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Like many video role-playing games, Dragon Age: Origins, a medieval epic that was released in November for PCs, PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360, gives its players far more to do than wage war against mythical beasts.The game, which was developed by BioWare and published by Electronic Arts, and is meant to take 60 to 80 hours to complete, allows players to develop combat and magic skills, interact with other characters and have romantic encounters. If you play as a male character, it is even possible to have a liaison with a male elf named Zevran.

Russia and the United States have tentatively agreed to a weapons inspection program that would allow Russians to visit nuclear sites in America to count missiles and warheads.

You owe your life — and everything else — to the sovereign. The rights of subjects are not natural rights, but merely grants from the sovereign. There is no right even to complain about the actions of the sovereign, except insofar as the sovereign allows the subject to complain. These are the principles of unlimited, arbitrary, and absolute power, the principles of such rulers as Louis XIV. Intellectuals have assiduously promoted them; think of Jean Bodin and Thomas Hobbes. A new intellectual champion of absolutism has now emerged. Mild-mannered University of Chicago law professor Cass Sunstein has been advancing the...

Arrests in Texas and California Target Members of Known Outlaw Motorcycle Gang in Methamphetamine Distribution Conspiracy Two Defendants Charged in Conspiracy are Hockley County, Texas Sheriff Deputies LUBBOCK, TX—Twenty-eight defendants, including sheriff deputies and members of a motorcycle gang that is a support club of the Bandidos Outlaw Motorcycle Gang (OMG), are charged in a 110-count federal indictment, returned earlier this week in Lubbock, Texas, for allegedly operating a major methamphetamine trafficking organization since January 2003 in west Texas, Arizona, and in the Modesto, California, area, announced James T. Jacks, Acting U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Texas. Today,...

[Evan Thomas:] "...he [Obama] has a very different job from Reagan was all about America and you [Chris Matthews] talked about it. Obama is 'we are above all that now.' We're not just parochial. We stand for something. I mean in a way, Obama's standing above the country, above the world, he's sort of God."

Do you think that the crash is over, as certain former bears do? This question arises as we have breached the first downside target, of Dow 7000, based on my proprietary investment value model that was first published in thestreet.com October 24, 2007. It was less a forecast than an evaluation. The Dow has now vindicated this model by reaching "fair value," as one would expect from a simple definition. Does that represent a base for a new bull market? Or is it just one more stop to the nether regions?

Been doing some construction work lately, and I've been told to keep an eye out for some of these types of things. Enjoy! LOL. I hope these pix can be seen.

Sometimes a President Is Just a President The other night I dreamt of Barack Obama. He was taking a shower right when I needed to get into the bathroom to shave my legs, and then he was being yelled at by my husband, Max, for smoking in the house. It was not clear whether Max was feeling protective of the president’s health or jealous because of the cigarette. The other day a friend of mine confided that in the weeks leading up to the election, the Obamas’ apparent joy as a couple had made her just miserable. Their marriage looked...

What some of our cities are requesting... http://www.usmayors.org/mainstreeteconomicrecovery/stimulussurveyparticipantsdata.asp?City=Asheville&State=NChttp://www.usmayors.org/mainstreeteconomicrecovery/stimulussurveyparticipantsdata.asp?City=Charlotte&State=NChttp://www.usmayors.org/mainstreeteconomicrecovery/stimulussurveyparticipantsdata.asp?City=Concord&State=NC http://www.usmayors.org/mainstreeteconomicrecovery/stimulussurveyparticipantsdata.asp?City=Durham&State=NC http://www.usmayors.org/mainstreeteconomicrecovery/stimulussurveyparticipantsdata.asp?City=Fayetteville&State=NC http://www.usmayors.org/mainstreeteconomicrecovery/stimulussurveyparticipantsdata.asp?City=Gastonia&State=NC http://www.usmayors.org/mainstreeteconomicrecovery/stimulussurveyparticipantsdata.asp?City=Rocky+Mount&State=NC http://www.usmayors.org/mainstreeteconomicrecovery/stimulussurveyparticipantsdata.asp?City=Winston-Salem&State=NC O.K. Now, here you have to actually look at the last line of each one of them. Asheville $13,950,000 Charlotte $827,300,000 Concord: $50,243,050 Durham $105,002,217 Fayetteville $93,683,001 Gastonia $202,240,000 Rocky Mount $62,700,000 Winston Salem $618,050,000 The total from just these towns alone is 1,973,168,268 That's almost TWO BILLION DOLLARS for makework programs. Apparently, they think putting a new roof on a fire department is going to create a long-term job for someone. They are making temp-work. That's just SICK!!!!

