathereth her food in the harvest.'' [[Proverbs]] 6:6-8 (KJV)
</blockquote>
Observe that the Bible gets the gender of worker ants correctly whereas Aesop's ant character was originally personified using the incorrect masculine pronouns.

[[Category: Insects]]

==References==
{{reflist|2}}

==External Links==
*[http://www.ento.csiro.au/education/insects/hymenoptera.html Hymenoptera: ants, bees and wasps]

Ant

2012-05-05T22:50:52Z

Gerrard: /* Relationship with People */

[[Image:Harvester-ants.jpg|thumb|205px|right|19th century [[Europe|European]] naturalists were wrong about ant behavior. The [[Bible]] was correct about ant behavior.<ref>http://ed5015.tripod.com/BWilliamsvsAnon71to73.htm</ref>]]
'''Ants''' are social [[insects]] that live in highly organized colonies that include workers, drones, and [[queen]]s. Considered a highly successful insect, ants have colonized all parts of the world except for [[Greenland]], [[Antarctica]] and [[Iceland]]. Ants are classified part of the ''Hymenoptera'' family of species with [[bee]]s and [[wasp]]s and this similarity is evident in their similar social structure. There are over 12,000 known species of ants in the world [http://atbi.biosci.ohio-state.edu:210/hymenoptera/tsa.sppcount?the_taxon=Formicidae].

== Colony organization ==

Highly organized, ant colonies are coordinated by the release of [[pheromones]] - chemical signals passed between individuals that allow information to be passed around the colony. Pheremones can be used for such diverse purposes as: marking trails, identifying which task group an ant belongs to, triggering alarms, and even spreading confusion among invading colonies.

Most ant colonies have male and female ants in highly specialised roles, such as queen, worker, etc. Some species of ant do not have any males at all, and reproduce asexually<ref>[http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/sci/tech/7998931.stm BBC News: Ants]</ref>.

== Relationship with humans ==

While commonly seen as pests, ants actually have many benefits for human agriculture including pest control, and aerating soil, and even collecting seeds for farmers. They also regarded as food by many cultures - ant larvae known as ''escamoles'' in parts of Mexico are regarded as a kind of [[caviar]], and can sell for as much as $80 per kilo [http://cornellcollege.edu/biology/insects2005/9richardisaac/e%20is%20for%20escamoles.htm]. Remarkably, in some parts of the world Army Ants are even used as rudimentary sutures, their powerful jaws clamping wounds together to assist healing [http://www.ewma.org/pdf/fall04/Historical_Aspects.pdf].

== Intelligent Design ==

Creation scientists see the complex social behavior of ants to be evidence for an [[intelligent design]]er. <ref>[http://www.christiananswers.net/kids/insects.html Incredible insects of the rain forest]</ref>

== Ants in Fiction and the Bible ==

Ants have often been cited in [[pagan]] [[parable]]s as well as [[secular]] stories for their hard work. For example, in [[Aesop]]'s fable about the ant and the grasshopper. They are also mentioned in the Bible:
<blockquote>
''Go to the ant, thou sluggard; consider her ways, and be wise: Which having no guide, overseer, or ruler, provideth her meat in the summer, and gathereth her food in the harvest.'' [[Proverbs]] 6:6-8 (KJV)
</blockquote>
Observe that the Bible gets the gender of worker ants correctly whereas Aesop's ant character was originally personified using the incorrect masculine pronouns.

[[Category: Insects]]

==References==
{{reflist|2}}

==External Links==
*[http://www.ento.csiro.au/education/insects/hymenoptera.html Hymenoptera: ants, bees and wasps]

Ant

2012-05-05T22:50:33Z

Gerrard: /* Colony Organization */

[[Image:Harvester-ants.jpg|thumb|205px|right|19th century [[Europe|European]] naturalists were wrong about ant behavior. The [[Bible]] was correct about ant behavior.<ref>http://ed5015.tripod.com/BWilliamsvsAnon71to73.htm</ref>]]
'''Ants''' are social [[insects]] that live in highly organized colonies that include workers, drones, and [[queen]]s. Considered a highly successful insect, ants have colonized all parts of the world except for [[Greenland]], [[Antarctica]] and [[Iceland]]. Ants are classified part of the ''Hymenoptera'' family of species with [[bee]]s and [[wasp]]s and this similarity is evident in their similar social structure. There are over 12,000 known species of ants in the world [http://atbi.biosci.ohio-state.edu:210/hymenoptera/tsa.sppcount?the_taxon=Formicidae].

== Colony organization ==

Highly organized, ant colonies are coordinated by the release of [[pheromones]] - chemical signals passed between individuals that allow information to be passed around the colony. Pheremones can be used for such diverse purposes as: marking trails, identifying which task group an ant belongs to, triggering alarms, and even spreading confusion among invading colonies.

Most ant colonies have male and female ants in highly specialised roles, such as queen, worker, etc. Some species of ant do not have any males at all, and reproduce asexually<ref>[http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/sci/tech/7998931.stm BBC News: Ants]</ref>.

== Relationship with People ==

While commonly seen as pests, ants actually have many benefits for human agriculture including pest control, and aerating soil, and even collecting seeds for farmers. They also regarded as food by many cultures - ant larvae known as ''escamoles'' in parts of Mexico are regarded as a kind of [[caviar]], and can sell for as much as $80 per kilo [http://cornellcollege.edu/biology/insects2005/9richardisaac/e%20is%20for%20escamoles.htm]. Remarkably, in some parts of the world Army Ants are even used as rudimentary sutures, their powerful jaws clamping wounds together to assist healing [http://www.ewma.org/pdf/fall04/Historical_Aspects.pdf].

== Intelligent Design ==

Creation scientists see the complex social behavior of ants to be evidence for an [[intelligent design]]er. <ref>[http://www.christiananswers.net/kids/insects.html Incredible insects of the rain forest]</ref>

== Ants in Fiction and the Bible ==

Ants have often been cited in [[pagan]] [[parable]]s as well as [[secular]] stories for their hard work. For example, in [[Aesop]]'s fable about the ant and the grasshopper. They are also mentioned in the Bible:
<blockquote>
''Go to the ant, thou sluggard; consider her ways, and be wise: Which having no guide, overseer, or ruler, provideth her meat in the summer, and gathereth her food in the harvest.'' [[Proverbs]] 6:6-8 (KJV)
</blockquote>
Observe that the Bible gets the gender of worker ants correctly whereas Aesop's ant character was originally personified using the incorrect masculine pronouns.

[[Category: Insects]]

==References==
{{reflist|2}}

==External Links==
*[http://www.ento.csiro.au/education/insects/hymenoptera.html Hymenoptera: ants, bees and wasps]

Oxymoron

2012-05-05T22:49:41Z

Gerrard:

An '''oxymoron''' is a figure of speech in which two terms that are polar opposites are used together for [[rhetorical]] effect, or criticized because they are self-contradictory as in "[[pro-life]] [[Democrat]]." Political oxymorons include:

* ''[[liberal logic]]''
* ''government service''
* ''Harvard Divinity School''
* ''gay charity'' (the homosexual ideology is entirely selfish)
* ''evolutionary science''<ref>The theory of evolution is [[pseudoscience]] [http://www.uncommondescent.com/darwinism/there-is-no-theory-of-evolution/][http://members.iinet.net.au/~sejones/PoE/pe05scnc.html][http://www.parentcompany.com/science_kit/sk3b.htm]</ref>
* ''liberal Christian''<ref>[[Liberal values]] are in direct contradiction to the teachings of [[Christianity]] ([[Abortion]], [[Homosexuality]] etc).</ref>
* ''government intelligence - often used by liberals to smear the Armed Forces
* ''[[conservative]] professor'' - the process of obtaining a PhD and professorship is so politicized that [[liberals]] simply exclude conservatives
* ''illegal law'' - a law that violates the [[Constitution]], for example.

In the past, rhetoric and elocution were standard school subjects and students were taught long lists of technical names of figures of speech and their meaning. ''Oxymoron'' was one of these, along with ''[[simile]]'', ''[[metaphor]]'', ''[[metonymy]]'', etc. True oxymoron is relatively rare; one well-known example occurs in [[Tennyson]]'s ''Idylls of the King:''
:And faith unfaithful kept him falsely true.<ref>[http://whitewolf.newcastle.edu.au/words/authors/T/TennysonAlfred/verse/idyllsking/lancelotelaine.html Lancelot and Elaine], Tennyson, ''Idylls of the King''</ref>
Another occurs in [[Shakespeare]]'s ''[[Romeo and Juliet]]'', when Juliet tells Romeo
:Good night, good night! parting is such sweet sorrow.<ref>Shakespeare, ''Romeo and Juliet,'' [http://shakespeare.mit.edu/romeo_juliet/romeo_juliet.2.2.html Act II, Scene 2]</ref>
Arthur Koestler's book title, ''Darkness at Noon,'' is another example.

Among classical [[ancient Greece|Greek]] authors, [[Sophocles]] was known for his fondness for the device.

Since the word ''oxymoron'' is derived from the Greek roots ''oxy,'' sharp, and ''moron,'' dull, it literally means "sharp-dull" and is thus itself an example of an oxymoron.

There is also a [[pun]]like form of humor which consists of observing or claiming that certain phrases are oxymorons. While not new, It was popularized by Warren Blumenfeld's 1986 book, ''Jumbo Shrimp & Other Almost Perfect Oxymorons: Contradictory Expressions That Make Absolute Sense.'' In literal fact, what is being pointed out is an amusing contradiction.

Originally it played on the fact that many listeners remembered they been taught what an oxymoron was in school, but could not remember what it was. The context would have been something like this:

Humorist: "Jumbo shrimp?" That's an ''oxymoron.'' 
Mark: [Realizes he should know the word... his ten-grade English teacher drilled him on it... but can't quite, and is forced to ask]: A what? 
Humorist: An oxymoron, a contradiction in terms. 
Mark: (Thinks about it, realizes that although "Jumbo shrimp" is a real expression, "shrimp" means small and "Jumbo" means large, and rolls on the ground laughing helplessly). 

The device has now become so common that the word ''oxymoron'' has come to ''mean'' this form of humor, which is entirely unrelated to the original meaning of the word. It is often employed to make a political point. It rarely reveals any actual meaning; "Military intelligence is an oxymoron" does not actually point out anything intrinsic in military structure or thinking; it merely puns on the meaning of the phrase "military intelligence" and is just a tricky way of delivering an insult.

Examples of the modern, joking usage:

* ''Heroic villain'' - Since villains are bad, calling one heroic is an oxymoron.
* ''Friendly vandal'' - A flaw similar to the one above.

Examples of modern, serious usage:

* ''Jumbo shrimp''
* ''Real nightmare''
* ''same difference''
* ''expect the unexpected''
* ''classic rock''

==External Links==
* [http://www.fun-with-words.com/oxym_oxymoronology.html Oxymorons (or Oxymora)]

==Notes==
<references/>

[[Category:Rhetorical Devices]]
[[Category:Figures of Speech]]
[[Category:Words and Phrases]]

Egyptian pyramids

2012-05-05T22:47:44Z

Gerrard:

There are 138 [[pyramid]]s in Egypt. The earliest known Egyptian pyramids are located in Saqqara, northwest of Memphis and are thought to be constructed around 2600 BC.

The most famous Egyptian pyramids are those found at Giza, on the outskirts of Cairo. A number of the Giza pyramids are counted among the largest structures ever built. It is thought it took around 100,000 workers to build the structures.

Llanddewi Brefi

2012-05-05T22:46:08Z

Gerrard:

'''Llanddewi Brefi''' (approximate pronunciation: ''cland-dewi brevi''), pop 523, is one of [[Wales]]'s most scenic villages. It is situated in the central county of Ceredigion in west [[Wales]] and has recently achieved planning protection from urban blight owing to its national importance and outstanding architectural beauty.<ref>[http://www.cwlwmdeg.org.uk/] The Lampeter & Llanddewi Brefi Church Group</ref>.

Llanddewi Brefi is one of the largest parishes in [[Wales]]. It has a history that can be traced to pre-[[Christian]] times. The [[Roman]]s, [[Celts]] and [[Normans]] have all left their mark here.

A collection of ancient grave markers, many inscribed simply with the names of those whose burials they marked, underlines the antiquity of the human settlement here. Symbols and words carved on these markers confirm the Christian nature of the burials. This hard evidence shows Christianity was here even before the time of St. David: this is one of the oldest definite [[Christian]] sites in the [[British Isles]].<ref>[http://web.ukonline.co.uk/cj.tolley/ctm/ctm-llanddewibrefi.htm] Pre-Norman Stone Crosses In The British Isles</ref>

Although homosexuality is tolerated in Llanddewi Brefi the fact that there is only one known gay in the village has resulted in National Lottery funding.<ref>[http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-449300/Lottery-money-help-gays-village.html ''Daily Mail'': Lottery money to help 'the only gays in the village']</ref>

==History==

In the 6th century [[Saint David]] (Dewi Sant), the [[Patron Saint]] of Wales, held the [[Synod of Brefi]] in 519 AD. It was the site of one of St David's most famous miracles. At a church meeting held near the [[Rome|Roman]] fort of Bremia to discuss the [[Pelagian heresy]], David was unable to make himself heard in debate. He placed a cloth on the ground, which miraculously rose to form a mound from which he could speak.<ref>[http://cistercian-way.newport.ac.uk/place.asp?PlaceID=158] The [[Cistercian Order|Cistercian]] Way</ref> An alternative version says that the ground rose under his feet elevating him above the crowd and his voice was as a trumpet and the [[Holy Spirit]] in the form of a [[dove]] came and sat on his shoulder.<ref>
[http://www.brynheulog.com/llanddewi_brefi.htm] Brynheulog B & B</ref> Either way the mound in question is said to be the one on which the church was built, though it actually dates from almost seven centuries later. It has been altered a number of times, and at some stage in the past must have been considerably larger than it is now.<ref>[http://web.ukonline.co.uk/cj.tolley/ctm/ctm-llanddewibrefi.htm] Pre-Norman Stone Crosses</ref> The central tower of the church dates from the end of the 12th Century. Many features within this church bear witness to it having been an important centre for Christian worship during the 7th-10th centuries.

