Headlights and Rain

It has been South African law for a few years now, and since 2006 also across most of the US.

Most modern luxury cars come with sensors to automatically switch the lights on when the rains come down, but some stupid fokkertjies still refuse to do so, or think they are being clever to only use their parking lights which are not bright enough.

The reason why this is such a issue for me is that there is still a lot of older cars on the road without demisters in the back and bakkies do not come with them either.

If you do not switch your lights on good and properly, you may not be seen.

Sure, you can look ahead and see and expect to be able to stop, but the person in front of you with a misted window cannot see you. And the tricky thing about driving into somebody else from behind?

According to the law, it is your fault, because you should have seen them.

What if you do not have enough space and aquaplane?

Still your fault because you did not make yourself visible enough.

A cuppa really is as English as it comes

A cuppa really is as English as it comes

January 10 2006 at 07:29AM

London - The cup of tea, that staple of everyday English life for centuries, has officially become a national icon as the British government launched a new project to celebrate the country's cultural heritage.

The humble cuppa was named as one of 12 symbols that best represents England in an online initiative spearheaded by the department of culture, media and sport.

Others include football's FA Cup; World War 2 fighter plane the Spitfire; and the Routemaster, the red bus with its distinctive spiral staircase and open platform that until last year plied London's streets.

The collection is designed to spur greater interest in England's heritage and prompt more people to visit galleries and museums.
More popular icons will be added in the months to come from nominations made by people logging on to a special website, http://www.icons.org.uk/

Among the nominations received so far are the London black taxi cab, the original Mini car, the red telephone box, fish and chips, and the pub.

But historian Roger Scruton told The Sun: "(King) Henry VIII was more Welsh than English, Holbein was born in Germany. Tea? That's from India."

- This article was originally published on page 4 of The Star on January 10, 2006

Extreme Teamaking

If ironing on a ledge 500 feet up can become a recognized sport, then so can making tea suspended from a bridge above a river.

We challenge all the teabag olympic committee fans to go out and make tea somewhere where you have never made it before.

The following criteria will apply:

Made on a silver tea tray
White ceramic or china teapot
Tea leaves only, no bags used
At least one cup poured, in a saucer

We will accept submissions, provided there is proof in the form of pictures or a video clip, with statements from two independant witnesses.

Go out and conquer your worst teamaking fears, whether it is just in the tree house you built as a child or something a bit more adventurous, we support you.

Please send them in.

the tea bag olympic committee

(join now)

Founded one Sunday afternoon during the Long Dark Teatime of the Soul.‡

The proposal is sound, with numerous possibilities...

Just like the normal Olympics, but with distinct differences.
Ever wondered what it would be like to play tennis with two teaspoons and a teabag? Or shot-put with a teabag?

We have.

Take a tagged teabag after use and do the hammerthrow, or put the cup on top of the cupboard and try to play a bit of basketball. (Teabag has to be dry though.)
Or use a wet and warm teabag and a block of ice for a game of curling.

We propose to have monthly play-offs with a once yearly get together and nationwide games. Perhaps Five Roses could do the sponsoring.

Sign up now to receive the free newsletter and you will be informed of the next meeting. There is no joining fee at present, although you are required to bring your own teabag.

Be warned that it is a dangerous sport and protective gear should be worn at all times. We cannot be held responsible for any injuries arising from unsupervised use and/or misuse of teabags.

more ideas...

discus
two teaspoons on the table and you got hockey
soccer if you are careful
stack the boxes for highjump
curling - using a warm teabag and block of ice

‡(Douglas Adams fans should understand.)

What would you do with Gautrain's R13bn?

(Back when it was only that...)

To put the cost of the new Gautrain development into perspective, Singh and Associates Strategic Solutions has come up with a few suggestions on what could be done with the R13bn extra the development will now cost (as opposed to the initially expected R7bn).
*Instead of a train you could buy some top of the range S-class Mercedes Benz and park them nose to tail to form a "train" that would be long enough to go around the world.
*Since most South Africans use minibus taxis instead of S-Class Mercedes Benz, you could run a fleet of taxis, free of charge to commuters, from Johannesburg to Pretoria with a taxi leaving each town every two minutes, maintain them at the AA rate of R2.50 per km, replace all the taxis every month and you would only run out of money after 50 years.
*You could add 44 more lanes to the M1 highway.
*If you prefer to walk, a good bricklayer, if he made little brick tiles using stacks of 30 R100 notes, could lay a blue paved walkway, 1m wide from Johannesburg to Pretoria. We would have R400 000 left over to pay the bricklayer for his work, which should only take half as long to finish as the Gautrain.
*Or if you want smart people to figure this out you could pay for a university degree for every single 19 year old Gauteng resident and ask them what to do with the money.