OCALA, Fla. -- A woman in Ocala was jailed for hitting herself in the face with a frying pan and then blaming her estranged husband.

Top robotics expert Professor Noel Sharkey, of the University of Sheffield, has called for international guidelines to be set for the ethical and safe application of robots before it is too late. Professor Sharkey, writing in the prestigious Science journal, believes that as the use of robots increases, decisions about their application will be left to the military, industry and busy parents instead of international legislative bodies.

About twelve minutes into a Detroit radio station’s interview with Kenyan ambassador Peter Ogego, he is asked whether or not monuments will be erected in honor of Obama’s elevation to the United States presidency.Ogego responds that a monument will be erected at Obama’s birthplace in Kenya, which is already a site of pilgramage: “His birthplace is already an attraction…it’s already well known.� Obama’s Kenyan grandmother has also asserted that he was born in Kenya, not the United States. The Constitution bars those born outside of US territory from becoming President.There are also lawsuits pending — including one by Obama’s...

Sorry, I’m new, and I know I should keep my place. But, everyone on this Board KNOWS what MSM is going to report. If I wanted to hear Pravda, I’d turn on the TV. We’re on the site as an alternative-to hear the news that IS NOT being reported on TV. Can’t we be a little bit more circumspect in reporting what we ALL knew the media were going to feed us. It will become apparent soon enough, what’s true ir false. If we want downer news, we all know we can go to MSNBC, CNN, Fox, Drudge. The board...

Heard tonight - several talking heads discussing Obama "win" - they were unamious about Tom Daschle being tapped for Chief of Staf if "The One" wins. Get your duct tape - you're gonna need it.

JUAREZ, Mexico (AP) -- A 990-pound (450-kilogram), bedridden man who had appealed on Mexican television for help tackling his weight problem died Tuesday of heart failure, his family said. Jose Luis Garza, 47, tipped the scales at almost 1,000 pounds before his death. Emergency officials had to knock down Jose Luis Garza's bedroom wall and load him onto the back of a friend's pickup as he fought for his life. The 47-year-old was pronounced dead on arrival at a hospital in northern Mexico.

Here is a video of children, ages 5-12, "singing for Change" to their Dear Leader, Barack Obama. Rush Limbaugh just played this on his radio program and said this was orchestrated by some Hollywood types. It shows the level of mind control going on in America today. . . (Watch Video)

The Richland County, South Carolina Sheriff's Department (that's them above) just obtained an armored personnel carrier, complete with a belt-fed, .50-cal turreted machine gun. Sheriff Leon Lott has charmingly named the vehicle "The Peacemaker," and insists that using a caliber of ammunition that even the U.S. military is reluctant to use against human targets (it's generally reserved for use against armored vehicles) will "save lives."

Actress blogs that Sarah Palin should focus on campaign, not daughter's pregnancy.While speaking to the delegates of the Republican National Convention on Monday, vice-presidential nominee Sarah Palin announced that her 17-year-old-daughter, Bristol, is five months pregnant. The chatter sparked by the news included a few words from someone who knows what it's like to be a teenage girl in the public eye: Lindsay Lohan took to her MySpace blog to weigh in on the issue. "Well, I think the real problem comes from the fact that we are taking the focus off of getting to know Sarah Palin and her...

With news broadcasts dominated by election coverage, the Edwards scandal and Russian Invasion of Georgia, the news has been slow to spread that Warner Brothers announced yesterday that they were postponing the November Release of Harry Potter: Half-Blood Prince until July of 2009. If you hadn't previously heard the news then I apologize for being the one to break it to you. In the immediate wake following Warner Brothers announcement, Internet rumors spread attributing the delayed release to the Writer's Guild Strike this past spring. However, upon further clarification by Warner Brothers it now seems that the movie is ...

