The verb don means to put on a piece of clothing. …

• Tomorrow Maldives president Mohamed Nasheed and 12 cabinet ministers will don scuba gear and dive 3.5 metres under the surface of a lagoon to hold what is being called the world’s first underwater cabinet meeting.

• Tata donned a glittering golden sequins dress to perform her first single from the album of the same name, “Ready For Love”.

• Ryoo temporarily hung up his tuxedo and donned jeans, learning to live a simple, down-to-earth life with hill tribe villagers in Thailand.

• The early 1990s also saw perhaps her most striking image decision: The pointy cone-shaped bras she donned on her Express Yourself and Vogue tours. …

(From Bangkok Post)

Merci à tous ceux qui ont participé à cette opération.

Vous avez sauvé des vies !!

Sachez que vous pouvez toujours redonner du sang ou bien le faire si vous n’avez pas eu l’occasion de participer à notre opération.

Pour plus d’informations notamment pour savoir où donner cliquez ici !

]]> http://sautelastique.wordpress.com/2009/11/27/saut-a-lelastique-a-la-defense-pour-le-telethon-2009/ Fri, 27 Nov 2009 14:00:39 +0000 LhomInvisible http://sautelastique.wordpress.com/2009/11/27/saut-a-lelastique-a-la-defense-pour-le-telethon-2009/

Après pas mal d’inactivité, me revoici pour vous donner à tous de très bonnes nouvelles…

Bien sûr comme chaque années, l’association Une Idée En l’Air participe au Téléthon à EVRY pour le défi “30h de saut à l’élastique non stop”.

Mais cette année 2 nouveautés et je vais commencé par la plus importante… Une Idée En l’Air vous fera sauter à l’élastique en plein coeur de la DEFENSE à PARIS pour le Téléthon.

Saut à l’élastique Defense

Toute la journée du Samedi 5 Décembre prochain, vous pourrez venir sauter à l’élastique sur le site de la DEFENSE.

N’oublions pas aussi, que cette année, Une Idée En l’Air sera aussi présente, toujours dans le cadre du Téléthon, dans la ville de Melun (77), pour vous faire faire du saut à l’élastique.

Retrouvez toutes les informations, sur les horaires, les réservations sur le site de l’association : http://uneidee.asso.fr

Retenez bien, cette année Une Idée En l’Air sera présente dans le cadre du Téléthon 2009, dans 3 villes pour vous proposer du saut à l’élastique… Evry, Melun et la DEFENSE !!!!

A très bientôt

Llego el clásico y La Pena Máxima lo cubre a la perfección, siempre con los mejores invitados y el máximo análisis futbolístico, nos preparamos para el esperado Barça-Real Madrid con las entrevistas a personas dentro del ambiente, son dos partes pero vaya que valen la pena xD tambien hablamos un poquito de los mundiales xD y suempre con la mejor banda sonora.

no olviden hacerse fans en el FB y para cualquier comentario o duda, pueden mandar correos a crackgalactico929@gmail.com o a magic_273@hotmail.com

Primera Parte:

Segunda Parte:

Petite info que je relaie sur ce blog: Adriana Karembeu en déplacement ce soir à Paris pour favoriser une vente au profit de la Croix-Rouge Française!

Mis en vente (notamment):

• “Les Oiseaux Bleus” Hommage à Picasso. La dernière gouache de G. Braque
• “Hermès”, exceptionnelle sculpture cubiste en or massif,
• “Les Oiseaux Bleus” et « Atalante » sculptures en bronze»,
• “Thyria », sculpture céramique,
• “Char de Médée” sculpture en cristal Daum,
• “Alcyone” et “Icarios” colliers or et brillants,
• “Les Oiseaux Bleus” et “Boréade”, tapisseries d’Aubusson et des Gobelins.

Toutes ces toiles sont de Georges Braque, et mise en vente par M. Armand Israël (merci à lui).

Je cite: “Les fonds récoltés lors de cette vente permettront aux équipes de volontaires de la Croix-Rouge française de poursuivre leurs actions de proximité en France, en matière de secours aux personnes comme d’aide sociale destinée aux plus démunis. En cette période de grande crise sociale, la Croix-Rouge française attache une importance particulière à mobiliser le plus possible l’ensemble des acteurs de la société pour lutter contre les précarités”.

Pour les infos:

Mercredi 25 novembre, Drouot Montaigne – 20h00
15, avenue Montaigne – 75008 Paris

On a tous entendu ça:

“Le parquet de Paris a ouvert une information judiciaire pour « escroquerie » et « abus de confiance » visant 17 associations caritatives. Elles sont suspectées d’avoir détourné des millions d’euros de dons”…

Et/ou peut-être vu ça:

Il y a des scandales avec des polémiques, des polémiques sans scandales… Mais la réalité en France est que la précarité (entre autres fléaux) touche des millions de personnes. Parmi les acteurs, les associations jouent un rôle non-négligeable pour atténuer cette souffrance. Ne décourageons donc pas les donateurs par des propos justement hors de propos. Oui, il faut d’avantage de transparence dans les comptes de (CERTAINES) associations caritatives à but non lucratif. Je le conçois.

On peut aussi se dire que le Comité de la Charte (qui, au passage, a élaboré une Charte de Déontologie et agrée aujourd’hui 60 associations et fondations qui y adhèrent volontairement et s’engagent solennellement non seulement à respecter la Charte de Déontologie mais aussi à se soumettre à un contrôle continu) rappelle, dans un communiqué à propos des associations dans le collimateur de la justice, ceci:

Le Comité de la Charte tient à rappeler aux donateurs et au public que les organisations visées ne sont pas agréées par le Comité. Il souligne que les associations et fondations, en général, font un travail admirable grâce à leurs donateurs et avec leurs bénévoles et dirigeants.

Enfin, avant de faire un don, il est généralement conseillé de:

• Vérifier par Internet ou écrire aux organisations sélectionnées pour savoir : Qui dirige l’organisation ? Y-a-t-il une présence significative en France ? Existe t-il un rapport annuel et est-il compréhensible?
• L’organisation est-elle agréée par le Comité de la Charte ?
• Si un don a déjà été effectué, le donateur a-t-il reçu un compte rendu d’activité?

Visitez le Comité de la Charte.

Now 100 years later, people are waking up to the fact that the “Federal Reserve Act” was just a power grab that the big banks and our own government conspired against us on.

Now, the health insurance and pharmacy companies are about to work with the U.S. government again to steal another 17% of the U.S. economy in a very obvious power grab.  They will tell us it is to ‘help people’ and it’s for the ‘greater good’ but in actuality it is another way to tax and regulate us, and force us into giving our money to private interests as well.

Only 38% favor the health care takeover but rest assured, it will pass.  The government does not care what the people want, it only cares what it’s financiers want especially if it gets to accumulate more power along the way.