No Sympathy

When will the trade unions learn that there are limits to what they can and cannot do?
Whenever there has been a strike organised by any of the big unions in South Africa, it turned ugly.
Whether it was torching buses, trashing the streets or killing co-workers, it seems that the unions does not realise what they are doing by their behaviour.
They are slowly eroding all the trust and goodwill that they managed to build up.
Eventually their rights will be reduced or limited and the workers who they are supposedly protecting or promoting will be worse off than before.
By not controlling the crowds that they organise, they are making themselves responsible for the crimes committed during their demonstrations; simply because people as a crowd will respond to whomever is inciting them.
The unions can claim a lack of responsibilty and try to distance themselves from the actions perpetrated, but they are still the organisers and originators. Ultimately it comes back to them.
And it will result in a lack of sympathy for the workers and leave them vulnerable in the end.

Strikers cause chaos in Pretoria city centre

March 24 2006 at 07:10AM
By Barry Bateman, Cornelia du Plooy and Janine Du Plessis

Chaos erupted in and around Pretoria city centre on Thursday when marauding security guards ran amok through the streets terrorising motorists and on-duty guards, vandalising property and torching a security patrol vehicle.
The SAPS and the Tshwane Metro Police, outnumbered and not in control, were left helpless as more than 10 000 strikers, wielding sticks, tree branches and other weapons, went on the rampage.
At least 10 people were injured when police used stun-grenades and fired rubber bullets at the mob outside the Security Industry Regulatory Authority (Sira) building in Belvedere Street, Arcadia.
Lawless: Striking security guards try to tip a patrol car on Schoeman Street in Pretoria.

Photo: Barry Bateman, Pretoria News

For you, Discount!

That's right my lani, special today only, tomorrow we audit and then I cannot sell anymore...
Please tell us that this does not only happen here but that there may be other countries with the same problem.
We cannot imagine that it is a peculiarity unique to this country.
Where does that leave you with the Firearms Control Act?
Sure thing, hand in your unlicensed, illegal firearm to eliminate the proliferation of these tools of death, then go and hire one from your local police station.
Good Grief!

Durban cops hire out their guns - reports

May 08 2006 at 07:38AM By Zukile Majova

Durban city manager Mike Sutcliffe has demanded an audit of Durban Metro Police firearms be presented to the eThekwini council amid reports that Durban Metro Police officers were hiring out or selling their firearms to criminals.
Metro police commanders were involved in a series of late night meetings at the weekend in a bid to avert a looming crisis in the 2 000-strong city police force.
The commanders in 10 stations in the Durban area were ordered to carry out an audit of all firearms in their stations, noting missing firearms and ammunition or weaponry not accounted for.
It was not known how many firearms were missing after the latest audit but an audit in 2000 had found that 128 firearms were missing. Of those 91 had been lost and 37 could not be accounted for.

Struggle Country

this is our land

it has not been easy, Shaka struggled to build an empire, the Voortrekkers struggled to get away from the mountain and the last generation struggled to abolish Apartheid.

but in the end we are all visitors here, from the mlungu that came from Europe, to the amaZulu from the north and the tourists flocking over for the sun.

we all share this beautiful country and try to carry on, no matter how hard it is, because we are Africans. all of us.

some days it is a struggle to stay sane, but we have learned how to open a bottle of beer, so we survive.

but what makes the country great?

listen to the stories and people, and learn.

then ask yourself why we carry on.

honestly, we don't know either.

