Can Homosexuality kill itself ?

I've been hooked onto evolution and natural selection and genetics after reading "The Selfish Gene". Its enlightening and a bit depressing at the same time. Once you are done with the book, if you really get the implications of the ideas in the book, I am sure you'll think differently about everything in the world around you.

Once can see that Homosexuality is getting a lot of attention these days. Many of us are disgusted by the idea, some couldn't care less, some are neutral, some think its as normal as heterosexuality and some think its a disease(Ram Dev Baba ?) which can be cured. When you see two males/2 females holding hands or giving some indications of PDA(Public Display of Affection), you do tend to have a few observers jokingly(if not seriously) utter the slangs "homo" or "lesbo" or "gay" or "fag", at-least in their minds.

The idea doesn't disgust me as such. Male to male, may be a little bit odd, but as a guy, I can never be disgusted by the idea of 2 girls making out :D . This of-course comes from somebody who is/thinks heterosexual. I can never know what "homosexual" attraction is like and I am sure i don't want to know.

If you think from a slightly different POV, the normal act of heterosexual human reproduction itself is quite weird. Here are two people who claim/think they "love" each other, and what is the ultimate expression of their love (often called "making love") ? => one individual(the male) repeatedly sticks/stabs a temporarily blood inflated rod like extension into the opening of the another individual of a different type (female), in an attempt to deposit these tiny swimmers into the female, out of which ONE(in most normal cases) gets to parasite the female for the next 9 months, to produce another individual will do the exact same thing with an other individual when they are ready. And because the whole process is so so pleasurable(almost every time to the male), the male wishes to do it(and does it) very often, even when he doesn't want his swimmers to turn into small, mutated clones of himself.

Now, contrast that with one individual(male) doing the same thing with an individual of the same type(male). But, this time its a completely different hole, the one that disposes waste from their body, coz the males don't have any other. It certainly looks like a deviation from the "normal" stabbing process in the sense that the intent is only pleasure and not to release swimmers and hook them onto the other individual.

Of course, Sexual reproduction is not the only way to reproduce. There are millions of organisms on earth who still survive beautifully with asexual reproduction(cloning, fission) from tiny bacterias to ants to some plants. We do it probably because the method of reproduction of our ancestors(way way before) was itself under the pressure of natural selection. Sexual reproduction might have helped our ancestors survive better. The clear distinction that we think we now have between males and females might have been absent in the early times. Richard Dawkins has explained this beautifully in "The Selfish Gene".

Back to Homosexuality. Its currently known that sexual attraction is not as black and white as homo or hetero. Even bi-sexual, bi- curious isn't quite right. Its more like a percentage. Most "normal" ppl are largely attracted to the opposite sex(>90%) . Bisexuals are 50%-50% and on the other side of the spectrum , we've got homosexuals (e.g 90%-10%)

Now, imagine the first few generations when homosexuality just arrives at the scene in the form of some early mutations. After a few generations, when the percentage(of homosexual attraction) is significant enough, individuals will be first confused(since heterosexuality is what is all around them). Some might communicate it to others, most will be suppressed, laughed at, or even punished. So, these individuals, with non-negligible amounts of homosexual attraction live(or try to) their lives as false heteros. They are capable of reproduction since they are still attracted to the opposite sex or at least are able to engage in the act of sexual intercourse as per the demands of the time. Now, there wont be any selection pressure against these genes (that increase the attraction towards the same sex) since they are not detrimental to survival. These genes will be passed on generation after generation. In some generations, they will be switched off, but they might be suddenly activated in the next(like any other gene). Somewhere down the line, the number of people reporting homosexual attraction would be large enough for orthodox heterosexual leaders/influential people to declare homosexuality as an abomination or may be even a crime with death as punishment. Hence, it is suppressed even more and homosexuals(with varying degrees of attraction to the same sex) continue to reproduce heterosexually and pass on their genes.

Now, fast forward to present when homosexuality is slowly getting accepted, albeit with a lot of resistance. Imagine that, after a few generations, everybody(almost) learns to accept homosexuality without any attached social stigma. It becomes normal to be homosexual. So, the homosexuals in that generation wont pass on their genes to the next(Assuming we don't figure out a way for homosexuals to reproduce). Whenever the suppressed genes become active in any future generation, those individual pair up with their kind and end the run of their genes. So, the more the people come out of the closet, the lesser the chances of them passing on their genes(including the homosexual genes) to the next generation and slowly, the prevalence of homosexuality will probably reduce considerably. It might return, but again will be wiped out as long as it is accepted and as long as the individuals cant reproduce.

So, for the people who wanna get rid of Homosexuality(for whatever reasons), the best way is to encourage more and more homosexuals to come out of the closet and live the way they want to live.