Congress leader invokes blessings of Hanuman NEW DELHI: Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama can now expect help from an unexpected quarter — Lord Hanuman. All-India Congress Committee member Brij Mohan Bhama has organised a 11-day religious ceremony at Karol Bagh here for his success in the U.S. elections. The idea of sending an idol of Hanuman dawned on him after friends in the United States mentioned a “prominent American politician who carried a miniature Hanuman idol in his pocket for luck,” Mr. Bhama said speaking on the first day of the ceremony on Tuesday. “After hearing that, I decided to...

We can't tell you her name but she was able to tell a jury about what happened to her. And her determination to recount some of the most incredible savagery ever heard in a courtroom is testimony to her courage and her desire to see justice done. The recall of a Columbia University student that unfolded in a New York City hall of justice on Monday was almost too hard to hear. The 24-year-old victim sat in the witness box with her jaw clenched and her mind focused, as she retold the unimaginable ordeal she claims she suffered at the...

Okay - Sorry, But this gun gets me ... well, a weeee bit excited (I'm a female) I can shoot, not GREAT, but rather well...I WANT THIS GUN!!!!!!!!!!!! Perhaps that was one "!" to many - or not enough..

U.S. employers cut payrolls for a second straight month during February, slashing 63,000 jobs for the biggest monthly decline in nearly five years as the nation's labor markets weakened steadily, a government report on Friday showed. The Labor Department said last month's cut followed an upwardly revised loss of 22,000 jobs in January rather than the 17,000 reported a month ago. It also said only 41,000 jobs were created in December, half the 82,000 originally reported. "This confirms the fears that have been lurking in the financial markets in recent weeks. The probability of a U.S. recession is at more...

Video above. Sorry if this has posted in the past, I searched and did not see it. Sometimes there is a fine line between being an operator and nearly being a suicide bomber. (video is not graphic)

Man in wheelchair takes ride on semi's grill Updated: June 7, 2007 02:30 PM MDT Pictures are courtesy State Police Trooper Mark Kassuba Listen to the 911 calls about the wheelchair attached to the semi truckPAW PAW -- The Michigan State Police Paw Paw Post and Van Buren County Central Dispatch began receiving strange reports of a man in a wheelchair being pushed by a semi truck on Wednesday afternoon.The truck collided with wheelchair as the vehicle was leaving a gas station and 22-year-old Ben Carpenter of Alamo was crossing the road. The wheelchair's handles became lodged in the front grill of the truck. The unwitting truck...

Costco is not cool with underpants-filled punching bags. From their website (emphasis ours): We are issuing this voluntary recall notice for the TKO Sports Heavy Punching Bag with Speed Bag Combination, manufactured by TKO Sports, of Houston, TX. We have learned that the fill material in the heavy punching bag does not meet our high quality standards.

Palestinian rights advocacy organization Filasteen, the Chicano Caucus, and other student organizations assembled a human wall on Low Plaza stretching from one fountain to the next yesterday afternoon to demonstrate the injustice created by the security fence in Israel and one being built along the Mexico-U.S. border. At the event, demonstrators chanted, and several students were given the opportunity to speak. Eventually, the human wall was unlinked, symbolizing organizers' call to take down the existing physical walls. "It was a speak-out against walls in general, which can ruin an economy and suffocate people," Tina Musa, CC '09 and a member...

The seas have been rising for 18,000 years, but the pace has quickened. At the Golden Gate Bridge, the Pacific Ocean crept seven inches higher during the past century, as global warming melted glaciers and expanded ocean waters. Californians are taking notice. In one of the first efforts of its kind in the state, officials are starting to address the threats rising seas pose to the Bay Area. One of the first steps was to compile maps that show what would happen if the sea level rose three feet -- the upper limit for what might occur by 2100, according...

Just now.

