OK, folks. Here are a few things to chew on; some happy, some sad.
"Letterman subject of restraining order
Woman says TV host courted her with code words, gestures"
"She wrote that she began sending Letterman "thoughts of love" after his "Late Show" began in 1993, and that he responded in code words and gestures, asking her to come East.
She said he asked her to be his wife during a televised "teaser" for his show by saying, "Marry me, Oprah." Her letter said Oprah was the first of many code names for her and that the coded vocabulary increased and changed with time."
...
HAH! 
(read it here: http://www.cnn.com/2005/SHOWBIZ/TV/12/21/people.letterman.restraining.ap/index.html)
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What Were They Thinking?
"More than one medical professional is under scrutiny as a possible person of interest as Louisiana's attorney general investigates whether hospital workers resorted to euthanasia in the chaotic days after Hurricane Katrina shattered New Orleans, a source familiar with the investigation has told CNN." (read it here: http://www.cnn.com/2005/US/12/21/katrina.hospital/index.html)
In the wake of disaster, under intense heat, threat of looting, violence, prolonged stress, and thoughts of governmental abandonment, what would you do?
Many of the survivors had signed "Do Not Resuscitate" orders. In my opinion, that means they want to die a natural death. However, the report seems to indicate that some doctors got word from FEMA that they would not be evacuating the DNR survivors. And so, they took it upon themselves to put people out of their misery.
Do they deserve to be called noble, or be put to shame?
Shame.
The relief of suffering is noble. Euthanasia is not.
In this day and age, do we need to also have "Do Not Euthanize" orders? After all, there was no way for the doctors to actually know who would have lived -- and if someone was terminally ill, but did manage to make it through the disaster, well that's what'd we call a miracle, now isn't it?
Some people feel that intense suffering is good for the soul. That it brings one closer to God.
There is no god but God, and all suffering comes from God as a way of reminding us that he is, in fact, God. Supreme. That we should love him and fear him.
(I know this is a bit of a God rant; deal with it)
I have trouble understanding this as well. And yet... when God destroyed the world in the Great Flood, only a handful of survivors made it out alive. They were the ones who believed in God with all their heart. I'm sure on that little ark, some people went a little bit crazy, though we have no account of it. But God saw fit to save them, and they praised him all the more for it; they praised him for the Flood, and they praised him for saving them.
If you'll allow me to continue...
The fact that we are alive at all is rather a miracle. Even science can tell you that. There is such a small balance of chemicals and radiation within which life can exist. Some would call this luck.... others attribute this to the glory of God. The earth is loved and kept at just the right distance from the sun that we don't burn up, or freeze to death; and yes, the chance that life exists at all, that we have an atmosphere, that there is water, that the earth produces plants, and that all animals (including people) are dependant upon all these things -- the chance of all of this being just right is so small, that it is either incredibly lucky, or it is a sign of the hand of God.
True, some people say it is luck, and then despair because they feel our luck could run out at any moment. 'Without God, anything is possible' -- this leads some people to believe that life is pointless. Others decide that a life lived with pain is no life at all. And so they resort to drugs, and suicide.
(As a former Atheist, I can understand this. Life seemed like a series of hurdles, or selfish goals, the end result being selfish glory for one's self... Atheism is about living life for yourself; faith is about living life for others.)
When someone else decides that you ought to be put out of your misery... who are they to say?
Euthanasia is already illegal in the U.S., and for good reason. Whether you believe or not, you were brought into this world by the grace of God. You are very lucky to be alive, and should cherish the life that has been given to you by your Mother, Father, the doctors, and yes, God.
That is why the church says it is a sin to end life abnormally.
This is why the death penalty, and euthanasia, are so controversial.
This is why I am writing at 6-o'clock in the morning.
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OK, one more silly / happy thing:
Santarchy
"Forty drunken Santas rampaged through central Auckland, stealing from stores and assaulting security guards .... Police said some of the Santas threw beer bottles"
Read about it here: (http://today.reuters.com/news/newsArticle.aspx?type=oddlyEnoughNews&storyID=2005-12-19T135728Z_01_EIC949001_RTRUKOC_0_US-NEWZEALAND-SANTA.xml),
and see the official website here: (www.santarchy.com) | 
FLAGSALES.COM:
