Back on July fourth 1776 the United Sates declared itself Independent from England thus each year on this day we celebrate that Independence with family BBQ’s and fireworks, of course. Though through all the hoopla with fireworks and such it seem more and more the real importance of today gets lost. So… history lesson! Right, well just remember to keep in mind when your out eating a hamburger or steak right off the grill whilst watching fireworks fill the night sky that our forefathers sacrificed a lot so that we can be here today, a free country.

So now the history lesson. The signing of the Deceleration of Independence didn’t actually take place on July 4th, rather it was on July 2nd but it wasn’t approved by congress until today, July 4th. Thus why we celebrate today and not on the 2nd. On July 3rd, 1776 John Adams wrote the following to his wife:

“The second day of July, 1776, will be the most memorable epoch in the history of America. I am apt to believe that it will be celebrated by succeeding generations as the great anniversary festival. It ought to be commemorated as the day of deliverance, by solemn acts of devotion to God Almighty. It ought to be solemnized with pomp and parade, with shows, games, sports, guns, bells, bonfires, and illuminations, from one end of this continent to the other, from this time forward forever more.”

And how about a little history on the observance of Independence Day throughout the years:

- In 1777, thirteen gunshots were fired, once at morning and again as evening fell, on July 4 in Bristol, Rhode Island. Philadelphia celebrated the first anniversary in a manner a modern American would find quite familiar: an official dinner for the Continental Congress, toasts, 13-gun salutes, speeches, prayers, music, parades, troop reviews, and fireworks. Ships were decked with red, white, and blue bunting.
- In 1778, General George Washington marked July 4 with a double ration of rum for his soldiers and an artillery salute. Across the Atlantic Ocean, ambassadors John Adams and Benjamin Franklin held a dinner for their fellow Americans in Paris, France.
- In 1779, July 4 fell on a Sunday. The holiday was celebrated on Monday, July 5.
- In 1781, the Massachusetts General Court became the first state legislature to recognize July 4 as a state celebration.
- In 1783, Moravians in Salem, North Carolina, held a celebration of July 4 with a challenging music program assembled by Johann Friedrich Peter. This work was titled “The Psalm of Joy”.
- In 1791 the first recorded use of the name “Independence Day” occurred.
- In 1870, the U.S. Congress made Independence Day an unpaid holiday for federal employees.
- In 1938, Congress changed Independence Day to a paid federal holiday.

So everyone be sure to have a safe and meaningful Fourth this year, and maybe even let slip some of these interesting facts about today in conversation with others, so we can all remember the true nature of today’s holiday.

This story makes me happy for a few different reasons the first being, I love the Wii, obviously. The second, this is really stunning and interesting medical news that by playing Wii Sports Parkinson’s patients are showing improvement in their lives, and I quote:

Dr. Ben Hertz, a director of Occupational Therapy at MCG, explained that “participants showed significant improvements in rigidity, movement, fine motor skills and energy levels. Perhaps most impressively, most participants’ depression levels decreased to zero.”

I just knew that the Wii was the best console on earth and now it is helping people with severe diseases. Thank you Nintendo.

[via Examiner.com]

Since Valve had released information that they are working on releasing a sequel to their best selling Zombie Ass-Kicking game Left 4 Dead, many fans who own the first game are upset about Valves apparent rush to get L4D2 released. They site, and I quote:

According to the group, the hurried release of Left 4 Dead 2 as a standalone sequel will “split the communities and decrease the quality of multiplayer gaming… The announced content of Left 4 Dead 2 does not warrant a standalone, full-priced sequel and should instead become updates (free or otherwise) for Left 4 Dead,” it says.

“Left 4 Dead has not yet received the support and content which Valve has repeatedly stated will be delivered,” the group continues. “Therefore, we - the members of this Left 4 Dead 2 Boycott - promise to abstain from the purchase of Left 4 Dead 2 until our requests are addressed.”

Now as a Left 4 Dead player myself I tend to agree with the boycott. I mean why make a whole new game when they can simply release updates for the first one, which only came out about 4 months ago. I for one am very disappointed because I love the game, but it does need improvements and I don’t want to have to buy L4D2 and just let my 1st copy rot, which no one will play anymore because of the release of the squeal. I think I will join this boycott, and I urge other to as well.

[via Edge Online]

UPDATE::
Valve has made an official response to the boycott on L4D2 stating that they will still support Left 4 Dead 1 and will release the SDK plus extras for the game. I guess we shall see.

Sorry for the recent lack of updates around here I’ve been distracted with other things and havn’t had a opportunity to post something interesting, and well I can’t say this post will be all that entertaining. Nonetheless, I thought I would share how my weekend went.

Friday night we threw a party over at my cousin’s house, which was quite a success. I mean anytime you have lots of drunk people playing beer pong, and girls taking off their cloths while playing beer pong, you know it’s a good party.

Of course It wasn’t the greatest party of all time, though it was a good time still. What else… oh yea, I made no official post but May 25th was my birthday and I am now 25 years old, which is so weird. I’m starting to hate getting older, and beginning to miss my younger years but that’s life right?

Have you ever wondered what would happen if you for some odd reason came across a vile of pure LSD and decided to inject three-thousand times the human dose into an elephant? Well you can stop because two Doctors at the University of Oklahoma School of Medicine have taken on this odd experiment and it had some unexpected outcomes.

LSD is one of the most potent drugs known to medical science. A mere 25 micrograms – less than the weight of a grain of sand – can send a person tripping for half a day. But the researchers figured that an elephant would need more than a person and they didn’t want to risk giving too little. They upped the dose to 297 milligrams, about 3,000 times the level of a human dose.

At 8am, Thomas fired a cartridge syringe into Tusko’s rump. Tusko trumpeted loudly and began running around his pen. Then he started to lose control of his movements, and toppled over. His eyeballs rolled upward. He started twitching. His tongue turned blue.

The researchers administered 2,800 milligrams of an antipsychotic, which relieved the violence of the seizures a little. Eighty minutes later, Tusko was still lying panting on the ground. Desperate, the researchers injected a barbiturate, but it didn’t help. A few minutes later, Tusko died.

So it would appear that maybe only the Human race was дивани meant to enjoy the effects of LSD safety. I just wonder what the Elephant felt for those few minutes whilst the LSD was in his system; maybe in those quick seconds before he died he solved the problem of human space travel? Or not.

[via The Independent]