Worst of all, after this bill passes and after the republicans have more control in Washington D.C. again, they will not try to turn things around.  They will not get rid of the socialized health care, just like Obama did not get rid of our wars.  Fact is Republicans and Democrats are both  bought and paid for by the same special interests and the American people are too busy watching football and American idol to notice that they are being robbed left and right.  American politics are like a Don King fight – both fighters are under the same owner.

Enjoy the email below and please research the bill for yourself.  After researching the bill, your support for it will vanish as well.

-first response

p.s. remember to study http://www.operationhealthfreedom.com/

________________________

From: Michael Connelly – Retired attorney, Constitutional Law
Instructor, Carrollton, Texas

Well, I have done it! I have read the entire text of proposed House
Bill 3200: The Affordable Health Care Choices Act of 2009. I studied it
with particular emphasis from my area of expertise, constitutional law.
I was frankly concerned that parts of the proposed law that were being
discussed might be unconstitutional. What I found was far worse than
what I had heard or expected.

To begin with, much of what has been said about the law and its
implications is in fact true, despite what the Democrats and the media
are saying. The law does provide for rationing of health care,
particularly where senior citizens and other classes of citizens are
involved, free health care for illegal immigrants, free abortion
services, and probably forced participation in abortions by members of
the medical profession.

The Bill will also eventually force private insurance companies out of
business and put everyone into a government run system. All decisions
about personal health care will ultimately be made by federal
bureaucrats and most of them will not be health care professionals.
Hospital admissions, payments to physicians, and allocations of
necessary medical devices will be strictly controlled.

However, as scary as all of that is, it just scratches the surface. In
fact, I have concluded that this legislation really has no intention of
providing affordable health care choices. Instead it is a convenient
cover for the most massive transfer of power to the Executive Branch of
government that has ever occurred, or even been contemplated. If this
law or a similar one is adopted, major portions of the Constitution of
the United States will effectively have been destroyed.

The first thing to go will be the masterfully crafted balance of power
between the Executive, Legislative, and Judicial branches of the U.S.
Government. The Congress will be transferring to the Obama
Administration authority in a number of different areas over the lives
of the American people and the businesses they own. The irony is
that the Congress doesn’t have any authority to legislate in most of
those areas to begin with. I defy anyone to read the text of the U.S.
Constitution and find any authority granted to the members of Congress
to regulate health care.

This legislation also provides for access by the appointees of the
Obama administration of all of your personal healthcare information,
your personal financial information, and the information of your
employer, physician, and hospital. All of this is a direct violation of
the specific provisions of the 4th Amendment to the Constitution
protecting against unreasonable searches and seizures. You can also
forget about the right to privacy. That will have been legislated into
oblivion regardless of what the 3rd and 4th Amendments may provide.

If you decide not to have healthcare insurance or if you have private
insurance that is not deemed “acceptable” to the “Health Choices
Administrator” appointed by Obama there will be a tax imposed on you.
It is called a “tax” instead of a fine because of the intent to avoid
application of the due process clause of the 5th Amendment.
However, that doesn’t work because since there is nothing in the law
that allows you to contest or appeal the imposition of the tax, it is
definitely depriving someone of property without the “due process of
law.

So, there are three of those pesky amendments that the far left hate so
much out the original ten in the Bill of Rights that are effectively
nullified by this law. It doesn’t stop there though. The 9th Amendment
that provides: “The enumeration in the Constitution, of certain rights,
shall not be construed to deny or disparage others retained by the
people;” The 10th Amendment states: “The powers not delegated to the
United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States,
are preserved to the States respectively, or to the people.” Under the
provisions of this piece of Congressional handiwork neither the people
nor the states are going to have any rights or powers at all in many
areas that once were theirs to control.

I could write many more pages about this legislation, but I think you
get the idea. This is not about health care; it is about seizing power
and limiting rights. Article 6 of the Constitution requires the members
of both houses of Congress to “be bound by oath or affirmation” to
support the Constitution. If I was a member of Congress I would not be
able to vote for this legislation or anything like it without feeling I
was violating that sacred oath or affirmation. If I voted for it anyway
I would hope the American people would hold me accountable.

For those who might doubt the nature of this threat I suggest they
consult the source. Here is a link to the Constitution:

http://www.archives.gov/exhibits/charters/constitution_transcript.html

And another to the Bill of Rights:

http://www.archives.gov/exhibits/charters/bill_of_rights_transcripthtml

There you can see exactly what we are about to have taken from us.

Michael Connelly
Retired attorney,
Constitutional Law Instructor
Carrollton, Texas

“The Constitution is not an instrument for the government to restrain
the people, it is an instrument for the people to restrain the
government — lest it come to dominate our lives and interests.”
– Patrick Henry

Buy Cheap Don’t Swallow Your Gum!: Myths, Half-Truths, and Outright Lies About Your Body and Health

Buy Low Price From Here Now

…….

Don’t Swallow Your Gum!: Myths, Half-Truths, and Outright Lies About Your Body and Health Details

– ISBN13: 9780312533878
– Condition: NEW
– Notes: Brand New from Publisher. No Remainder Mark.
– Click here to view our Condition Guide and Shipping Prices

 “Fun and interesting info” 2009-09-05
By L. Kauffman (Mississippi, USA)
I love this book! It’s extremely easy reading and the information is quite surprising in some cases. The authors are very witty covering some of the lighter topics and very compassionate on the more serious topics. One of the most irritating things I find about some people is how they truly live by some silly “old wives tales” and this book totally busts those myths. Now I can tell those people, especially my mother, to read the book and get a clue!! The facts are meticulously supported by extensive research and are noted so in the back of the book. Highly recommended!!!

 “Lacks Sufficient Narration” 2009-08-28
By Carl Zylstra
I enjoyed this book, but it was not what I expected or generally like in books like these. The chapters are extremely short and lack a lengthy support for each “myth”. Granted, the authors give their references in the back so if you wanted to you could read the articles, but I didn’t buy a list of references, I bought a book to narrate those references!

A bit more storytelling could have been implemented to make the reading more interesting and engaging. But what the authors did have was not too bad. If you’re bored it might be worth checking out.

 “Don’t Swallow your Gum Review” 2009-07-14
By Steve in Tustin
A quick, mildly informative read for those curious about cultural concepts related to our physical body. A debunking, to some extent, of conventional medical wisdom. Helpful, but not exactly earth-shaking. A few of the topics covered could have used further documentation. Overall, it constitutes a good starting point to answer a number of our more common questions.

 “AWESOME BOOK- DEFINITLY RECOMMEND!!!!” 2009-07-14
By Sharkuw1120 (Madison, Wisconsin)
My best friend just bought me this book to prove that the things I constantly complain about are just not true!! Once I started reading, I could not put the book down. It is easy to read, not too technical, very well researched and best of all, funny!!

I recently heard that the book was featured in USA Today and that the authors appeared on Good Morning America. If anyone has those links, please reply to this review.

Great book, I highly recommend it!

 “Great Read!” 2009-07-13
By Neville (New York)
I was at my local book retailer recently and the great title of this book caught my eye. After reading the first several pages and paging through some other chapters, it really grabbed my attention! Two days later I purchased 6 copies (one for myself) and the rest for a doctor friend and family. This makes for great talking points and is also VERY USEFUL! Great read that I highly recommend.

