Viagra stiffens up the vote in Thailand

Candidates in next month's fiercely contested Thai election have been offering Viagra in exchange for votes, it was alleged Friday.

Elderly male voters are being wooed with the little blue pill used to treat sexual dysfunction at social functions, claimed Sayan Nopcha, a campaigner for the People Power Party (PPP) in Pathum Thani, near Bangkok.

"A politician is giving out Viagra to gain popularity and votes. I think this is a very bad method of vote buying," Sayan told the Bangkok Post. He showed journalists two tablets as "proof" of his allegations and warned that cheap Viagra substitutes could be very damaging to the health of voters.

The December 23 general election is to return power to the people after the September 2006 coup d'etat that brought a military-appointed government to power.

The PPP, widely considered a proxy party for deposed prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra, is fiercely contesting the election against 40 other parties for 480 seats in the lower house.

There are 4,200 candidates running for election. Critics of the ousted prime minister claim that his "Viagra" is his recent purchase of Manchester City Football Club in England to keep his name in the news in soccer mad Thailand. Manchester City recently signed up three young Thai players - unlikely drafts for a professional league team, but fascinating for Thai voters.

Vote buying is traditionally rampant in Thai elections where rural voters are more impressed by hard cash than superficial ideologies. The Election Commission has toughened up the rules so much this time that even giving away T-shirts and soft drinks can be censored.

Sayan refused to disclose who might be giving out the sex drug because he said it was difficult to prove. The wildly popular drug is supposed to be used only on doctor's advice but can be bought over the counter in Thailand. However, it is too expensive for most Thais. (dpa)

God Speaks!

Wow.....it has happened again! This time God has selected to speak directly to Richard Roberts, the son or Oral, and the President of Oral Roberts University.

Did God want him to know about the secrets of life and the universe? Did God speak to him about the ongoing hate and the wars in the world? How about Global Warming? Maybe God decided to speak to Richard Roberts about disease? Maybe the Dolphins disaster season? How about Abortion? Gay Rights? Hillary?

No...of all the things God could discuss with man......and out of all the SIX BILLION people on this earth....God decided to speak to Richard Roberts about the scandal he created at his tax fraud university...and suggested that he resign.

The Lord truly works in mysterious ways.......With all the problems in the world...with all the communications technologies.....it always amazes me that God selects fallen religious leaders to speak with?

This must be proof that there is a God...it has happened too many times to be just a coincidence.....it is comforting to know that if you really want to hear God speak....you should attend a religious school...become a leader...and either have a sex scandal or cheat the church out of money....it seems like it would be worth it... just to be able to speak and hear from our Creator.

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Roberts says God forced his resignation

By JUSTIN JUOZAPAVICIUS, Associated Press WriterThu Nov 29, 2:37 AM ET

Richard Roberts told students at Oral Roberts University Wednesday that he did not want to resign as president of the scandal-plagued evangelical school, but that he did so because God insisted.

God told him on Thanksgiving that he should resign the next day, Roberts told students in the university's chapel.

"Every ounce of my flesh said 'no'" to the idea, Roberts said, but he prayed over the decision with his wife and his father, Oral Roberts, and decided to step down.
Roberts said he wanted to "strike out" against the people who were persecuting him, and considered counter suing, but "the Lord said, 'don't do that,'" he said.

After submitting his resignation, he said, for "first time in 60 days peace came into my heart."
Roberts spoke for only a few minutes and was applauded and cheered by students. He wiped away tears with a white handkerchief and his hands.

"This has nearly destroyed my family, and it's nearly destroyed ORU," Roberts said.
A lawsuit accuses Roberts of lavish spending at a time when the university faced more than $50 million in debt, including taking shopping sprees, buying a stable of horses and paying for a daughter to travel to the Bahamas aboard the university jet.

Roberts has previously said that God told him to deny the allegations. The week the lawsuit was filed, Richard Roberts said that God told him: "We live in a litigious society. Anyone can get mad and file a lawsuit against another person whether they have a legitimate case or not. This lawsuit ... is about intimidation, blackmail and extortion."

On Wednesday, Roberts said God told him he would "do something supernatural for the university" if he stepped down from the job he held at the 5,700-student school since 1993.
On Tuesday, the founder of a Christian office and education supply store chain pledged $70 million to help the university, provided it passed a 90-day review of the school's finances. Oklahoma City businessman Mart Green, founder of the Mardel chain, offered to donate $8 million immediately.

Roberts said he would return to the full-time evangelistic healing ministry, "which is where my heart has always been," and told students and faculty that he will be praying for them every day of his life.

"I believe with all my heart the best is yet to come for ORU," he said.

