News from the Nest
Between The Natural And The Supernatural
Sun, 07/11/2010 - 7:53pmSome time ago, I wrote about the importance of not knowing, of how a sense of mystery motivates the need to know. Behind this simple pronouncement there hides a choice that every human being makes: what to do when faced with the unknown. There are two alternatives: we can choose to believe in the ability of human reason and intuition to overcome obstacles to arrive at new knowledge, that is, at an
The Occult World Of CG Jung
Sun, 07/11/2010 - 7:53pmOn 11 February 1944, the 68-year-old Carl Gustav Jung then the worlds most renowned living psychologist slipped on some ice and broke his fibula. Ten days later, in hospital, he suffered a myocardial infarction caused by embolisms from his immobilised leg. Treated with oxygen and camphor, he lost consciousness and had what seems to have been a near-death and out-of-the-body experience or, d
Pagan Summer Traditions Kept Alive In Pirogovo
Sun, 07/11/2010 - 7:53pmIts amazing that a pagan holiday can survive more than 1,000 years of Christianity almost intact. This is exactly the case with Ivana Kupala, the Ukrainian holiday celebrated after the summer solstice, usually on the night of July 6. The name Kupala refers to the god of fruits of the earth. His holiday is considered to be one of the most magical ones in the Ukrainian calendar. Fortune-tell
Forging A Trade
Sun, 07/11/2010 - 7:53pmAt the launch of his "second calling," Jonathan Leonhardt had no idea he was lighting the spark of an age-old family tradition. The 31-year-old military technician, who began developing his skills as a blacksmith seven years ago, had no idea his maternal great-grandfather made his living at the ancient art in 19thcentury Germany. "I don't know why I am so drawn to it, except I just love it,"
White Witch Behind UFO Hoax
Sun, 07/11/2010 - 7:53pmA mystery surrounding a string of UFO sightings in 1066 Country has been solved. The Observer reported earlier this month how residents in Hollington had seen what they thought was a flying saucer. However, claims an alien craft had crashed in Alexandra Park were laughed off by police. Now St Leonards based white witch Kevin Carlyon has admitted he was behind the scare.
NY Gov Candidate Seeks Probe Of Ground-Zero Mosque
Sat, 07/10/2010 - 8:40pmRepublican gubernatorial candidate Rick Lazio on Tuesday called on his Democratic rival, Andrew Cuomo, to investigate the development of a $100 million mosque being planned near ground zero. The mosque, just a block away from the Sept. 11 terror attack site, has been a source of controversy in the community even though Mayor Michael Bloomberg and other city officials support its construction an
America's Paranoid Religious Right
Sat, 07/10/2010 - 8:40pmOn the morning of Sunday 4 July, hundreds of thousands of Christians across America fell to their knees to beseech their god for forgiveness in an effort to decipher why he has forsaken the United States, the most Christian nation on earth. The work of Tony Perkins, the president of the Family Research Council, the day owes itself to the undeniably ecumenical influence of "public days of humili
Europes New Approach To Biotech Food
Sat, 07/10/2010 - 8:40pmAfter decades of pushing nations to surrender more power to Brussels, the European Union is about to throw in the towel on one highly contentious issue: genetically modified foods. On Tuesday, the European Commission will formally propose giving back to national and local governments the freedom to decide whether to grow crops that many Europeans still call Frankenfoods. The new policy is ai
Leafy Green Coherence: Quantum Physics Fuels Photosynthesis
Sat, 07/10/2010 - 8:40pmNot so long ago, quantum physics at room temperature was found mostly in classroom discussions or over science-geek cocktails. But the mind-bending mechanics seems to be present in many everyday phenomena including photosynthesis, the driving force behind lifes harvest of solar energy. A process called coherence allows photon energy to find the shortest path through a leafs surface by takin
Santeria Lives On In The District
Sat, 07/10/2010 - 8:40pmFriends, scholars, and practitioners of a revered religion gathered at a Northwest theater to chant, beat drums and participate in a series of lectures that celebrated a mystical, Afro-Cuban tradition. More than 50 individuals attended a workshop at the GALA Theatre in Columbia Heights, Sat., June 26, to pay homage to the traditions of Santeria and a dwelling that has honored the ancestors for
Palaeoanthropology: Disputed Ground