Buy Don’t Swallow Your Gum!: Myths, Half-Truths, and Outright Lies About Your Body and Health Now Buy Don’t Swallow Your Gum!: Myths, Half-Truths, and Outright Lies About Your Body and Health Now

Dad is currently at home under hospice care, showing his natural resilience. He looks great and has recovered most of his memory from the stroke he suffered in the hospital. He seems to be getting his strength back and appears happy to be home after a month of hospital & rehab stays. We appreciate everyone’s prayers and well wishes. Please keep him in your thoughts.

Từ bao đời nay người dân Quảng Ngãi đã biết tận dụng những sản vật sẵn có ở địa phương để chế biến những món ăn độc đáo. Các món đặc sản này bình dị nhưng đậm đà phong vị quê hương, ngon miệng và giàu chất bổ dưỡng. Don là một trong những món ăn rất độc đáo của Quảng Ngãi, nhẹ, mát, bổ, rẻ tiền và hấp dẫn.

ảnh minh họa

Con don thuộc họ nhà hến, thân bọc bằng hai nửa vỏ úp nhau nhưng don nhỏ hơn hến và chỉ có ở sông Quảng Ngãi. Người ta đi cào don như cào hến. Nấu don thường theo tỉ lệ một bát don vỏ hai bát nước. Cách đãi don cũng như cách đãi nấu hến. Khi don chín, đãi bỏ vỏ, lấy ruột cho vào nước luộc. Đó là cách ăn một lần chung cả nước lẫn cái. Ruột don ít nhưng nước don thơm ngon, vừa ngọt, vừa thanh.

Ở thị xã Quảng Ngãi có thể gặp don bán khắp nơi, từ các quán sang trọng đến các gánh vỉa hè. Dân sành điệu thường ăn don gánh. Do ở quán, cách nấu bị pha tạp và chủ quán thường hay sử dụng don làm sẵn để vào tủ lạnh. Ngày tết don bán rất đắt hàng. Người bán thường nấu dễ dãi, đại khái cho kịp khách. Dân ghiền phải đi lùng don gánh. Có du khách từng rất thích thú khi một lần được ăn món “Don” bán ở vỉa hè. Người bán bỏ ra một chồng bánh tráng nướng, một chén tương ớt và một đĩa đậu phộng rang vàng ươm. Người bán hàng múc cho khách một tô nước màu có rắc khá nhiều hành ngò. Khách đón nhận lấy tô, bỏ tương rắc đậu vào rồi khuấy nhẹ, từ dưới bát nổi lên những lát hành tây xắt mỏng và những con trông giống như con hến nhưng bé thua con hến 2-3 lần. Đấy chính là món “Don” một đặc sản của văn hóa ẩm thực tại thị xã Quảng Ngãi.

Những món ăn ngon cũng được chế biến từ don như canh don, cháo don, gỏi don. Cách ăn ngon và tốn kém hơn là làm món “ruột don xào” với miến, bún, bánh tráng hoặc bánh tây để nhắm với rượu, với bia. Đây cũng là món ăn đãi khách, bạn bè rất đặc biệt, đậm đà hương vị quê hương.

Pour ceux qui auraient loupé les bandeaux en haut de toutes les pages de Wikipédia, Wikibooks, Wiktionary… c’est reparti pour un tour : la campagne anuelle  de fundraising  de la Wikimedia Foundation a débutée voici quelques jours. Cette campagne, je le rappelle, a pour but de remplir les comptes de la WMF afin qu’elle puisse payer les serveurs, la bande passante, ses employés, et un certain nombre d’autres trucs.

Le thème de cette année est “la pérennité de Wikipédia”. Ca n’a pas l’air de plaire du tout à une partie des contributeurs, mais ça tombe bien, ça n’est pas eux mais les simples visiteurs qui sont visés par ces bandeaux Je laisse le soin à d’autres bloggeurs de polémiquer/s’exprimer sur le sujet ; pour ma part, je me contenterais de fournir des liens pour ceux qui souhaitent regarder tout ça de plus près :

• Special:ContributionHistory liste toutes les donations, les plus récentes en premier.

• Special:ContributionStatistics nous donne un total des donations par jour sur les 7 derniers jours, ainsi que la moyenne et le maxima.

• Special:FundraiserStatistics, mon préféré, affiche un graphe journalier en barre, avec en prime une comparaison avec les fundraisers des années précédentes (2007 en bleu, 2008 en vert, 2009 en rouge)

• Special:ContributionTrackingStatistics, pour finir, affiche des statistiques sur le succès des différents bandeaux (nombre de donations en cliquant sur chaque, et montant total). Ces statistiques permettront, au fur et à mesure que la campagne de donation avance, de privilégier l’affichage de ceux qui ont le plus de succès.

voili, amusez vous bien.

Apologetica potente

Apologetica decisivo sintesi

Propongo un testo tratto da Il Timone.org cui faccio seguire alcune mie riflessioni

“Pur di negare l’esistenza di Dio, alcuni preferiscono attribuire al fantomatico “caso” l’ordine esistente nell’universo, studiato dagli scienziati.

Per dimostrare quanto sia assurdo ricorrere al caso, il fisico Grichka Bogdanov si e preso la briga di calcolare quanto tempo sarebbe stato necessario perché si formasse “casualmente” una sola, minuscola molecola di RNA (acido ribonucleico). Il risultato è strabiliante: sarebbero stati necessari almeno 1000000000000000 anni, vale a dire un numero pari a 1 seguito da 15 zeri, cioè un milione di miliardi di anni.

E` opportuno ricordare che questo è un tempo centomila volte superiore all’età di tutto l’universo.

Se per costruire “a caso” una sola molecola di RNA non può bastare l’età complessiva dell’universo, come si sarebbe potuto generare “per caso” l’intero creato?” ….Quanti miliardi, di miliardi e di miliardi di molecole di RNA sono nell’Universo ……?? …e stranamente queste molecole sono uguali ….!!

Mie riflessioni

Bisognerebbe calcolare, più profondamente ancora rispetto a quanto affermato qui sopra, le possibilità che, dalle particelle subatomiche si possa formare un solo atomo a caso…. Poi si dovrebbe calcolare la possibilità che da sottoparticelle si possano formare quelle particelle, ugualmente a caso,  ….. Va notato che queste particele sono immensamente numerose e sono, stranamente, simili tra loro ….i neutrini con i neutrini, i quark con i quark etc.  ….

 Sarebbe interessante, poi, riflettere sulle somiglianze tra i miliardi di milardi di atomi …

sarebbe interessante perché si capirebbe meglio che …. davvero è assurdo pensare che il caso sia la fonte di tutto. Sarebbe interessante considerare come si sono creati dal nulla gli atomi …… e quel numero immenso di atomi ……

Si consideri poi che per calcolare le probabilità che un enzima emerga dal caso certamente non si è tenuto conto che le sostanze che dovrebbero interagire possono essere disperse in un universo grandissimo perciò il fatto che si incontrino nelle quantità adatte, alla temperatura adatta etc. e tutto sulla base del caso è praticamente impossibile.

