School Spying Through Laptops

A Pennsylvania school is now looking at a lawsuit for spying on kids through school-issued laptops. What was this school thinking????? Isn't it against the law to record a conversation without informing the person who is being recorded, never mind recording someone with a video camera! This is an interesting article about people who have been arrested for video taping police situations (I remember the one in New Hampshire). Newsvine.com

The first word that popped into my head when I heard about this was "pedophile". I can't think of any other reason an adult (excluding parents) would want to spy on children in their homes or bedrooms. I think the people who were responsible for activating the webcam should be arrested (as the people in the above article were)! What do you think?

After buying a new laptop a couple years ago, the first thing I did was to put tape over the webcam. If you have a webcam connected to your computer, you most likely have the software needed to run it. If hackers can access your computer to steal important information, they surely can activate a webcam! Think about putting a small piece of masking tape on that camera.

Tiger Woods Apology and Aiesha Steard-Baker

I think I'm going to scream if I hear on TV one more time, Tiger saying "...I was unfaithful, I had affairs, I cheated. What I did was not acceptable and I am the only person to blame..." I've heard enough of it, let's get back to golf!

I have to say though, Tiger's not the only one who did something wrong. Even though it's none of my business he should only be taking 99% of the blame. What about the women he cheated with. Are they blameless? Sure, they didn't break any commitment to Elin, but they did break the human commitment -- to be a decent person. Sure Tiger may have been the one who was "more wrong", but they were still wrong. Society needs to stop accepting those who cheat with cheaters!

and speaking of the human commitment...what about those security guards at Macy's that wouldn't help the 15-year-old Aiesha Steward-Baker? I heard on GMA that the security guards at Macy's are instructed to only call the police and not get involved. Again, what about the codes of being human? No matter what your job capacity, you don't just stand there and let something like that happen! Would they have let a cute, little puppy get kicked around?

Bus video

Hopey Changey is Not Working for Me

I admit it - I'm not a Sarah Palin fan. In fact, I believe if the Republican party backs her in the next presidential election, it will guarantee President Obama another term. I believe Sarah Palin helped Barack Obama become president. BUT I have to say her recent comment at the Tea Party Convention, "How's that hopey, changy stuff workin' out for ya?" (said of course in her "Fargo" accent) was pretty funny. That hopey, changy stuff IS NOT workin' for me!

Facebook - Please Check Your Profile

I guess it is just me, but I hate Facebook! No, it's not really Facebook I hate -- it's the things I see posted there. Personally, I'm only willing to share a certain amount of information with "friends," but I can see there are some who share EVERYTHING! I think everyone should check their settings to make sure they're not set up for "friends of friends" to see their information. Ooops...I better check mine! I think people post waaaaaayyyy too much information. Once I actually had to ask a friend to remove a post they made that degraded a thirteen-year-old's mother. I knew the thirteen-year-old was a "friend" and could see these unfavorable comments about his mother. It was very disturbing! If you are reading this, you probably have a Facebook account. Please be careful about what you post, keeping in mind that anyone in cyberland could be watching. You might also want to question whether or not it is a good idea to post where you're going. Maybe a better idea might be to post where you've been.

Sunrise / Sunset Moon Phase

I just found a really cool website that allows a search of your own area for sunrise and sunset and which phase the moon in in. Check this out: SUNRISE/SUNSET

On this website CIVIL TWILIGHT is defined as "In the morning before the beginning of civil twilight and in the evening after the end of civil twilight, artificial illumination is normally required to carry on ordinary outdoor activities." There is more information on that site that explains it even further. It explains why we usually see "daylight" about a half hour before sunrise and a half hour after sunset.

That reminds me...has anyone noticed how bright this winter has been? I'm in the northeastern US and almost all winter, any time I've gotten up during the middle of the night, I look out my window and am not surrounded by complete darkness. Something seems different this year. Can anyone explain that for me?

Don't Ask, Don't Tell

I'm very disturbed about the Army possibly lifting the "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" policy. It's really the "Don't Ask" part that bothers me. I do not feel it is anyone's business to know what people do in privacy, especially when it relates to sex. ANYONE'S sexual orientation - homosexual or heterosexual - is nobody's business!

The Don't Tell part, well I do think that should be lifted. There should be no unfavorable consequence for being or admitting to being gay and especially should not be grounds for dismissal!

Since we are unfortunately a country not yet exempt from hate crimes, I would worry that lifting the policy could be detrimental to the safety of gays. I sincerely hope I'm wrong!

Bio-identical Hormone Replacement Therapy - Help Spread the Word!

I found out today there are still lots of people who do not know about or understand what bio-identical hormones (BHRT) are! We need to spread the word! Ok, here is my understanding of them. They are also referred to as "natural hormones". The word "natural" seems to be misconstrued and misunderstood. Something that is "natural" should be an earthly substance that has had minimal processing. Cyanide and arsenic are "natural". Black cohosh is a "natural" herb. Gasoline is made from a "natural" substance. I guess everything is natural or is made from a natural substance since we are not yet importing from Mars. A tomato picked from a garden should be "natural" if the seed it was grown from had not been genetically altered.

This brings us to "natural hormones" which are also known as bio-identical hormone replacement therapy (BHRT). "Natural" in this instance does not quite mean what we are used to it meaning. It does not mean it was picked in a garden and you eat it like a vegetable or take it like a pill. Natural hormones are made from plants to exactly replicate the hormones in our bodies. The "bio-identical" in the phrase bio-identical hormone replacement therapy means biologically identical to the hormones that the human body makes.

Unfortunately, no studies have been done or reported involving BHRT. We also might ask if a study is even necessary. If we are replacing the hormones our bodies used to make with something that is exactly identical, isn't the risk exactly the same as it was our whole lives when our bodies were producing those hormones?

I think one of the issues is that we've been misled to believe that hot flashes are normal and we just need anti-depressants. Should we really think life is supposed to be over at 50?

Another good one that doctors tell women who have had hysterectomies, "You don't need progesterone because you've had a hysterectomy - you don't have a uterus." Progesterone may play a part in uterine bleeding, but doesn't it also plays a part in making other necessary hormones like estrogen and testosterone? So just because someone does not have a uterus, does that mean they no longer need all the other hormones that progesterone contributes to making? Check out my other blog about bio-identicals BHRT (And don't forget that progesterone helps us sleep.)

Just as with anything else, get a doctor's advice before starting any new medications. A naturopath or gynecologist would be good places to start.