The legacy of colonialism

According to economic principals as well as the recorded history there are certain stages in the development of a society or nation. These stages account for the different degrees or levels of knowledge reached by a country as a whole in any given time of it's development.
During the high season of colonial anexation and slavery the European community destroyed the culture of a phenomenal amount of countries and tribes. But this damage could have been reversed, had it not been for their insistence of stamping their own image upon the indigenous people of Africa.
By exposing a country or nation to different mores and beliefs, you cannot but affect them. What made this worse was the fact that most of these nations were not ready in their development to accept or to control the level of advancement demanded.
Most of Europe had progressed beyond the basic levels and was moving into a heavily industrial age when they started to demand the same type or kind of understanding from their subjugated slaves. They failed to realise that they were dealing with a people that were still subsistence farmers, living of the land with the most rudimentary metal working skills, who had not yet advanced beyond it.
Even now, this same lack of understanding has not dawned on the European community, and they have not realised that to expect the nations and countries of Africa to respond in a like manner as they would, is futile. Africa has yet to engender that same level of knowledge in the people and has still to come to the same level of understanding as Europe. As a continent, they are still about 400 years behind in development.
It is easy to reach the same technological level, because there is such a proliferation of communication and information sharing. But having the cellphone and understanding how it works are two different things altogether.
Being given things will not change a person's outlook about them, beyond the use he can get from it. If that same person were to discover the same thing by himself and understood how it works and what it would take to maintain it, he would have a greater understanding about his role in relation.
Teaching a person how to drive will not automatically create an understanding of the inner workings of the engine. But by teaching a person how the engine works, you will give him more information and knowledge about how to drive and he would be a better driver, as he could then use that information to get the most out of the engine.
This is the crux of the problems facing the European communities' inability to communicate with the nations and countries of Africa and their lack of understanding about the problems being faced. Until they can realise and work on it, there will just be talk and rhetoric, without real change.

Mister Bob Mugabe

We don't want to rip him off, or say how badly he is running the country, (into the ground). Killing off his own people by misconstrued and idiotic policy, chasing away foreign investment and making himself and his political party the laughing stock of the world.

Supporting a mockery of free trade and democracy while siphoning the money for his own gain or anything else in that vein.

We just want to ask Mister Bob a few questions.
If he is so vehemently opposed to the Western Powers and all that they stand for, then:

Why does he have foreign investments in dollars and pounds?
Why does he drive around in a Rolls Royce, the epitome of British Rule?
Why does he wear a suit and tie instead of traditional dress?
Why does he rule as president with a parliament?
Why does he define his country according to the European borders set down in 1922?
If it is all that bad, why is he clinging to all the trappings while saying something different?

Come now Mister Bob, tell the truth and let us know, we are very curious indeed...

The Psychology of Intolerance

Robert Mugabe is a racist and a xenophobe. There is no distinct difference between him and others such as Adolf Hitler, Ghengis Khan or any other person who hates.

Hatred breeds hatred. Any action that he takes is driven and pushed by his hatred of others who are different than him. This is an all-consuming, mindless and insane hatred, bred and driven by hate.

Racism and xenophobia, fear of anyone who is different: gays, women, coloureds, Italians or Portugese, Muslims or Pagans, all this falls under the same banner. The mindless intolerance that is bred by fear and hate feeds on itself.

There is no distinct reason, or one cause, beyond that he believes what he speaks and what he professes. No person can stand to be wrong, this is why some will hold onto their mindless beliefs and refuse to listen to reason, even in the face of truth.

There is no thing worse in the world than a person who believes in himself and what he stands for with such an all-embracing closed mindset that he cannot listen. What ever the cause or reason that made such a person think with that mindset, be it circumstances, experience or indoctrination, he will continue to think in that insane manner. Tell yourself something for long enough and you start to believe it, whether true or not. It may have started as a political ploy, or excuse, but in time it turns into belief.

This belief, fed to enough people and repeated often enough, can change the mindset of a whole society. Driven by the need to fit in and be recognised as "one of us", people will do anything to belong. Witness the genocide in Rwanda, the Rape of Nanking and the Murder of the Jews.

All we can do is hope.

Unless you are willing to take a stand and speak out.

Leaders have Followers

This simple fact seems to be missed by all and sundry, who strut around, condemning Robert Mugabe.

They do not realise that there is more that just a leader running the country. Sure, he is a fool and is busy screwing the world and his own people for personal gain, but he is not alone.

He may be giving the orders, but others are carrying them out. Others are doing his bidding and demolishing homes, arresting innocents and murdering people.

The same happened in Rwanda, Burundi, Iraq, London and Afganistan.

One person makes a decision, but there are countless others who follow it through. They may do it out of fear, under force or duress or because they have no choice. This all are reasons given, but have they tried to do anything else?

What if all of them refused? Will Robert Mugabe kill everyone himself? Will he personally drive the bulldozers instead?

If the whole of the Police, Army and Security services as well as the Governmental workers went on strike in protest, what could Mugabe do?

If he gives the order to kill a person, the Security Police does not have to torture that person to death. They do not have to demolish a house with people still in it.