Llanddewi Brefi was a crucial test case in the [[Enclosure Acts|Enclosure Act]] Legislation of [[1750]], (amended 1801). When the legislation was enacted in [[Ceredigion]], a number of parishes, led by Llanddewi Brefi objected to the proposals. The dispute continued for the next 44 years during which time the other contesting villages had managed to resolve their disputes; [[Llanfihangel Genau'r Glyn]] in [[1813]] and [[Llangynfelyn]] in [[1824]]. In [[1845]], with Llanddewi Brefi still holding out, a new body called the [[Enclosure Commissioners]] was set up specifically to deal with the Llanddewi Brefi case. Despite this, the legal arguments continued for another 39 years, with the descendants (in some cases the great grand-children) of the original parishioners still holding out. In [[1883]] the matter was finally resolved<ref>[http://www.archivesnetworkwales.info/cgi-bin/anw/fulldesc_nofr?inst_id=31&coll_id=2032&expand] Ceredigion Archives: Cardiganshire Enclosure Acts Collection</ref> but the case of Llanddewi Brefi still stands as one of the most costly (inflation adjusted) and long-running cases in British legal history.

It achieved such notoriety in [[Queen Victoria|Victorian]] England that it undoubtedly was the inspiration for one of the minor cases that the lawyer Tulkinghorne is pursuing within [[Charles Dickens]]' novel [[Bleak House]], the central theme of which is an equally long-running legal case called ''Jarndyce & Jarndyce''

==Sports==
Llanddewi Brefi is one of the premier sites for Welsh Trotting or ''harness racing''. Trotting (Welsh: ''troddin'') has been held in Llanddewi Brefi since the early twentieth century. However, it suffered a serious decline when most of the horses were conscripted during [[World War I]] and never returned. The sport was resurrected following the relaxation of meat rationing in 1952<ref>[http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/nra/searches/sidocs.asp?SIR=O56523] Ceredigion Archives</ref> and the Llanddewi Brefi track held its golden jubilee in 2002.<ref>[http://www.welsh-trotting.co.uk/track-details.php?track_id=15] Wales and Border Counties Harness Racing: Llanddewi Brefi</ref> Welsh Trotting differs from the American version by being held on a grass track.

==Crafts==
Llanddewi Brefi is home to one of the country’s leading stick makers, Dafydd Davies. He makes a range of sticks from shepherds crooks to carved animal and birds heads, through to walking sticks and thumb sticks. Every stick is an individual work of art made with skill and craftsmanship. Ranging from simple elegant Shaker style sticks with a silver ferrules to more intricate items with a leaping trout or a sheepdog crouched for his next command. These sticks are owned by such eminent personages as the [[Prince of Wales]] himself, or the Supreme Champion of an International [[Sheepdog]] Society and the Champions of the ''[[One Man and His Dog]]'' competition.

==Politics==

Llanddewi Brefi is represented by [[Plaid Cymru]] (the Party of Wales) in the Welsh Assembly and the local community council. Dai Evans, who represents Llanddewi Brefi, has proposed the auctioning of the village signs on eBay to raise funds for the Asian tsunami appeal.<ref>[http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/wales/mid_/4168835.stm] BBC News: Little Welsh village seeks help</ref>

==Notes & References==

<references/>

[[Category:Welsh Cities and Towns]]

Dueling

2012-05-05T22:36:49Z

Gerrard:

'''Dueling''' was a practice requiring, as a matter of honor, a man to fight to the death anyone who challenged him. The challenge to a duel would typically arise from a perceived injury to one’s reputation, business, or personal life. An insult to one’s girlfriend or wife was also a common spark for dueling.

By tradition the person challenged to a duel had the choice of weapons. Until the eighteenth century swords were the weapon of choice but were replaced with duelling pistols which were often fabricated in matched pairs. Even so, swords remained popular in [[Germany|Prussia]] until relatively recently. Rather than fighting to the death, in Prussian duelling it was often sufficient to scar the face of the opponent<ref>[http://www.layston-church.org.uk/wogdon.html Layston Church - Robert Wogdon]</ref>; the facially scarred aristocratic German now being something of a cliché.

Although dueling was strictly prohibited by the [[Catholic Church]], it was common elsewhere in Europe and the United States until around the time of the [[American Civil War]]. Prosecutions for murder of persons victorious in duels are credited with ending the practice, and duelling is now illegal in most of the world.

Participants in duels include:
*[[Stephen Decatur]], died shortly after a duel with James Barron.
*[[Evariste Galois]], a brilliant mathematician killed at age 20 in his duel.
*[[Alexander Hamilton]], who refused to shoot at [[Aaron Burr]] and was killed by him.
*Alexander Hamilton’s son, who died in a duel before his father did.
*[[Andrew Jackson]], who won several duels by killing his opponents, but was lambasted for wearing large coats that concealed his body.
*[[Stonewall Jackson]] refused to duel a military academy student who challenged him.
*[[Abraham Lincoln]], who selected swords as the weapon and deliberately fought to a draw.

==References==
<references/>

[[category:Barbaric practices]]

Dueling

2012-05-05T22:36:05Z

Gerrard:

'''Dueling''' was a practice requiring, as a matter of honor, a man to fight to the death anyone who challenged him. The challenge to a duel would typically arise from a perceived injury to one’s reputation, business, or personal life. An insult to one’s girlfriend or wife was also a common spark for dueling.

By tradition the person challenged to a duel had the choice of weapons. Until the eighteenth century swords were the weapon of choice but were replaced with duelling pistols which were often fabricated in matched pairs. Even so, swords remained popular in [[Germany|Prussia]] until relatively recently. Rather than fighting to the death, in Prussian duelling it was often sufficient to scar the face of the opponent<ref>[http://www.layston-church.org.uk/wogdon.html Layston Church - Robert Wogdon]; the facially scarred aristocratic German now being something of a cliché.

Although dueling was strictly prohibited by the [[Catholic Church]], it was common elsewhere in Europe and the United States until around the time of the [[American Civil War]]. Prosecutions for murder of persons victorious in duels are credited with ending the practice, and duelling is now illegal in most of the world.

Participants in duels include:
*[[Stephen Decatur]], died shortly after a duel with James Barron.
*[[Evariste Galois]], a brilliant mathematician killed at age 20 in his duel.
*[[Alexander Hamilton]], who refused to shoot at [[Aaron Burr]] and was killed by him.
*Alexander Hamilton’s son, who died in a duel before his father did.
*[[Andrew Jackson]], who won several duels by killing his opponents, but was lambasted for wearing large coats that concealed his body.
*[[Stonewall Jackson]] refused to duel a military academy student who challenged him.
*[[Abraham Lincoln]], who selected swords as the weapon and deliberately fought to a draw.

==References==
< references/>

[[category:Barbaric practices]]

Dueling

2012-05-05T22:35:17Z

Gerrard:

'''Dueling''' was a practice requiring, as a matter of honor, a man to fight to the death anyone who challenged him. The challenge to a duel would typically arise from a perceived injury to one’s reputation, business, or personal life. An insult to one’s girlfriend or wife was also a common spark for dueling.

By tradition the person challenged to a duel had the choice of weapons. Until the eighteenth century swords were the weapon of choice but were replaced with duelling pistols which were often fabricated in matched pairs. Even so, swords remained popular in [[Germany|Prussia]] until relatively recently. Rather than fighting to the death, in Prussian duelling it was often sufficient to scar the face of the opponent<ref>[http://www.layston-church.org.uk/wogdon.html Layston Church - Robert Wogdon]; the facially scarred aristocratic German now being something of a cliché.

Although dueling was strictly prohibited by the [[Catholic Church]], it was common elsewhere in Europe and the United States until around the time of the [[American Civil War]]. Prosecutions for murder of persons victorious in duels are credited with ending the practice, and duelling is now illegal in most of the world.

Participants in duels include:
*[[Stephen Decatur]], died shortly after a duel with James Barron.
*[[Evariste Galois]], a brilliant mathematician killed at age 20 in his duel.
*[[Alexander Hamilton]], who refused to shoot at [[Aaron Burr]] and was killed by him.
*Alexander Hamilton’s son, who died in a duel before his father did.
*[[Andrew Jackson]], who won several duels by killing his opponents, but was lambasted for wearing large coats that concealed his body.
*[[Stonewall Jackson]] refused to duel a military academy student who challenged him.
*[[Abraham Lincoln]], who selected swords as the weapon and deliberately fought to a draw.

[[category:Barbaric practices]]

Big bang theory

2012-05-05T22:23:19Z

Gerrard: Redirected page to Big Bang theory

#REDIRECT [[Big Bang theory]]

Big bang theory

2012-05-05T22:22:43Z

Gerrard: Redirected page to Big Bank theory

#REDIRECT [[Big Bank theory]]

Big bang theory

2012-05-05T22:22:22Z

Gerrard: Redirected page to Big bank theory

#REDIRECT [[Big bank theory]]

Big bang

2012-05-05T22:21:51Z

Gerrard: Redirected page to Big Bang theory

#REDIRECT [[Big Bang theory]]

Hollywood

2012-05-05T22:16:23Z

Gerrard: /* See also */

[[Image:Hollywood sign.jpg|thumb|right]]
'''Hollywood''' -- ''best known for its harmful [[Hollywood values]] and lack of intellectual achievement or productivity'' -- is a district located in the city of [[Los Angeles]], [[California]]. It is the historic base of the movie industry, although the studios have mostly moved out. "Hollywood" now generally refers to the entertainment industry and its culture, which is based primarily in Southern California.

Writers such as [[Michael Medved]]<ref>http://www.amazon.com/Hollywood-vs-America-Michael-Medved/dp/0060924357</ref> and [[Michael Crichton]] have criticized Hollywood.

== References ==

<references/>

==Further reading==
* Balio, Tino. ''Grand Design: Hollywood as a Modern Business Enterprise, 1930-1939.'' (1993). 483 pp.
* May, Lary. ''The Big Tomorrow: Hollywood and the Politics of the American Way'' (2000)
* Schatz, Thomas. ''The Genius of the System: Hollywood Filmmaking in the Studio Era.'' (1988). 492 pp.
* Vaughn, Stephen. ''Ronald Reagan in Hollywood: Movies and Politics.'' (1994). 359 pp.

== See also ==

*[[Los Angeles]]
*[[Bollywood]]

[[category:Tourist Attractions]]
[[Category:Cinema]]
[[Category:Hollywood]]

Talk:Debate: 15 questions for evolutionists

2012-01-13T21:50:54Z

Gerrard: /* Heresy hunting */

==Personal attacks==
AugustO, I am sure the homosexual members of the Evangelical Church of Hesse Electorate-Waldeck that you belong to who were "married" in one of their "churches" are going to love the material you posted here. Liberals love error. By the way, what are your thoughts on the Conservapedia [[homosexuality]] article? [[User:Conservative|Conservative]] 08:47, 12 January 2012 (EST)
:Is there a reason you have deleted and then recreated this page without any of the preceding posts? It does seem rather arbitrary. [[User:Davidspencer|Davidspencer]] 08:52, 12 January 2012 (EST)

User:Conservative, have you anything pertinent to contribute to the debate? Otherwise I just go to ignore your invectives. [[User:AugustO|AugustO]] 08:59, 12 January 2012 (EST)
::August), is your liberal Protestant denomination still declining in their membership? How is that church's embracing of Darwinist naturalist philosophy and liberalism working out for you guys? Any miracles happen in the last service you attended? "O Timothy, keep that which is committed to thy trust, avoiding profane and vain babblings, and oppositions of science falsely so called" (1 Timothy 6:20) "holding to a form of godliness, although they have denied its power; Avoid such men as these." (2 Timothy 3:5) [[User:Conservative|Conservative]] 09:07, 12 January 2012 (EST)

