I ate some pizza last night.

It was good.

Does it have god?

Because I only ordered pepperoni and mushrooms.

If it has god, am I happy for a free topping? Or am I unhappy that I wasn't made aware of a topping? I could have allergies.

Enoch is right. The health insurance industry/lobby is failing and abusing us dramatically. In large part, this is because they fail to acknowledge what "insurance" is. Insurance is supposed to be for when something goes badly wrong. Car insurance companies do not pay for maintenance tune-ups, new wipers, signal lights and brake pads, even though those can all prevent accidents. Why then does health insurance cover those? Answer: it makes them more money. The more they get their dirty fingers into our health care, the more money they make. But that's more money that goes to a middle man and is spent on bureaucracy instead of into doctors' pockets. This is causing rising prices and decreasing numbers of doctors due to higher workload for less pay.

Let's be clear. Insurance is for alleviating the cost of *problems* by spreading risk across a population. Insurance is NOT for checkups, vaccinations and allergy meds. You can try to rationalize that those reduce later costs, but the evidence i'm seeing out there is rising costs and reduced physician availability. The proof is in the pudding.

So, what to do? I'm fine with the government financing health insurance and even regular health care. No issues. I'm not fine with the government running both of those through greedy insurance companies and complicated bureuacracies. I like their compassion for the poor and sick. I despise their need for control. I do believe the free market can do it better. But for that to happen, we have to do a few things:

1) finance it via tax credits (deductions for the rich, rebates for the poor) so that individuals maintain control of spending, but have at least a portion of it ultimately paid by the government. thus we have both freedom AND compassion. oh, and this must include Medicare/Medicaid.

2) ending the employer tax breaks for providing health care. this is sand in the free market gears, as it reduces the number of choices happening.

3) educate people that the "we pay for every little thing" plans are not financially sound. because, they're not, especially if #1 is put in place.

oh, and the whole abortion debate is handled on preposterously unscientific grounds most of the time. it's plain as day that unborn "fetuses" are very much human children long before they are born. my son was born at 24 weeks. would he really have been "just a fetus" that my wife had some "right to kill" for the next 16 weeks were he not premature? Heck, i saw my daughter on ultrasound at 8.5 weeks. She already looked very human (just with an oversized head) and was moving around. Where on earth do we get the idea that human rights should only start at birth? Maybe that seemed sensible 30 years ago, but it's seems scientifically ignorant given all we've learned about life in utero since. I would much rather see the "right to abortion" at least end at a more sensible stage of development, like 8 or maybe 12 weeks. That's plenty of time to make a choice.

Tags for this video have been changed from 'kina grannis, cute, excellent singing, ferret allergies work in her favour' to 'kina grannis, cute, excellent singing, imogen, ferret allergies work in her favour' - edited by calvados

>> ^ponceleon:
It's not lupus.
Also, quick note: allergy shots are fairly effective too (they cured me of my severe allergies) and don't involve things crawling around in your anus.


1) Allergy shots only work on a few things (cat dander, pollen... stuff you inhale). There's no allergy shot for MS, food alergies, Chrohn's, etc.
2) Allergy shots take years of injections to work and cost quite a bit. This would involve drinking a glass of water every five years and working right away.
3) Hookworks don't crawl around your anus. That's pinworms which are highly infectious to others and yeah - totally gross. Plus they're already common in the US. Hookworms you'd never see. The worms have a lifespan of five years and they're never a worm outside your intestines. Microscopic eggs are the only thing you could see if you wanted to inspect the contents of your toilet with a microscope. Also, it's basically impossible to pass them to others in countries with toilets. If you do have the conditions in your home to pass hookworms to others I am NOT coming to your house. ;-)

>> ^HollywoodBob:
I'm wondering if there's a chemical interaction from the worms, perhaps something they excrete, that is the source of the beneficial properties. If there is, chances are that it could be synthesized.


Apparently parasites excrete immuno-suppressive chemicals since they are foreign proteins inside your body. If you get hamburger stuck in your teeth and your gums get swolen - I think that's an example immune reaction to a foreign protein and why cows make such poor parasites. Drug companies are working on synthesizing it but I find it odd that people (some of whom actually die from these things) are going to wait 10-20 years before a product is brought to market when these worms are harmless except in really unusual circumstances and can't in any reasonable way be passed to another human being in any country with toilets.

It's not lupus.

Also, quick note: allergy shots are fairly effective too (they cured me of my severe allergies) and don't involve things crawling around in your anus.

>> ^rougy:
That's very interesting.
Gross as hell, but very interesting.
I know that we have, probably, hundreds of little critters running around on and in us all of the time.
But I don't like to think about it.


And that's just on our eyelashes.

I'm wondering if there's a chemical interaction from the worms, perhaps something they excrete, that is the source of the beneficial properties. If there is, chances are that it could be synthesized.

Nice. I really like the inclusion of her superstitious belief that if she eats the tips she'll be shaky when she's old.

I wonder how many, if any, Sifters have actually tried following any of her recipes that show up on the site. I haven't the gumption.

[edit]
Hahaha. "I look too serious. Oh my god, it's embarrassing!" She's such a cute lady.

[edit]
LMFAHS. She fed her chicken to a guy with peanut allergies! No wonder he didn't like it.

The thing is, no one has complained about the cat causing them problems with allergies!

This "the cat doesn't pay taxes thus isn't privy to our glorious nation's postal service facilities" bullshit pisses me off.