We are all faced by choices, and how we choose and carry out instructions says a lot more about us than who's direction we follow. It says a lot more about the country and the people in it that they would rather run than do anything about it.

What if Mugabe is a puppet? What if he is a figure head, on display for all to see, while others are running the show? What then?

Colonialism is Cool

Did we not ask Mister Bob the question before about his attire? Did we not question his vehemence against the Western world and all they stand for when he is perpetuating the same stereotype that he supposedly detests? He has not officially given us an answer, but the following article speaks for itself.

It seems that the blustering and wind is only there for show, as long it advances his cause he will not tolerate anything Western and sling allegations against anything that does not suit him. Then sit there in all his glory and believe himself to be right, in his Saville Row suit.

Twins bare facts of the 'non-colonised life'


January 16 2006 at 07:34AM
Harare - Twin Zimbabwean brothers were charged with indecent exposure after strolling up to an upmarket Harare shopping mall wearing only traditional goatskin loin cloths, it was reported on Sunday.

Tafadzwa and Tapiwanashe Fichiani, 22, returned recently from two years in Britain vowing to promote an authentically African lifestyle, the Sunday Mail reported.

They were arrested at their home in Harare's plush Mount Pleasant suburb after complaints by indignant shoppers about their revealing attire, police spokesperson Andrew Phiri told the paper. They were released pending prosecution.

Tafadzwa Fichiani told the paper they would continue wearing the loin cloths, known as nhembe, regardless of the penalty, a maximum fine of ZIM$25 000 (about R200).

"We do not care what people say or think about us because we regard them as colonised," his brother, Tapiwanashe, was quoted as saying. "Why do they laugh at someone wearing nhembe, yet their ancestors wore nhembe before they were colonised?"

The two refuse to sleep on Western-style beds and are vegetarians. They plan to move out of their expensive house to continue "God's work".

The brothers are breaking with the fashions set since independence by the always immaculately coutured President Robert Mugabe, 81.

Mugabe was noted for buying his suits from London's Savile Row tailors until the United States and European Union imposed targeted sanctions in 2000 curbing his freedom to travel. - Sapa-AP

Those damn Warnings

According to a recent article, the Department of Health has proposed to put warning labels upon liquor bottles, similar to the ones currently on cigarette packets.

We strongly oppose the proposed messages as biased and unsubstantiated.

If a man is a wife beater, he cannot blame it upon alcohol. If a person is a criminal, he cannot blame it upon alcohol.

A moral problem that is being exacerbated by the abuse of alcohol, cannot be compared to the consumption of alcohol.

We would like to see the Department of Health withdraw the Draft Regulations and embark upon a campaign to educate; much like the current one supported by the Association for Responsible Alcohol Use and other major role players in the industry; which will educate people about the dangers of alcohol abuse, but based upon scientific fact.

By trying to control the result and not the underlying cause, the Department of Health is moving into the domain of the Spiritual and Religious and taking over the responsibility of the family unit and parents, something for which they have no mandate.

(Of course, since this piece was written, the Department have gone ahead, blustering their way through the public debate and doing what they do really well: Telling us what is good for us.)

Acquiring Education

This past week I was walking with a friend in a bookstore and we discussed the book 'Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance' by Robert M. Pirsig. The 25th anniversary edition was out and it was interesting to read the blurbs about how it was supposed to revolutionize the world, something which a quarter century on we were still waiting for.

It made me wonder about the way that we acquire education and what it actually means to us. Learning something by rote from a book is fine and well if you want to regurgitate it at a later stage to a professor as part of an exam, or to impress someone who may not know what you are talking about. But being able to repeat facts and the words of others does not mean that you have been educated.

Similarly, reading a book by a avant garde thinker may stimulate your thoughts and make you realise that there are more to life and inspire you to do more and follow your dreams. For at least a week.
For surely if you do not follow through and carry on and go further, which surely the author meant you to do, what is the purpose of even reading the book? You have gained a momentary enlightenment and saw something bigger, but ignored it and there was no point in reading the book beyond being able to comment on it when you see it displayed on the shelf of your dinner party host. A few minutes of faux intelligence and a half-heartedly discussion about garbled concepts which you dimly remember is all it has meant for you.

It has failed to bring you closer to the self realization and higher plane that you saw and envisioned. It has failed to put you where you belong and you are still drudging along in the same rut, waiting for that moment which will not find you unless you go looking for it. Reading and learning by rote should rather be shunned if that is the only thing that it will do for you.