User:Conservative, the [[Question Evolution! campaign]] provides a list of questions to be asked, e.g. in school. What good are these questions when they can be answered - and these answers can't be rebutted, because those who should provide such rebuttals prefer to use their time to alienate their fellow Christians? [[User:AugustO|AugustO]] 09:11, 12 January 2012 (EST)
:::AugustO, fellow Christians? You still haven't answered my questions from our last exchange or other questions I have. There have been too many heretical groups in history calling themselves Christians for me to automatically believe without due diligence that they are bona fide Christians. The fruit I have seen from my preliminary investigation is not encouraging. [[User:Conservative|Conservative]] 09:24, 12 January 2012 (EST)
:::: @user:Conservative: Concerning your first post here: I think I told you on the Community Portal, that AugustO's church does not marry homosexual couples. It is one of the things that is stated rather clearly on their German website...--[[User:VPropp|VPropp]] 11:13, 12 January 2012 (EST)
::::::True, you told me and did not show me. My preliminary research definitely leans towards them embracing this practice although it is not absolutely conclusive. Of course, this could better be cleared up if AugustO simply answers my questions. [[User:Conservative|Conservative]] 09:48, 12 January 2012 (EST)
*I doubt that there is anything I could write about me that would change your heart.
*The answers to your questions can be found in the internet, I think you will have more trust in your own research than in any of my statements.
*You seem to have not much of a problem to condemn the 900,000 members of the EKKW (or the 23,000,000 members of the EKD) as heretical! What does more harm: to condemn and insult a fellow Christian - or to engage respectfully in a debate with a member of one of the ''many heretical groups in history calling themselves Christians''.
*All of this doesn't matter when it comes to the ''15 questions for evolutionists''. Really, I don't know how you want to witness to any of the hostile atheists when you can't keep your cool in this sheltered environment?
[[User:AugustO|AugustO]] 09:45, 12 January 2012 (EST)
::::AugustO, have homosexuals been "married" inside of Evangelical Church of Hesse Electorate-Waldeck "churches"? It is an easy enough question for you to answer unless of course you want to hide something as liberals often want to do. [[User:Conservative|Conservative]] 09:54, 12 January 2012 (EST)
Is this 15 questions for evolutionists or just simply 15 questions for AugustO? [[User:Adambro|Adambro]] 09:55, 12 January 2012 (EST)

:*What has this to do with [[Debate: 15 questions for evolutionists]]? Is this a typical example of the tactic of diversion which is often used by liberals?
:*No "marriages" have been performed - but there may be congregations which have allowed "blessings".
:[[User:AugustO|AugustO]] 09:58, 12 January 2012 (EST)
:::Evobabbling, women "pastors" "blessing" homosexual "marriages", declining membership - the Evangelical Church of Hesse Electorate-Waldeck is [http://voxday.blogspot.com/2011/05/and-here-i-thought-slippery-slope-didnt.html on the slope]. Of course, when you start flouting biblical authority and [[Christian apologetics|ignoring the large amount of evidence for the Bible]], that's what happens. [[User:Conservative|Conservative]] 10:23, 12 January 2012 (EST)

Thanks for your telediagnosis! Now, can we get to the debate at hand, or do you prefer to stick to personal attacks - at tactic often used by liberals? [[User:AugustO|AugustO]] 10:26, 12 January 2012 (EST)
:::August, when you start presenting actual evidence instead of just-so stories and stop [[Christian apologetics|ignoring the large amount of evidence for the Bible]] and the effects of when a church does this, then we can start debating. [[User:Conservative|Conservative]] 10:31, 12 January 2012 (EST)
:::::August, by the way, what do you think of Conservapedia [[homosexuality]] article in terms of the factual evidence it presents? [[User:Conservative|Conservative]] 10:35, 12 January 2012 (EST)

I don't see how the perceived decline of the EKKW has anything to do with the ''15 questions'' - how does the very existence of a church you hadn't heard of a month ago can influence your evidence? Please, stop obfuscating (a tactic often used by liberals), and try to support the [[Question Evolution! Campaign]]. [[User:AugustO|AugustO]] 10:44, 12 January 2012 (EST)
::I am just point out through the social science of history using church history in particular what happens when churches put on their liberal evobabble skiis and liberalism ideology goggles and [http://voxday.blogspot.com/2011/05/and-here-i-thought-slippery-slope-didnt.html start going down the slope] - moral depravity and the condoning of the behavior of pretentious fraudulent shysters such as User: RudrichBoucher. [[User:Conservative|Conservative]] 11:03, 12 January 2012 (EST)
::: I'm intrigued, the history of which churches have you looked at? The accusation of moral depravity was used during the Reformation quite often and on both sides. Yet Catholicism and reformed churches still flourish.--[[User:VPropp|VPropp]] 11:13, 12 January 2012 (EST)
Thanks for pointing out! Now I can see the following dialogue happening somewhere in Texas:
*'''Pupil: ''' Here are fifteen questions you can't answer, Mr. Evolutionist-Teacher!
*'''Teacher: ''' Well, let's see. Question One isn't that difficult to answer - ''Darwin's 1859 book was called On the Origin of Species, not On the Origin of Life, his theory didn't cover the very beginnings of life, but what happened when speciation started. Similarly, we have helpful physical theories about the behavior of objects in the universe, though there is a scientific debate about the creation of the universe... '' So, what do you say?
*'''Pupil: '''RudricBoucher is a pretentious fraudulent shyster!
Yes, that will show the teacher! [[User:AugustO|AugustO]] 11:14, 12 January 2012 (EST)

::Hi AugustO, I've always found this answer (Evolution is about origin of species not origin of life) quite lazy. If you contest the fact that God created the species as they are today, you will have to provide an explanation for the beginning of life as well. To me, it's a bit like saying "I don't know how the thief got into the house, I just study how he stole the money"... --[[User:PhilipN|PhilipN]] 15:24, 12 January 2012 (EST)
:::By the way, I thought you had more than just 3 answers ?--[[User:PhilipN|PhilipN]] 15:26, 12 January 2012 (EST)

:::*To provide a theory of everything is a little bit to ambitious for me - most theories have a more or less well-defined area which they are covering: Quantum mechanics starts to explain much of the world shortly ''after'' the big bang (if there was one). And there may be specialists who are only looking how the safe was opened in the burglary without knowing how the thief entered the house. Their expertise may help to solve find the criminals. But you should state you rebuttal in the actual debate.
:::*I hadn't contributed to the previous version of the debate. There have been more answers to the questions, but they were deleted. I can't reconstruct them on my own...
:::[[User:AugustO|AugustO]] 15:44, 12 January 2012 (EST)
::::*So, should we add our arguments directly into the debate page, isn't it going to be messy ?
::::*Oh, I had not noticed that the previous version had been deleted... I believe this is the consequence of an edit war with a senior admin !--[[User:PhilipN|PhilipN]] 15:54, 12 January 2012 (EST)
VPropp, Western Roman Catholicism which has many members which have embraced liberalism and evolutionism (particularly starting in the 1950's and accelerating post 1960's), is not flourishing and is: bleeding members, plagued with scandals and experiencing a shortage of priests. It is not uncommon for Jesuits in academia to claim the Bible is riddled with historical error, etc. etc. [[User:Conservative|Conservative]] 17:11, 12 January 2012 (EST)

89 percent of children from evangelical families leave the church before they get to college. [http://www.christianpost.com/news/survey-churches-losing-youths-long-before-college-39433 Source: Christian Post] And guess what, Conservative, its because those children are not willing to throw away the last 150 years of scientific and social progress in favor of your idiosyncratic and inconsistent interpretation of the Bible. The fact is, it really isn't necessary for evolutionists to convince you of evolution's truth. Nobody here believes that you, or CMI, is debating in good faith anyway, so its no skin off my nose if you keep ranting and raving until the cows come home. All we have to do is wait for your lazy, backwards, lunatic fringe of Christianity to die out; at this point, the only people who believe that evolution and belief in God are incompatible are fundamentalist religious wingnuts and obnoxious militant atheists, both of whom have serious financial incentives to keep this "debate" going on indefinitely.[[User:TonyPark|TonyPark]] 15:25, 13 January 2012 (EST)

== Heresy hunting ==

"Conservative", if you're really on the lookout for the "many heretical groups in history calling themselves Christians" why don't you start with [[User:Ed_Poor|Uncle Ed]]? I guarantee you that no matter what August's church believes, it doesn't include the idea that Jesus is a rich old Korean guy who owns the Washington Times. --[[User:MarkSpace|MarkSpace]] 11:18, 12 January 2012 (EST)
:Lately, my editing at this wiki has been on the world economy, the 2012 U.S Presidential election and the [[Question evolution! campaign]] (which will accelerate the [[Global atheism|global decline of atheism]]). I will paraphrase and take liberties with a quote a relative of mine said to me: "In life, you have to pick your battles" (the actual quote related to his relationship with his wife). While it is certainly possible for me to battle every religious faith different from my own and every false ideology (Darwinism, liberalism), ultimately I am a mere mortal (or perhaps several). :) Of course, if [[Richard Dawkins]]' wacky false ideology (which is [[Atheism|bereft of evidence]] and [[Christian apologetics|counter to the vast evidence we have for Christianity]]) were true, I could easily be an advanced piece of artificial intelligence left by little green men who were the product of Darwinian evolution! [[User:Conservative|Conservative]] 16:46, 12 January 2012 (EST)
::User:Conservative, applying the defintion of Christianity that you seem so fond of using (capitalist, anti-homosexuality, pro-life, anti-evolution, democratic) the number of real Christians might be between 60 and 100 million globally. You seem to lack any sort of imagination of other countries or understanding that their structures, as much the American structures, are fundamentally different rom each other. Quite frankly, I and most other people would say that upon reading this discussion, you belong in a mental asylum. As I have lived in Germany all my life, it is very probable that that was were the German authorities would put you. And I believe they would be right in doing so. --[[User:NekD|NekD]] 17:38, 12 January 2012 (EST)
::::NekD, I would suggest using Firefox as it finds typos and misspellings. You misspelled the word definition. Second, please demonstrate I have defined Christianity in the exact manner you have claimed (for example, I personally believe in a republic with a representative government rather than a democracy plus capitalism. Plus, where have I said that biblical Christianity precisely prescribes a certain form of government or economics?). Third, you seem to be quite angry and have a penchant for armchair internet pop psychological diagnosis. I think I struck a nerve and pointed out some unpleasant truths for you. Often, the bitten dog yelps the loudest! Lastly, consider reading [[Essay: Counseling psychology and Dumbo's feather|this essay]]. [[User:Conservative|Conservative]] 18:10, 12 January 2012 (EST)
:::::Really? Are you that stupid not to recognize trolling? Have you so gotten used to being called insane that it doesn't even jump out at you?
:::::Most people will believe the exact opposite of what you tell them, Ken DeMyer, that it because you are so often wrong people have stopped counting the times you are wrong and started counting the times you are right. --[[User:NekD|NekD]] 18:22, 12 January 2012 (EST)
[[User:Conservative]], you should follow your own advice. Then you wouldn't have to erase [http://conservapedia.com/index.php?title=Talk:Debate:_15_questions_for_evolutionists&curid=118883&diff=953459&oldid=953458 revisions] to cover up your mistakes while lecturing others on theirs! [[User:AugustO|AugustO]] 18:20, 12 January 2012 (EST)
:::::NekD, I see you are unable to back your claim that I have defined Christianity in the precise manner that you claimed I did - very telling. :) Second, I am used to armchair internet psychological diagnosises by some very angry and frustrated members of a certain website who have many members afflicted with [[Essay: Conservapedia obsessive compulsive disorder|Severe Conservapedia obsessive compulsive disorder]]. :) However, I don't give credence to the obsessive ruminations of [[Essay: Atheism is a clown and it did not know it|atheist clowns]]. By the way, no true skeptic claims to know my/our name. :) [[User:Conservative|Conservative]] 18:35, 12 January 2012 (EST)
::::::Ha, ha, '''diagnosises'''. Obviously Ken's Firefox dictionary needs an update. [[User:Gerrard|Gerrard]] 16:50, 13 January 2012 (EST)
::::::Hi Conservative, I've seen you say "no true skeptic claims to know my/our name" a couple of time and I was wondering, what do you mean by that ?--[[User:PhilipN|PhilipN]] 19:07, 12 January 2012 (EST)

User:Conservative, earlier I [[Talk:Homosexuality|tried to answer]] one of your questions... [[User:AugustO|AugustO]] 19:08, 12 January 2012 (EST)
:::AugustO, that was not the question I specifically asked. Oftentimes, liberals engage in the style over substance fallacy rather than address the facts I present so I can understand your reluctance to address central issues. Once again, you prove to be a slippery character who fails to address the relevant questions I ask. [[User:Conservative|Conservative]] 19:16, 12 January 2012 (EST)

*LOL* taking into account your comments on this very page, this is the funniest thing I have seen today! [[User:AugustO|AugustO]] 19:20, 12 January 2012 (EST)
:::PhilipN, see [[Essay: Conservapedia obsessive compulsive disorder|symptom #8.]] Often, people with SCOCD like to obsess about various Conservapedia Admins, but unfortunately for them their one-way obsessions are unrequited obsessions not shared by the targets of their obsession. [[User:Conservative|Conservative]] 19:23, 12 January 2012 (EST)
::::AugustO, I was just trying to be helpful. He had two typos in his post to me. I merely made a single helpful suggestion. I didn't desperately create a whole web page of material indicating I had style over substance issues when it comes to my debate opponents that I was obviously losing to like you unfortunately did. [[User:Conservative|Conservative]] 19:27, 12 January 2012 (EST)

d. [[User:Conservative|Conservative]] 19:27, 12 January 2012 (EST)

::::I'd like to point out that every question on the page has an evolutionist response as of writing, and it is not looking good for the Question Evolution campaign. Maybe it should be changed from "15 questions evolutionists cant answer" to "A fifteen question exam on basic high school evolutionary biology, with some weird, bizarrely vague questions thrown in."[[User:TonyPark|TonyPark]] 19:42, 12 January 2012 (EST)
::::::Tony, do you attend a public school? The reason I ask is that in many public schools it doesn't matter if the answers to questions on tests are wrong answers or poorly answered, they still pass the students onto the next grade level. Tony, it appears as if you don't yet understand that poorly answered questions deserve a failing grade. [[User:Conservative|Conservative]] 19:54, 12 January 2012 (EST)

[[User:Conservative]], I <s>created a whole web page</s> discussed the first sections of your article on [[homosexuality]] on its talk-page. Judging from the corrections you made to the article afterwards I get the impression that I not only tried, but actually succeeded in being helpful! You're welcome!

