One of the world's largest spiders is the Goliath Birdeater.  When extended, its leg span reaches 12 inches long.  Birdeaters are defensive and may make a hissing noise when disturbed. This noise is called stridulation and is produced when the spider rubs its legs together.


Source.

For the first time in U.S. history, the Federal Reserve is going to be audited.  The workings of the Federal Reserve have up to this point been completely behind closed doors -- even senators are not allowed into the meetings. It has been said that what goes on in the Federal Reserve is more closely kept under wraps than the workings of the CIA.

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has so far investigated the monetary policies of half the world's nations, but the United States has been unwilling to be put to the same test.

George W. Bush finally gave consent to the IMF to investigate the Federal Reserve on one condition:  that the investigation not begin until his last days in office and the findings not be revealed until after he steps down.

Considering the wreckless devaluation of the dollar and runaway inflation these past six years, many believe that this strategic move by Bush will ensure that it will only be the chairman of the Federal Reserve, Ben Bernanke, whose head goes on the chopping block.

If you care about this at all, you really should read the article.

When a true genius appears in the world you may know him by this sign: that all the dunces are in confederacy against him.


- Jonathan Swift

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I've been away from LJ for a while. It's going to take me forever to catch up, but in the meantime, I wanted to share one of my favorite recipes with you guys.



Rosemary Chicken with an Orange Glaze


Prep time:  5 Minutes
Cook Time:  20 Minutes
Difficulty:  Noob

Ingredients:
Boneless Chicken Breasts or Chicken Tenders (I usually buy the six piece tenders for this recipe)
Kosher salt
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
5 white mushrooms, halved (the pre-sliced ones are fine too)
2 shallots, halved (or half an onion, if you don't have shallots)
2 sprigs fresh rosemary (or two tablespoons dried, though fresh makes a big difference IMHO)
1/4 cup water
1/2 an orange, juiced (or two tablespoons of orange juice, I'm guessing)

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Season the chicken on both sides with a generous amount of salt (and pepper, if you like).  Put a cast iron or other oven proof skillet on the stove over medium heat.  I actually use our dutch oven, because it helps keep the flying bits of hot oil contained.

Drizzle the oil in the pan, let it heat up for about a minute, and then lay the chicken in using tongs or some other instrument that ensures you don't get burned by the sizzling oil (you can also try my old trick of throw-it-in-the-pan-and-run-for-cover, but I don't recommend it).  Let it cook for five minutes until it begins to brown.  I usually just let one side cook (making sure it doesn't stick too much) so it gives a nice golden presentation on the plate later.  Now throw in the mushrooms, onions, and rosemary.  Turn the chicken over so the browned side is facing up.

Put the whole thing in the oven and roast for 15 minutes.

After you take it out, extract the chicken, rosemary and mushrooms and put them on a plate; cover with foil and set aside (the back burner of our stove always stays hot when the oven's been used, so the plate will keep warm there).  Put the skillet over medium heat and add the water and orange juice to the pan's residual chicken fat.  Scrape the bottom of the pan with a wooden spoon and let the liquid cook down to a glaze.  It usually takes about five minutes.  Put the chicken and company on your serving dish, drizzle the glaze on top, and voila.

I think it might also be good if you added honey to the glaze, but I haven't tried that yet.

If you don't like mushrooms, here are some substitutes you could use instead:  pineapple (loooove this one), thinly sliced carrots, broccoli, fresh spinach or zuchinni.  You can also substitute lemon juice or apple juice for the orange juice.  :o)  Enjoy!

The Supreme Court just ruled that states cannot give the death penalty for child rapists.

I grow more apoplectic with rage with every Supreme Court case I hear. Either states have the right to sentence the death penalty for whatever heinous crimes the people deem fit or they don't. You can't have it both ways and say, "Oh, well, there are these special exceptions that we nine people specifically think shouldn't apply." This isn't interpreting the Constitution, it's legislating from the bench without question.

Who the fuck do they think they are? You know what, let's bring back W's housecleaning lady he wanted to put on the Supreme Court -- Harriet Myers? -- she can't do any worse than these idiots. After this latest episode of subjugation, the despotic eminent domain laws and the utter disintegration of the search and seizure rights of the 5th Amendment, I'm left with little hope that they'll uphold the 2nd Amendment concerning the D.C. gun ban.

And it comes down to this. Not an elected official, not a representative body of government, but nine almost super human appointed judges who will dictate whatever laws fit their fancy all the way up until they are on their deathbed, if they're so inclined. Pay no attention to the nine assholes behind the curtain.

Edited to add: You might be thinking to yourself, "Well, I pretty much agree with x, y or z and I don't think they've done too bad a job." If you're in that position, just wait until one more judge who opposes your views is put on the bench -- then you'll be singing a different tune.

Tags: news, rants

What do you think of Kant's Categorical Imperative?

I like it. Mind you, I haven't read his actual case for it yet (hopefully the library will have a copy of his Metaphysics and Morals), but from what I've read concerning the theory, it's pretty interesting. I disagree with him on the cogency of determinism, and I'm not sure how one can pin down a universal moral ethic that doesn't involve a weak cultural assumption or religion as some kind of priori. That said, it's intriguing to hear an argument for morality that isn't solely connected with selflessness in a subjective sense.

Any thoughts? I think it's a bit too idealistic, but that's pretty much what every ethics argument boils down to in the end, isn't it?

George Carlin just died of heart failure at age 71. Link.

The world will be a bit less interesting without him. I know I won't be alone in raising a glass to his memory.

A long life may not be good enough, but a good life is long enough.


- Benjamin Franklin

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From there Elisha went up to Bethel. As he was walking along the road, some children came out of the town and jeered at him. "Go on up, you baldhead!" they said. "Go on up, you baldhead!" He turned around, looked at them and called down a curse on them in the name of the Lord. Then two bears came out of the woods and mauled forty-two of the children.


2 Kings 2:23-24

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