A confidential analysis of Internet search queries and a random sample of Web pages taken from Google and Microsoft's giant Internet indices showed that only about 1 percent of all Web pages contain sexually explicit material. The analysis was presented during a federal court hearing last week in Philadelphia in a suit brought by the American Civil Liberties Union against Attorney General Alberto Gonzales and obtained on Monday by the Mercury News. The ACLU said the analysis, by Philip B. Stark, a professor of statistics at the University of California, Berkeley, did not appear to substantially help the Department of...

<p>According to two people close to former congressional page Jordan Edmund, the now famous lurid AOL Instant Message exchanges that led to the resignation of Mark Foley were part of an online prank that by mistake got into the hands of enemy political operatives, the DRUDGE REPORT can reveal.</p>

LONDON (Reuters) - Stimulating a certain area of the brain can produce a creepy feeling that someone is watching you when no one is, scientists said Wednesday. Swiss researchers made the discovery while evaluating a young woman for surgery to treat epilepsy...When they electrically stimulated the left temporoparietal junction in her brain, which is linked to self-other distinction and self-processing, she thought someone was standing behind her. If they repeated the stimulus while she leaned forward and grabbed her knees she had an unpleasant sensation that the shadowy figure was embracing her..."Our findings may be a step toward understanding the...

In this installment we are enlightened on the seemingly troublesome question as to how to deal with a restroom.From the fount of all wisdom, Ask The Imam: Question 9220 from India - Can we enter rest room with this small paper contaning the quranic verse tied across our neck, or arm?in which u suggested to Write the following verse (in Arabic script) on a pice of paper and tie it around neck or arm, ‘Qul innal fadhla biyadillaahi, yu-uteehi man yashaa-u, wallaahu waasi-un aleem. Yuheedhu birahmitihi man yashaa-u, wallaahu dhul fadhlil adheem’. 1) can we enter rest room with this...

The 2006 FreeRepublic LexiconAKA "The Freepism, Freepology, Lingo, Dictionary, Terminology, Lore Handbook" A revised and condensed version of The Lexicon of FreeRepublic, culled from Lexicon of FreeRepublic - 4th Edition and Freeper Lingo Thread (the history and meening of 'Freepisms' including pictures). Thanks to the many Freepers who contributed! In this latest update, I have cut the emoticons and standard acronyms (LOL etc - which are readily available on the web and previous Lexicons) for the sake of brevity. I have attempted to include all definitions and histories provided to me and give credit to those who provided me the...

Serious movement in D.C. – and if I hadn't been there, I would not have believed it. For several months Joan Wire and her daughter have been trying to secure an appointment with a highly effective government official we'll simply call Mr. Washington. Joan Wire is the stalwart wife of Mike Wire. Mike is the storied "man on the bridge," the single most critical eyewitness in the saga of TWA Flight 800, the 747 that was inexplicably blown out of the sky on the night of July 17, 1996. The CIA built its notorious zoom-climb animation around Mike's position on...

The Chinese want boys, and the Canadians want girls. If they have enough money, they come to the United States to choose the sex of their babies. Well-off foreign couples are getting around laws banning sex selection in their home countries by coming to American soil — where it's legal — for medical procedures that can give them the boy, or girl, they want. "Some people spend $50,000 to $70,000 for a BMW car and think nothing of it, but this is a life that's going to be with us forever," said Robert, an Australian who asked that his last...

PREMATURE babies requiring expensive hospital care have been described as “bed blockers” by one of the country’s leading medical colleges. The Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists (RCOG) says that the ability of doctors to keep alive babies born under 25 weeks presents difficulties for the treatment of other infants. Its comments were made in a submission to an inquiry by the Nuffield Council on Bioethics into the ethics of prolonging life in foetuses and the newborn. The RCOG paper states: “Some weight should be given to economic considerations as there is a real issue in neonatal units of “bed...

What a quaint little tradition these moon cultist have, eh? We can not be expected to share this world with such barbarians. Islam MUST BE DEFEATED.

Wife just returned from store. Guy there said that all credit card and debit card transactions cannot be processed across US.