Now, the assumption that i make is that Homosexuality is passed on via genes. But, I think its probably a safe one, because it certainly isn't memetic.

An open letter to Kansas School Board -- Hilarious

Background:

Proponents of intelligent design believe that certain features of the universe and of living things are too complex to not have been designed by an intelligent, supernatural agent, such as a god(s). This contrasts with the naturally directed, impersonal processes described by the theory of evolution

The Kansas Evolution Hearings were a series of hearings held in Topeka, Kansas May 5 to May 12, 2005 by the Kansas State Board of Education and its State Board Science Hearing Committee to change how evolution and the origin of life would be taught in the state's public high school science classes

On February 13, 2007, the Board voted 6 to 4 to reject the amended science standards enacted in 2005.The definition of science was once again returned to "the search for natural explanations for what is observed in the universe."

Excerpt of the letter from the Church of the Flying Spaghetti monster to the Kansas School Board:

""
........ Let us remember that there are multiple theories of Intelligent Design. I and many others around the world are of the strong belief that the universe was created by a Flying Spaghetti Monster. It was He who created all that we see and all that we feel. We feel strongly that the overwhelming scientific evidence pointing towards evolutionary processes is nothing but a coincidence, put in place by Him.

It is for this reason that I’m writing you today, to formally request that this alternative theory be taught in your schools, along with the other two theories. In fact, I will go so far as to say, if you do not agree to do this, we will be forced to proceed with legal action. I’m sure you see where we are coming from. If the Intelligent Design theory is not based on faith, but instead another scientific theory, as is claimed, then you must also allow our theory to be taught, as it is also based on science, not on faith.

Some find that hard to believe, so it may be helpful to tell you a little more about our beliefs. We have evidence that a Flying Spaghetti Monster created the universe. None of us, of course, were around to see it, but we have written accounts of it. We have several lengthy volumes explaining all details of His power. Also, you may be surprised to hear that there are over 10 million of us, and growing. We tend to be very secretive, as many people claim our beliefs are not substantiated by observable evidence. What these people don’t understand is that He built the world to make us think the earth is older than it really is. For example, a scientist may perform a carbon-dating process on an artifact. He finds that approximately 75% of the Carbon-14 has decayed by electron emission to Nitrogen-14, and infers that this artifact is approximately 10,000 years old, as the half-life of Carbon-14 appears to be 5,730 years. But what our scientist does not realize is that every time he makes a measurement, the Flying Spaghetti Monster is there changing the results with His Noodly Appendage. We have numerous texts that describe in detail how this can be possible and the reasons why He does this. He is of course invisible and can pass through normal matter with ease. ...........

"""

Imagine our children fighting in their class rooms on which god(out of the millions mankind has conveniently created) "intelligently" created our universe :D ....

Faith Fighter

Atheist Cartoons

Funny Religion

What do you get when you cross an atheist with a Jehovah's witness ? .... Someone who knocks at your door for no apparent reason.

A Jew, A Catholic, and an atheist are rowing in Lake Erie when their boat springs a huge leak. The Jew looks skyward, and says “Oh, Adonai, if you save me, I promise I’ll sail to Israel and spend the rest of my days trying to reclaim the land you gave us.” The Catholic looks skyward, and says, “Oh, Jesus, if you save me, I promise I’ll fly to the Vatican and spend the rest of my days singing your praises.” The atheist says, “Oh, guys, if you pass me that one life preserver, I promise I’ll swim to Cleveland.” “And how will you spend the rest of your days?” the Jew and the Catholic ask. “Well,” says the atheist, “I’m not sure, but I can tell you one thing: I’ll never go rowing with other atheists.”

Atheist: What’s this fly doing in my soup?
Waiter: Praying.
Atheist: Very funny. I can’t eat this. Take it back.
Waiter: You see? The fly’s prayers were answered.

An atheist buys an ancient lamp at an auction, takes it home, and begins to polish it. Suddenly, a genie appears, and says, “I’ll grant you three wishes, Master.” The atheist says, “I wish I could believe in you.” The genie snaps his fingers, and suddenly the atheist believes in him. The atheist says, “Wow. I wish all atheists would believe this.” The genie snaps his fingers again, and suddenly atheists all over the world begin to believe in genies. “What about your third wish?” asks the genie. “Well,” says the atheist, “I wish for a billion dollars.” The genie snaps his fingers for a third time, but nothing happens. “What’s wrong?” asks the atheist. The genie shrugs and says, “Just because you believe in me, doesn’t necessarily mean that I really exist.”

An atheist was rowing at the lake, when suddenly the Loch Ness monster attacked and grabbed him from his boat. He panicked and shouted "God help me!", and suddenly, the monster and everything around him just stopped. A voice from the heavens boomed "You say you dont believe in me, but now you are asking for my help?" The atheist looked up and said: Well, ten seconds ago I didnt believe in the Loch Ness Monster either!