1. I have lived through a coup attempt in Zambia, perpetuated by a military officer who called himself Captain Solo. Which was the name of a cheap straight to VHS movie that was shown on local TV just a week before.

2. I have lived through Gulf War 2 in March of 2003. Everyone assumed we would die in Kuwait because Iraq was going to use chemical, biological and possibly nuclear SCUD warheads. I felt sorry for all the troops forced to put on their MOPP suits every time there was an alarm. It was surreal.

3. I nearly got kidnapped in a car in Lusaka, a car thief was trying to break into our car while I was sleeping in the back. I stopped him by locking down the doors fully before his hanger wire could decouple it. He looked at me with accusing eyes like I just took candy from a child.

4. I learnt English entirely by sound and watching American movies. My entire grammar structure is based around what sounds right. As such I used to have a very American accent.

5. I was born Muslim but only ever practiced it culturally. I went to the mosque only once before realizing I could not be a servant to any god because am simply too lazy to give a shit either way.

6. I spent most of my early childhood on my uncle's farm, raising chickens, doing masonry work and harvesting potatoes. This experience has made me humble.

7. I cannot live in comfort in my country because I have severe life threatening allergies to its environment.

8. I nearly drowned as a child at a water park when I got sucked in the water intake for the slipping slide ride. I vividly remember how it felt looking up through the water up at big African man who was drying himself near the pool. He jumped in and saved me. I was so scared I never got to look at his face or thank him. I regret this.

9. Africa was the best place I have lived in. Its more beautiful then most people realize. The people are in desperate poverty but are gentle and kind. You will never see more beautiful clouds anywhere else.

10. I have a purple belt in Karate that I got as a kid. I think it's totally useless and has no baring on any combat ability I have.

11. I used to stay up late at night in high school watching MTV Europe, MTVChillout and MTVAlternative nation, back when it was good.

12. Kuwait proved to me that money does not buy happiness nor does wealth make people better individuals.

13. My favourite city will always be Montreal. I had the best and worst of times there.

14. I do alot of drugs. Most of the time I don't look for a high. I look for relief. Its quite healthy for my psyche. I like psychedelics and exploring the limits of my psyche. I like to disassociate.

15. I have a heart problem and in all likely hood will die prematurely. This doesn't bother me that much.

16. I have been arrested while being high on mushrooms, the experience was surreal and hilarious and depressing all at once. My arresting officer was the splitting image of Spud from Trainspotting.

17. Deja vus scare and confuse me.

18. I been to more countries then I care to mention. People are really all the same all over.

19. I love music, I have music collection I have maintaining since middle school. I will be very sad to lose it. I love only particular songs and moments, its hard for me to say I like any particular artist. The question what is your favourite genre of music always troubles me, its hard to pick one. Alot of my music I listen to in particular moods. I would be the first person to implant a music player into my brain.

20. I love cinema, I think cinema is humanity reflected, our dreams, desires, hopes, fears and experiences.

21. I wish I could stop being so cynical.

22. I don't know what to do with my life.

23. I used to go to the roof of my building in Africa and sleep under a full starry sky. Trying to pick out the satellites.

24. Life is hard to take seriously, I feel like I have been here before, and did all this before. I expect to wake up any minute now.

25. I feel like I shared too much.

Coming back to this a little late, but here's my answer for you spoco2.

Why I smoke? Other than the physical satisfaction (the stimulating effects as well as the appetite suppression), I'd say the main reason I smoke is because I do some of my best thinking during my smoking ritual, which always involves having to go outside.

I quit once for 6 months due to a health issue, but it turned out the issue was due to my allergies and not the smoking. I made the choice to go back to smoking because I never found a substitute for the ritual. I tried going on short walks, meditating, but I couldn't find anything to substitute the critical thinking I could accomplish during a single smoke. There is just something about that combination of removing distractions I can't find a substitute for.

Purely psychological addiction, I know. I don't feel like I smoke enough to be physically addicted (half a pack of lights a day).

Good thing I wasn't there since I am allergies. Smokes aren't good thing for me!

So where are the photos., no live cam?, videos (we get to vote?), etc. Did anyone vote over there? I'd have especially my downvotes! Maybe even submit! [grin]

The only thing not mentioned is his deadly extreme cat allergy. He will be missed and is survived by Max, his dog.

ive been preggers a few times. you need not worry about the baby getting its nutrients. your body will steal from the host to feed the parasite! they sell some wrist bands with a plastic knobby in the center thats supposed to hit some pressure point and stop the nausea, that SEEMED to help with my first pregnancy. though i realize i might have been fooling myself. saltines and gatorade are your friend. with my second kid i was steady stream of pukes and poops for 6 months, i kept nothing down or in and was righteously sick. i only gained almost 7 lbs. and delivered an 8lbs 2oz 24in long perfectly healthy ravenous monster of a son. it turned out i had developed an allergy to my prenatal vitamins, i am in no way suggesting thats the case with you, it most likely is not. i am only illustrating how ok your baby is. i was anemic, sick, malnurished and vitamin deprived, but had a horse baby. you feel like shit and theres not much you can do, but im sure your baby is fine.

p.s. vitamin allergy aside, the morning sickness very often ends with the first trimest, second trimester is fun! third trimester is fat hot and uncomfortable! enjoy!

Basically, if you're nervous and have allergies, you're screwed.