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The Barber Who Believed That God Doesn't Exist A man went to a barber shop to have his hair and his beard cut as always. He started to have a good conversation with the barber who attended him. They talked about so many things and various subjects. Suddenly, they touched the subject of God. The barber said: "Look man, I don't believe that God exists as you say so." "Why do you say that?" - Asked the client. "Well, it's so easy, you just have to go out in the street to realize that God does not exist. Oh, tell me, if God existed, would there be so many sick people? Would there be abandoned children? If God existed, there would be no suffering nor pain. I can't think of a God who permits all of these things." The client stopped for a moment thinking but he didn't want to respond so as to prevent an argument. The barber finished his job and the client went out of the shop. Just after he left the barber shop he saw a man ...

Exciting collectibles. Light Sabers. It even can be used for a real sword fight. Made from a durable material. Interested? visit Park Sabers .

SARS Genetic Code Identified By Laurie Garrett STAFF WRITER April 15, 2003 Two laboratories in the United States and Canada have figured out the complete genetic code of the virus suspected of causing the respiratory disorder SARS, a step essential to developing diagnostic tests and treatments. The findings are remarkable because of their speed - by comparison, it took nearly three years to find the virus that causes AIDS and another two years to determine its full genetic sequence - and their almost letter-for-letter similarity. The CDC's genomic sequence is longer than the Canadians' by only 15 genetic letters, or nucleotides - a mere blip in the virus' total of 29,736 nucleotides. The makeup of a virus is expected to vary slightly by geographic region. But coupled with optimism that the finding can serve as a road map for developing diagnostic tests, drug development and a vaccine is the continuing mystery: The virus is completely different from any kno...

7 Iraqis Killed In Checkpoint Tragedy March 31, 2003 (CBS/AP) "It was the most horrible thing I've ever seen, and I hope I never see it again." Sgt. Mario Manzano (CBS) U.S. troops killed at least seven Iraqi women and children at a checkpoint Monday when the Iraqis' van would not stop as ordered, U.S. Central Command said. Two other civilians were wounded at a U.S. Army checkpoint on a highway near Najaf in southern Iraq, according to a Pentagon official and a Central Command statement. The military is investigating, the statement said. The soldiers involved were from the 3rd Infantry Division, the same unit that lost four soldiers at a checkpoint near Najaf Saturday when an Iraqi soldier dressed as a civilian detonated a car bomb. The seven dead and two wounded on Monday were among 13 women and children in a van that approached the checkpoint but did not stop, according to the Central Command statement. It said soldiers motioned for t...

The Indonesian War of Independence Sukarno was expecting the Japanese to grant Indonesian independence before World War II ended, so he was taken by surprise when Japan surrendered first. On August 17, 1945, he proclaimed the independence of the Republic of Indonesia, with himself as president and Muhammed Hatta as vice-president. The Dutch were willing to negotiate a new future for the Indies, but complete independence was more than they were willing to give. Sukarno and Hatta replied that they could not take back their independence declaration, and that the only thing worth talking about was the speedy liquidation or removal of everything the Dutch owned in the islands. This impasse made war inevitable. The first skirmishes were directed against the Japanese troops that occupied Java in August 1945. The surrender terms imposed on Japan required that her troops in occupied areas maintain order until the arrival of Allied units. In September British forces arrived to disarm and...

Seeing Double A few months ago, Austrian right-wing politician and political enfant terrible Jörg Haider caused quite an uproar when he travelled to Iraq on what he claimed was a "humanitarian mission", met and shook hands with Saddam Hussein and extended his greetings and "the best wishes of the Austrian people" to Saddam. Green party leader Alexander van der Bellen, usually a very stoic, thoughtful man, summarized pretty much what just about everybody in Austria thought when he said: "Haider has now gone completely gaga." Now it seems Haider didn't meet Saddam after all. According to the Austrian news magazine Format, German forensic law professor Dieter Buhmann claims that Haider merely met one of Saddam's doubles. Buhmann says that he has done extensive research on video footage of Saddam Hussein, and his results have shown that there are at least three doubles of Saddam, surgically altered to look like him. Haider was apparently not im...

This article is written in Bahasa Indonesia. The original essay in english language follows. Berjuang untuk Hidup Kalau dipikir-pikir, Mike Powell mestinya tidak selamat. Kecanduan, menjadi pengedar obat-obatan, penjara, atau kematian adalah nasib yang biasanya menimpa anak jalanan di "rimba" South-Central Los Angeles-arena kejam untuk perang obat, pembunuhan geng, pelacuran, dan kejahatan. Tapi, kehidupan Mike kecil memiliki tujuan istimewa. Selama delapan tahun ia tabah menghadapi teror dan kebrutalan untuk mempertahankan keluarganya yang beranak tujuh. Hebatnya, selama masa itu, tak ada orang yang tahu bahwa orangtua yang sesungguhnya dalam keluarga itu hanyalah seorang anak. Waktu Mike lahir, ayahnya, Fonso, dipenjarakan karena mengedarkan obat. Ibu Mike, Cheryl, yang berusia lima belas tahun, keluar dari sekolah untuk menafkahi bayinya. "Tanpa kau, kehidupanku tak akan begini," begitu katanya pada Mike berkali-kali. Perasaan bersalah inilah yang memb...