TSUNAN, Japan, Jan. 7 - After clambering out a second-story window on Saturday, Kimie Kuwahara, 80, stood atop the 10-foot-high wall of snow surrounding her house. She surveyed this region called the snow country - the starkly white mountain range that spread out in the distance behind her, the record snowfall that had blanketed all but the triangle-shaped roofs in her neighborhood. Pushing a plowlike shovel with both hands, Ms. Kuwahara was busy clearing the fresh powder to a recessed pile several feet away under which, she swore, lay a pond with carp. Her husband, Naoji, also 80, had climbed...

Yaa, you repukes are not doing so well, huh? Imagine, you repukes control the presidency, both houses of Congress, and appointed 7 of the 9 Supreme Court justices. Yet the Supreme Court thre out sodomy laws in all 50 states and recognized the right of government to seize land for any reason. And you couldn't pass your Social Security changes could you? Sorry, that was your last shot. Come November, we're going to start seeing more Democratic faces in the House. It's the end for you guys. You guys are celebrating when Bush's numbers go *up* to 45%. Then Faux...

Bush’s giant Right Wing Noise Machine (RWNM) loves to preach about the Bush economic miracle. In fact, the RWNM’s current thinking is Bush doesn’t spend enough time talking about his economic triumphs. If only he did, then everyone would fall in line and believe in the great Bush economic miracle. There is one problem with this argument: it’s a lie. Any way you look at the Bush economy, it comes up short. Today, I want to compare Bush’s job creation record with other economic recoveries. As usual, Bush comes up way short. The national Bureau of Economic Research has identified...

Why does anybody support George w Bush as President? He is clearly the worst President I have ever seen -- a complete disaster. And before you say anything, I have been a registered Republican for 25 years.

At least seven U.S. congressmen are boot-licking zombies controlled by Haiti's supersecret AIH intelligence agency, but here's the clincher: Nobody can figure out who they are because the living dead -- with their shuffling gait, wrinkled skin and glassy stares -- are indistinguishable from all the senior-citizen politicians on Capitol Hill. So says the FBI in a frightening internal report that suggests the House of Representatives "could become a nest of zombies within the next 10 years . . . and the American public would be none the wiser." "It's a serious situation with national security implications that do not...

Lies of omission about 9/11 -- stoking fears of terrorism THEY WANT YOU TO BE AFRAID The following post was censored by freerepublic.com shortly after it was posted on their "public" forum on 9/11/04. That forum is designed to appear as though it is a community forum open to all, but this post only received three responses before it and its replies were deleted, and a repeat posting at 4 am PST on 9/20/04 didn't stay online for 5 minutes! Someone is apparently watching closely over the content of the freerepublic.com forums and censoring them 24/7 (though they might have...

I have collected two articles and combined them with a simple search on the internet, and report the results to you for your comments. this is a vanity, so the sources are listed here, and not in the title block http://edition.cnn.com/2005/WORLD/europe/07/27/luton.bombs/ this is a CNN article from yesterday that shows the pictures of some "jar bombs" found in the trunk of a car several days after the first london bombing. these pictures have been posted on several threads here on FR. the pictures can be viewed on the right sidebar adjacent to the article. http://www.totse.com/en/bad_ideas/ka_fucking_boom/162155.html the above link takes you...

What happened?

THE mystery of the Brad Pitt-Jennifer Aniston breakup has been solved, the NY POST reported on Wednesday. Aniston has finally broken her silence to Leslie Bennetts, who will write up the interview for VANITY FAIR. Contrary to early speculation, "She told Bennetts she did want babies with Brad, and that starting a family wasn't the issue... The issue was Brad cheated . . . and she is appalled by the 'family photos' coming out in W." Brad and Angelina Jolie posed with pretend kids as one big happy family in the upcoming monthly. Developing...

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1383919/posts?q=1&&page=2051

Pierce Brosnan will play James Bond in the next 007 film, co-star Dame Judi Dench has revealed The 51-year-old will reprise his role as the suave secret agent in Casino Royale, she said. "Despite the fact that everyone on the face of the Earth has been tested as his possible replacement, Pierce will be doing it again," added Dench, who plays M in the movies. It will be announced come the summer.