Il caso in quanto tale esclude che vi siano altre leggi che possono regolare gli esseri perché le leggi indicano ordine e quindi intelligenza ….quindi è assurdo dire che la legge del più forte possa essere generata dal caso: una legge implica ordine e nel caso specifico si basa sul fatto che il più forte ha fame o percepisce comunque l’importanza di sopraffare il debole o comunque percepisce o comunque ha un istinto di vivere sopraffacendo l’altro …tutto questo richiede un previo ordine ….che il caso appunto in quanto caso non sostiene ….. infatti per il caso ciò che è accaduto in un certo modo oggi o ieri può non verificarsi più domani o può verificarsi in modo del tutto diverso …..

Ritornando al calcolo delle probabilità fatto più sopra e ampliandolo con le indicazioni date qui sopra  dobbiamo dire che esso indica che se esiste una praticamente infinita improbabilità che il mondo sia stato realizzato dal caso indica altresì, “a contrario”, che esiste una praticamente infinita probabilità che il mondo sia causato da Dio, Intelligenza infinita. Questa radicale impossibilità che il mondo esista e sia governato dal caso è attestata altresì dal fatto che gli stessi casualisti (cioè coloro che affermano che il caso ha fatto tutto) non agiscono a caso, non scrivono a caso, non lavorano a caso , non parlano a caso ….ma ragionano e fanno funzionare l’intelligenza!! Essi appunto comportandosi così realizzano una contraddizione “in actu exercito”: le loro stesse azioni contraddicono le loro teorie; se infatti il caso avesse fatto vorrebbe dire che esso sarebbe il principio sommo con cui dovrebbero essi stessi regolare la loro vita esso sarebbe il principio migliore, appunto il principio che ha fatto il mondo ….perciò in tutto essi dovrebbero comportarsi a caso….. in contraddizione con ciò essi agiscono con intelligenza, operano con ordine, non a caso, e quindi affermano implicitamente che il caso non può regolare neppure la loro misera vita, figuriamoci se può regolare la vita dell’intero universo!!!! I sostenitori del caso come creatore dell’universo mostrano loro stessi di non credere a quello che dicono: non scrivono i libri buttando lettere o parole a caso….non lavorano a caso …..non vivono a caso ….non mangiano a caso …non si curano a caso ….non parlano a caso …. Ad es. per scegliere le parole e lettere (nelle parole) dei loro libri non gettano i dadi ma riflettono …cioè pensano cioè fanno funzionare non il caso ma l’intelligenza.

Si consideri ulteriormente che tuttora l’uomo non ha potuto produrre da materia radicalmente inerte un essere vivente veramente nuovo e inoltre si consideri che l’uomo non ha saputo, finora creare alcun essere dal nulla!!

La creazione della vita e della materia supera nettamente le capacità dell’uomo!! Quanto più, poi, supera le capacità dell’uomo la creazione della vita spirituale come è quella dell’uomo!! ….

Sintesi apologetica

Attualmente la scienza deve dire che la vita viene dalla vita, ma  la vita è iniziata a partire da un certo momento della storia dell’Universo: perciò attualmente l’ipotesi più probabile anche a livello razionale è che la vita venga da una Super-Vita Eterna che si è partecipata creando la vita dopo aver creato gli esseri senza vita.

Razionalmente questa appare l’ipotesi più probabile oggi.

La complessità strabiliante del creato e le leggi che lo regolano, ugualmente escludono il caso e rendono immensamente probabile la Creazione e la Provvidenza divini … Infatti la struttura atomica e subatomica che si ripete meravigliosamente in miliardi di miliardi di miliardi razionalmente si può spiegare nella maniera più probabile con l’esistenza di Dio; meglio: essa manifesta l’esistenza di Dio….

Anche a livello razionale l’ipotesi imensamente cioè quasi infinitamente più probabile è la Creazione realizzata da un Essere Infinito e Onnipotente: Dio.

Dawkins, p.es., nel suo libro “God illusion” mostra di fare un grande errore fondamentale: non realizza un serio calcolo delle probabilità reali per cui il caso possa realizzare la vita dalla non-vita ma, più a fondo, non si rende conto della quasi assoluta impossibilità che gli atomi e le particelle subatomiche, che sono alla base di ogni essere reale e quindi dell’essere vivente, siano fatti a caso ….Come dicemmo somma, sulla base del calcolo di Bogdanov e sulla base di ulteriori nostre indicazioni è praticamente infinitamente improbabile che che il caso abbia fatto tutto l’universo ed è praticamente infinitamente probabile, a contrario, che tutto sia stato fatto da Dio, Intelligenza infinita. Va considerato che le realtà dell’universo non solo devono essere prodotte e agire una volta ma devo agire per anni o secoli o miliardi di anni ….se esistono probabilità praticamente inesistenti che la vita si produca dalla non vita e che dalle particelle subatomiche si produca un atomo, quanto è più ancora improbabile che si siano prodotti a caso tanti atomi e che la vita sia durata per tanti miliardi di anni? Appunto: è praticamente infinitamente improbabile che il mondo si sia fatto a caso ed è, “a contrario”, infintamente probabile che tutto sia stato fatto da Dio, Intelligenza Il grande errore di Dawkins è, in fondo, una mancanza di conoscenza della estrema complessità delle realtà fondamentali dell’essere fisico e della vita nonché della complessità inerente il perpetuarsi della vita e della azione atomica e subatomica….ed è altresì un radicale errore sulla totale contraddizione della sua stessa vita rispetto a ciò che le sue teorie affermano implicitamente.

Noi cristiani affermiamo che il mondo è stato fatto da Dio somma Intelligenza e che è governato da Dio stesso somma Intelligenza e perciò noi stessi dobbiamo agire con somma intelligenza, cioè aprendo la mente alla Luce che ci viene dalla divina Intelligenza!!

 Don Tullio Rotondo

(L’Orient le Jour – Nada Merhi)

Greffe
Avec deux donneurs par an pour un million d’habitants, le Liban a encore un long chemin à parcourir en matière de don d’organes. La raison principale de cette pénurie demeure essentiellement la réticence des hôpitaux à appliquer les décrets ministériels publiés en ce sens et le manque de sensibilisation à cette action noble.

Abnégation, solidarité sociale et l’espoir de renouer avec la vie… Le don d’organes est presque inexistant au Liban où l’on compte moins de deux donneurs par an pour un million d’habitants. Une réalité d’autant plus amère lorsqu’on constate une amélioration de ces proportions dans plusieurs pays de la région où, il y a quelques années, la situation était identique à celle observée actuellement au Liban.