As for ''losing the debate'' - where is this debate? I can find only personal attacks, while I am waiting for your rebuttals to evolutionists' responses.

[[User:AugustO|AugustO]] 19:59, 12 January 2012 (EST)

{|
|style="background-color: lightgrey;"|
Now I can see the following dialogue happening somewhere in Texas:
*'''Pupil: ''' Here are fifteen questions you can't answer, Mr. Evolutionist-Teacher!
*'''Teacher: ''' Well, let's see. Question One isn't that difficult to answer - ''Darwin's 1859 book was called On the Origin of Species, not On the Origin of Life, his theory didn't cover the very beginnings of life, but what happened when speciation started. Similarly, we have helpful physical theories about the behavior of objects in the universe, though there is a scientific debate about the creation of the universe... '' So, what do you say?
*'''Pupil: '''RudricBoucher is a pretentious fraudulent shyster!
Yes, that will show the teacher! [[User:AugustO|AugustO]] 11:14, 12 January 2012 (EST)
|}
::::AugustO, you still haven't answered all my questions. For example, is the Evangelical Church of Hesse Electorate-Waldeck still in decline as far as continuing to lose members? It still appears to me that they are [http://voxday.blogspot.com/2011/05/and-here-i-thought-slippery-slope-didnt.html on the slope]. [[User:Conservative|Conservative]] 20:04, 12 January 2012 (EST)
:::Conservative, do you like anchovies on your pizza? I ask because it is about as relevant to this debate as where I went to school. If you want to debate the questions, feel free to add something to the debate page. How is the Question Evolution campaign going to cut global atheism by 50% without Conservative there to defend the 15 questions that every evolutionist can answer?[[User:TonyPark|TonyPark]] 20:08, 12 January 2012 (EST)
::::::One of the questions is: "Why is a fundamentally religious idea, a dogmatic belief system that fails to explain the evidence, taught in science classes?". I was just pointing out to AugustO that the evolutionism/liberal "Christianity" religion he is subscribing to is morally bankrupt, produces bad fruit and is in decline and the reason it is taught in science classes is that [http://conservapedia.com/Talk:Question_evolution!_campaign/Archive_2 pretentious fraudulent shysters (such as User: RudrichBoucher)] want to promote it. Anyone who has read [[evolution|this article]] or [[Atheism|this article]] and similar material on the internet (or simply honestly examined God's creation) is very aware of this matter. [[User:Conservative|Conservative]] 20:19, 12 January 2012 (EST)

[[User:Conservative]], have you read the material of the [[Question Evolution! Campaign]]? It's about the theory of evolution, not the catechism of the EKKW. [[User:AugustO|AugustO]] 20:29, 12 January 2012

::Thank you Conservative, I needed a summary of this day long non sequitur you've managed to build up. Making fun of AugustO's church gave you an excuse to dodge the real debate, but that's okay because nobody expected your input to be anything but a demonstration of the Dunning-Kruger effect. If you want to talk turkey, take your best shot ON THE DEBATE PAGE. Otherwise, go write another "essay" about atheism and _______. [[User:TonyPark|TonyPark]] 21:02, 12 January 2012 (EST)

==Open memo to User:Conservative==

Christianity has changed quite a bit over the course of its history. Differences in theological interpretation, cultural tradition, and even geopolitical circumstance, have given rise to the many diverse denominations of Christianity that exist today. As early as the second century, there were scholars (a few of whom are now saints) who openly doubted the historicity of certain aspects of the gospels; including the virgin birth, the resurrection, the exact nature of Jesus' divinity, many of the miracles, and even Christ's message in general.

[[The New Testament]], as it survives today, is not, by any stretch of the imagination, the "inspired word of god". Instead, it is a compilation of writings which were agreed to be considered "canonical" at the Council of Rome in 382 AD. This council was convened by Pope Damasus I at the request of Emperor Theodosius I. Up until that time, there were at least 30 different gospels in widespread circulation and use; many of which disagreed widely on many key points. At the time, the Roman Empire was in a state of massive political upheaval (it would collapse entirely only eighty years later) and it had turned to its new state religion (Christianity) to provide political and social stability. Central to that aim was defining a core set of doctrines to define and unite Christianity, and also safeguard the political interests of the Roman state. The books and epistles that were ultimately included in the New Testament were deliberately chosen because they satisfied these aims.

Because of this, attacking a user's denomination of Christianity is an inherently meaningless exercise. Even the Catholic church acknowledges that it is not so much the substance of a person's faith that matters--it is that they have faith.

To summarize the Bhagavad Gita (and this is appropriate, considering that there are more philosophical parallels between Hindu and Judeo-Christian scripture than there are differences), mankind lacks the capacity to properly comprehend heavenly things (Jesus himself made similar assertions). It is not the place of mankind to judge the righteousness of men. Only God, with his heavenly perspective, can do that. This is one of the core tenets of Judeo-Christian philosophy--that is, leave the judging to God.

Accordingly, questioning another person's faith is highly inappropriate. "Spread the word" means just that, spread the word; don't attack another person for their interpretation of the word.

I know I speak for more users than myself on here when I say this. Please desist from making faith-based personal attacks. It is highly inappropriate (by all interpretations of the Gospel), and it is highly offensive.--[[User:RudrickBoucher|RudrickBoucher]] 22:48, 12 January 2012 (EST)

==Open question to readers of this page==

Because I believe that answering these questions in more detail would be a fun intellectual exercise, if the Conservapedia community would be okay with it, I would like to compose a 1-2 page answer to each of these questions and post them here as an essay. This would probably take me about a week to do (I have other, real, work to do on top of this), but I would be more than happy to do it if people are interested in reading more in-depth answers to each of the questions.

In the name of taking a balanced approach to such an effort, I am open to collaborating with other users on here in such an effort. I may even be able to get some of my colleagues to weigh in as well. Collaborating with one or more creationist users may also be particularly helpful, that way I can be sure of addressing all of the concerns underlying each of the questions.

Anyway, just food for thought. I know that there are already a number of pages devoted to this topic on here, but if people are interested, I am willing to do it. --[[User:RudrickBoucher|RudrickBoucher]] 21:44, 12 January 2012 (EST)

:::Colleagues? Do you mean other biologists or your friends from the Pretentious International Society of Shysters? Seriously though, its not like these questions are deeply insightful inquiries into evolutionary theory. A reasonably astute high schooler with an interest in biology could answer them satisfactorily. The answers for every one of these questions is freely available on any number of research web sites. CMI is not interested in having these questions answered; if they keep repeating the phrase "15 questions evolutionists can't answer", they can continue to denigrate and disrespect the work and motivations of the thousands of scientists without actually doing any work to come up with questions that might actually stump them. Save your effort. [[User:TonyPark|TonyPark]] 22:29, 12 January 2012 (EST)

:::::I have a few co-workers and classmates who are interested in this debate. Many of them have backgrounds in different sub-disciplines, so their input would be valuable. And, no, it's not wasted time at all. As scientists and educators, it is our duty to address misconceptions in the public square. --[[User:RudrickBoucher|RudrickBoucher]] 22:48, 12 January 2012 (EST)

:As a creationist, I am always interested in discussing the matter. Anyway, I believe most of those 15 questions are disapointing, there are other far more interesting questions to ask. I may try to draw a list of questions of my own if you are interested.--[[User:PhilipN|PhilipN]] 22:11, 12 January 2012 (EST)

:::If you want to come up with additional questions, I'd love to see them. A civil discourse is the only way that this tired issue will ever finally be put to rest. --[[User:RudrickBoucher|RudrickBoucher]] 22:48, 12 January 2012 (EST)
TonyPark, I didn't force RudrichBoucher to confess that he acted with a degree of pretentiousness in describing his relevant resume as far as the creation vs. evolution issue.[http://conservapedia.com/Talk:Question_evolution!_campaign/Archive_2] He freely admitted he overstated his resume. I am merely reminding Conservapedians of his self-described character deficit and that the material he writes cannot be trusted in terms of its truthfulness. [[User:Conservative|Conservative]] 04:38, 13 January 2012 (EST)

:The following comment was previously deleted:
{|
|style="background-color: lightgrey;"|

:User:Conservative, when you stated ''AugustO, as far as the issue of dealing with a difficult people: our recent discussion, other events and material I read recently, has caused me to rethink matters and make some beneficial changes'', I hoped this would include stopping the stream of invectives you are hurling seemingly randomly on anyone who crosses your path. There is no need to call [[User:RudrickBoucher]] a ''pretentious fraud'' and ''shyster'', and those who defend him ''whiners''. You yourself are often inconsistent in your statements: sometimes you describe yourself as a single person (''I take a part in a nativity play'', ''I'm too sick to play my part'') sometimes you imply that you are a group of people. Following your example, I should disregard everything you write and answer to any of your statements with: '''''User:Conservative has proven to be a dyscalculexic fraud'''''. [[User:AugustO|AugustO]] 17:54, 11 January 2012 (EST)
|}
I assume you are smart enough to know that if there were more than one person sharing this account that a person in such a group could refer to themselves as I. :) Second, I do understand that Darwinists love the word random, however, if you could curb your enthusiasm in this matter, it would be appreciated. Third, RudrichBoucher is a self-described person who engaged in pretentious behavior concerning his creation vs. evolution resume. Perhaps you should consider asking him to stop hurling invectives against himself. When a creationist hears an evolutionist self-admit to engaging in fraud, it is similar to him posting a "kick me" sign on his back. :) [[User:Conservative|Conservative]] 10:52, 13 January 2012 (EST)

:Then you are lucky: there is certainly no scientist who never made an error - and good scientists will acknowledge those errors. You may take these acknowledgements out of context, and just say: "''you admitted to be wrong - I won't listen to you ever again and ignore your arguments and the facts which you are presenting''".
:And now I understand why neither you nor Aschlafly are able to admit errors: you are afraid to stick a ''"kick me" sign on'' your backs. So you have to keep up all the charades which cumulate over time, looking more and more foolish (really: ''I am many''?)
:But experience of life tells us that a human who pretends to err never cannot be trusted, so your tactic may fail you (''errare humanum est'').

:[[User:AugustO|AugustO]] 11:20, 13 January 2012 (EST)

:Conservative, this is not a debate about RudrichBoucher's resume, nor does anybody but you think that he has engaged in "fraud." Nobody gives a crap about one line in a conversation you had with him months ago, and nobody cares that you think he is a shyster. Rudrick's qualifications are irrelevant to the debate about evolution vs. creationism. You have contributed NOTHING to this debate, except for personal attacks on the participants. If you notice, all of the spaces under "What an evolutionist would say" are full, and almost all of the spaces underneath "What a creationist would reply" are empty. Why don't you take 5% of the effort you spend trashing AugustO's church and use it to actually make some content?

Oh, and by the way, don't just write another paragraph attacking someone and paste in onto all 15 questions. There is no excuse for that level of immature behavior.[[User:TonyPark|TonyPark]] 11:35, 13 January 2012 (EST)

::It does seem a little ungracious to take someone's admission that they may have overstated the case on a peripheral point, and beat them over the head with it and call them a fraud and a liar. I should say that allowing people to qualify, explain and refine what they say is fairly essential to a constructive dialogue. Otherwise, you are just going to encourage pig-headedness and heel-digging.--[[User:CPalmer|CPalmer]] 11:51, 13 January 2012 (EST)
:::Darwinists have had over 150 years to provide sufficient evidence, yet they are still dogged by legitimate charges of engaging in deceit (see: [[Atheism and deception]]), suppressing evidence, using strong arm tactics and being chicken to debate and losing 300 debates to Dr. Duane Gish. Instead of having shifty people posting some lame material at CP, why don't you ask the evos Shermer, PZ Myers, and Dawkins debate the 15 questions with CMI? Are you afraid they will chicken out like atheists Penn Jillette and Don Exodus2 or like the 2010 Global Atheist Conference? :) [[User:Conservative|Conservative]] 11:55, 13 January 2012 (EST)

Obviously it doesn't take ''Shermer, PZ Myers, and Dawkins'' to address the 15 questions satisfactorily. So why bother them? Just because you want to get their attention for your ''campaign''? [[User:AugustO|AugustO]] 11:59, 13 January 2012 (EST)
:On the subject of creationist/evolutionist debates, I do find the idea quite amusing since they inevitably involve and attract people who are so firmly entrenched in their position that to acknowledge the other side may have made a good point, however small, would be impossible for them. I do wonder whether there has ever been a debate on this subject that has actually been anything other than a waste of time. Whether the questions here can ever be satisfactorily addressed is a similar issue. [[User:Adambro|Adambro]] 12:08, 13 January 2012 (EST)
::::::AugustO, Darwinists are struggling to gain wide acceptance in the USA even though Darwinism has been around for 150 years plus anti-Darwinist conservative Christianity is exploding in the world. The situation is not good for Darwinism and the cloud of being disingenuous hangs over Darwinism. For example, Stephen Gould talked about the dearth of supposed transitional fossils being a "trade secret". Does real science have "trade secrets"? I realize that you don't like me pointing out the licentious and fraudulent behavior of Darwinists, but Jesus said that bad fruit does not come from a good tree and it certainly right to point out egregious behavior by shysters. [[User:Conservative|Conservative]] 12:13, 13 January 2012 (EST)
CPalmer, the shyster RudrichBoucher did not say he may have overstated his resume. He said he said he was a "bit pretentious".[http://conservapedia.com/Talk:Question_evolution!_campaign/Archive_2] He admitted to engaging in pretentiousness. Please do not unnecessarily cloud the issue. [[User:Conservative|Conservative]] 12:20, 13 January 2012 (EST)

::What's the difference? I have an interest in politics and often discuss them online, but hold no formal position. So, what if I described myself as "a political commentator"? That would be an overstatement, and/or, it would be pretentious. Either would be an apt description. I am not clouding the issue at all.
::Also, I see from one of your user subpages that you enjoy the work of Orson Welles. If you don't like pretentiousness, perhaps you should rethink this!!!--[[User:CPalmer|CPalmer]] 12:51, 13 January 2012 (EST)

{|
|style="background-color: lightgrey;"|

:Stephen Jay Gould, a well-known evolutionist and professor of geology and paleontology at Harvard University, has stated, "The extreme rarity of transitional forms in the fossil record persists as the trade secret of paleontology. The evolutionary trees that adorn our textbooks have data only at the tips and nodes of the branches; the rest is inference, however reasonable, not the evidence of fossils."

