Good luck ever releasing those tigers into the wild. People get so happy when creatures on different levels of the food chain get along famously in captivity, but all it means is that their instincts (which are needed to survive in the wild) have been totally fudged. Even the zookeepers seemed to acknowledge this, as this whole thing started with an attempt to bring out the tigers' natural instincts, probably in the hopes of making sure they developed properly.

Plus, off the top of my head I can't think of any natural habitat where tigers have ever hunted chickens in the wild. That probably has something to do with it as well. There are also other factors to consider. I really don't understand why people would be surprised about this event.

Lastly, with the amount I've seen stuff like this reported, it's become pretty apparent to me that situations like this must be more or less common, or if not common then fairly repeatable.

I'm such a killjoy, aren't I? Okay, I'll admit, I'd find it pretty cute if I saw it. :)

The Salvation Army may have made a bad call, but Greenpeace is ridiculous. I'm all for preserving the environment, but not at the expense of aiding Greenpeace. They're just crazy. From what I hear, most or all of the founders of that movement/organization resigned because it became nothing more than a radical, political machine filled with as many crackpot zealots as any cult.

Also, people need to remember that there's far more to every story than what one reads in the newspaper. It's best not to jump to quick judgements. I tend to not trust any news story that seems totally one-sided, whether or not I like which side won.

Jimbo, WoW and Guild Wars are absolutely nothing alike. At all. In any way. Going from WoW to Guild Wars or the reverse is like having to go from English to Spanish or what-not.

People now seem to be bringing up global warming, so I can't help but jump in:

Anyone here seen the fascinating documentary, "The Great Global Warming Swindle"? For those of you who don't know what it is, it's not arguing that global warming doesn't exist, only that humans have absolutely nothing to do with it. Right or wrong, it presents a number of remarkable arguments for its theory. I'd really recommend it no matter what you may believe regarding the issue. (And no, I'm pretty sure oil companies and big business had nothing to do with the making of it... and even if they did -- which I doubt -- it doesn't change the apparent strength of the presented arguments.)

Man Sid, that was a horribly cruel thing to say. It's that sort of attitude which pressures women to keep completely screwing themselves over just so shallow guys can get it up. It's not about being prettier, it's about being yourself! If a woman never meets a guy who can accept her for who she is and not how well she sexually competes, then she's a lot better off being an old maid. She may be alone, but at least she didn't become some guy's object (a far worse fate).

MrGoodBar, I'm sorry, but the author of that paragraph is a grammatical genius compared to many writers I've seen. :)

It makes me kinda proud to be able to say I've played completely through -- and very much enjoyed -- Indigo Prophecy/Fahrenheit, Beyond Good & Evil, and Psychonauts. Though I can easily see why they were overlooked.

And yeah, I agree with the comments on Planescape. I'd also have to add Dreamfall: The Longest Journey to the list. Its predecessor The Longest Journey was certainly recognized, but Dreamfall was passed over even by many fans of TLJ. It tried to widen its audience with action and stealth elements, but they were terrible. As a result, the game ended up alienating hardcore adventure gamers as well as hardcore action gamers and was left with only a tiny audience. Too bad, because the setting, characters and plot were mind-blowing.

When are people going to learn that you have to take the good with the bad in order to experience life to its fullest? This, to me, is only the latest in a long string of inventions that, yes, make things more convenient, but in the long run serve only to drain away a bit more of who and what we are and our place in nature. The philosophy behind these things is a sickness. Scientists wonder why more than half of Western civilization is clinically depressed on some level; well here you go: these chicks are one of the many, many myriad reasons. If that makes me no fun, then so be it. I'd rather be considered the most boring person in the world than to accept progress and convenience without examining its possible long-run consequences. Seeing the little girls with those things almost broke my heart.

They sure make Jesus look badass, both on the cover and in example pages. God forgive me, but I couldn't help but recall a certain scene from a certain famous movie: "Say 'what' again. SAY 'WHAT' AGAIN! I dare you, I double dare you, mother******. Say 'what' one more god**** time!"

The "Church" of the Flying Spaghetti Monster is not a religion, it's a parody; it exists only to make fun of Christianity. This kid isn't protecting his religion, he's just being a jack--- for the sake of looking cool. There may be no law against that, but it sure is bad manners. Christians can be a pain sometimes, but at least most of them are legitimately doing what they believe will ultimately help others. And I don't care what religion you are: mocking others isn't right, period. After all, the Golden Rule shared by just about all of the world's major religions states, "Do unto others as you would have them do unto you." These so-called "Pastafarians" are just adding more fuel to the fire -- they're not making anything better for anyone; they seem to exist solely to create conflict.