It is better to go sit on a mountain top and medidate than to try digest second hand facts which does not touch you.

It does not mean that you have to go out of your way, but that you should start looking and know that there is more. This will put you faster on the path as 'Man does not have to strive, but only to realize the spiritual reality of the world in which he actually lives.'

The Kruger Connection

Through diligent research and spending hours cooped up in a local estaminet, studying their documents, we have unearthed the following striking discoveries:
Stephanus Johannes Paulus Kruger has 29 letters

Usamah bin Muhammad bin 'Awad bin Ladin has 32 letters

29 minus 32 is three

Paul Kruger was born on 10 October 1825, Osama bin Ladin on March 10 1957, exactly 132 years later

Both were born on the tenth day of the month, one on 10/10 and the other on 10/03

Note how often the three repeats, three times so far

Paul Kruger has 10 letters, Osama bin Ladin has 13 letters, once again the one has three more than the other

Paul Kruger also only had three months education and his second wife died in 1901, Bin Ladin organized the events for 9/11

At the age of 57 Kruger was elected President, note the repeat of 57

Both were intimately involved in freeing their countries and organizing a resistance movement when the time came to do so against invading forces

Kruger died in 1904 and bin Ladin's citizenship was revoked in 1994

Numerically there are too many coincidences to think that there may not be a link between the two
They both sport the same type of beard, according to bin Ladin it is part of his religious doctrine, but we think that there may be another reason... the shape of the noses reveals it all.

Wheels of Change

Move slower than anything else, sometimes.

Forget about the queen, in fact: abolish the monarchy, turn Britain into a dictatorship and let the Communists rule for a couple decades.

All this traditional crap will go away, the bears will live a bit longer and the Guards can go out and get a real job instead of standing around like a bunch of poofters in their fur.

Why should a senseless tradition past its time be the cause for the slaughter of wild animals?

Of course, the traditions are necessary for the well-being of the British, but perhaps they can be placated with a nice plate of bangers and mash or some corned beef.

Naked demonstrators shock guards in London

May 22 2006 at 03:15AM
London - Seventy naked demonstrators lay piled on top of each other on the steps near St Paul's Cathedral in central London on Sunday to protest the use of real bearskin in the hats of the Queen's Guard.
The animal rights activists lay in the drizzling rain for 20 minutes.
They claimed that a whole Canadian black bear is needed to produce each hat.

The Queen's Guard usually consists of Foot Guards in uniforms of red tunics and bearskins.

A spokesperson for the British defence ministry said that attempts to find an alternative to bearskin had so far proven unsatisfactory.

Synthetic materials, he explained, lose their shape and get too heavy when it rains. - Sapa-AFP

It's Muti Time

Following the example of Mexico, we are now offering a do-it-yourself muti kit to help you in your quest to have your choice of president.

Seeing that the emails were proven false and there is allegations of plotting coming from both sides with the rest divided over everything, we thought that it was time for the people to speak up for a change.

You can now order your muti kit online by visiting our

store and decide for yourself who will become the next pres of this country by making sure that the man or woman of your choice is voted into power.

Voodoo dolls get the vote in Mexico
May 30 2006 at 12:50PM
Mexico - Voodoo dolls of presidential election candidates have gone on sale in Mexico.

Manufacturer Alberto Nava is selling the Vuducratas dolls for £6 (about R73,50) each, reports UOL Noticias Populares.

The dolls have the politicians' faces and come with needles and a map that show the best areas to put them.

A needle in the left eye is supposed to make the politician more transparent, a needle in the heart denotes honesty, while the right hand is for common sense.

Mr Nava said: "It is like long distance acupuncture." - Ananova.com

Proclamation

art should be free, there should be no charge for the artist to be able to perform.

whether he is a painter, poet or musician, the only thing he should be doing is practising his art. too many artists have sold out to commercialism through lack of funds and we have suffered the loss.

friendsofthekakiebos will be giving the opportunity to artists to showcase themselves, at no charge to the artist.

please drop us a mail for more information or to make a submission.

How do we define Art?

I had the idea to do a series of self portraits of myself, looking down at my dick, all in the same position, just different locations. They would be called Dick 1, Dick 2, Dick 3 etc.

Could this be called art?

There would be numerous interpretations about just exactly what was meant with this, beyond the artist himself.

Would the art be this interpretive viewing? Or would it be the search for meaning? Would it be the challenge by the artist to his viewers to find meaning?