"But paleontologists have discovered several superb examples of intermediary forms and sequences, more than enough to convince any fair-minded skeptic about the reality of life's physical genealogy."
Stephen Jay Gould, Natural History, May 1994

"Transitional forms are generally lacking at the species level, but they are abundant between larger groups."
Stephen Jay Gould, Hen's Teeth and Horse's Toes, p.261
|}

Hmmm, it would appear that you "snipped" a few words from something Gould said, interpreted it in a way that suited you and only you, and then posted it like we're all twelve year olds who will shut up if you quote someone smart. Since apparently you don't understand why quote mining is wrong, or why an appeal to authority is not logical or convincing, I'm going to explain it to you again.
*Just because a famous scientist had an opinion doesn't mean it is true.
*Just because a scientist doesn't subscribe to evolution does not negate the fact that 99% of scientists do.
*Just because you can find a quote in a famous scientist's book that expresses some reservations about some aspect of evolution does not mean that the whole theory is in doubt.
*Just because you found fault in something a poster said does not mean you can ignore everything they say afterwards.

Since apparently [[User: Conservative]] is a group of immature people, and not just one extremely inconsiderate individual, I would appreciate it if whoever is controlling Conservative at the moment could let the rest of the posse know that they actually have to have EVIDENCE to win a debate. Insulting someone so much that they leave in disgust is not a victory.[[User:TonyPark|TonyPark]] 12:46, 13 January 2012 (EST)

:''Instead of having shifty people posting some lame material at CP, why don't you ask the evos Shermer, PZ Myers, and Dawkins debate the 15 questions with CMI?''
:*Conservapedia is the natural place to comment on the [[Question Evolution! Campaign]], as so much is written here about it already.
:*Why do you betray the trust of the pupils who think that you provide them with magical bullets in their discussions on evolution? It doesn't take Shermer, PZ Myers or Dawkins to answer these ''unanswerable'' question. And even ''incorrect'' answers will shake the faith of the persons who can't rebut these answers on the spot.
:*You are encouraging ill prepared young men and women to engage atheists in discussions on evolution. Most times these debates won't follow the script you dreamed of in your tree house!
:*And when those boys and girls come here for more ammunition, you fail to provide it. Instead you are playing word games and engage in senseless ridicule.
:[[User:AugustO|AugustO]] 15:49, 13 January 2012 (EST)

Damages

2011-03-21T17:43:38Z

Gerrard:

'''Damages''' consist of money awarded by a [[court]] to a [[plaintiff]] injured by the unlawful act or [[negligence]] of another person.

Damages can also be awarded to a [[defendant]] who filed a [[counterclaim]] against the [[plaintiff]].

== See also ==

*[[Legal process]]
*[[Civil action]]
*[[Claim]]

[[Category:Legal Terms]]

People of the book

2011-03-21T17:42:31Z

Gerrard:

The Islamic term for [[Christian]]s and [[Jew]]s. "The book" here is the [[Torah]] or [[Old Testament]], which is a sacred book in all three [[religion]]s. <ref>They call Jews and Christians the "People of the Book" and allow them to practice their own religions. [http://www.pbs.org/empires/islam/faithpeople.html] </ref>

See: [[Abrahamic religion]]

==References==
<references/>

[[category:Islam]]

Diabetes insipidus

2011-03-21T17:41:01Z

Gerrard:

{{move|Diabetes insipidus}}
'''Diabetes Insipidus''' (DI) is a disease characterized by the inability of the kidneys to generate concentrated urine. It is not to be confused with [[Diabetes mellitus]]. The disorder is caused by a deficiency in the peptide hormone [[Antidiuretic Hormone]] (ADH) secreted from the posterior pituitary gland (central DI), or the inability of the kidneys to respond to this hormone (nephrogenic DI). The former is much more common and usually arises after trauma that injures the hypothalamus or the pituitary gland itself. A consequence of this disease is increased thirst and excretion of dilute urine. It is generally treated with synthetic ADH or specific diuretics.

[[category:diseases]]

Category:Kazakhstan

2011-03-21T17:37:11Z

Gerrard:

[[Category:Asian Countries]]

Kuril Islands

2011-03-21T17:33:54Z

Gerrard:

The '''Kuril Islands''' are a chain of 22 primary [[island]]s and 32 small [[islet]]s in the [[Russian Far East]], part of Sakhalinskaya Oblast (Сахалинская область). The 22 primary islands are: Antsiferova, Atlasova, Broutona, Chirinkotan, Chirpoy, Ekarma, Habomai Islands, Iturup, Ketoy, Kharimkotan, Kunashir, Makanrushi, Matua, Onekotan, Paramushir, Raikoke, Rasshua, Shiashkotan, Shumshu, Simushir, Urup & Ushishir. The official names of these big islands derived from both the Japanese and the Russians. These islands sits on top of two topographical compositions: the [[Greater Kuril Ridge]] and the [[Lesser Kuril Ridge]]. Both of these ridges parallel one another, one from the North end and the South. The deepest recorded depth from the Kuril Islands is a strait that measures 6,561 feet below sea level & the highest recorded peak is on an island named, [[Vulkan Alaid]], that measures 7,673 feet above sea level. The largest gap of one strait recorded is 37 miles wide.

== History ==

The Kurils once completely belonged to [[Russia]], but Japan began to control parts of the islands from the South by the year 1855. During [[World War II]] the Japanese supposedly thought they overtook all of the islands. Russia then seized them from Japan after the end of WWII - but sovereignty over parts of the islands still remains in dispute. Japan refused to sign a formal peace treaty with Russia because of disputes over the territories, especially [[Sakhalin]]. The Kuril Islands were first occupied by the natives most of whom are the Russians that have lived there for more than a century under the once Soviet Union's rule. In time the islands came under the Japanese's radar as they first sought an opportunity to conquer the South end of the islands and began occupying it (the same towards the North). But the Russians did not back down. The Russians reoccupied the islands and Kuril Islands (as a whole) was added as part of the Yalta Agreement of 1945. The Japanese considers the Kuril Islands to be their most northern part of their territory, while the Russian sees Kuril Islands as a window of opportunity to expand their military bases towards the South.

== Bibliography: ==

1.http://oceandots.com/pacific/kuril/ Oceandots.com (The Island Encyclopedia). ''Kuril Islands''. Copyright 2011.
2.http://www.fortunecity.com/olympia/ince/698/rurik/kuril.html Fortunecity.com. ''History of the Kuril Islands c1800-1945''. Copyright 2011.
3.http://www.newworldencyclopedia.org/entry/Kuril_Islands New World Encyclopedia. ''Kuril Islands''. Copyright 04-17-2008.
[[Category: Russia]]
[[Category: Islands]]

Kuril Islands

2011-03-21T17:33:12Z

Gerrard:

The '''Kuril Islands''' are a chain of 22 primary [[island]]s and 32 small [[islet]]s in the [[Russian Far East]], part of Sakhalinskaya Oblast' (Сахалинская область). The 22 primary islands are: Antsiferova, Atlasova, Broutona, Chirinkotan, Chirpoy, Ekarma, Habomai Islands, Iturup, Ketoy, Kharimkotan, Kunashir, Makanrushi, Matua, Onekotan, Paramushir, Raikoke, Rasshua, Shiashkotan, Shumshu, Simushir, Urup & Ushishir. The official names of these big islands derived from both the Japanese and the Russians. These islands sits on top of two topographical compositions: the [[Greater Kuril Ridge]] and the [[Lesser Kuril Ridge]]. Both of these ridges parallels one another, one from the North end and the South. The deepest recorded depth from the Kuril Islands is a strait that measures 6,561 feet below sea level & the highest recorded peak is on an island named, [[Vulkan Alaid]], that measures 7,673 feet above sea level. The largest gap of one strait recorded is 37 miles wide.

== History ==

The Kurils once completely belonged to [[Russia]], but Japan began to control parts of the islands from the South by the year 1855. During [[World War II]] the Japanese supposedly thought they overtook all of the islands. Russia then seized them from Japan after the end of WWII - but sovereignty over parts of the islands still remains in dispute. Japan refused to sign a formal peace treaty with Russia because of disputes over the territories, especially [[Sakhalin]]. The Kuril Islands were first occupied by the natives most of whom are the Russians that have lived there for more than a century under the once Soviet Union's rule. In time the islands came under the Japanese's radar as they first sought an opportunity to conquer the South end of the islands and began occupying it (the same towards the North). But the Russians did not back down. The Russians reoccupied the islands and Kuril Islands (as a whole) was added as part of the Yalta Agreement of 1945. The Japanese considers the Kuril Islands to be their most northern part of their territory, while the Russian sees Kuril Islands as a window of opportunity to expand their military bases towards the South.

== Bibliography: ==

1.http://oceandots.com/pacific/kuril/ Oceandots.com (The Island Encyclopedia). ''Kuril Islands''. Copyright 2011.
2.http://www.fortunecity.com/olympia/ince/698/rurik/kuril.html Fortunecity.com. ''History of the Kuril Islands c1800-1945''. Copyright 2011.
3.http://www.newworldencyclopedia.org/entry/Kuril_Islands New World Encyclopedia. ''Kuril Islands''. Copyright 04-17-2008.
[[Category: Russia]]
[[Category: Islands]]

Jeremy Camp

2011-03-21T17:27:38Z

Gerrard: /* External Links */

'''Jeremy Camp''' is a contemporary [[Christian]]/Christian rock musician originaly from [[Indiana]].

== '''Discography''' ==
# ''[[Stay]]''(2002)
# ''[[Carried Me:A Worship Project]]''(2004)
# ''[[Restored]]''(2004)
# ''Live Unplugged''(2005)
# ''[[Beyond Measure]]''(2006)
# ''[[Speaking Louder Than Before]]''(2008)

== External Links ==
# http://www.jeremycamp.com/
{{DEFAULTSORT:Camp, Jeremy}}
[[Category:Christians]]
[[Category:Musicians]]

Traditionalist Catholicism

2011-03-21T17:07:53Z

Gerrard:

'''Traditionalist Catholicism''' is a [[religious]] [[movement]] that has been in existence since the [[Second Ecumenical Council of the Vatican]] in 1962. Traditionalist Catholics reject the changes made in the Church by Vatican II and support a return to pre-Vatican II religious style.

Some traditionalists reject the papal successions since either 1958 or 1962.

[[Category:Catholic Church]]

Quartzite

2011-03-21T17:06:31Z

Gerrard: copyed

'''Quartzite''' is a [[metamorphic rock]] that forms when sandstone is heated under pressure deep within the [[Earth]] and should not be confused with mineral quartz. When quartzite is pure is most often white or greyish. Quartzite can be reddish or pinkish if iron oxide is present. Different mineral impurities can give quartzite different colours. [[Fossil]]s are rare in quartzite. Quartzite resists chemical weathering and therefore forms ridges and hilltops when less resistant rocks round it have eroded away. Quartzite does not form good soils therefore quartzite ridges are likely to be bare or to have poor soil and sparse vegetation.
[[Category:Geology]]

Christian Values

2011-03-21T16:45:06Z

Gerrard: rv vandalism

'''Christian Values''' are the values held by practicing [[Christians]]. They are a stark contrast to [[Atheistic Values]] and [[Liberal Values]], and well aligned with [[Conservative Values]] and [[Family Values]]. They include:
*adherence to the [[Bible]] as the true word of [[God]] and the foundation for morality and civilization
*opposition to the attempts by [[liberals]] to create a secular, atheistic society
*rejection of separation of church and state
*rejection of sins, including [[abortion]], [[homosexuality]], and the teaching of [[heresies]]
*charitable works
(add more)

<blockquote>
I have held many things in my hands, and I have lost them all; but whatever I have placed in God's hands, that I still possess. Martin Luther.
</blockquote>

== See also ==

*[[Karen Armstrong]]
*[[Martin Luther]]
*[[Pope Benedict XVI]]

[[Category:Christianity]]

Arkhangelsk

2011-03-21T16:44:19Z

Gerrard: Undo revision 858149 by Guymarsden (talk)

'''Arkhangelsk''' is a city in [[Arkhangelsk Oblast]], [[Russia]]. It has two [[airport]]s: [[Talagi]] and [[Vaskovo]].