Mumbai meri jaan

Saw Mumbia meri jaan today. Kinda slow but liked it. "Wednesday" was a better entertainer though. MMJ had the quintessential "hindu musalmaan stop the endless 'you hit me, i hit you' cycle, to restore peace" message that movies on terrorism usually have.

Its about time we take it one step further and hit the rehab to wean ourselves from this drug called "geriniol" ( also known as "gerin oil" ) from our system, our lives.

P.S. I love anagrams.

Church of the Flying Spaghetti Monster

Welcome to the Church of the Flying Spaghetti Monster .

The Church of the Flying Spaghetti Monster, while having existed in secrecy for hundreds of years, only recently came into the mainstream when this letter was published in May 2005.

With millions, if not thousands, of devout worshipers, the Church of the FSM is widely considered a legitimate religion, even by its opponents - mostly fundamentalist Christians, who have accepted that our God has larger balls than theirs.

Some claim that the church is purely a thought experiment, satire, illustrating that Intelligent Design is not science, but rather a pseudoscience manufactured by Christians to push Creationism into public schools. These people are mistaken. The Church of FSM is real, totally legit, and backed by hard science. Anything that comes across as humor or satire is purely coincidental.

They get a lot of hate mails ( LOL ).

Rock On !!

Music is an important part of my life now. I don't remember much about my taste of music during my school days. It probably would have been very similar to what i listened to in my college days. Yup, the usual bollywood numbers that everybody grooves to. Although i had heard very few "english" numbers, i always made it a point to argue with some of my colg friends who would listen to them. I would go blah blah about how Indian music(=bollywood songs then) is better than the silly western music, how melodious they are, how you enjoy them for you life,etc,etc.

I don't remember the exact year when i started developing a taste for non-bollywood music. I think it was primarily pop music at first => Backstreet boys, etc. Then somewhere down the line came eminem. I think heard a few rap numbers before eminem, but once i heard eminem, i just couldnt stop listening to him. His numbers were funny, rhyming and rapilicious. He is the God of rap.

Around the same time i tried Linkin Park or was it LP before eminem?, aah who cares !!. Initially it was all noise to me but their noise was somehow "different" though. As i listened to more and more of LP, I started liking them. I loved their mellow starts. I always felt energetic after listening to their songs. I got more and more of their songs from the internet and from friends and before i knew, i was an LP fan and i still am. I still like their numbers very much.LP changed my attitude towards western music. Its not that i stopped listening to bollywood numbers, i still liked them, but LP helped me broaden my "range".

So during my colg days and early engg days, whenever i was asked for my music "taste". I would say LP and rap. I still identified my taste based on the bands i listened to. Its not that LP and eminem were the only ones i listened to, but LP and eminem were among the top.

After reading about LP on the internet, i realized there was this genre called "rock" music and LP was not the only one doing it. Liked some more bands. I was becoming more of a "rock" liking person that just an LP fan. In engg days, you get a lot of music from your friends staying in hostels, so that again helped me explore.

Although i started listening to more and more bands and read up on them on the internet about their styles, i couldn't listen to a song and say "this song belonged to this genre", I always equated songs to the bands. Also, anything that was energetic and intense was "rock" to me.

During my first year @ GSLab, me and some of my colleagues were @ McD. One of my colleague's roomie turned out to be a music geek. Another colleague also had some info(A brilliant knowledge powerhouse, ask him anything and you would get info on it). So we had this cool discussion as to what distinguishes each band and how a band is labeled a particular "genre". I had heard genres like "metal", "rock", "heavy metal", "death metal", "soft rock", "blues", "classic rock" and there are soooo many of them. Although i got some info from that discussion, i still cant distinguish metal from rock with confidence.

Now a days i listen to many more bands and genres of music, so much so that my friends are of the opinion that i have no particiular taste, i listen to any crap that comes along. hunh? They don't know what they are missing :)

There are so many good Indian bands too - To name a few => Parikrama, Agnee, Pentagram, Avial,etc (Mallu rock !!, i love them, may be coz i am a mallu?, donno :) ).

But, once in a while i do meet friends and friends of friends who have these awesome huge music collections and All i say to myself is "what the hell was i doing all these years?".

and

I say gimme more!, more!, more!. There is so much of music out there that deserves attention.

Now i pity those who only have bollywood numbers and oldies to groove to :) But, anyways, whatever one's taste is, Music is a great source of pleasure and energy for anyone. One has to find one's taste. There is so much music in the word, i say, dont just stick to what you hear often, go out and explore more, you will certainly find some interesting "Noise" out there.

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An Atheist Meets God - Hilarious =))

What happens when an atheist meets God after his death ? Something like this ?