Ultimately it comes down to the interaction between the artist and the viewers. Is not there were the art lies? In that ever-changing, ethereal, mythical place called perception?

Is not that mystical knowledge that you gain when viewing a painting the art? What you see and experience, and how you perceive the 'vision' of the artist - is not that art? The artists' ability to touch you, to touch your mind and to change who you are.

For that moment he takes control and define your views and experience.

The Deadly Magic of Believing

From the days of ancient Egypt and Mesopotamia to modern times in Haiti, Australia, Africa, and elsewhere, healthy people have turned sick and died because a hex, curse, or spell was put upon them. There is a considerable body of literature on the subject.

The methods of declaring the curse are many and varied. It can be done by making an effigy of the victim and piercing it with pins or burning it. Wax, wood, clay, cloth, and straw have all been used for the purpose. Hair or fingernail pairings from the victim can be ritually hexed. Chants and singing can declare a curse. Stones or weapons can be magically charged, or a container of magically endowed powders or herbds can be used to cast a spell.

Although methods differ, the magic works when there is sufficient belief in its power. The sorcerer must have absolute confidence in his powers, the victim must believe that his magic is unassailable, and the community at large must subscribe to the belief. The latter is especially important. One can imagine the effect in cultures where the community looks upon the victim as dead from the moment the curse become known. The victim may cease to eat and drink (as befits the dead), which serves to hasten the end.

One well-documented method of killing by suggestion is "bone-pointing," a form of ritual execution occasionally practised by the aborigines of Australia. There is no physical contact with the victim, but his fate is usually as frirmly sealed as if he were run through the heart with a spear.The pointing weapon can be made of bone, wood, or stone. Belief in its magic is what counts. A graphic description of the effects of bone pointing is given in Dr. Herbert Basedow's book The Australian Aboriginal, published in 1925:

A man who discovers that he is being boned by an enemy is, indeed, a pitiable sight. He stands aghast, with eyes staring at the treacherous pointer, and with his hands lifted as though to ward off the lethal medium, which he imagines is pouring through into his body.His cheeks blanch and his eyes become glassy, and the expression of his face becomes horribly distorted.... He attempts to shriek, but usually the sound chokes in his throat, and all one might see is froth at his mouth. His body begins to thremble and the muscles twist involuntary. He sways backwards and falls to the ground, and for a short time appears to be in a swoon; but soon after he begins to writhe as if in mortal agony, and, covering his face with his hands, begin (sic) to moan. After a while he becomes more composed and crawls to his wurley (hut). From that time onwards he sickens and frets, refusing to eat, and keeping aloof from the daily affairs of the tribe. Unless help is forthcoming in the shape of a counter-charm, administered by the hands of the "Nangarri," or medicine-man, his death is only a matter of a comparatively short time. If the coming of the medicine-man is opportune, he might be saved.

A possible physiological explanation for the victims's response to bone pointing has been suggested. The consequences of extreme fear are similar to those of great rage: the adrenal glands increase their production of adrenalin, reducing the blood supply to the less essential parts of the body in order to ensure an adequate supply to the muscles, upon whose efficiency, for flight or fight, the life of the subject may depend. Adrenalin produces the result by constricting the small blood vessels in those parts of the body that can temporarily survive a reduced blood supply.

The advantage acquired in this way, however, is gained at some cost. When blood supply is reduced, so is the supply of oxygen, which is carried in the blood by the red corpuscles. When the fine capillary blood vessels are deprived of oxygen, they become more permeable to the blood plasma, which seeps into the tissue surroundiong the blood vessels. The consequence of this, in a prolonged condition of fear or anger, is an overall reduction in the volume of circulating blood.This, in turn, reduces the blood pressure, and a potentially disastrous cycle can be established. The reduced blood pressure adversely affects those parts of the body responsible for maintaining the circulation of the blood, and the reduced circulation further reduces the blood pressure. This sequence of events, if unchecked, will be fatal.

That a hex, spell, or curse can rate such physiological disorders is mystery enough. Even more puzzling are cases of death in which medical exmination reveals no evidence of either reduced blood pressure or an abnormal accumulation of red blood cells. One example is that of Kinjika, tha Mailli tribesman whose death is described on pages 107-08. Another is a report by by a Dr. P.S. Clarke concerning a Kanaka tribesman in North Queensland, Australia, who said that he was going to die soon because a spell had been put on him. The doctor's examination revealed no medical problems, but a few days later the man was dead.