Arkhangelsk was originally named ''New Kholmogory'', but was then renamed after the Archangel [[Michael]] Monastery.

[[Category:Russian Cities and Towns]]

Homosexual Agenda

2011-03-21T16:43:50Z

Gerrard: vandalism

{{Homosexuality}}
The '''Homosexual Agenda''', or [[Homosexuality|homosexual]] ideology, consists of a set of beliefs and objectives designed to promote and even mandate acceptance and approval of homosexuality, and the strategies used to implement such. This article notes that the goals and means of this movement include indoctrinating students in [[public school]], restricting the free speech of opposition, obtaining special treatment for homosexuals, distorting Biblical teaching and science, and interfering with freedom of association.

Among all the [[liberal]] belief systems, the homosexual ideology is the most self-centered or selfish. Liberals generally give much less than conservatives to charity, but gay charity work in particular is virtually non-existent.

Supreme Court Justice [[Antonin Scalia]] referred to the "so-called homosexual agenda" in ''[[Lawrence v. Texas]]'', 539 U.S. 558 (2003) (dissenting opinion).

== The Homosexual Agenda ==

Joseph P. Gudel, in ''That Which is Unnatural''<ref>[http://www.iclnet.org/pub/resources/text/cri/cri-jrnl/web/crj0108a.html "That Which is Unnatural" Homosexuality in Society, the Church, and Scripture] Part Two in a Two-Part Series on Homosexuality, from the Christian Research Journal, Winter 1993, page 8</ref> contended that the homosexual movement,

:has been militantly demanding not just the homosexuals' right to do whatever they wish to do behind closed doors, but, more importantly, that society fully accept their lifestyle as both healthy and normal, even demanding special rights and legislation as an "oppressed minority." Gudel quotes various sources evidencing this.

In a 1987 speech to the National Press Club in Washington, homosexual spokesperson Jeff Levi proclaimed,

:We are no longer seeking just a right to privacy and a protection from wrong. We also have a right -- as heterosexual Americans already have -- to see government and society affirm our lives. <ref>Jeff Levi, in William Dannemeyer, Shadow in the Land (San Francisco: Ignatius Press, 1989), 86.</ref>

In an article entitled "Gays on the March" in 1975, Time magazine quoted gay activist Barbara Gittings who stated:

:What the homosexual wants, and here he is neither willing to compromise nor morally required to compromise -- is acceptance of homosexuality as a way of life fully on a par with heterosexuality." In response, Time opined, "It is one thing to remove legal discrimination against homosexuals. It is another to mandate approval....It is this goal of full acceptance, which no known society past or present has granted to homosexuals, that makes many Americans apprehensive.<ref>Gays on the March," Time, 8 Sept. 1975, 43</ref>

A primary goal of the homosexual agenda is to promote the lifestyle in [[public schools]]. This occurred quickly and intensely after gay marriage was imposed in Massachusetts, where homosexual relationships are taught to children as young as kindergartners, as recounted by the decision of ''[[Parker v. Hurley]]''.<ref>The ''Parker v. Hurley'' decision explained, "In January 2005, when Jacob Parker ("Jacob") was in kindergarten, he brought home a 'Diversity Book Bag.' This included a picture book, Who's in a Family?, which depicted different families, including single-parent families, an extended family, interracial families, animal families, a family without children, and -- to the concern of the Parkers -- a family with two dads and a family with two moms. The book concludes by answering the question, 'Who's in a family?': 'The people who love you the most!' The book says nothing about marriage."</ref>

In a 1992 report by John Leo in U.S. News and World Report, he notes some books which were part of New York City's public school curriculum.

The first-grade book, "Children of the Rainbow", stated on page 145, which states that teachers must "be aware of varied family structures, including...gay or lesbian parents," and "children must be taught to acknowledge the positive aspects of each type of household." Another children book is Heather Has Two Mommies, which is about a lesbian couple having a child through artificial insemination. Another book, Gloria Goes to Gay Pride, states, "Some women love women, some men love men, some women and men love each other. That's why we march in the parade, so everyone can have a choice."

Leo commented,

:A line is being crossed here; in fact, a brand new ethic is descending upon the city's public school system. The traditional civic virtue of tolerance (if gays want to live together, it's their own business) has been replaced with a new ethic requiring approval and endorsement (if gays want to live together, we must 'acknowledge the positive aspects' of their way of life).<ref>John Leo, "Heather Has a Message," U.S. News & World Report, 17 Aug. 1992, 16.</ref>

Dr. Judith A. Reisman in her extensive ''Crafting “Gay” Children'',<ref>http://www.defendthefamily.com/_docs/resources/6390601.pdf</ref> reports that Harvard homosexual Toby Morotta, PhD, stated that in the 1970s, members of the Gay Activists Alliance - who were trained in the “zapping" of any who rebuffed homosexuality.<ref> Toby Marotta: THE POLITICS OF HOMOSEXUALITY: HOW LESBIANS AND GAY MEN HAVE MADE THEMSELVES A POLITICAL AND SOCIAL FORCE IN MODERN AMERICA, Houghton Mifflin Company, Boston, 1981 at 319</ref> And that these formed the “Gay Academic Union,” (GAU) which was made up of faculty and students in major universities. She states that the GAU has long fought for domination of its worldview within the academic community, and professional journals commonly assigned GAU and other homosexual peer reviewers to research touching on homosexuality, generally resulting in a quick death to possible unfavorable findings. <ref>See extensive reports in regular NARTH Bulletins as well as Ray Johnson, “American Psychology: The Political Science, at 53-57.</ref>

This and the general agenda is seen to be overall implementing a marketing strategy explained in a book called ''After the Ball,'' by [[gay rights]] activists Marshall Kirk and Hunter Madsen in the late 1980s, in which a six-point plan was set forth as to how they could transform the beliefs of ordinary Americans with regard to homosexual behavior in a decade-long time frame:
:"The agenda of homosexual activists is basically to change America from what they perceive as looking down on homosexual behavior, to the affirmation of and societal acceptance of homosexual behavior." <ref name="Winn07252003">''After the Ball'' (1989), quoted from Winn, Pete (7-25-2003) [ ''Q&A: The Homosexual Agenda''] Citizenlink</ref> "Thus propagandistic advertising can depict all opponents of the gay movement as homophobic bigots who are 'not Christian' and the propaganda can further show them [homosexuals]] as being criticized, hated and shunned..."<ref>After the Ball: How America Will Conquer Its Fear and Hatred of Gays in the 90's, by Marshall Kirk and Hunter Madsen (Author) (p. 152-153)</ref>

[[Focus on the Family]] provides additional quotes from After the Ball, outlining key points of the homosexual agenda:<ref name="Winn07252003"/><ref>Kirk, Marshall K. and Erastes Pill (11-1987) ''The Overhauling of Straight America'' Available at [http://www.article8.org/docs/gay_strategies/overhauling.htm ''STRATEGIES OF THE HOMOSEXUAL MOVEMENT: "The Overhauling of Straight America"'']</ref>

#"Talk about gays and gayness as loudly and as often as possible."
#"Portray gays as victims, not as aggressive challengers."
#"Give homosexual protectors a just cause."
#"Make gays look good."
#"Make the victimizers look bad."
#"Get funds from corporate America."

[[United States Supreme Court]] Justice [[Antonin Scalia]] wrote:
{{cquote|Today's opinion is the product of a Court, which is the product of a law-profession culture, that has largely signed on to the so-called homosexual agenda, by which I mean the agenda promoted by some homosexual activists directed at eliminating the moral opprobrium that has traditionally attached to homosexual conduct.<ref>[http://caselaw.lp.findlaw.com/scripts/getcase.pl?court=US&vol=000&invol=02-102#dissent1 ''LAWRENCE et al. v. TEXAS''] at findlaw.com</ref>}}

[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vic_Eliason Vic Eliason] of [http://www.crosstalkamerica.com Crosstalk America] rightly points out that if all Americans turned homosexual it would only take a few generations for the United States to lose most of the population of the country through lack of procreation. This would make the US more vulnerable to attack by our enemies.

== Specific goals ==

The goals of the homosexual movement include:

#Destroying Christian morals
#*Changing the definition of marriage, even if doing so infringes on the religious rights of Christians not to recognize it as anything other than sin <ref>www.massresistance.org, Homosexuals begin campaign of terror over Prop 8 loss]</ref>
#*Dilute the clear message of the [[Bible]] that [[homosexuality]] is a sin and an abomination unto [[God]].
#Promote pseudoscience that legitimizes homosexuality, such as claims of a never-identified gay gene<ref>[http://www.leaderu.com/jhs/satinover.html The Gay Gene?
by Jeffrey Satinover, M.D.]</ref>
#*Censoring evidence that the "gay gene" is a hoax<ref>[http://www.massresistance.org/docs/gen/08a/born_gay_hoax/smith_0329/index.html ''Lesbian activists at Smith College riot, shut down Ryan Sorba speech on "The Born Gay Hoax" as police watch. See exclusive videos.''] Mass Resistance</ref>
#Censoring speech against homosexuality by branding it to possibly be "hate-speech"<ref>[http://www.silencingchristians.com Video:Silencing Christians]</ref><ref>[http://mu-warrior.blogspot.com/2009/06/homosexuality-its-crime-in-england-to.html Homosexuality: It’s a Crime in England to State Christian Views]</ref><ref>[http://www.ccfon.org/view.php?id=745 Bishops fight for right to criticise homosexual lifestyle, 25th May 2009]</ref>
#*Censoring biblical statements condemning homosexuality<ref>White, Hilary (04-21-2006) [http://www.lifesite.net/ldn/2006/apr/06042105.html ''Court Upholds School Ban on "Homosexuality is Shameful" T-Shirt''] LifeSiteNews.com</ref>
#Establishing affirmative action for homosexuals<ref>The Crimson Staff (10-13-2006) [http://www.thecrimson.com/article.aspx?ref=514950 ''A Box of Their Own?''] (opinion) The Crimson</ref><ref>www.afa.net, Homosexual Agenda Platforms from 1972 - 2000</ref>
#Expand hate crimes legislation to include sexual orientation<ref>Pelosi, Nancy Office of (09-28-2004) [http://www.house.gov/pelosi/press/releases/Sept04/HateCrimes092804.html ''Pelosi: "Hate Crimes Prevention Legislation is Right Thing to Do, Long Overdue"''] From the office of Congresswoman Nancy Pelosi</ref>
#Ending the military's and Boy Scout's restrictions on homosexuality<ref>''Boy Scouts of Am. v. Dale'', 530 U.S. 640 (2000) (Boy Scouts); "Matlovich v. Secretary of the Air Force (591 F.2d 852, DC Circ. 1 978) (military)</ref>
#Stopping children as young as 5 years old from attending therapy to repair their sexual preference<ref>[http://www.thetaskforce.org/reports_and_research/youth_in_the_crosshairs National Gay and Lesbian Task Force:Youth in the Crosshairs]</ref>
#Promote homosexuality in schools<ref>[[Morrison v. Board of Education]]</ref>
#*In places like Massachusetts and California, where the gay lobby is the strongest, it starts as early as pre-school. They tell seven- or eight-year-old boys, "If you only like boys, there's a chance you may be homosexual," or "If you only like girls, maybe you are lesbian." Well, at that age, all members of the opposite sex "have cooties."
#*You're planting a seed that can totally mess up the normal development process later, when at 12 or 14, kids enter the age of sexual confusion and discovering the opposite sex. <ref>[http://www.citizenlink.org/CLFeatures/A000000562.cfm CitizenLink: QA: The Homosexual Agenda]</ref>
#Force businesses to accommodate their lifestyle<ref>[http://www.thetaskforce.org/issues/nondiscrimination/ENDA_main_page Employment Non-Discrimination Act (ENDA) | National Gay and Lesbian Task Force</ref>
#*Suing an online dating website for discrimination<ref>[http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,454904,00.html Fox News - eHarmony to Provide Gay Dating Service after Lawsuit]</ref>
#Undermining the [[Essay:Quantifying_Mental_Strength|resolve]] of [[Homosexuality_and_choice#Choice_and_Genetics|latent homosexuals]] so that their will becomes too weak to resist the temptations of homosexuality<ref>http://www.thetaskforce.org/activist_center/resources_and_tools/challenge_exgay</ref>
#Pushing for legalized adoption by gay individuals and couples<ref>http://www.thetaskforce.org/issues/parenting_and_family</ref>

The state-by-state push for same-sex marriage can be viewed as a means to the above goals, or a goal in itself.<ref>[[Lewis v. Harris]]</ref> An example of this would be the recent New Hampshire law that makes same-sex civil unions legal<ref>http://www.boston.com/news/local/articles/2007/06/01/new_hampshire_law_makes_same_sex_civil_unions_legal/</ref>

Although notable gains toward achieving its goals continue to be manifest, homosexual activists have recent been expressing a high level of and dissatisfaction against the Obama administration. Commenting on such, Massresistance.org, an organization which opposes the homosexual agenda in [[Massachusetts]], noted that the President has,

*signed an order extending federal benefits to same-sex partners;

*pushed an extreme hate crimes bill in Congress;

*declared his intention to repeal the Defense of Marriage,

*pushed a pro-homosexual and transgender version of the Employment Non-Discrimination Act.

