Sweat lodge survivor reveals details of tragic incident

It was supposed to be a religious awakening aimed at helping people find a new vision for life. But it wasn't long before the culmination of a $9,000+ per person retreat outside Sedona, Ariz. turned into a terrifying experience.

"People were vomiting in the stifling heat, gasping for air, and lying lifeless on the sand and gravel floor beneath them," according to 43-year-old Texas resident and participant Beverley Bunn. "One man was burned when he crawled into the rocks, seemingly unaware of what he was doing", she said. Ultimately, three people would die.

When participants exhibited weakness, Ray urged them to push past it and chided those who wanted to leave, she said.

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People were not physically forced to stay inside but highly encouraged. "It was all about mind over matter, you're stronger than your body," Bunn said.

James Ray cancels appearances because of sweat lodge deaths.

When dozens of fans and supporters for James Arthur Ray showed up for one of his events in Toronto Wednesday night, they were greeted by a handwritten sign saying the event had been canceled.

At the time no explanation was given, but one of Ray's former mentors, Bob Proctor, apparently convinced Ray to cancel the seminar just hours before it was scheduled to start, ABC News has learned.

In a post on his Web site today, Ray said he is postponing the rest of his events for the year to help "get to the bottom" of the incident in Sedona, Ariz., earlier this month in which three people died after attending one of his seminars in a sweat lodge.

Stop Japan's Dolphin slaughter!

Dolphins being killed en masse at Futo Harbor, Japan. The red is dolphin blood.

BlueVoice Executive Director Hardy Jones is a former journalist with CBS News and UPI. He has been making television documentaries about the oceans and marine mammals in particular for more than 20 years.

"The experience of forcing Japanese fishermen to release hundreds of dolphins simply by pointing a camera at them led to the original concept of BlueVoice.org," says Jones. "The advent of the internet has given us a tool of unprecedented power to end some of the brutalities committed against marine mammals and the oceans."

While on assignment in Japan, Hardy Jones discovered and documented the ritual slaughter of wild dolphins. Watch this painful video, then visit the website to learn what you can do to help.

Europe's Real Borders

This is an interesting map. It shows the boundaries between distinct languages in Europe. Although there may be some discrepancies in it, it is easy to see how political boundaries are so different from linguistic ones.

Taming Light

What happens when a beam of light travels through transparent textured materials? If you are Alan Jaras (or Reciprocity on Flickr), you can make it refract into a gorgeous array of colors. Bridging the gap between art and science, Jaras bends, twists and turns light...like you've never seen.

These are analogue images of the refraction patterns of a beam of light passing through various transparent objects (in this case a piece of textured glass). The image is captured directly on to 35mm film, no camera lens is used ( this is a photogram using film instead of photographic paper), the transparent object replaces the lens. Colour is introduced by placing specially prepared coloured filters directly in the light beam. This is an analogue image and has not been computer generated or colour treated. The colours you see are a faithful reproduction of those captured on film.

There are several webpages with more pics:
• flickr.com
• mymodernmet.com
• neublack.com

Cool and Cooler!

Inventor/engineer James Dyson, famous for his cyclonic vacuum cleaners (you may have seen his commercials with his vacuum that can round corners), and for his uphill water fountain introduces his latest product, the bladeless air multiplier fan. It uses a system of low pressure area and suction device in the bottom to create a smooth, continuous flow of air.

Maine voters reject same-sex marriage law

Minority rights once again trampled by the majority!

Voters in the northeastern state of Maine repealed a state law that would have allowed same-sex couples to wed, dealing the gay rights movement a heartbreaking defeat in the corner of the country most supportive of gay marriage.

Gay marriage has now lost in every single state — 31 in all — in which it has been put to a popular vote. Gay-rights activists had hoped to buck that trend in Maine — known for its moderate, independent-minded electorate — and mounted an energetic, well-financed campaign.

With 87 per cent of the precincts reporting, gay-marriage foes had 53 per cent of the votes.

"The institution of marriage has been preserved in Maine and across the nation," declared Frank Schubert, chief organizer for the winning side.

Kissing, hugging, and touching are reasons to kill gay men and lesbians in Jamaica

Today (Oct. 30th) has been proclaimed 'Gay Eradication Day' by residents of the McGregor Gully community in East Kingston. Residents say that they will be taking action as a two-week notice given to all gays and lesbians to flee the community has now expired.

The Jamaica Star is reporting that two weeks ago, residents of McGregor Gully declared they were fed up with gay behavior, and ordered all gays to leave by today. Those who did not leave would "suffer the consequences" Those residents who are willing to admit that they are taking part in the gay rousting say they are doing it to protect their families and in an effort to keep their community from falling into disrepute. According to the residents, the main problem is a local hangout that is frequented by lesbians who "kiss, hug, and even touch each other." And the community's anger is directed mostly at those lesbians, though any gay men who reside in the area are also expected to leave. The residents say they will not stop until their community is "gay free" and are not afraid of resorting to extreme measures, though they would not explicitly say what those measures might be.

Dad will be the last one to know!

If you haven't been watching this season of The Amazing Race, you are missing out on a couple of hotties who managed finish first this week. Sam and Dan are gay, christian brothers who have just come out to the other players even before telling some members of their family.

Here are Sam and Dan:


Here is one of the competing teams on Sam and Dan coming out:

Measure for Measure

This is a clever one by Carl Mitsch of Fred Studio: a set of measuring cups shaped like matryoshka (babushka or Russian nesting dolls). They’re cute and functional! And perhaps best of all, they nest inside of one another so they don’t take up much cabinet space. At $11.95 each, they’re the perfect gift for those who love to cook … and who knows, maybe you’ll get dinner out of it, too.