En Arabie saoudite et au Koweït, à titre d’exemple, le nombre des donneurs s’élève à 15 par an pour un million d’habitants. La raison de ce progrès réside pour l’essentiel dans une volonté politique, qui a poussé le gouvernement de ces pays à amender les lois en ce sens, au moment où au Liban les décrets ministériels qui « obligent » les hôpitaux à collaborer dans ce cadre avec le Comité national pour le don et la greffe des organes et des tissus (NOOTDT), en déclarant les cas potentiels de donneurs, tardent à être appliqués.

« Nous n’avons que des donneurs vivants, qui malheureusement ne peuvent pas satisfaire tous les besoins du pays, déplore Antoine Stephan, vice-président du NOOTDT. Si on devait compter uniquement sur eux, un grand nombre de patients qui attendent un cœur, un foie ou un pancréas n’oseront même pas espérer voir un jour le bout du tunnel. Ce sont donc des organes de personnes déclarées mortes dont nous avons besoin. »

« En 2005, le ministère de la Santé a publié un décret obligeant tous les hôpitaux à déclarer ces cas, poursuit le Dr Stephan. Malheureusement, aucun ne nous a été signalé, sachant que cette même année les statistiques font état de 800 décès rien que dans des accidents de la route. Si ces cas avaient été déclarés et que nous avions pu obtenir les organes d’un pour cent d’entre eux, le résultat aurait été nettement meilleur que celui observé en ce moment. Pour cette raison, le ministre de la Santé a publié un deuxième décret rendant la déclaration des personnes décédées obligatoire. » Encore faut-il qu’il soit appliqué.

Pour encourager les hôpitaux à le faire, « leur collaboration à l’amélioration du don d’organes sera une condition pour leur accréditation, précise le Dr Stephan. Par ailleurs, le ministère de la Santé a appelé les établissements hospitaliers qui désirent participer à cette campagne à former un comité qui sera responsable de confirmer ces morts et d’alerter le NOOTDT ».

Couverture des frais

Les hôpitaux au Liban appartenant dans leur majorité au secteur privé et les tiers payants publics et privés ne couvrant pas les frais de prélèvement d’organes, le ministère de la Santé s’est chargé de le faire. De même, les médecins qui le font recevront leurs honoraires. « Il n’existe plus donc d’obstacle financier qui empêcherait la déclaration de décès des potentiels donneurs », insiste le Dr Stephan.

Et d’ajouter : « Il est important de distinguer entre le coma et la mort cérébrale. En cas de coma, le patient a toujours une chance, même minime, de se réveiller. Par contre, la mort cérébrale est un point de non-retour. » Celle-ci doit être déclarée par trois spécialistes : le médecin traitant, un médecin légiste et un neurologue, et confirmée par un électroencéphalogramme au tracé plat ou une imagerie adéquate.

Une décision rapide étant un facteur important dans de pareilles situations, d’autant que l’arrêt cardiaque peut survenir à n’importe quel moment, il est important de ne pas bousculer les parents ou de les choquer. C’est le rôle des coordinateurs de transplantation. « Les médecins peuvent faire tomber le projet à l’eau, puisque, aux yeux des parents, ils ont un intérêt à le faire, constate le Dr Stephan. Par contre, les coordinateurs de transplantation n’ont rien à gagner eux. Leur approche sera mieux perçue par les familles. D’ailleurs, il ne faut jamais aborder le sujet avec les parents de la personne décédée que lorsqu’ils acceptent le décès. »

Cela est souvent difficile, notamment lorsque les familles voient que leur proche respire, qu’il a les joues roses et que la température de son corps est chaude. Dans certains cas extrêmes, les coordinateurs de transplantation se trouvent parfois dans l’obligation de prouver la mort en retirant le respirateur pour une durée maximale de trois minutes pour ne pas abîmer les organes. Les familles peuvent alors constater que leur patient ne respire pas spontanément.

Reproduire le modèle espagnol

Dans le monde, l’Espagne est le pays qui affiche le plus haut taux de dons d’organes, avec 35 donneurs par an pour un million d’habitants. « Les Espagnols ont trouvé la solution en décidant, parmi plusieurs autres mesures prises dans ce cadre, de placer dans chaque hôpital des coordinateurs pour la transplantation, qui perçoivent leurs salaires de l’Organisation nationale de transplantation et qui ont pour mission d’identifier les donneurs potentiels et d’alerter le comité de leur existence, explique le Dr Stephan. Cette démarche a permis d’améliorer le taux des donations. De plus, les résultats d’une telle mesure sont immédiats. Changer la culture et l’état d’esprit des gens est un travail lent et de longue haleine, au moment où nous avons besoin au Liban de solutions immédiates. Nous allons essayer de reproduire cette expérience positive de l’Espagne, d’autant que, depuis deux ans déjà, le ministère de la Santé nous accorde un budget annuel qui nous permet d’élargir le champ de nos activités. Le gouvernement espagnol a aussi accepté de nous aider. Il nous accorde un budget et dépêchera deux médecins. Nous espérons améliorer les résultats d’ici à un an. »
« Les techniques et le savoir-faire ne nous manquent pas, insiste encore le Dr Stephan. Mais c’est la culture du don d’organes qui nous fait défaut. Il faudrait sensibiliser les corps médical et infirmier ainsi que l’opinion publique au don d’organes. Le gouvernement commence à coopérer dans ce cadre. Le ministre de l’Intérieur et le commandement de l’armée ont ainsi décidé de signaler respectivement sur le permis de conduire et la carte des militaires si l’on est donneur. Bien que ces mesures n’aient aucune valeur légale, elles aident toutefois à améliorer la sensibilisation à la question. De son côté, la ministre sortante de l’Éducation et de l’Enseignement supérieur a accepté que des conférences sur ce sujet soient données dans les écoles publiques. »

Les religions favorables au don d’organes

Les religions ne s’opposent pas au don d’organes. D’ailleurs, comment serait-il autrement puisque les pays arabes ont un taux acceptable de donneurs et que l’Église catholique l’a autorisé depuis 1992 ? La défiguration du donneur reste par ailleurs une autre idée préconçue qui pousse les familles à être réticentes. Il est important de préciser dans ce cadre que le prélèvement des organes se fait avec tout le respect dû au donneur. Il s’agit en fait d’une opération chirurgicale, dans le cadre de laquelle le corps est préservé.

Il est important toutefois de savoir – les rares expériences au Liban l’ont d’ailleurs prouvé – que les familles sont plus enclines à accepter l’idée du don, si la personne concernée a rempli sa carte de donneur ou si au moins elle a fait part de sa volonté aux membres de sa famille. Il est également possible de faire don de ses organes dans le cadre d’un testament officiel rédigé chez le notaire et dont copie est remise au NOOTDT.

Pour plus d’informations ou pour remplir une carte de donneur, appeler le NOOTDT au 01/398171 ou au 03/532908, ou en visitant le site web du comité à l’adresse :
www.nootdt.org

What attracted me to The Anthologist was the reviews.  If you’ve never read a Nicholson Baker novel, and I hadn’t, not much really happens.  In great detail.  Minuscule detail.   Microscopic detail.