It would seem that in societies where the effects of a curse is accepted as common knowledge, there is no question that the spear of thought can kill.

Mysteries of the Unexplained, published by Reader's Digest, 1982, page 109.

The Humble Vibrator

The original patent was filed in 1869. It was prescribed for the nerves and female hysteria. Hysteria, from the Greek for "suffering uterus," involved anxiety, irritability, sexual fantasies, "pelvic heaviness" and "excessive" vaginal lubrication - in other words, sexual arousal.

As late as 1930 it was still in use in the salons and parlors of fashionable Paris and London. Madame Rubenstein went to Europe to investigate their beauty business, and most probably had the treatment. It was advertised in Needlecraft, Home Needlework Journal and Woman's Home Companion, and even sold in the Sears & Roebuck catalogue as an "aid every woman appreciates."

In 1952 the American Medical Association declared that hysteria is not really an illness. Since the vibrator could no longer be used as a medical device, it had be acknowledged for what it is.
We find traces as far back as the time of the great kings of Egypt of similar devices being used for rituals and being consecrated as holy relics. In 2500 BC Egyptian art depicts female dancers gyrating nearly naked, carrying a sculpture of an oversized erect penis to honor the god Osiris.

Possibly an agricultural fertility ritual...

The Olisbos was sold in the Mediterranean in 500 BC, and in 1400 AD in Renaissance Italy, the Greek olisbo became "dildo," possibly from the Latin dilatare, to open wide, or perhaps from the Italian diletto, to delight.

The first vibrator was developed by an American physician, George Taylor, M.D., it was a large, cumbersome, steam-powered apparatus.

Luckily we have come a long way since then, and we are much more enlightened, evolved and informed. If there is a demand, the laws of economics decrees that there will be a supply...

Ancient stone phallus found in Germany
July 25 2005 at 02:44PM

Tubingen, Germany - A stone phallus 28 000 years old has been discovered in a cave in Baden-Wuertemberg in southern Germany, according to archeologists with the University of Tubingen.

In assembling 14 stone fragments found last year in the Hohle Fels cave, archeologists rebuilt the phallus, which is 20cm long and 3cm wide.
It will be on display at the prehistoric museum in Blaubeuren.

The caves in the Blaubeuren region, which sheltered Neanderthal man, are among the most important archeological sites in Europe.

The oldest object representing a bird, dating back 32 000 years, was discovered a few years ago in the same cave. - Sapa-dpa

HIV vs UFO

I just did a Google image search and came up with a peculiar juxtaposition. There are 295 000 photo's of HIV and 504 000 of UFO's. In the society and level of sophistication that we are living, we are always asking for evidence, and do not want to believe without having seen with our own eyes, yet there are 1.7 times as many photo's of UFO's as the HIV virus.

There is more focus on the latter and the former is regarded as a harmless, but slightly strange pastime. There are billions being poured into AIDS research and the study of UFO's is conducted by a few privately sponsored individuals and societies. Should there not be more evidence?

We are accepting on blind faith and trust in the people who are telling us how it works and what is happening, without questioning anything ourselves. Is this really wise?I can give another qoute in support of the argument that we are not being totally objective and that we should look at things in an enlightened and educated manner.

"If ever there was in the world a warranted and proven history, it is that of vampires. Nothing is lacking; official reports, testimonials of persons of standing, of surgeons, of clergymen, of judges; the evidence is all embracing." - Jean Jacques Rousseau.

Who can fight against that kind of evidence?

We are agreeing with what we have been told and believe what has been said without questioning it. Are we really so enlightened? Why can we not look at all that is given as evidence and listen to all that is said and written, instead of trying to make others wrong who are prepared to look further and deeper? Are we not more close-minded by our belief and insistence not to listen? Are we not prepared to listen first instead of making an instant judgement?

There are people who are being labelled 'dissidents' because they do not agree with commonly known facts. Just like it was commonly known that the earth was flat. Would it not be wiser to listen than to ignore, or is our fear of being wrong that big and overpowering?
Thabo Mbeki was much ridiculed when he suggested we look further, have a look yourself and find out about the SMON fiasco, before you judge.

A question that has remained unanswered: Why is it that with all the thousands of so-called AIDS deaths, our mortaliy rate in SA is the same as the UK?

First for Whom?

We listened to the advertisements and noted what they said.
Then our friends said that they are not so sure and some - including the ladies - said that they are not so sure either that it is all correct, after all there are some of the ladies who would not trust another woman behind the wheel.

