Phaedrus

Oh the memories... Trust me, there are places where you don't want to get sand :icon_eek:

Juggling: I'm no expert, but I think you're doing it wrong.

Um... yeah, that just seems wrong. I'd have thought paid advertisers would have more than anyone else, 'cos they're paying :) Or at least, not be penalized for funding the site. If anyone wants to borrow the 2450 that I never use, let me know...

Wondering where the hell my bottle-opener is. It should be attached to the fridge, and it isn't.

Congrats, MellyBelly. Keep 'em coming!

[URL="http://www.cnn.com/2013/06/20/us/exodus-international-shutdown/index.html?hpt=us_c2"][B]Group apologizes to gay community, shuts down 'cure' ministry[/B][/URL] [QUOTE]After 37 years, Exodus International, an organization whose mission was to "help" gay Christians become straight, is shutting down. But not before issuing an apology. "We're not negating the ways God used Exodus to positively affect thousands of people, but a new generation of Christians is looking for change -- and they want to be heard," Tony Moore, an Exodus board member, said Wednesday. The announcement comes less than a day after Exodus issued a wide-ranging apology to the gay community for "years of undue judgment by the organization and the Christian Church as a whole," a statement from the group says. "Exodus is an institution in the conservative Christian world, but we've ceased to be a living, breathing organism," said Alan Chambers, the president of Exodus. "For quite some time, we've been imprisoned in a worldview that's neither honoring toward our fellow human beings, nor biblical." Chambers, who has a wife and children and previously identified as gay, has acknowledged that he has "ongoing same-sex attractions." "It is strange to be someone who has both been hurt by the Church's treatment of the LGBTQ community, and also to be someone who must apologize for being part of the very system of ignorance that perpetuated that hurt," Chambers said. "Today it is as if I've just woken up to a greater sense of how painful it is to be a sinner in the hands of an angry church." LGBTQ stands for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and questioning. Exodus, which has promoted "freedom from homosexuality through the power of Jesus Christ," has de-emphasized conversion therapy in recent years as more of the counselors in its network have abandoned the practice. The American Psychological Association defines conversion therapy as aimed at changing sexual orientation, but adopted a resolution in 2009 condemning the practice. In it, the organization said "mental health professionals should avoid telling clients that they can change their sexual orientation through therapy or other treatments." But the same resolution also encouraged therapists to consider the religious beliefs of clients who say such beliefs are important to their views of homosexuality. The APA removed homosexuality from its Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders in 1975. But yet with the apology, some things have not changed, according to Chambers. "I cannot apologize for my deeply held biblical beliefs about the boundaries I see in scripture surrounding sex, but I will exercise my beliefs with great care and respect for those who do not share them," he said. "I cannot apologize for my beliefs about marriage. But I do not have any desire to fight you on your beliefs or the rights that you seek." With the closing of Exodus International, the board of directors voted to begin a new and separate ministry called Reduce Fear. "This is a new season of ministry, to a new generation," Chambers said. "Our goals are to reduce fear, and come alongside churches to become safe, welcoming and mutually transforming communities." It's meant to align with Jesus' New Testament message found in John 13:34 -- "A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another." "From a Judeo-Christian perspective, gay, straight or otherwise, we're all prodigal sons and daughters," Chambers said. "Exodus International is the prodigal's older brother, trying to impose its will on God's promises, and make judgments on who's worthy of His Kingdom. "God is calling us to be the Father -- to welcome everyone, to love unhindered."[/QUOTE] Actually, the apology from the Alan Chambers is [URL="http://exodusinternational.org/2013/06/i-am-sorry/"]well worth reading in full[/URL] - it's very rare these days to see a published apology that seems sincere. The guy may have done a huge amount of damage, but he does at least seem to understand what he's done and be genuinely remorseful about it. [QUOTE]Three years ago, Leslie and I began a very public conversation with Our Americaâ??s Lisa Ling, from the Oprah Winfrey Network (OWN) regarding some of our deeply held beliefs about Christianity and the LGBT community. Today, we have decided to carry this public conversation even further. While this conversation has and may well continue to be met with many different responses from supporters and critics, it is our desire to keep having these honest discussions in the hopes of arriving to a place of peace. Several months ago, this conversation led me to call Lisa Ling to take another step on this messy journey. I asked if she would, once again, help us add to the unfolding story by covering my apology to the people who have been hurt by Exodus International. Our ministry has been public and therefore any acknowledgement of wrong must also be public. I havenâ??t always been the leader of Exodus, but I am now and someone must finally own and acknowledge the hurt of others. I do so anxiously, but willingly. It is strange to be someone who has both been hurt by the churchâ??s treatment of the LGBT community, and also to be someone who must apologize for being part of the very system of ignorance that perpetuated that hurt. Today it is as if Iâ??ve just woken up to a greater sense of how painful it is to be a sinner in the hands of an angry church. It is also strange to be an outcast from powerful portions of both the gay community and the Christian community. Because I do not completely agree with the vocal majorities in either group and am forging a new place of peaceful service in and through both, I will likely continue to be an outsider to some degree. I imagine it to be very much like a man I recently heard speak at a conference I attended, Father Elias Chacour, the Melkite Catholic Archbishop of Israel. He is an Arab Christian, Palestinian by birth, and a citizen of Israel. Talk about a walking contradiction. When I think of the tension of my situation I am comforted by the thought of him and his. My desire is to completely align with Christ, his Good News for all and his offer of peace amidst the storms of life. My wife Leslie and my beliefs center around grace, the finished work of Christ on the cross and his offer of eternal relationship to any and all that believe. Our beliefs do not center on â??sinâ? because â??sinâ? isnâ??t at the center of our faith. Our journey hasnâ??t been about denying the power of Christ to do anything â?? obviously he is God and can do anything. With that, here is an expanded version of the apology I offered during my recent interview with Lisa Ling to the people within the LGBTQ community who have been hurt by the Church, Exodus International, and me. I realize some within the communities for which I apologize will say I donâ??t have the right, as one man, to do so on their behalf. But if the Church is a body, with many members being connected to the whole, then I believe that what one of us does right we all do right, and what one of us does wrong we all do wrong. We have done wrong, and I stand with many others who now recognize the need to offer apologies and make things right. I believe this apology â?? however imperfect â?? is what God the Father would have me do.[/QUOTE]