Not to make to fine a point of it, but, really, there you go.  Next to nothing at all happens.

The plot, or what little there is of one, centers around the poet and academic, Paul Chowder (since names are often significant in “literary” fiction, what’s up with Chowder?) , who has assembled an anthology of formal verse and needs to write a 40 page introduction so it can go to press.  Unfortunately for him, he encounters a case of writer’s block so severe not only does he not get the job done, but he loses his girlfriend in the process.

That’s some writer’s block.

Beyond those two plot lines, not writing the introduction and losing his girlfriend, really nothing else actually happens.   And now we come to the interesting part or, more precisely, the part that interested me.

In between his various ruminations on these two events, Paul Chowder thinks about poetry, all aspects of poetry: particular poets (W. S. Merwin, Elizabeth Bishop, Billy Collins, Louise Bogan, Mary Oliver, Emily Dickinson and many more are referenced and considered), particular styles of poetry, and the essence and importance of poetry to the human condition.  For me, this was the meat of the matter, rather like all those digressive chapters in Moby-Dick, the ones about whaling and sailing and philosophy and ships and scrimshaw and tattooing and on and on and on.

If you are still with me here, I rather think you’d like Nicholson Baker, even if you don’t like poetry.  I was fascinated by what this fictional character thought about all these real life poets and poetry conundrums.  It was quite like sitting and talking (well, more like sitting and listening) to a very knowledgable friend tell it like it is.  And Mr. Chowder, despite his less than gracious sounding name, is no elitist – he lets you know what he thinks is wrong with poets and/or poetry and he does it in an edifying, alluring manner.

What, you might ask, does a practicing poet and anthologist think makes a great poet?  Glad you asked.

What does it mean to be a great poet?  It means that you wrote one or two great poems.  Or great parts of poems.  That’s all it means.

What?  What?    A handful of poems makes a good poet?  Could that be?  Well, secretly, this is something I’ve believed all my life.  Let’s listen some more:

Don’t try to picture the waste or it will alarm you.  Even in a big life like Louise Bogan’s or Theodore Roethke’s. … Or Howard Moss’s life, or Swinburne’s life, or Tennyson’s life-any poet’s life.  Out of the hundreds of poems two or three are really good.  Maybe four or five.  Six tops. All the middling poems they write are necessary to form a raised mulch bed or nest for the great poems and to prove to the world that they labored diligently and in good faith for some years at their calling.

And as I read this I kept thinking, “Yes, yes, that’s it, he’s got it exactly right – I’ve been thinking this forever.  Baker, or more precisely Chowder, continues:

In other words, they can’t just dash off one or two great poems and then stop.  That won’t work. Nobody will give them the “great poet” label if they write just two great poems and nothing else.

There you have it.

Does Chowder ever finish his introduction to the anthology?  Does he get back together with girlfriend?  Is there a discernable denouement?  Well, the answer to at least one of these questions is yes but I won’t give away which one (or ones).    Rather than ruin the ending of a book wherein not much happens anyway, let’s listen to what Mr. Baker himself cares to say about what he was about and what he wanted to accomplish, courtesy of his publisher, Simon and Schuster:

–Don

I attended NERFA for the third time this past weekend. As you can see from the vlog, I had a wonderful time, performing, learning, listening and connecting with so many amazing people.

JPB Vlog for 2009 NERFA Music Conference
Featuring Music Performed and/or written by:
Jeffrey Paul Bobrick http://www.ilovejpb.com
Lucky 13 http://www.lucky13.fm
Gathering Time http://www.gatheringtimetrio.com
Pesky J. Nixon http://www.peskyjnixon.com
Don McLean http://www.don-mclean.com
Justin Rutledge http://www.justinrutledge.com

Extra special thanks to my NERFA friends who have supported me at these events, including:
Kathy Sands-Boehmer http://meandthee.org/index.html
Joanne Melosh Dezego and Steve Dezego http://www.gardenstage.com/
Brad Yoder http://www.bradyoder.com/

Tu, na stronach podporządkowanych Działowi Przyrody Wielkiego Kaganatu SIS, pokażemy w całej rozciągłości piękno ziemi tego wspaniałego królestwa i bogactwo jej płodów

Kluczewska Sopka (ros. Ключевская сопка) – wulkan na Kamczatce, wznosi się na wysokość 4750 m n.p.m. Jest to największy i najbardziej aktywny wulkan w Eurazji i jednocześnie najwyższy szczyt Kamczatki.

Po raz pierwszy erupcję tego wulkanu zanotowano w 1697 r. i od tego czasu jest ciągle aktywny, podobnie jak inne sąsiadujące z nim wulkany. Po raz pierwszy został zdobyty w 1788 r. przez Daniela Gausa i dwóch innych członków ekspedycji Billingsa. Następną próbę wejścia podjęto dopiero w 1931 r. – przy schodzeniu z wulkanu kilku ze wspinaczy zostało zalanych płynącą lawą. Według niektórych źródeł pierwszego wejścia na szczyt dokonali potomkowie polskiego zesłańca Piotr i Jan Kozyrewscy pomiędzy 1701 a 1703.

Jakby powiedział zapewne Stanisław Szukalski autor kierunku zwanego Zermatyzmem – Tych Trzech Braci , przybywa do Krainy Cudów, gdzieś od Wyspy Wielkanocnej – A ta Kraina to Cud Końca Mazji – Kamczatka (Kończudka)

Zasiedlili ją Kozacy – a więc Koszanie ze Skrajiny (Ukrainy Wschodniej), odkrywali ją i opisywali Polacy i przebywali tu licznie jkak we wszystkich krainach Siewierzy – W 1770 przebywał na niej słynny Maurycy Beniowski. W latach 1795-96 przebywał tam na zesłaniu po Powstaniu Kościuszkowskim Józef Kopeć, opis Niższej Kamczatki, ludów ją zamieszkujących i ich obyczajów zamieścił w swoim “Dzienniku Podróży”.

Wulkan Kronocki na Kończutce (Konczudźce, Kończudze, Kamczatce) czyli wschodnim krańcu Królestwa Sis, nad Wschodnim Wądlądstykiem (Wschodnim Morzem Wądów zwanym dzisiaj Oceanem Pacyficznym)

Czy to ten wulkan był pierwowzorem skołockiej Góry Kara, którą Persowie przyjęli do swych podań i Wiary?

Kronocki Zapowiednik – Wielki Witraż, Dolina Gejzerów (niestety na razie tylko takie słabe zdjęcie)

A więc pokażemy tu rzeki, strumienie, wodospady, podziemne cieki, zatoki i morza, jeziora, góry niebotyczne, wiecznie białe i góry całkiem niewysokie, lecz ważne, święte i piękne.

Szpilenok – mały leser, czyli gejzer w Wielkim Witrażu – Dolinie Gejzerów – Kronocki Zapowiednik

Opowiemy o równiach żyznych i zagospodarowanych, o zbożach i owocach tej Ziemi, o niezmierzonych przestrzeniach pokrytych trawą,

stepach i  borach, ziemiach okrytych nieprzebytą puszczą, a także w ziemiach zupełnie pustynnych. Pokażemy miejsca zimne i gorące – tundry, lodowce, wulkany, miejsca tajemnicze, dzikie i cudowne.