Fake or not, it's one of the most hilarious videos on the 'net if you're a WoW fan. :) But I doubt it's fake... I've seen it happen in almost exactly the same manner too many times in my own personal WoW experience. If it's fake, its accuracy is off the charts. :)

As a 24 year-old virgin who's convinced we live in the very last of the Final Days, I can (to a certain degree) understand where this young man is coming from. Whether many believe it silly or not, everyday I wake up hoping the world lasts one more day so I can have a chance to get married and have a family before Christ returns. But, despite my fear of never being able to have a family, I refuse to rush into a relationship or rush into sex.

Why? Because I strongly feel it's the right thing to do, and I know that if I rush into such things I'll not only hurt myself emotionally, but I'll also hurt the woman involved by objectifying her (as a sex object or a milestone in life; take your pick). If I'm meant to be married, then so be it. If I'm not? Well... I suppose I can live with that.

People need to realize that life is it's own reward, and that life isn't about the pursuit of happiness, but rather the pursuit of virtue (no matter the pain involved). The pursuit of virtue may leave us sad, depressed, or in pain about half the time, but in the end it's a much more satisfying way to live; it strengthens and empowers us and inspires others.

Lastly, people need to remember that death isn't the end. It's merely a transition to another existence. I've personally seen and felt too much evidence to believe otherwise. And if you're properly prepared, that next existence is a far greater one than this, and filled with naught but physical and mental perfection.

I'll have to side with Vean on this: it may be an unfortunate state of affairs, but sex isn't a human right. If I was in that young man's position, I would be looking to God, not a woman. It staggers the mind that a nun would support him in this decision. Prostitution is a horrible, horrible thing. Putting aside the fact that it's a sin, it *inevitably* devalues, devours and destroys women emotionally (if not physically as well).

I feel for the guy, I really do (especially given my own complete lack of a sex history), but there is so much more to life than sex. No matter what happens, I pray that God's will for him be done and that he finds peace.

I would imagine people who really feel they have the abilities to be tested fear that the test will be so biased against them as to be sabotaged, or perhaps that they will make a mistake (fail) and be forced to live with that mistake for the rest of their lives. In short, there are too many unknowns. There's a lot of pressure in a test like that.

For example, I happen to be very good at singing, but put me in front of an audience and I can't sing at all: I get so nervous my throat muscles tighten and I can barely squeeze enough air through my vocal chords to make sound. Just as bad, my mind blanks and I can't remember the words to the songs I'm supposed to be singing. More than 30 people attending my latest recital can attest to these facts, yet my voice professor continues to believe I should be on Broadway.

Who are we to say that psionic/supernatural talents aren't subject to the same principals as something like singing?

Also, maybe people fear fame and the loss of privacy that accompanies it. Think of the death threats someone would receive if they could prove beyond a shadow of a doubt that they had psionic/supernatural abilities. Hell, I'd bet even Edwards, etc. have received their fair share of death threats despite the lack of pure scientific evidence for their claims!

I'm not saying people like Edwards or Gellar are real, but I firmly believe that some people out there do have amazing abilities that science has yet to officially document.

Any scientist who's honest about what he does will tell you that we, as a species, have only barely scratched the surface of this universe's mechanics. In my opinion, it's extremely foolish and close-minded to immediately call-out psionic and supernatural phenomena as unreal and without rational basis.

In short: the TRUE skeptic doesn't need inarguable evidence for everything; rather, his mind is open to any possibility, no matter how outlandish it may be. But then why call him a skeptic? Because keeps an inner dialogue going, ever searching for answers. The difference between a true skeptic and a wannabe skeptic is that the true skeptic is willing to go farther to find his answers, and isn't afraid to walk on a bridge of faith every once and a while to reach his destination.

I would have to go with sanitation. That's the beginning of everything; the most basic medical practice.

Different people measure success in different ways. I highly doubt he did it just to be a small attraction at the pub, if at all. Imagine the kind of mental discipline needed to be able to do something like that (or any of the seemingly superhuman things these Asian monks can do). The reward lies in the journey, and the destination is but a small, memorable reminder of all that was gained during the trip.