Must Watch Video: Sam Richards - A Radical Experiment in Empathy

Sam Richards allows us to explore other people’s world’s through a simple method called “Walking in someone else’s shoes.” We’ve all heard the expression before, but when you take a moment and apply what he’s saying there comes a deeper understanding of others. With understanding comes peace.

Sam Richards is a sociologist and award-winning teacher who has been inspiring undergraduate students at Penn State since 1990. Every semester, 725 students register for his Race and Ethnic Relations course, one of the most popular classes at Penn State and the largest of its kind in the country. Through his natural ability of seeing a subject from many angles, Richards encourages students to engage more fully with the world and to think for themselves — something he did not do until his third year in college. Because of his passion for challenging students to open their minds, an interviewer recently referred to him as "an alarm clock for eighteen-year-olds." He’s also an alarm clock for the rest of us too.

Must Watch Video

Sit back and relax for 19 minutes while this great teacher helps you be more understanding of others.

150th Anniversary: South celebrates Civil War, largely without slaves

That many are honoring secession with barely a nod to slavery underscores how divisive conflict remains

“The Civil War, the most wrenching and bloody episode in American history, may not seem like much of a cause for celebration, especially in the South.

And yet, as the 150th anniversary of the four-year conflict gets under way, some groups in the old Confederacy are planning at least a certain amount of hoopla, chiefly around the glory days of secession, when 11 states declared their sovereignty under a banner of states’ rights and broke from the union.”

PHOTO - Camille Love, left, Atlanta's director of cultural affairs, and Yakingma Robinson, a public relations manager at the Cyclorama, at the Civil War museum in Atlanta, in Nov. The Cyclorama, a giant painting-in-the-round that depicts the first day of the Battle of Atlanta, is being "refreshed and rebranded" as part of an overall marketing plan, said Love

Meet 5 People Who Rode The Crazy Train To Fame and Fortune

“Lord” Timothy Dexter, an early American Forrest Gump

The Crazy

Timothy Dexter was an uneducated laborer in colonial Massachusetts. From age 8 he was a mere laborer, but at the age of 16 he scored an apprenticeship with a leather dresser. He did well enough to attract the attention of a rich widow. Unfortunately, as a commoner, he was hated by the upper class. They decided to play off his ignorance, lack of sophistication and predisposition to whacky investments. They convinced the dolt to ship coal to Newcastle, England (the major center of coal mining in England), to send warming pans and mittens to the tropical West Indies and got him to hoard useless whalebone.

The Success

Those idiotic investments made him a richer man. His coal arrived in Newscastle during a major labor strike, causing desperate coal merchants to buy his stock at a greatly inflated price. The warming pans made a great ladling device for the molasses industry and Asian merchants bought the mittens for export to Siberia. Even the whalebone was immensely profitable when found useful for making women’s corsets.

To celebrate his fortune, he did what all fashionable rich men did: self publish a vanity book. His misspelled and unpunctuated “A Pickle for the Knowing Ones or Plain Truth in a Homespun Dress” was published in 1802 and much panned by critics. Despite being nearly impossible to comprehend, the originals are now collectors’ items, naturally.

If you enjoyed this story then go here for four more.

Christian woman faces death for allegedly insulting prophet

Meet Asia Bibi (right), an illiterate Christian woman and mother of five, who was sentenced to death by hanging under the country’s blasphemy laws. Is she a victim of a personal vendetta? 

Here’s what happened:

“She was picking berries with other women, when she was sent to get water,” her husband said. “One of the women refused to drink the water after my wife dipped her cup into the bucket. This woman said it was contaminated because it was touched by a Christian.” According to Masih, all the women then started taunting his wife, and shouting insults against her mother and their children. Bibi just repeated the same insults back at them. “The name of the holy prophet never came up.”

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

All you have to is be accused of blasphemy in Pakistan to be in trouble. And these are our allies?

At the time, Masih said he thought that was the end of it. It wasn’t.

“Five days later, the local cleric came to our house, followed by an angry mob, and dragged my wife away,” he said, recalling the incident that took place in June 2009. They beat her, ripped off her clothes and accused her of insulting the prophet. Then they locked her up in a house until the police came to take her away.”

Couple produces hidden stash: staggering Picasso trove turns up in France

A retired French electrician and his wife have come forward with 271 undocumented, never-before-seen works by Pablo Picasso estimated to be worth at least $79.35 million, according to an administrator of the artist's estate.

This photo (right) provided by the Succession Picasso shows a drawing "Nu Assis" (Sitting nude) by Picasso. (Succession Picasso via AP)

The couple for years squirreled away the staggering trove — which is believed to be authentic, but whose origin is unclear — in their garage on the French Riviera, said Picasso Administration lawyer Jean-Jacques Neuer.

The cache, dating from the artist's most creative period from 1900 to 1932, includes lithographs, portraits, watercolors, and sketches — plus nine Cubist collages said to be worth €40 million alone, according to French daily Liberation, which first reported Monday on the discovery.

