Posts made by raphjd

So far 3 UK governments {Blair, Brown and the current coalition} have said they do not intend to revisit the gay rights issue as we are already equal.

In the UK gay couples are treated as such, even if they don't have a civil partnership, when it comes to getting state benefits. The same applies to hetero couples. So far the equality issue is intact.

However, excluding relationship by blood, your hetero spouse and gay/lesbian partner can also be your next of kin. Now here is where the UK fails in their "separate, but equal" rubbish.  Non married hetero couple that have lived together for 6 months or more are also considered next of kin.  The same rule DOES NOT apply to non civil partnershiped gay couples.

So someone tells you that gays have total equality in the UK, excluding the word "marriage" and all the international acceptance that word has, just remember this.  It's one of a number of things in the UK where we are still 2nd class citizens.

This is part of the reason why I live in the UK.

Don't forget, Obama loves us so much, that he has used extremely nasty tactics in defending DoMA in court.  According to the Obama administration {Obama personally defended using such tactics}, our relationships are no better than incest, bestiality and pedophilia.

Stop torturing yourself and put an end to it, once and for all.

The relationship is over, so move on. You'll be so much happier once you do.

hXXp://wonkroom.thinkprogress.org/2010/10/14/benefits-pets/

Due to DoMA, US federal employees can get partly funded pet insurnce, but they can not get insurance for gay/lesbian partner.

While Obama has repeatedly made promises to repeal DoMA {and DADT, and pass ENDA} he and his administration are on their 4th defense of DoMA.  In previous defenses, they said that gays do not deserve marriage because gay relationships were no better than incest, bestiality and pedophilia.

With friends like Obama, who needs enemies.

What were the bus driver and matron doing while this was going on?!

I seriously doubt that school buses have been so severely redesigned since I was in school that they didn't know it was going on.

Sadly, these kind of stories never surprise me.

Homophobia is rampant even in countries that claim to be civilized.

It does seem like you romanticized the whole thing.  Noting will ever be perfect.  If you look at the stats for the hetero "let's wait til marriage" crap, they don't last very long.

As previously said, trust your gut.

This would have been a non issue for the young man, except for the way society views and treats gays.

If you live in the UK and want to see if they have you on the list, you can put your post code in and see if your name is listed.

hXXp://www.ueof.co.uk/acslaw/postcode.php?postcode=po10+7th

I'm not on their list.

I have to agree with the guy from Stonewall.

People are not going to be fully honest for many reasons, so the number of gays will be severely under reported.

hXXp://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-11379089

Intel's unveils controversial PC upgrade scheme

The card unlocks features already present on the dual-core chips
Intel is giving buyers of some computers the chance to pay for an upgrade that boosts the power of the processor in their desktop PC.

The pilot scheme will involve purchasing a card bearing a security key that unlocks the extra features via the web.

Critics have derided the idea as a way for Intel to charge customers for something the chip can already do.

Intel said the scheme was about offering "choice and flexibility".

"The pilot in a limited number of retail stores will centre on one Pentium processor, one of our value brands, and will enable a consumer to upgrade the performance of their PC online," Intel spokesman George Alfs told BBC News.

Margin squeeze
"This saves the user from buying a new system or taking it in for a physical upgrade."

Initially, the cash-based upgrade scheme will only apply to computers containing the G6951 desktop processor. According to Intel a sister chip, the G6950, costs $87 (£56) each when bought in batches of 1,000. Intel would not confirm the cost of the upgrade cards but said reports that they would retail for $50 were "in the ballpark".

The upgrade would increase the size of the chip's cache memory and unlock a technology known as hyperthreading. This would allow the computer to be more responsive and help with data-intensive tasks such as video editing as it enables a workload to be spread more dynamically shared across the two processors.

The G6951 processor is a dual core 2.8Ghz chip from Intel's i3 family that is intended for lower-end desktop machines. This part of the PC market is seen as very competitive and price sensitive.

The G6951 is not available to buy yet but is expected to be used in Gateway's SX2841-09e desktop machine that will only be available from the Best Buy store. A comparable Gateway machine currently costs $559.99 (£385). Acer is also believed to be taking part in the upgrade scheme.

The company would not comment on which countries would be involved in the pilot and how many retailers it intends to target.

The web pages that Intel has set up to support its "down the wire" upgrade service report that it is being piloted with a "limited number" of customers in the US, Canada, Spain and the Netherlands.

Intel said that the programme was due to roll out in the fourth quarter of 2010 and could start as early as October.

'Bone-headed'

News of the scheme was broken by the technology blog Engadget which showed pictures of the cards on the internet and called the move an "intriguing business model".

As information began spreading across the web, critics and supporters weighed in.

"This is a bone-headed move for Intel to make," said Adrian Kingsley-Hughes of technology blog ZDNet.com.

"The upgrade mechanism here is a basic one, so it won't be long until the process is hacked. It's highly confusing for the consumer. To be honest, it's not really worth the $50 and customers could spend their money better."

In a blog post, author and copyright reform activist Cory Doctorow said the principle on which the upgrade cards are based "flies in the face of the entire human history of innovation".

"By this reasoning, the company that makes big tins of juice should be able to charge you extra for the right to use the empty cans to store lugnuts," he wrote.

But Steven Mostyn of the Tech Herald noted that Intel is not the first tech player to charge its customers for locked content.

"Major publishers within the video games industry have long since adopted the profit-wringing strategy of locking gameplay content on disc until players shell out extra for 'downloadable' access."

That is truly disgraceful.

Regardless of how long it may take to see a specialist, you need to get the ball rolling.

The sooner you start, the sooner you can start getting the help {professional and benefits} that you need.

Talk to your GP and get a referral to see a specialist for your problems.

You should also talk to the local council and tell them your situation, as they might be able to help with a council flat or something.

Homosexual couples can enter into a registered partnership in German

I wish news writers were more honest when writing this shit.

Germany, like most of the rest of the world, does not support true equality for gays.  They are not married, nor can they get married, despite the headline.

Macs are over priced.

Personally, I'm all for banning the use of the code tags and only allowing hXXp for links that go outside GT.ru and St.ru.

The thread title and the opening post don't seem to match.

You should give a discount to anyone who's a member here.

The section of brain that was mentioned is a primal part and only has function in basic primal function, not thought.