I think that was the most pointless pile of drivel I've read for a long time. The only slight upside was that the author was up-front about her complete lack of knowledge of the issue. It's a shame she lacks the self-awareness to realize that writing and publishing an article on a subject of which she admits she's thoroughly ignorant merely makes her look stupid. Anyways, I'd never read anything of hers before today, and I'll probably never do so again as she's now been filed under "time-wasting fucktards".

Good for you. But the fact that you do this means you're clearly not the sort of person this law is aimed at :) No, not at all. As you say... It's about the publication. There are plenty of occasions where a photo may be taken with the full knowledge and approval of the subject, and then published with intent to harm. If you want an example, look at the late and unlamented IsAnybodyUp and the whole horrible festering mess of revenge-porn sites that continue to exist, and bear in mind that the same sort of thing happens simply by circulating an image among a peer-group without the need for any kind of central website. Of course, proving malicious intent in court may or may not be easy... I disagree (although IANAL, so I may be wrong). My understanding is that a hotel room or private residence, no matter who owns or rents it, is a private place and there is therefore a reasonable expectation of privacy, and so there is no legal right to snap clandestine images. If you see me in the street, naked or otherwise, that's a public place and you can take and publish what pics you like (as an aside, most cops would like you to believe otherwise, but they're either wrong or lying). But if I'm in a hotel room with you, or in your home, or mine, you can't, because I have a reasonable expectation of privacy. The last point is key here. Nobody publishes anything in those threads; they just hotlink to stuff that's already published and publicly available, so this law wouldn't apply, irrespective of the poster's intent.