Pierre Le Guennec, a 71-year-old former electrician who once worked for Picasso, and his wife showed many of the works to Picasso's son Claude and other estate administrators in Paris in September seeking to have the works certified as authentic, the lawyer said.

Pictured left is Picasso's "Still life glass sand."

As It Stands: Thank you, Janet Napolitano, for saving us from pot terrorists

UPDATES BELOW

By Dave Stancliff/For the Times-Standard

Posted: 11/28/2010 01:29:53 AM PST

Thank you, Janet Napolitano.

I feel so much safer now that the Bureau Of Land Management's Critical Infrastructure Crisis Response Exercise Program is over. That recent realistic scenario of crazed pot terrorists taking over the Shasta Dam to demonstrate how efficiently federal agencies can respond to this very real possibility deserves every American's praise.

Bravo! I want to congratulate everyone involved for recognizing that pot terrorists are an immediate threat to America's national security. As we all know, pot terrorists are the No. 1 threat to this nation, thus the reason for The War on Drugs. Forget about al-Qaida. We need to address real-world things like pot terrorists boarding planes with hidden doobies or glass pipes.

It's common knowledge that people high on pot can be violent and dangerous. Homeland Security officials warn that even medical marijuana can cause problems. Patients freak out and run through the streets naked if they don't get their pot fix. Janet Napolitano rightly recognized the seriousness of the growing number of pot terrorists, mostly in California. The Feds have turned up the heat and are offering rewards to children. If they turn in their pot-smoking parents they'll get a set of DEA playing cards.

I say it's about time the word gets out about these pot terrorists in our country. We've ignored them for too long. I can't tell you how much better I'll sleep, knowing the authorities are on the ball. It's comforting to see how much work went into the Crisis Response Exercise Program. Just think, for 18 months, at the cost of $500,000, these dedicated people prepared for the very real possibility that stoned pot farmers would try to take over the nation's dams.

According to the Record Searchlight newspaper in Redding the exercise started with ...

”... two mock bomb blasts followed by the 'Red Cell' terrorist group taking over the dam in an effort to free one of their fellow marijuana growers from prison. Holding three people hostage, they threatened to flood the Sacramento River by rolling open the drum gates atop the dam. Those gates hold back the nearly full lake.”

Talk about good intelligence. Over 20 federal agencies were involved. I suspected marijuana growers were all subversive. Bombs, not bongs! I'm sure the Shasta Dam will be ready if those dirty hippies try anything now. They don't call it “killer weed” for no reason.

But why stop there? How about more raids on other states that have medical marijuana laws? I have to hand it to our country's drug czar, Gil Kerlikowske, who intimidated California voters considering voting Yes on Proposition 19. That last-minute October surprise before the mid-term elections was a doozy. You let those stupid voters who wanted to legalize weed know that the Feds wouldn't recognize the passage of Proposition 19 and would keep busting those determined citizens who wanted to partake.

Good patriotic Americans know that current misguided marijuana laws that allow people to puff on the demon weed legally need to be repealed. By showing the public just what pot terrorists are capable of in this recent exercise, our government has highlighted a growing concern. DEA authorities report an increase in physical violence involving pot farmers and smokers attacking innocent non-smokers.

Responsible citizens nationwide need to be on the alert for pot terrorists in their neighborhoods. The Feds suggest profiling works well when trying to spot a pot terrorist. They often have long scraggly hair, sometimes dreadlocks, and never take a bath so you can smell them a mile away. Their eyes are usually glazed, and if you watch them long enough you'll catch them drooling. They also wear stupid symbols like peace signs on their hemp clothing and use hemp moisturizers on their skin. Oh, yeah! They wear Birkenstock sandals, and the men have unkempt beards down to their knees. I hope that helps.

How can I, and a grateful nation, thank you enough, oh beloved Secretary of Homeland Security? This country has enough challenges without fear of pot terrorists attacking our nation's infrastructure. This reminder to remain alert at all times for pot farmers plotting to overthrow the government will make us all feel safer. It's this kind of activity that makes me proud to be an American.

As It Stands, forgive my sarcasm, but sometimes I have the feeling our government marches to a different tune than the rest of us.

UPDATES – web sites who picked this column up:

Redding Grapevine/Redding’s Online Magazine

Your Interactive City magazine

Redding California Business Directory

Comprehensive News for Redding

The Twitter Time.s (under What’s Hot 11/28)

News and Blogs Selected by People You Trust

Drug Sense Bot

Site generator for traffic about drug stories

Drug Sense

Moving the debate on drugs from insanity to humanity

Media Awareness Project

The Emerald Triangle News under “California Marijuana Headlines” sidebar

Marijuana News & Culture in Mendocino and Humboldt Counties

Medical MJ

Your site for Medical Marijuana News & Information

Megite (#74)

What’s happening right now

Cannabis Culture Forums

Where marijuana conversation is cultivated

Brain Teasers: Optical illusions that trigger your brain…

 

Go HERE to see more examples of this tricky art.

I’m Under Arrest for What? Fifty Bizarre U.S. Laws

It seems no state is without some wackaloon law that was drawn up by either inebriated or stoned legislators. I’m just saying that in…

Alabama
It’s illegal to wear a fake mustache that causes laughter in church. Apparently it was a problem at some time in the state’s history!