I wreszcie piękne zdjęcie Sandry Nahornoff , które mówi coś więcej o przyrodzie tej tajemnej okolicy, gdzie z Góry Kronockiej spływa Kronocka rzeka, tak jak z bajecznej Góry Kara płynie Rzeka Kara. Tutaj widok na Wulkan czyli Drak Kronocki z perspektywy zwierzęcych mieszkańców jego okolicy, znad brzegu Kronockiej Rzeki. Ścisły Rezerwat Przyrody, a w nim młody mieszkaniec – niedźwiedź-gryźlin (groźny, gryzący, zły, złośliwy – inaczej także groźlin), którego my Polacy uwielbiamy (nie wiedzieć czemu) nazywać z angielska grizzly.

♦

Oto Trzy Królewskie Rzeki W-W-W

Wisła

Wisła, zbiornik Czarne koło Żywca

 foto by zorinaristos007

(foto - Jacek Nosal)

(foto Jola Dziubińska)

Wisła pod Toruniem

Wisła dopływająca do Gdańska

Wołga

Wołga zamarznięta pod Dubną

Wołga szeroka jak morze

Wołga pod Jarosławlem

Wołga (delta)

Wilia

Wilia

Wilia – Neris w Wilnie

Wilia pod Niemęczynem

foto Dariusz Tomasz Lebioda

lebioda.wordpress.com/2009/06/11/na-litwie/

oraz ważna Czwarta Rzeka  W – Wełtawa

Wełtawa

Mała Wełtawa

foto - G. Grzybek

Praga – gród nad Wełtawą (kliknij obrazek żeby powiększyć)

a także

Trzy Kniagińskie Rzeki D-D-D (3D)

Don

Don pod Jelcem

Don pod Rostowem

Dunaj

Dunaj na początku, tu pod Kallenbergiem- czyli pod Skałą

Dunaj Schonbuchel, Austria

Dunaj w Bratysławie

Pomnik Decebala nad Dunajem w Rumunii

Dunaj w Serbii – Zamek Golubac (Gołubiec)

Dunaj u ujścia Rumunia

Dniepr

Dniepr – Panorama Kijowa

Ukraina, kościół nad Dnieprem

Dniepr – na nizinie pod Kremieńczukiem

i Czwartą ważną Rzekę D – (4D) Dniestr

Dniestr z lotu ptaka

Dniestr pod Chocimiem

Dniestr, w starożytności łac. Tyras lub Nester), rzeka płynąca przez Ukrainę i Mołdawię (a w praktyce będąc granicą mołdawsko – naddniestrzańską). Rzeka należy do zlewiska Morza Czarnego. Długość – 1.352 km, powierzchnia zlewni – ok. 72 tys. km..

Źródła Dniestru leżą w Karpatach Wschodnich, w pobliżu Przełęczy Użockiej. W górnym biegu ma charakter rzeki górskiej, potem płynie Wyżyną Wołyńsko-Podolską głęboko wciętym jarem z licznymi bystrzami (porohami). W dolnym biegu płynie przez Nizinę Czarnomorską. Uchodzi do Morza Czarnego w limanie Dniestru o szerokości 9 km i długości 32 km.

Dniestr w nocy – obraz Józefa Chełmońskiego

Najwyższe szczyty świata – w tym Górę Gór

Góra Świata

i najniższe, lecz Najświętsze – Góry Świętowita

Świętogóry Łysica – Gołoborze [czy widzicie tu skrzata w niebieskiej czapeczce tak jak ja? To trochę jak z Cydońską Górą Twarzy na Marsie]

Opiszemy tu wszystko co ciekawe, o czym warto wiedzieć -

a co leżało kiedykolwiek w granicach Dawnego, Odwiecznego Wielkiego Kaganatu Skołotów – Istów – i Słowian, czyli w Królestwie SIS.

Pustynia Hary Toka Wielkiego z satelity

A więc – co oczywiste dla każdego Sarmaty, Scyty, Słowianina, Istyjczyka, Wenedy, Dawiana czy Jąta – wszystko co leżąc obecnie nawet poza oficjalnymi granicami Królestwa, DLA NAS NADAL LEŻY, leżeć będzie i przynależy WIECZYŚCIE do Królestwa SIS.

Zachód Swarożyca-Sołńca nad Krajem Toka Harów (Tokharów)

People join up for whatever reasons that be;

For adventure, boredom or the world to see.

The draft made it easy, you had to go,

A grunt, truck driver or cook, you didn’t know.

Everyone has a hero they want to emulate.

I wanted to serve like him, it was my fate.

He loved our country and the freedoms we enjoyed,

He chose to serve when others fought to avoid.

He was a natural leader, chosen to train others,

He trained them for war, to survive as if brother.

Over time he learned that some would not return home;

Knowing him as I do, I’m sure he felt alone.

He was my mentor, a friend, a man to look up to,

Men like him are rare, too damn few.

Because of him I answered the call,

I respect this man, my brother-in-law.

Michael D. Monfrooe

Veteran’s Day 2004

Dedicated to Cpl Donald Rudolf

So, my dear friend Jean and I, at a lovely dinner at the Olive Garden, while slurping up yummy parmesan noodles and finishing off dinner with a super deluxe decadant chocolate mousse cake, started talking about the season finale of Mad Men. And of course, when you’re talking about Mad Men, a huge focal point of the conversation is always gonna be, who sucks worse? Don or Betty?

don likes to tap a lot of different ass

princess for life!!!!

At first I was actually defending her, and I feel that as a woman perhaps, ignoring the extreme hotness of Don and how we wish we were Betty just so we could get him in bed, we all sympathize, some of us even empathize with her situation. We think, God, I feel so sorry for her, I wouldn’t want to be in her shoes. I mean, here she is, stuck with three kids, and when she actually has the guts to confront Don about his infidelity, she finds out she is pregnant and has to stay with him. And Don isn’t just having one affair, he is sleeping with women ALL over New York. And yes, I am aware that Betty committed adultery also, but not until she found out who Don was, and in any sense, her one indiscretion does not compare to Don’s likely hundreds.

But then I suppose the question is, is Betty really trapped in an unhappy marriage? Or was it her choice? Does her denial of Don’s numerous betrayals make her less sympathetic? Or more precisely, did Betty only become “unhappy” in her relationship when Don’s infidelity became apparent to others?