Roberts walked out of the chapel through a side door to more cheers. Regents Chairman George Pearsons followed, telling students the ORU administration is "endeavoring to do the right thing" during a very difficult time.

"This is a good university," Pearsons said. "ORU is a place where love is king."
Gary Richardson, the attorney who filed the lawsuit accusing Roberts of lavish living, said Wednesday there was a possibility for settlement with the university, but held out little hope for settling with Richard Roberts after what he said was his failure to admit in chapel he did anything wrong.

Brain Fitness ???

Posit Science, Brain Fitness Program

So now come the results of a two-year, 524-participant, “randomized, controlled, double-blind” study that reportedly showed that “the Posit Science program genuinely improves memory overall” and that “study participants in the experimental group reported significant improvements in their everyday lives [ranging] from remembering a shopping list without having to write it down; to hearing conversations in noisy restaurants more clearly; to being more independent, feeling more self-confident, finding words more easily and having improved self-esteem in general.”

Participants who used the Brain Fitness Program increased their auditory processing speed by 131%. On average, people who used the Posit Science program experienced an improvement in memory equivalent to approximately 10 years.

Three out of four people who used the Posit Science program self-reported positive changes in their everyday lives.

Skeptical? Well, who wouldn’t be. But the evidence grows that if an older person actually uses the program (buying it alone seems not to be enough; they have to actually use it), they might be one of the three out of four who notice positive changes in their everyday lives.

http://www.positscience.com/

WWE - Monday Night RAW

Only in America

Time to get healthy - Use a Pedometer!

It pays to count - pedometer study finds.......






People who use a pedometer to measure how far they walk lose more weight, exercise more and have lower blood pressure than those who do not, researchers said on Tuesday.

It was not clear from the study, the first to review most previously published research on pedometer use, whether those who use the devices are more motivated in the first place, just benefit from the assistance, or both.

Many pedometer-related programs recommend users set daily goals for themselves, such as 10,000 steps or about 5 miles (8 km). Dr. Dena Bravata and colleagues at Stanford University in California reviewed 26 earlier studies covering 2,767 people, with an average age of 49.

It found that pedometer users took more than 2,000 extra steps a day compared to those who did not use the devices, and that having a goal of reaching a certain number of steps was a significant factor.

Those using the devices, which are worn on the hip, also lost weight as measured by body mass index, and significantly reduced their systolic blood pressure -- the top number in blood pressure readings, which indicates the maximum pressure of a contracting heart.

"Our results suggest that the use of these small, relatively inexpensive devices is associated with significant increases in physical activity and improvements in some key health outcomes, at least in the short term," Bravata's team wrote in the report published in this week's Journal of the American Medical Association.

"The extent to which these results are durable over the long term is unknown," they said.

I found a great website......

http://www.ceoexpress.com/default.asp

Might take a few minutes to take it all in!

Miami Auto Show - Dad, Jim, Cousin Ricky

Frank's 50th Birthday Party as photographed by Pete!!!

Joe Clouture formerly from AVS

Nothing new...random ramblings

I caught a nasty flu and have been in bed since Sunday............at least the weather has changed and it is no longer raining and hot....this morning was Beautiful!!!

Looking forward to the WWE coming to town next week...taking Jack & Dillon....George & Jesse....Paul & Jamie......and cousin Ricky.

Dolphins Suck! ......very depressing how bad they have gotten.

Badge Express is growing thanks to the dedication and teamwork of Pete, Jack, Janice, Al, Matt, Phil.....and George!

The Prysm.com .....my new web portal business is rolling along....thanks to the hard work of Mike & George....should be rolled out for testing by the end of the year.

I am getting excited about my return trip to Thailand....December 2nd through Jan 16

Got another "Special Assessment" from my condo.....$5400....it never ends!

The Miami Herald has become a really crappy newspaper.......there is so much political corruption going on....and very little investigative reporting to stop it until the feds finally come in......shameful.

NOW THE REALLY BIG NEWS.....I finally purchased my new Apple laptop.......I actually opened the box last nite....If it is as easy as the commercials, I should be making feature films by Christmas!

Andres Cuervo - New Music

Last year, a friend of mine told me that his dream was to become a music recording star.

I gave him a copy of a book about setting goals and chasing dreams...he read it...and followed all the details ......and got a recording contract within a few months.

He recorded a CD and had a video put together.....it caught the eye of some record execs....and they decided to release a it worldwide and put together another video...now the CD is available on Apple iTunes....and at Wal-Mart.

How cool is that!

Link to website

http://www.andrescuervomusic.com/home.swf

Link to new video

http://www.fortestyle.com/esosojos.mov