*appointed radical homosexual activists to high level positions, including Harry Knox, of the homosexual lobby group Human Rights Campaign, and Kevin Jennings, founder of the Gay, Lesbian, Straight Education Network (GLSEN), which targets kids in the public schools.

*declared February to be "Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, and Transgender Pride Month."

*ordered the State Department to allow gay couples to use their married names (from marriages or civil unions) on US passports.<ref>update@massresistance.org 6/24/2009 11:56 PM</ref>

=== Strategies and psychological tactics ===

Homosexual activists are often seen as engaging in specious argumentation, such as attempts to controvert the consistent teaching of the Bible on homosexual relations, (see [[homosexuality and biblical interpretation]]) and using false analogies, in order to gain acceptance of homosexuality. One common argument used by homosexual activists seeks to compare their quest for equal rights to that of others.<ref>Miner, Homosexuality, Civil Rights, and the Church</ref> This argument is countered by the observation that blacks were able to peacefully argue that mankind should not be "judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character"<ref>[http://www.americanrhetoric.com/speeches/mlkihaveadream.htm, Speech by Martin Luther King Jr.]</ref>, as the former yields no certain moral distinction. In contrast, homosexual activists are seen to seek acceptance of an immoral practice(s), and in addition, to overall engage in certain coercive and manipulative means to do so. This is evidenced to include the use of a demonstrative manner of protests, which appear to be designed to censure and intimidate those who oppose them in any way.<ref>http://www.leaderu.com/socialsciences/sellinghomosexuality.html</ref><ref>http://www.article8.org/docs/gay_strategies/after_the_ball.htm</ref><ref>http://www.wnd.com/index.php?fa=PAGE.view&pageId=89526</ref><ref>http://www.massresistance.org/docs/gen/08c/Prop8/church_attacks.html</ref><ref>http://rebuildtheparty.ning.com/video/exodus-protest-park-street</ref><ref>http://theway2k.vox.com/library/post/homosexuals-persecuting-christians-and-mormons.html</ref><ref>http://www.hamiltonsquare.net/articlesRiotsSep1993.htm</ref><ref>http://www.lifesitenews.com/ldn/2008/may/08050205.html</ref><ref>http://www.wnd.com/index.php?fa=PAGE.view&pageId=95296</ref><ref>Muehlenberg, Bill, [http://www.billmuehlenberg.com/2009/06/04/another-nail-in-the-christian-coffin/ Another Nail in the Christian Coffin], [[4 June]] [[2009]]</ref><ref>[http://www.massresistance.org/docs/gen/09a/feder_0311/index.html Loud homosexual activists disrupt and halt Don Feder speech at UMass Amherst, despite police presence"]</ref> In addition, one pro-homosexual commentator recently took the homosexual community to task for being racist in their practice of homosexuality.<ref>LZ Granderson, ''Commentary: Gay is not the new black'', Cable News Network,July 16, 2009</ref>

While not all homosexuals agree with the use of deceptive psychological tactics, these have been promoted by leading homosexual activists. The aforementioned book, ''After the Ball'', is widely regarded as the handbook for the gay agenda, in which Harvard trained marketing experts and social scientists Marshall Kirk (1957 - 2005) and Hunter Madsen advocated avoiding portraying gays as aggressive challengers, but as victims, while making those who opposed them as evil persecutors. As a means of the latter, they promoted jamming, in which Christians, traditionalists, or anyone else who opposes the gay agenda are publicly smeared. In any campaign to win over the public, gays must be portrayed as victims in need of protection so that straights will be inclined by reflex to adopt the role of protector ... The purpose of victim imagery is to make straights feel very uncomfortable, they suggested.

Jam homophobia (i.e., disagreement with homosexual behaviors) by linking it to Nazi horror, was the strategy of Kirk and Madsen. Associate all who oppose homosexuality with images of Klansmen demanding that gays be slaughtered, hysterical backwoods preachers, menacing punks, and a tour of Nazi concentration camps where homosexuals were tortured and gassed. Thus, "propagandistic advertisement can depict homophobic and homohating bigots as crude loudmouths..."<ref>http://www.leaderu.com/socialsciences/sellinghomosexuality.html http://www.article8.org/docs/gay_strategies/after_the_ball.htm </ref>

Kirk and Madsen's open admission of their deceptive tactics is noted as most revealing: [O]ur effect is achieved without reference to facts, logic, or proof. "...the person's beliefs can be altered whether he is conscious of the attack or not"<ref>After the Ball: How America Will Conquer Its Fear and Hatred of Gays in the 90s, p. 152-153 (1989, Doubleday/Bantam)</ref> “The campaign we outline in this book, though complex, depends centrally upon a program of unabashed propaganda, firmly grounded in long-established principles of psychology and advertising.”<ref>Kirk and Madsen, After the Ball: How America Will Conquer Its Fear and Hatred of the Gay’s in the 90s, p.xxvi</ref><ref>[http://banap.net/ Behavior and Not a Person]</ref>

Similarly, author Robert Bauman additionally records, It makes no difference that the ads are lies . . . because were using them to ethically good effect, to counter negative stereotypes that are every bit as much lies, and far more wicked ones. <ref>The Gentleman from Maryland: The Conscience of a gay Conservative, by Robert Bauman, 1986, page 163.</ref>

The need for Kirk and Madsen to engage in such manipulation may be seen as being due to their sober realization of the nature of the homosexual lifestyle.

“In short, the gay lifestyle - if such a chaos can, after all, legitimately be called a lifestyle - it just doesn’t work: it doesn’t serve the two functions for which all social framework evolve: to constrain people’s natural impulses to behave badly and to meet their natural needs. While it’s impossible to provide an exhaustive analytic list of all the root causes and aggravants of this failure, we can asseverate at least some of the major causes. Many have been dissected, above, as elements of the Ten Misbehaviors; it only remains to discuss the failure of the gay community to provide a viable alternative to the heterosexual family.”<ref>Kirk and Madsen, After the Ball: How America Will Conquer Its Fear and Hatred of the Gay’s in the 90s, p.363</ref>

Marshall Kirk died in 2005 at the age of 48. The cause of death has not been publicly revealed.

Often cited as an early example form of such tactics was the role of homosexual activists in persuading the American Psychiatric Association (APA) to remove homosexuality as a mental disorder from its Diagnostic and Statistical Manual Of Mental Disorders (DSM-II). Dr. Ronald Bayer, though being himself a pro-homosexual psychiatrist, described this removal as being the result of power politics, threats, and intimidation, rather than any new scientific discoveries.<ref>[http://www.traditionalvalues.org/urban/eleven.php Exposed: The Myth That Psychiatry Has Proven That Homosexual Behavior Is Normal]</ref> In so doing, like slavery before it, the homosexual agenda is seen to threaten basic freedoms, principally the First Amendment.<ref>Adams, Guy (11-8-2008) [http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/mormon-stars-face-backlash-after-gay-marriage-ban-1003967.html ''Mormon stars face backlash after gay marriage ban''] The Independent</ref>

The charge of "[[homophobia]]" has also been increasingly evidenced as being part of a means of intimidation used in promoting the homosexual agenda. Due to what homophobia has been made to denote, that of being a repressed homosexual, or possessing an irrational fear of being approached by homosexuals, or of being a bigot persecuting victims, the widespread use of the term "homophobic" attaches a powerful stigma to anyone who may even conscientiously oppose the practice of homosexuality, thus silencing many who might otherwise object to it.<ref>[http://www.leaderu.com/orgs/narth/1995papers/socarides.html Thought Reform And The Psychology of Homosexual Advocacy
Charles W. Socarides, M.D.]</ref>

In relation to such oppression, psychologist Nicholas Cummings, former president of the American Psychological Association (APA), observed, "Homophobia as intimidation is one of the most pervasive techniques used to silence anyone who would disagree with the gay activist agenda." As an example of such fear within the APA, in addressing 100 fellow professionals Cummings related that while writing "Destructive Trends in Mental Health," with psychologist Rogers Wright, a number of fellow psychologists were invited to participate. However, these flatly turned them down, as they feared loss of tenure, loss of promotion, and other forms of professional retaliation. "We were bombarded by horror stories," Dr. Cummings said. "Their greatest fear was of the gay lobby, which is very strong in the APA.<ref>[Psychology Losing Scientific Credibility, Say APA Insiders http://www.narth.com/docs/insiders.html]</ref>

Noted homosexual activist and pornographer Clinton Fein, in his article, The Gay Agenda stated, Homophobic inclinations alone, even without any actions, should be criminal and punishable to the full extent of the law.

Erik Holland, author of "The Nature of Homosexuality," perceives that homosexuals have become so reckless in labeling others homophobic that "anyone who questions their labeling someone a homophobe himself. Even quoting factual statistics about the connection between homosexuality and AIDS is allegedly homophobic." In addition, according to pro homosexual author Vernon A Wall, "even acceptance of homosexuality can be seen as a form of homophobia, because to talk about the acceptance of homosexuality is to imply that there is something about homosexuality that needs acceptance."<ref>http://www.homosexinfo.org/Homophobia/HomePage</ref>

It may be speculated that if the liberal use of the term homophobia is not primarily a psychological tactic, then it indicates a psychological condition on the part of those who use it, in which they imagine that those who oppose them are fearful of them, or of being one.

===Influence in the Academic World===

Professor Jerry Z. Muller described in an article titled, "First Things" (Aug/Sept. 1993), how the homosexual lobby has gained widespread acceptance in the educational realm.

[Their] strategy has been remarkably successful. With a rapidity largely attributable in large part to a total lack of articulate resistance, homosexual ideology has gained an unquestioned and uncontested legitimacy in American academic life. Within the academy, as within nonacademic elite culture, the definition of opposite to homosexuality as "homophobia - a definition which implies that it is impossible to give good reasons for the cultural disapproval of homosexuality - is the best evidence of the success of this strategy.<ref>[http://books.google.com/books?id=cbfVg_1qhe0C&pg=PP1&lpg=PP1&dq=David+W.+Virtue+scots+college&source=bl&ots=aDW7a615Gn&sig=Y1cLsx5sCQTgUUDJ88b5AKPRkNg&hl=en&ei=8skISpP1AcGktgfi2PzsCw&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=1#PPR14,M1 Homosexuality, by F. Earle Fox, David W. Virtue, p. 12]</ref>

== Opposing Christian Agenda ==

Liberals are critical of Christian groups that oppose homosexuality. These criticisms include Christian activities of:

*Soliciting donations
*Encouraging email activism
*Producing and disseminating gay reform information
*Influencing local media in what stories they produce
*Lobbying local, state and federal government officials to vote in the desired way on pending legislation<ref>[http://www.cwfa.org/about.asp Concerned Women For America] About page</ref>
*Calling anyone who opposes or even questions the homosexual agenda a 'bigot' or other untrue insults.

==Opponents of the Homosexual Agenda ==
Some well known individuals/groups in the [[United States]] who actively oppose the homosexual agenda are: [[Focus on the Family]], [[Peter LaBarbera]]'s American's for Truth, the [[Traditional Values Coalition]] ([[Louis Sheldon]] is a chairman of the Traditional Values Coalition), and [[Matt Barber]] of [[Concerned Women of America]].

==Further reading==
*[http://www.leaderu.com/jhs/lively.html Homosexuality and the Nazi Party] by Scott Lively. Excellent discussion of the anti-Christian and homosexual origins of the Nazism.
*[http://www.sbcbaptistpress.org/BPCollectionNews.asp?ID=131 2008 McDonald's and the Homosexual Agenda], Baptist Press
*[http://www.couplescompany.com/FEATURES/politics/2004/Selling%20Homosexuality.pdf Paul E. Rondeau, Selling homosexuality to America (PDF)] [http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/news/730694/posts Or html form]

==See also==
*[[ACT-UP]]
*[[Anti-Defamation League]]
*[[Homosexual belief system]]
*[[Gay rights]]
*"[[Homophobia]]"
*[[Hate speech]], [[Hate crime]]
*[[Homosexuality]]
*[[Homosexuality and biblical interpretation]]
*[[Intimate Partner Violence]]
*[[Homosexualization]]

== References ==

{{reflist|2}}

{{liberalism}}

[[Category:Homosexual Agenda]]
[[Category:Homosexuality]]
[[Category: Liberal Deceit]]

Shenandoah National Park

2011-03-21T16:40:56Z

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|width=300
|image=Blank USA outline.png
|base_width=288
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|x_pos=229
|y_pos=89
|area=199,100 acres (805.7 km²) {198,241 acres (802.3 km²) federal}
|location = [[Virginia]]
|nearest_city = Fron Royal, VA
|coords =
|established = December 26, 1935
|entrance_fee =
|visitation_num = 1,107,227
|visitation_year = 2007
|governing_body = [[National Park Service|U.S. National Park Service]]
|website=[http://www.nps.gov/shen/index.htm NPS - Shenandoah ]
|category=
}}

'''Shenandoah National Park''' is a [[National Park]] in the state of [[Virginia]]. It was created in December 1935. Most of the visitor facilities in the park were built by the [[Civilian Conservation Corps]].

