My decision:

Well, after careful thought, I've decided I'll probably get a "something to chew on" for being in public, and I might get a baby teether for at night, since I really do wake up with chewed up cheeks and Figgy's story scared me. *shudders*

Thanks all.

Just in case anybody reading this sees like this...

It's called scotopic sensitivity or Irlen syndrome. I have a link down near the bottom of that thread. The main post is about synthesia, all very interesting.

This has been a boring post courtesy of insomnia. Let's give it a big hand, guys!

Last post before bed.

http://nytimes.com/2004/05/05/national/05PRAY.html

( Story inside )

And the quotes, with replies:

"I used to say I wasn't prejudiced against anyone, but then I realized I had a problem with them putting Allah above everyone else," she said, of the plan to amplify the call to prayer, which mosques announce five times a day. "It's throwing salt in a wound. I feel they've come to our country, infiltrated it, and they sit there looking at us, laughing, calling us fools."

They want to amplify a call to prayer for 10 minutes out of the day, and now they're "calling us fools"? Overreacting, much?

"My main objection is simple," she said. "I don't want to be told that Allah is the true and only God five times a day, 365 days a year. It's against my constitutional rights to have to listen to another religion evangelize in my ear."

The Trinity chuch by my house plays hymns every day at noon and six PM for about 20 minutes. I could complain about my constitutional rights, or I could recognize that it's not that big a deal. Do none of the churches in that town play bells or anything? Do none of them give out pamphlets, are they free from Jehovah's Witnesses coming door to door?

"Everyone talks about their rights," Mr. Schultz said. "The rights of Christians have been stripped from them. Last week there were Muslims praying downstairs, in a public building. If Christians tried to do that, the A.C.L.U. would shut us down."

That, sir, is what I like to call a fallacy, or a myth. The ACLU would do nothing of the sort. Perhaps you are confusing people praying with the government putting up religious symbols. I know they are *very* similar, but really, they aren't the same thing.

Semantics...

Breastfeeding cuts death risk.

Breastfeeding increases intelligence. Breastfeeding decreases risk of allergies. Breastfeeding decreases risk of obesity.

These are all lies. The fact is that breastfeeding does none of these things. Instead, formula feeding increases infant mortality. Formula feeding increases risk of allergies, of obesity, of certain diseases. And yes, formula feeding decreases intelligence.

Breast is best? Bullshit. Breast is average, what people should reasonably be able to expect. Formula is... well, it's not exactly worst, certainly it's a far sight better than starvation or completely inappropriate foods, but it's not the average it's been portrayed as.

And while I don't wish to malign anybody who honestly could not breastfeed, I find it hard to believe that so many people are unable to do so. This is basic biology. How on earth did humans evolve, not to mention overpopulate, if so many people are unable to feed their kids until the teeth come in? And, for those who actually do have a medical problem, why is formula the solution? What ever happened to milk banks, or even wet nurses?

*le sigh*

Here I am, getting caught up in a cause that isn't my own. Sorry about that. I just dislike misleading language. Breast... it's not best. It's just average.

No cubs, but pandas get "A" for effort.

"Tian Tian gets an 'A' for effort, but I have to say he gets an 'F' for technical merit," said Stevens. "He did not make the connection we were all hoping for."

Well, that sucks. You're an endangered species. You haven't had sex at all this year. You have no privacy. And instead of being sympathetic, your nearest and dearest (in a manner of speaking) stand around talking about your technique! No pat on the back, no "hey, better luck next year", not even any porn, just snide comments about how you didn't "make the connection", as though we don't all know what that means.