I myself, usually have a bias against women in denial. Most likely because I have been the other woman. (Sorry it is kind of fun. Oooops?) Also, if there are signs of infidelity, it could even be catching my boyfriend in a lie, I’m out. People say that ignorance is bliss, but the idea of being in a relationship, knowing that my lover is cheating on me (yet demanding that I stay faithful and I remain so), and that everyone is laughing at me behind my back is something that I cannot stomach. I have weird philosophies about relationships, but I feel like, if you are gonna be in a marriage, and you wanna fuck around, at least let your partner fuck around too, otherwise it is just selfish. So yeah the fact the Betty didn’t do anything about Don’s numerous affairs made me dislike her. And a woman knows when she’s being cheated on when she’s being cheated on the way Don cheated on her. Beside the obvious signs, not coming home, weird phone calls, inaccurate stories, there is the different sex style which Betty describes to her therapist as an indication of infidelity.

And I am sure a lot of you are thinking, well actually, she did confront Don about his adultery. However, let’s analyze the events surrounding that situation. Betty’s neighbor’s husband had an affair and Betty’s first reaction was to tell her friend not to say anything about it. In turn this was her philosophy about her marriage. We see her having anxiety attacks in the beginning of the first season, and we all attributed these attacks as a reaction to Don’s absence. But when I think about the instance in which she did confront him about his affair, it seems she did so for all the wrong reasons.

In “The Comedian” When Betty finally confronts Don, it is instigated by Jimmy Barrett. He tells her that Don and his wife have been having sex. And she knows that it is true. She probably knew it was true for a long time. But instead of asking him, what are you talking about, how do you know this, how long has this been going on, are you serious? She tells him to stop talking about it and to go away. And it is really interesting if we parallel this to when Sterling tells Don about Betty and Henry’s relationship/affair. Even though it is a masculine reaction, Don is at least inquisitive about the details of the affair and if it was based on fact. Betty seems more concerned with the fact that someone knows about it, and may shatter the image of her picture-perfect marriage. And the worst insult to Betty was that the gossip came from a comedian. Nobody likes to be laughed at, but Betty really doesn’t like it. Recall when she got pissed off at Don for not telling her that at the dinner party he predicted she would buy Heineken.

I feel as if she is more preoccupied with the exposure of her flawed image to others. This is ironic for two reasons. 1. She used to be a model, which is a business built on making things prettier than they seem, as it is in advertising. 2. The fear of her flawed image being visible to others is why she is unsympathetic to Don’s painful life story.

When you see an alpha-male like Don cry, you pay attention. I have only seen my father cry three times in my life, and they were at funerals. And likewise, this was Don’s time to mourn. It was the first time he could really be himself, reclaim his own name, mourn his brother who committed suicide, and really mourn the death of his former self. And Betty….well….. Betty listened to the story but she didn’t really care. I mean, she gave him the “there there” pat. As Jean pointed out during dessert — that chocolate really got us going “Betty left Don because he no longer was the picture perfect, upper class man who came from old money that she thought she married.” – Jean/Ledefile

wait, come again, you used to be...POOR???!!!! ICK!!!!!

Don-  “I gave you everything you wanted – EVERYTHING! And you loved it! And now I’m not good enough for some spoiled main line brat?!”

Betty- “That’s RIGHT!”

It is also interesting to note that when she broke into Don’s hidden box and found out he was married, she was more concerned with the deed than the divorce. Most women would be wondering are my children illegitimate, and Betty is jealous that Don bought his ex-wife a house and she didn’t have one of her own yet. She also asks her lawyer if what Don did, (taking on a different identity) is “something he could go to jail for.” Of course she doesn’t want to be associated with that. She ain’t gonna be visiting Don in prison. But I was even thinking, it really is a good thing that Don decided not to fight her, cuz I bet she would have blackmailed him with that information, the same way Pete did, if she didn’t have her “life raft,” aka Henry.

But then again Betty is the trophy wife. She is beautiful, and a nice person, but also self-centered and uninteresting. She doesn’t have very many complex thoughts. And in analyzing the women Don had affairs with, it seems he was using them to fill Betty’s non-stimulating void. The Jewess, Rachel Menkin was loyal, exotic, a feminist, and a true business woman. Midge was not very attractive but had a passion for music,culture art, and drugs and gave Don an escape from his monotonous life.  The comedian’s wife Bobbie Barrett was overtly masculine and business-savvy.  And although the scene near the restaurant bathroom could be interpreted in many ways, he may have penetrated her in the restaurant (when he put his hand up her dress) to establish himself as the more dominant male/the Phallus. Bobbie stops demanding extra money for her husband’s apology after that. The schoolteacher was very philosophical and her job itself demands the ability to be selfless, caring, and giving to children. Betty had none of the qualities these women possessed. I mean how many times, are we gonna have to hear Betty say, “GO PLAY IN YOUR ROOM” to her children? And her apathy toward her daughter mourning the grandfather? Atrocious. And clearly, Sally loves her father more.

So what else should Don expect? He married her for image alone, so why should he be so pissed when she wants to leave him when he presented a false image to her, and not just his identity, but the adultery as well. He doesn’t even stop after she catches him.

Well, I feel as if some characters can be redeemed if they have the ability to grow and change. And in their situation, I feel that they had already established love as possession because Betty was the trophy wife, and Betty by virtue of marriage possessed Don’s material assets. Clearly they have experienced love as an illusion as I have described in the aforementioned reasons. Yet, love between Don and Betty could not exist outside of illusion. When Don and Betty got into fights, usually to end the fight, instead of addressing the problem at hand Don would ask, “What do you want me to say?” This clearly shows that Don is aware that Betty doesn’t really want the truth, she wants his words to be a reflection of what she innately wants. However, I feel as if Don was ready to take the next step in exposing his true character, and Betty even commented on the fact that “he wouldn’t have left the box in the house unless he wanted her to find it.” Clearly, Betty is the one who is incapable of loving a person who is not a projected reflection of hew own desires. And in sum, this is why she runs into the arms of a politician, a man whose profession yet again revolves around misrepresentation.

So….I still think Betty sucks. I mean she has children, a newborn, and we see her leaving her two kids behind and flying off to Reno with a man she hardly knows. She would rather ditch the people she loves than be associated with a scandal. Not only is this exemplified by her leaving Don, but when one of her married friends admits to her that she slept with the engaged horseback rider, Betty dismisses her good friend from her life. She shows that she is oblivious to the plight of others when she says “it really isn’t the right time for Civil Rights” in front of her hardworking black maid. And the entire first season focuses on her being self-indulgent in the therapist’s office. And I am in no way saying therapy is self-indulgent, some people need it, but the way in which those specific scenes are shot, Betty lying on a chaise, not talking about anything important when she knows what the problem is (the affair) while wasting Don’s money on psychiatric help that she doesn’t need. The visits stopped after the first season. I mean it’s just sickening. So, yeah, Betty sucks.

Thoughts?

you know you want it...

P.S. I am really excited for Season 2.  Jean and I were discussing the fabulousness of the possible Don-Joan-Sterling triangle. And while the love triangle might be a cliche move…it would be HOT! Tension between Don and Sterling, Joan and Don, Joan and Sterling, Joan and her fiance, Sterling and his new wife. It would be a lot more nuanced than the tired, using a woman as an outlet for male aggression. I mean you know something is gonna happen in that tiny ass hotel room! Fingers crossed.