Shenandoah National Park has over 500 miles of [[hiking]] trails, including the [[Appalachian Trail]] which runs through the park.

==References==
<references/>

{{Nb_US_national_parks}}
[[Category:Virginia]]

North Cascades National Park

2011-03-21T16:39:29Z

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|x_pos=30
|y_pos=10
|area=28 acres (0.1 km²) {28 acres (0.1 km²) federal}
|location = [[Washington]]
|nearest_city = Seattle, WA
|coords =
|established = October 2, 1968
|entrance_fee =
|visitation_num = 19,534
|visitation_year = 2007
|governing_body = [[National Park Service|U.S. National Park Service]]
|website=[http://www.nps.gov/noca/index.htm NPS - North Cascades ]
}}

==References==
<references/>

{{Nb_US_national_parks}}

Mount Rainier National Park

2011-03-21T16:38:53Z

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|width=300
|image=Blank USA outline.png
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|base_caption=US locator map
|x_pos=25
|y_pos=21
|area=236,381 acres (956.6 km²) {235,670 acres (953.7 km²) federal}
|location = [[Washington]]
|nearest_city = Tacoma, WA
|coords =
|established = March 2, 1899
|entrance_fee =
|visitation_num = 1,047,685
|visitation_year = 2007
|governing_body = [[National Park Service|U.S. National Park Service]]
|website=[http://www.nps.gov/mora/index.htm NPS - Mount Rainier ]
|category=
}}
[[Image:Mount Rainier.jpg|left|300px|thumb|Mount Rainier National Park - Mountain Cam]]
'''Mount Rainier National Park''' is located in west-central [[Washington]]. Mount Rainier is an active [[Cascade]] [[volcano]] encased in over 35 square miles of [[snow]] and glacial [[ice]]. The 14,410’ [[mountain]] is surrounded by lush [[old growth]] [[forest]]s, spectacular [[subalpine]] [[meadow]]s and a [[National Historic Landmark|National Historic Landmark District]] that showcases the "NPS Rustic" style [[architecture]] of the 1920s and 1930s.

==External Links==
*[http://www.nps.gov/mora/ National Park Service Official website]
*[http://3dparks.wr.usgs.gov/mtrainier/html2/mr374.htm Virtual Tour of Mount Rainier National Park]

==References==
<references/>

{{Nb_US_national_parks}}
[[Category:Washington]]

Katmai National Park

2011-03-21T16:36:00Z

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|area=34 acres (0.1 km²) {34 acres (0.1 km²) federal}
|location = [[Alaska]]
|nearest_city = King Salmon, AK
|coords =
|established =
|entrance_fee =
|visitation_num = 82,634
|visitation_year = 2007
|governing_body = [[National Park Service|U.S. National Park Service]]
|website=[http://www.nps.gov/katm/index.htm NPS - Katmai ]
}}

==References==
<references/>

{{Nb_US_national_parks}}

Joshua Tree National Park

2011-03-21T16:35:27Z

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|x_pos=33
|y_pos=122
|area=32,856 acres (133.0 km²) {19,761 acres (80.0 km²) federal}
|location = [[California]]
|nearest_city = Twentynine Palms, CA
|coords =
|established = October 31, 1994
|entrance_fee =
|visitation_num = 1,298,979
|visitation_year = 2007
|governing_body = [[National Park Service|U.S. National Park Service]]
|website=[http://www.nps.gov/jotr/index.htm NPS - Joshua Tree ]
}}

==References==
<references/>

{{Nb_US_national_parks}}

John Boehner

2011-03-21T16:31:29Z

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{{Officeholder
|name=John Boehner
|image=JAB-official.jpg
|party=[[Republican]]
|spouse=Deborah L. Gunlack
|religion=Roman Catholic
|offices=
{{Officeholder/representative
|state=Ohio
|district=8th
|terms=January 3, 1991-present
|preceded=Buz Lukens
|former=n
|succeeded=
}}

}}

'''John Andrew Boehner''' (pronounced "BAY-ner"), born November 17, 1949 (age {{age|1949|11|17}}), is the [[Republican]] U.S. Representative from [[Ohio]]'s 8th congressional district and currently serves as [[Speaker of the United States House of Representatives]], succeeding [[Nancy Pelosi]]. He was elected Majority Leader in February 2006 upon the resignation of [[Tom DeLay]] because of allegations of campaign fundraising irregularities, and Minority Leader from 2007 until 2011.

Following the [[2010 Midterm Elections|2010 congressional elections]] Republicans gained control of the [[U.S. House of Representatives]] from the [[Democrat]]s. Boehner has a strongly [[conservative]] voting record on all major issues, and his successes have been interpreted as a watershed moment in the revival of American conservatism.

==Career==

Boehner was born to a German Catholic family in [[Cincinnati]]; he was the second of 12 children. After working in his family restaurant he graduated from Xavier University in 1977. Fresh out of college Boehner joined Nucite Sales, a small plastics sales company. He worked his way up the ladder and eventually became president of the company, resigning when he was elected to Congress. He was elected to local offices and served in the state legislature, 1984-90. In 1990 he was elected to Congress from the suburban-rural district north of Cincinnati; it is a Republican stronghold, giving [[George W. Bush]] 64% of the presidential vote in 2004 and [[John McCain]] 61% in 2008.

==United States Congress==

Soon after he was first elected, Boehner helped to expose the House banking scandal, which revealed that many members were essentially writing bad checks. From 1995 to 1999, he was the House Republican Conference Chairman. He was the Chairman of the House Education and the Workforce Committee from 2001 until 2006, when he resigned to become House Majority Leader. Boehner is widely credited with championing the [http://www.conservapedia.com/Bill_Clinton#1994_Republican_Revolution 1994 Contract With America], the Federal Agriculture Improvement and Reform Act of 1996, and the passage of "[[No Child Left Behind]] Act." After Republicans lost control of the House in November of 2006, Boehner was elected by his colleagues to serve as House Minority Leader. Boehner takes a conservative position on most issues. He has worked to lower income and inheritance taxes, arguing, "Americans are being taxed almost every moment of their lives. My goodness, when they are dead, do we have to tax them again?" <ref>http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2006/06/22/politics/main1743783.shtml</ref>

In the 111th Congress, Boehner was successful in persuading the Republican leadership to unanimously vote against [[Barack Obama]]'s $787 billion [[economic stimulus package]]. In 2009, Boehner offered an equivalent to a [[filibuster]] when he spent an hour reading from the 1200-plus page [[cap and trade]] [[climate change]] bill that was amended less then a day before the House of Representatives voted on it. Critics argue it would impose a national energy tax, which would result in job loses, and raise [[electricity]] bills. When asked why he read portions of the bill, he told the Hill newspaper, "People deserve to know what's in this pile of s--t." <ref>http://thehill.com/leading-the-news/boehner-climate-bill-a-pile-of-s--t-2009-06-27.html</ref>

Boehner was asked about the healthcare reform plan the Democrats are trying to "ram through" Congress, which Boehner has referred to as a "garlic milkshake."

"Yesterday was rather interesting. I walked by a Democratic press conference where the Speaker of the House and other Democrat leaders [were] talking about how there were going to be no cuts for seniors, how they were protecting Medicare. Now I don't know how they can do this with a straight face."

"They're the ones offering some $500 billion in cuts to Medicare and yet they say it's not going to affect seniors." <ref>[http://www.newsmax.com/headlines/boehner_healthcare_reform/2009/10/02/267705.html Rep. Boehner Accuses Obama of Subverting Constitution, NewsMax.com, October 2, 2009]</ref>

==External links==
*[http://bioguide.congress.gov/scripts/biodisplay.pl?index=B000589 Congressional Biography]
*[http://johnboehner.house.gov/ John Boehner House website]
*[http://speaker.house.gov/ Speaker of the House website]

==References==
<references/>

{{DEFAULTSORT:Boehner, John}}
[[Category:United States Representatives]]
[[Category:Republican Party]]
[[Category:111th United States Congress]]
[[Category:Fiscal Conservatives]]
[[Category:The 100 Americans The Left Hates Most]]
[[Category:Speakers of the House(US)|Boehner, John]]

Bronze

2011-03-21T16:30:22Z

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'''Bronze''' is a very useful alloy of [[copper]] and [[tin]]. It is stronger than most other [[metal]]s, but inferior to [[steel]]. Early man learned how to use bronze to make better [[weapon]]s and [[tool]]s such as plowshares and pruning hooks as well as weapons such as [[spear]]s and [[arrowhead]]s during the [[Bronze Age]].

In nature copper and tin are not normally found in the same area. (In antiquity, the [[British Isles]] were referred to as the "Tin Isles" whilst the name of the island of [[Cyprus]] has its roots in the word for "copper".) Consequently it is natural that as bronze became more important, centers had to become more organized; and as trade routes were opened up between the sites of the respective metals, technology and knowledge flowed between cultures, hastening the spread of civilization. It is not an accident that there are links between the advent of bronze working and the introduction of writing in many areas. In many places it enabled the introduction of the plow.

[[category:Alloys]]

Hawaii Volcanoes National Park

2011-02-10T17:05:19Z

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|x_pos=112
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|area=323,431 acres (1,308.9 km²) {323,431 acres (1,308.9 km²) federal}
|location = [[Hawaii]]
|nearest_city = Hilo, Hawaii, HI
|coords =
|established = August 1, 1916
|entrance_fee =
|visitation_num = 1,322,817
|visitation_year = 2007
|governing_body = [[National Park Service|U.S. National Park Service]]
|website=[http://www.nps.gov/havo/index.htm NPS - Hawaii Volcanoes]
}}

'''Hawaii Volcanoes National Park''' is famous for its volcanic activity. The Park encompasses a wide diversity of ecosystems and habitat for numerous native Hawaiian species such as carnivorous caterpillars, happy face spiders and colorful Hawaiian honeycreepers.
Over 90% of lifeforms in Hawaii are unique to the Hawaiian islands.

==See also==
*[[Pua Aloalo|Pua Aloalo - Hawaii's state flower]]
*[[Hawaii]]

==References==
<references/>

{{Nb_US_national_parks}}

[[category:Hawaii]]

Hawaii Volcanoes National Park

2011-02-10T17:03:35Z

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|coords =
|established = August 1, 1916
|entrance_fee =
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|visitation_year = 2007
|governing_body = [[National Park Service|U.S. National Park Service]]
|website=[http://www.nps.gov/havo/index.htm NPS - Hawaii Volcanoes]
}}

'''Hawaii Volcanoes National Park''' is famous for its volcanic activity. The Park encompasses a wide diversity of ecosystems and habitat for numerous native Hawaiian species such as carnivorous caterpillars, happy face spiders and colorful Hawaiian honeycreepers.
Over 90% of lifeforms in Hawaii are unique to the Hawaiian islands.

==References==
<references/>
==See also==
*[[Pua Aloalo|Pua Aloalo - Hawaii's state flower]]
*[[Hawaii]]

{{Nb_US_national_parks}}

<ref>[http://www.nps.gov/havo/index.htm NPS - Hawaii Volcanoes]</ref>

[[category:Hawaii]]

Haleakala National Park

2011-02-10T17:03:08Z

Gerrard: fix refs

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|base_width=288
|base_caption=US locator map
|x_pos=106
|y_pos=188
|area=33,231 acres (134.5 km²) {33,222 acres (134.4 km²) federal}
|location = [[Hawaii]]
|nearest_city = Pukalani, Maui, HI
|coords =
|established = July 1, 1961
|entrance_fee =
|visitation_num = 1,322,817
|visitation_year = 2007
|governing_body = [[National Park Service|U.S. National Park Service]]
|website=[http://www.nps.gov/hale/index.htm NPS - Haleakala ]
}}

[[Image:HaleakalaCrater.jpg|left|thumb|400px|Haleakala crater at Haleakala National park, [[Maui]]]]
 
==References==
<references/>

{{Nb_US_national_parks}}

[[Category:Hawaii]]

Grand Teton National Park

2011-02-10T17:01:58Z

Gerrard: fix refs

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|width=300
|image=Blank USA outline.png
|base_width=288
|base_caption=US locator map
|x_pos=75
|y_pos=56
|area=309,995 acres (1,254.5 km²) {307,695 acres (1,245.2 km²) federal}
|location = [[Wyoming]]
|nearest_city = Jackson, WY
|coords =
|established = February 26, 1929
|entrance_fee =
|visitation_num = 2,588,574
|visitation_year = 2007
|governing_body = [[National Park Service|U.S. National Park Service]]
|website=[http://www.nps.gov/grte/index.htm NPS - Grand Teton ]
}}

==References==
<references/>

{{Nb_US_national_parks}}

Glacier National Park

2011-02-10T17:01:16Z

Gerrard: fix refs

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|name = {{PAGENAME}}
|width=300
|image=Blank USA outline.png
|base_width=288
|base_caption=US locator map
|x_pos=65
|y_pos=21
|area=1,013,322 acres (4,100.8 km²) {1,012,905 acres (4,099.1 km²) federal}
|location = [[Montana]]
|nearest_city = Kalispell, MT
|coords =
|established = May 11, 1910
|entrance_fee =
|visitation_num = 2,083,329
|visitation_year = 2007
|governing_body = [[National Park Service|U.S. National Park Service]]
|website=[http://www.nps.gov/glac/index.htm NPS - Glacier ]
}}

==References==
<references/>

{{Nb_US_national_parks}}