So we wondered and have to ask the following:
If, by example, 70% of all accidents are caused by men and 30% of all accidents are caused by women, it would mean one thing.
But if the 70% of men are only 10% of all the male drivers and the 30% percent of women are 20% of all the female drivers, it would mean something totally different.

Within context, and related to the base group from where the stats are drawn, the significance shifts.

According to Stats SA:

Male drivers accounted for 80.6% of collisions in South Africa in 1998 as against 19.4% involving female drivers. But only 62.5% of all accidents involved motor car drivers, the rest being bakkies, panel vans, light delivery vehicles and minibus/kombi type vehicles. (Report 71-61-01, 1998)

When you consider that the drivers of the non-motor vehicles would invariably be male and driving in a professional capacity for hours at a time and deduct them from the total, you will end up with the following:

37.5% - non-motor vehicle
62.5% - motor vehicle
62.5% minus 19.4% female drivers results in 43.1% male drivers, or 2.22 times more men than women.

Now, how many more men than women are on the roads? 2.22 or 2.5 or three times as many? What is the percentage male/female drivers?

We have sent an email to First for Women as we could not locate the stats on their
website, requesting the stats that they speak of and hope to get a reply soon, just so that we can be sure.

After a week they have not yet responded, maybe they lost the first mail.

UPDATE
We received the following mail in response:

From : Corina Koumendacos Sent : Monday, April 24, 2006 10:44 AM Subject : FW: question on ffw website To Whom It May Concern:

We have statistical evidence that firstly women are involved in up to 20% less accidents than men. Secondly, in respect of motor vehicle accident repair costs, the average repair cost involved in repairing an accident damaged motor vehicle that was driven by a woman is up to 35% less than one driven by a man.
These statistics were ascertained from a data base of over 500 000 insured individuals.
We are certain the above clarifies matters.
Kind regards
Corina Koumendacos
Executive

To which we asked the question:
Could you please let me know what the percentage difference is between the male/fermale drivers to which this 20% relate as I believe it would be significant to the reading and analysis of the statistics.

We await developments.

UPDATE
It has been quite a while now but still no answer, maybe the mail got lost again...

Biblical Proof

We say no more.

For many Rastas, smoking cannabis (known as ganja, herb, kali, or lambs bread) is a spiritual act, often accompanied by Bible study; they consider it a sacrament that cleans the body and mind, exalts the consciousness, facilitates peacefulness, and brings them closer to Jah. The burning of the herb is often said to be essential "for it will sting in the hearts of those that promote and perform evil and wrongs".

Many believe that cannabis originated in Africa, and that it is a part of their African culture that they are reclaiming.

They are not surprised that it is illegal, seeing it as a powerful substance that opens people's minds to the truth — something the Babylon system, they reason, clearly does not want. They contrast their herb to liquor, which they feel makes people stupid, and is not a part of African culture. While there is a clear belief in the beneficial qualities of cannabis, it is not compulsory to use it, and there are Rastas who do not do so.

Dreadlocked mystics, often ascetic, known as the sadhus, have smoked cannabis in India for centuries. The migration of many thousands of Indian Hindus to the Caribbean in the 20th century brought this culture to Jamaica.

They believe that the smoking of cannabis enjoys Biblical sanction and is an aid to meditation and religious observance.

Among Biblical verses Rastas believe justify the use of herb:
Genesis 1:11 "And God said, Let the earth bring forth grass, the herb yielding seed, and the fruit tree yielding fruit after his kind, whose seed is in itself, upon the earth: and it was so." Genesis 3:18 "... thou shalt eat the herb of the field." Proverbs 15:17 "Better is a dinner of herbs where love is, than a stalled ox and hatred therewith."[1] Psalms 104:14 "He causeth the grass to grow for the cattle, and herb for the service of man."

According to Rastafarian and other scholars, the etymology of the word "cannabis" and similar terms in all the languages of the Near East may be traced to the Hebrew qaneh bosm that is one of the herbs God commands Moses to include in his preparation of sacred anointing perfume in Exodus 30:23; the Hebrew term also appears in Isaiah 43:24; Jeremiah 6:20; Ezekiel 27:19; and Song of Songs 4:14.
Deuterocanonical and canonical references to the patriarchs Adam, Noah, Abraham and Moses "burning incense before the Lord" are also applied, and many Rastas today refer to cannabis by the term ishence — a slightly changed form of the English word "incense". It is also said that cannabis was the first plant to grow on King Solomon's grave.