Sat, 07/10/2010 - 8:40pmSparkling like black diamonds in the sun, countless obsidian pieces carpet a hillside in central Turkey. The slope is an ancient rubbish heap, littered with castoffs from toolmakers who chipped away at the prized rock to make knives, blades and other implements. For more than 500,000 years, obsidian veins formed by a nearby volcano were a stopping place for human ancestors trekking out of Afric
Courthouse Panel Again Urges Holiday Display Prohibition
Sat, 07/10/2010 - 8:40pmWhen the Courthouse Ground and Facilities Committee voted last November to prohibit all displays on the lawn of the courts complex in Leesburg it sparked an outrage from a number of residents and community groups, spurring the Board of Supervisors to quickly reverse that action during a special meeting only weeks before the December holidays. As a result, several traditional Christmas displays,
Four Pet Goats Killed In Doylesburg
Sat, 07/10/2010 - 8:40pmFour pet goats belonging to a Doylesburg family were found dead last week, apparently killed in a manner that may indicate a ritualistic sacrifice. "This is just wrong. Any way you look at it, what they did to us and those goats was wrong," said Lesley Scott. The goats, which were family pets primarily cared for by her son and daughter, were found dead about 5:30 a.m. June 30. The animals
Secret Language (Book Review)
Sat, 07/10/2010 - 8:40pmUmberto Eco writes somewhere that a sign may be defined as anything that can be used to tell a lie. This remark sounds cynical. But its really just the most extreme formulation of something implied by events in the Garden of Eden. As you may recall, God gives Adam the power of speech and tells him to name every living creature. And so Adam does not excluding the creature he calls Woman.
British Panel Clears Climate Scientists
Sat, 07/10/2010 - 8:40pmA British panel issued a sweeping exoneration on Wednesday of scientists caught up in the controversy known as Climategate, saying it found no evidence that they had manipulated their research to support preconceived ideas about global warming. The researcher at the center of the controversy, a leading climatologist named Phil Jones, was immediately reinstated to a job resembling his old one at
Justice Department Files Lawsuit Over Arizona Immigration Law
Fri, 07/09/2010 - 8:32pmThe U.S. Justice Department filed a lawsuit today challenging the constitutionality of Arizona's new law targeting illegal immigrants, setting the stage for a clash between the federal government and the state over the nation's toughest immigration crackdown. The lawsuit filed in U.S. District Court in Phoenix argues that Arizona's law requiring state and local police to question and possibly a
The Spirit Of Independence: The Social Psychology Of Freedom
Fri, 07/09/2010 - 8:32pmIntellectuals routinely give undue weight to peoples ideas. They tend to believe that ideas cause attitudes, though it is far more often the other way around. Consider the natural libertarians. Several years ago, while attending a street festival in the small town of Tucker, Georgia, I came across a booth sponsored by the local libertarian society. At the time, I did not realize that my encoun
Ruling Widens The Meaning Of Media
Fri, 07/09/2010 - 8:32pmA little-noticed Federal Election Commission ruling that expands the definition of media to include a partisan film production group is the latest in a series of actions eroding legislative limits on the influence of money in politics. Were really returning, seemingly inexorably, toward an entirely deregulated system, said Thomas Mann, who studies campaign finance at the Brookings Instit
Women Will Rule The World
Fri, 07/09/2010 - 8:32pmWhen historians write about the great recession of 200708, they may very well have a new name for it: the Mancession. Its a term already being bandied about in the popular media as business writers chronicle the sad tales of the main victims of the recession: men. They were disproportionately represented in the industries hit hardest during the downturn, including financial services, manufacturi
Satanism Wrongly Used At Trial, Death Row Inmate Argues
Fri, 07/09/2010 - 8:32pmIrving Davis, convicted of raping and killing a 15-year-old El Paso girl, has asked a Texas appeals court to throw out his death sentence, arguing that jurors should not have been told about his new religion Satanism. The revelation, defense lawyers argue, violated Davis' free exercise of religion and improperly prejudiced jurors against the 27-year-old inmate. Prosecutors counter that all