Alaska
Whispering in someone’s ear while he’s moose hunting is prohibited. I bet Sarah Palin knows that.

Arizona
Cutting down a cactus may earn you a twenty-five-year prison term. I can’t imagine what would happen if you cut down a tree!

Arkansas
It’s illegal to mispronounce the name of the state of Arkansas. I’m trying to picture people walking around in crowds listening for offenders.

California
You may not eat an orange in your bathtub. Don’t even ask.

Colorado
It’s unlawful to lend your vacuum cleaner to your next-door neighbor (Denver). It can’t be easy being a good neighbor there.

Connecticut
A pickle cannot actually be a pickle unless it bounces. Okay.

Delaware
It’s illegal to get married on a dare. I wonder if this law was drawn up on a whim?

Go HERE to see the rest

Feds arrest Somali-born teen, thwart car bomb plot in downtown Portland

A Somali-born teenager plotted to carry out a car bomb attack at a crowded Christmas tree lighting ceremony in downtown Portland on Friday, but the bomb turned out to be a dud supplied by undercover agents as part of a sting, federal prosecutors said.

Mohamed Osman Mohamud, 19, was arrested at 5:40 p.m. just after he dialed a cell phone that he thought would blow up a van laden with explosives but instead brought federal agents and Portland police swooping in to take him into custody.

The thwarted attack occurred at Portland's Pioneer Courthouse Square before the annual Christmas tree lighting ceremony, The Oregonian reported.

Mohamud yelled "Allahu Akhkbar" (translated, God Is Great!) and tried to kick agents and police as the arrest came, according to prosecutors.

He was charged with attempted use of a weapon of mass destruction.

Dave’s Hoop Dreams: or Confessions of a Basketball Jones

I’ve always loved to play basketball. From the moment that first made shot whispered through the rope (4th grade) I was hooked. I’m also a Laker fan dating back to the sixties. 

Playing the game has always been pure pleasure for me. I recall shooting away on the basketball courts in the school next to where I lived, until darkness forced me inside. As I got older I discovered pick-up games in my neighborhoods, and always played my heart out in them.

My best basketball buddy fanatic is Larry who I went to high school with. We played many classic pick-up games, but there’s one in particular I’m going to share with you:

First, this is a true story. After I got out of the Army in 1971 we went to a gym in La Mirada, California, hoping for some b-ball action. At first, it was just us on one half court and a few people on the other. They weren’t interested in playing with us. We really didn’t let that bother us as we were both in a great mood. And why not? We’d dropped a hit of Orange Wedge acid a half hour earlier and were starting to “come on” to the trip.

That’s when two older men walked in carrying gym bags. They came right up to us and asked if we’d like to play some two-on-two and we said okay. What followed was a surreal experience. Even today when we talk bout this unusual game, it’s hard to recall all of the details. I know, no surprise.

So there we were, playing these two guys and they’re roughing us up! Throwing elbows and aggressive screens, they took an early lead. Not sure how much. At one point, as Larry and I were watching the ball, we could see “follow-ups” like something out of a cartoon. We asked for a time out and got one. As we stood there, sweat pouring down our t-shirts, we tried to get a hold on all of the pretty little colors that seemed to have sprung up everywhere. As our opponents headed for the water fountain, we heard one say, “Good job Sarge…” the rest a blur! We looked closer at their bags up against the gym wall. Sheriff logos. Oh no. What to do?

They came back and we resumed the game. Not sure what happened. Either we temporarily “came down” off our highs, or were inspired to play the best two-on-two basket of our lives. The upshot: we beat them. can’t tell you the score, but we did beat them. Their shock at the turnaround in our suddenly inspired play was complete.   

When I was in my late 40s, I tried to get Sports Illustrated to do a piece on me playing in a basketball camp sponsored by the LA Lakers. By then, I could barely jump. One dislocated knee, two broken ankles, numerous back injuries, and all. I thought it would make a good humor article. They didn’t, but sent me a nice letter politely declining my offer.

Haven’t been able to play the game since my back surgery in 1995 when I got stainless steel rods put in to hold it together. I still watch the game, and dream about the days when I played.

Finally, this little news item caught my attention today. I sure wish I could have been up to playing in this pick-up game!

President Barack Obama received 12 stitches in his lip after being hit during a pick up basketball game, the White House said on Friday.

"After being inadvertently hit with an opposing player's elbow in the lip while playing basketball with friends and family, the president received 12 stitches today administered by the White House Medical Unit," White House press secretary Robert Gibbs said, according to NBC News. Gibbs did not release the names of the people playing with the president.”

Ahead of the curve: Colorado Mulls Difficulties Of Pot Rules

What's in that joint, and how can you be sure it's safe?

“Colorado is working toward becoming the first state to regulate production of medical marijuana. Regulators say pot consumers deserve to know what they're smoking, and producers should have safety regulations such as pesticide limits for plants destined for human consumption.”

Read story here.