MSNBC.com

MINNEAPOLIS - A nurse who authorities say got his kicks by visiting Internet suicide chat rooms and encouraging depressed people to kill themselves is under investigation in at least two deaths and could face criminal charges.

Investigators said William Melchert-Dinkel, 47, feigned compassion for those he chatted with, while offering step-by-step instructions on how to take their lives.

"Most important is the placement of the noose on the neck ... Knot behind the left ear and rope across the carotid is very important for instant unconsciousness and death," he allegedly wrote in one Web chat.

 

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URL: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/33349974/ns/us_news/page/2/

MSNBC.com

NEW YORK - With even super affluent shoppers tightening their Gucci belts, luxury retailer Neiman Marcus Group Inc. unveiled its Christmas Book last week with a nod to this new frugality.

Almost 50 percent of the gifts in the catalog's 83rd edition cost less than $250, including plenty of practical items, though at prices still out of reach for the average American. In past year, just 30 percent or 40 percent would be in that price range, says Ginger Reeder, a spokeswoman for Neiman Marcus Direct, which puts out the catalog.

"Tokens of affection don't have to be extravagant to be brilliantly received," the book's introduction imparts.

 

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URL: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/33283522/

7 Days Meme copied from holmes221b

The 7 days meme:

day one • a song
day two • a picture
day three • a book/ebook/fanfic
day four • a site
day five • a youtube clip
day six • a quote
day seven • whatever tickles your fancy

Interpersonal Communication Is Inevitable

....We cannot not communicate.  In addition, you cannot not influence the person you interact with.  Persuasion, like communication, is also inevitable.

Interpersonal Communication Is Irreversible and Unrepeatable

Notice that only some processes can be reversed.  For example, you can turn water into ice and then reverse the process by turning the ice back into water.  Other processes, however, are irreversible.  You can, for example, turn grapes into wine, but you cannot reverse the process and turn wine into grapes.  Interpersonal communication is an irreversible process.  Although you may try to qualify, deny, or somehow reduce the effects of your message, you cannot withdraw what you have said.

Because of irreversibility, you have to be careful not to say things you may wish to withdraw later.  Similarly, you need to monitor your commitment messages--the "I love you" type messages--carefully  Otherwise you run the risk of committing yourself to a position you may be uncomfortable with later.

In addition to being irreversible, interpersonal communication is also unrepeatable.  The reason is simple: Everyone and everything are constantly changing.  As a result, you can never recapture the exact same situation, frame of mind, or relationship dynamics that defined a previous interpersonal act.  For example, you can never repeat meeting someone for the first time, comforting a grieving friend, or resolving a specific conflict.

(from Joseph A. Devito's book, "Messages: Building interpersonal communication skills", 3rd edition)

More can be found at flu.gov
Cat

Flu Myths and Realities

“The federal government is running a mandatory vaccination campaign.”

The federal government’s vaccination program for H1N1 flu is VOLUNTARY.  Some hospitals and localities are requiring that health care workers get vaccinated for the flu, but that is a local decision.   HHS and the CDC have included health care workers as one of our top priority groups to receive the vaccine, and several places across the country began offering H1N1 vaccination to health care workers this week.

The petition on a few selected internet sites protesting the federal government’s “mandatory” vaccination campaign is simply false in its claims. Vaccination is highly recommended as a protective measure against the flu, but is absolutely voluntary.

 

 

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