Soxy

Oh, and here's a cute Sven and Ole joke... Sven was a good Lutheran and wanted to save his good friend Ole. They had been good friends ever since they had met on a cold Minnesota day loooong ago So he gave Ole a bible in an attempt to bring him over to the Lutheran side. So, Ole promised to read the bible over the weekend. Well, the next Monday at work Sven asked Ole how he liked the Bible. Ole said, well there was a lot in there about St. Paul--but nothing about Minneapolis!

This one is kind of mean, but I love it... A guy dies and goes to heaven. St. Peter is showing him around, this is the Pearly Gates. This is where the choir practices, this is where we all eat together, this is where the children practice. The man who died is just amazed by all of the beautiful things and wonderful places in heaven. And he and St. Peter are talking about all of the fabulous opportunities that there are in heaven. But when they get near a very big and long wall St. Peter raises his finger to his lips and signals for the man to be quiet. The man is very confused--but he is quiet until they get away from the wall. After they start talking again, the man says, but what was that all about? Why did I have to be so quiet? St. Peter responded, well, the Catholics are on the other side of that wall--and they like to think they're the only ones up here... Kind of mean, but my mom grew up Irish Catholic and it's her favorite joke. My favorite joke is: What do Catholic Cannibals eat on Friday? Fishermen!

Subsidize higher education, but continuation is contingent upon grades (i.e. keeping a 2.0), otherwise you have to pay the full price. Do it by decriminalizing marijuana and taxing the heck out of it.

Oh you lovely, lovely countries. I remember a friend I had was studying in Germany and the students there went on Strike because they raised tuition to $75 a semester. I feel bad for you Australians, and thank the Lord I am almost done with the gouging that is private education (although, my parents and I pay only $500 more to send me to a private school than my sister to a state school...). Just out of curiosity--how much does a uni usually run over there?

It probably doesn't mean much--banks give out titles instead of raises...

It really doesn't happen that often. And if it's any consolation, most crimes are grossly underpunished. I've seen rapists not even go to jail with a conviction, but get counseling.

Ouch, thanks for the advice--I hadn't heard that yet. Yeah, I can't afford it anyway--Ford for me: affordable AND reliable!

'86 Plymouth Reliant station wagon in powder blue--hott. Then a Taurus (great car!) but wrecked by family member. Now I think I'm going to get a Ford Focus sedan. But I really want a Civic Hybrid--but they're too expensive...Fortunatly the focus is great too...

Best theology movie ever.

I loves my rugby--but the only rugby players I know are girls...So far they don't have any sexual assault charges pending though.

The county attorney that I work with up in Minnesota estimates that of the reported rape cases only about half he's seen have gone to trial because women don't want to file...Keep in mind those are just the REPORTED cases...So, the odds of actually getting a conviction on a sexual assault are pretty bad--it's frustrating for most everyone that works with it...

Hm, I haven't been there for a while, since I'm off school for a while. But I think I was on the 2000 data--their stats are helpful but not that well organized. While you might not think those are the best and lowest numbers--I think they're pretty good. And remember the low reporting rate for sexual assault--I would say one is more likely to get away with it than get falsely accused.

And reporting a rape (even for a REAL survivor) is really pleasant. I can assure you that a reputation and family are lost for many survivors of sexual violence. It's not just men that suffer from reporting of rape--the negative stereotypes about women who are raped cause lots of blame to be cast on them. It's the most underreported violent crime for a reason--and that reason is the way survivors are treated and viewed by our society.

If you look through the FBI's website you will see that they put the false reporting rate for rape at 6%. Which, coincidentally, is about the same for a lot of other crimes. I would be more inclined to trust the FBI who has much more vast databases with their false reporting rate.

I'm disappointed this happened, but not shocked. The Rape Shield Laws mean different things to different people--and I guess we're seeing in this case who's getting shielded. While it might seem that previous history is a good way to detrmine this--it really only helps us see about CONSENSUAL sex. People can have lots of consensual sex and then sometimes decide not to have sex. It would be like a homeless person ripping a dollar from your hand, but his defense being, "But you gave money to other people..." I'm not saying Kobe did or didn't do it--but these laws are a GOOD THING. Both the FBI and the DOJ have sexual assault (rape isn't a legal term--just for those of you with legalistic minds) as the LOWEST reported violent crime. And the reporting rate doesn't creep above 30%. The question is, without trying to pass blame on Kobe, (and just in time for Sexual Assault Awareness Month--April) seeing the way this woman has been treated by the courts, the press, and popular opinion if you were a rape victim would YOU report?

This thread reminds me of Scotland... I love Salt and Vinegar chips, and I had some funky chicken chips over there too...And, I agree with the Dill Pickle comment, but I've only seen those on that Dutch brand that I can't seem to find outside of Minnesota...Mmm, chips are definitely my special treat...

He makes a quote like that and I need to grow up? Please...

We're reading another fabulous Wink book in my Ethics course that is relevent here, The Powers that Be. It's about how Jesus subverted the conventional power systems that thrived on oppressing minorities (women, lepers, etc). Anyway, I would go so far as to say that in the modern day that would be extended to homosexuals. I highly recommend this book.

I also find it interesting that you are comparing human feces to a woman's body. Just an observation...

Sorry, I don't like installations.

Heard about this book a while ago, and think it's fine.

I'm not sure it goes against our beliefs though, here is our College's mission statement: Now in its second century, St. Olaf College remains dedicated to the high standards set by its Norwegian immigrant founders. In the spirit of free inquiry and free expression, it offers a distinctive environment that integrates teaching, scholarship , creative activity, and opportunities for encounter with the Christian Gospel and God’s call to faith. The college intends that its graduates combine academic excellence and theological literacy with a commitment to lifelong learning. The point of the show was to question the way that we think of women as body parts--and the way we just objectify the body parts to sexualize them. By censoring them, I think it really not only stifled the free expression but really proved the point of the artists. Oh, and my dad is here today to take me home for Spring Break. I took him to where the show is--the censored signs have been removed after a forum this morning. And he was thought the show was interesting and didn't really understand all the bru-ha-ha. After I told him all the Dean's reaction and crazy stuff that went down, he looked and me and said, "Eleni, that's what happens when you go to school with a bunch of prudes." I thought I was going to die. Best thing my dad has ever said.

Icky. But the worst for me was human cadaver lab.... :puke

Gotta go with October and the fall classic...Enough baseball action to last me through to Spring (almost...)