That's a pretty awesome result, given how low the vaccination rate was. Now, if only we could get parents to be realistic about the fact that their kids are probably not going to refrain from doing any more than holding hands in a suitably chaste manner before their wedding day...

Not to mention the fact that you no longer have to waste your life sitting at a red light watching an empty junction, pointlessly. I wish I could have all those minutes back.... Anyways...

Two talented guys.

Best. Wheelchair. Ever.

Man calls Solihull police to complain about prostitute's looks A man has been warned after he dialled 999 to complain about a prostitute's looks after meeting her. West Midlands Police said they were contacted by the caller who said he "wished to report her for breaching the Sale of Goods Act". The force said the call was received at about 19:30 BST on Tuesday complaining that the woman was not as attractive as she had claimed. Officers have now sent the man a letter warning him about wasting police time. West Midlands Police said the man had claimed he met the woman in a hotel car park. "The caller claimed that the woman had made out she was better looking than she actually was and he wished to report her for breaching the Sale of Goods Act," a spokesperson for the force said. "When he raised this issue with the woman concerned, she allegedly took his car keys, ran away from the car and threw them back at him, prompting him to call police." During the call, the man can be heard to say: "I've arranged a meeting with her, but beforehand I've asked her for an honest description, otherwise when I get there I'm not going to use her services. "Basically she has misdescribed herself, misrepresented herself totally. "She was angry because she obviously thinks I owe her a living or something." Sgt Jerome Moran, based at Solihull police station, called the man back to offer some advice. He said: "It was unbelievable - he genuinely believed he had done nothing wrong and that the woman should have been investigated by police for misrepresentation. "I told him that she'd not committed any offences and that it was his actions, in soliciting for sex, that were in fact illegal." Despite the man refusing to give his details, police were able to identify him and have sent him a letter warning him about his actions. The Sale of Goods Act 1979 gives consumers legal rights, stipulating goods which are sold must be of satisfactory quality, be fit for purpose and must match the seller's description.

JFYI: Janine Benedet was representing one of the prohibitionist intervenors at the SCC yesterday. Her bio appears to have unaccountably failed to mention this :)

Well, given that this is the Ottawa section, I think you should send them this way so that we can put that to the test! Purely in the dispassionate interests of science, of course. :)

Ohferfucksake. This is the Internet. There are people here. They have opinions. And if you start a conversation, they'll join in. That's not a CERB thing; it's a human thing. If you start a thread here (or in any other interactive forum), expect replies... and when you get them, quit bitching about it. Disagree, debate and argue to your heart's content... but don't complain that the interaction happens. Seriously, if you just want to put out your opinion without hearing from anyone else, start your own blog and disable comments. And don't come whining to me when you have zero pageviews.

There have been plenty of good suggestions already, but... yes, keep away from the really personal stuff. Everyone has their own line, and where that is will depend on the lady in question, her own situation and preferences and personality, and how comfortable she feels with you. And if you're unsure (or even if not), the phrase, "If you don't mind my asking," is very useful, because it lets her know that you're fine with it if she chooses not to talk about something. My approach to this is to talk about whatever comes naturally at the time, but if you feel there's reticence there... change the subject. Also, to the OP: your life probably isn't as boring as you think it is. It might seem that way to you, because you do it every day, but that's the same for all of us and to someone who doesn't do what you do every day... your life is different.

Sorry, but this question is simply not relevant in today's world. With advances in the studies of topology, it is now more important to inquire as to the chicken's reason for crossing the Möbius Strip. Which was, obviously, to get to the same side.

Oh, lordy. This one again? As everyone else has said... do what you're comfortable and happy with. If you only offer CBJ then, sure, it'll be a deal-breaker for some, but there are plenty of other guys out there so I don't think that's worth worrying about. And if you're not happy with what you're doing it'll probably come across, and people will notice (even if they don't really know what they've noticed). And my two cents on this... the presence or absence of a bit of latex is nothing like as big a factor as the talents of the person I'm with.