F
FraterLibre
Guest
But, but...
Mine's not angular anymore...
Mine's not angular anymore...
Man who shot a priest who allegedly molested him is let off without a prison sentence
FOSTER KLUG, Associated Press Writer
Thursday, July 15, 2004
(07-15) 13:40 PDT BALTIMORE (AP) --
A man who shot and wounded a priest who had allegedly molested him as a boy pleaded guilty to gun charges Thursday and was let off without a prison sentence.
"It's a big relief," said Dontee Stokes, a 28-year-old barber. "I'm thankful to have the support of other victims and the support of the community."
Stokes had already served 18 months under house arrest.
A jury acquitted him in 2002 of attempted murder and other charges in the shooting of the Rev. Maurice Blackwell. Stokes told jurors he had an "out-of-body experience" when he shot the Roman Catholic priest three times with a .357 Magnum handgun for allegedly molesting him as a teenager between 1989 and 1992.
Stokes was convicted of carrying a handgun, firing a handgun within city limits, and transporting a handgun in a vehicle, and was sentenced to 18 months of home confinement.
An appeals court overturned the conviction in February and granted him a new trial because alternate jurors were allowed to take part in deliberations. But Stokes pleaded guilty instead.
Under Maryland law, he could not get a stiffer sentence than the one originally imposed.
"We're elated," said Stokes' attorney, Warren Brown, standing outside the courthouse. "We walked up these same steps ... 26 months ago, and he was facing life in prison. The state thought they were doing us a favor by offering us 25 years."
Blackwell goes on trial Aug. 30 on charges of molesting Stokes. The former priest could get up to 60 years in prison.
"I want to see him face to face," Stokes said. "There's still a whole lot more fighting I have to do for other victims."
FraterLibre said:If it was just the once and had no cord, it may have been but a vivid dream.
Hmmm:hmm:MINNEAPOLIS (Wireless Flash)Minneapolis Man Is World's First Astral Travel Agent -- A travel agent in Minneapolis is a real trip himself.
Jack Dunamis claims to be the world's only "astral travel agent" and helps tourists select appropriate vacation spots by reading their energy fields and then mentally transporting himself to the location they want to go, before they go.
For instance, Dunamis had one client planning to visit the Hawaiian island of Kauai but convinced him to go to the big island instead "because he wouldn't have a good time because [Kauai is] where the kahunas practice black magic."
Dunamis says he can also determine which vacation spots are most conducive to fun, adventure and romantic encounters.
Each astral consultation costs about an hour, but Danamis considers it money well-spent, especially since he's able to figure out if a client had a past life in a proposed vacation spot and help them avoid negative reincarnation experiences while on holiday.
Out-of-body experiences 'probed'
UK researchers are asking for your help to find out exactly what is behind out-of-body experiences (OBEs).
Psychologists at Manchester University have set up an online survey that they hope about 3,000 people will fill out.
By comparing the responses of those who have and have not had an OBE they aim to discover the overarching cause.
One theory is that it is down to how people perceive their own body - those unhappy or less in touch with their body are more likely to have an OBE.
Floating sensation
About one in 10 people claim to have had an OBE at some time, typically involving a sensation of floating and seeing the physical body from outside.
For some, the phenomenon occurred spontaneously, while for others it was linked to dangerous circumstances, a near-death experience, a dream-like state or use of alcohol or drugs.
Despite this, relatively little is known about OBE.
Dr David Wilde and his team plan to find out more by studying the experiences of a large number of people.
He said there were several theories as to why people have OBEs.
Common thread
"There were early theories which looked at whether something actually physically left the body, like consciousness, but there's no real scientific evidence for that.
"Other theories over the years have looked at whether OBE is a psychological defence mechanism in response to a perceived threat to the body in some way.
"Others have wondered whether it is a visual hallucination.
"But what has connected all the theories is the fact that they all start from a feeling of a loss of input from the body - a loss of conductive information coming from the legs, the arms, the trunk and so on.
"Our theory follows on from that."
His team believes that people experience their body in different ways and that this could explain why some people experience OBEs while others do not.
"We are finding that people with OBEs tend to experience their body differently to others.
"They tend to have increased social anxiety, to be uncomfortable about their body being scrutinised by others and dissatisfied with their bodies, and they tend to get immersed and absorbed in things very easily."
He said that by studying more people over the coming months he will be able to check whether his theory is correct.
The anonymous survey, funded by the Bial Foundation, can be accessed at www.freeresponse.org/muobe2005/
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/health/4177912.stm
Is this really the job of science?Whether these phenomena are visions of a dying brain or paranormal activity, Dr Parnia says science needs to offer an explanation of what happens when we die.
His study also involves a novel method of testing if the "self" actually does leave the body during an OBE. Sam has suspended boards below the ceiling and these have images on the upper side...As yet, no patients have reported seeing these images.
rynner said:I already posted about this survey, a month ago!
spacemonkey~ said:I try my best to meditate in bed before I go to sleep and would love to have an out of body experience. Can anyone suggest a website/book I can read to practice this? Or is it dangerous?
Cheers
http://tinyurl.com/2mmesg'Flying' in your sleep may be a paralysis
By Roger Highfield, Science Editor
Last Updated: 2:20am GMT 06/03/2007
People who have out-of-body experiences, such as flying along a tunnel towards a heavenly light, are more likely to suffer a strange effect called sleep paralysis, according to a survey that adds to mounting evidence for a biological explanation for the experience.
During sleep paralysis, people experience a kind of breakdown between states of consciousness which takes place on the fringe of sleep, either when falling asleep or waking. Because the brain turns off the body's ability to move during dreaming, muscles can lose their tone, or tension, causing paralysis.
The details of sleep paralysis vary from person to person. Some hear vague sounds, indistinct voices and demonic gibberish. Others see hallucinations of humans, animals and supernatural creatures. There is a striking inability to move or to speak, or a weight on the chest.
Also common are feelings of rising off the bed or flying. In addition, people report out-of-body experiences, sometimes accompanied by "autoscopy" when they look down on themselves. Not surprisingly, these moments are accompanied by fear.
Throughout history, there have also been accounts of people having visions on the brink of death - what are now called "near-death experiences".
Today, the two odd effects are linked by a study that backs the idea that the near-death experience is a biological experience, rather than anything to do with a spiritual dimension, a glimpse of heaven or the existence of the soul.
People who have had near-death experiences are also likely to have suffered sleep paralysis, according to the survey published by a team in Neurology, the journal of the American Academy of Neurology, by Prof Kevin Nelson, from the University of Kentucky, Lexington.
In a survey of 55 people who had a "near-death experience" - defined as a time during a life-threatening episode when a person experienced a variety of feelings, including unusual alertness, seeing an intense light, and a feeling of peace - he found three quarters had an out-of-body experience and half of them had also felt they had left their body during the transition between wakefulness and sleep.
"We found that 96 per cent (24 of 25) of near-death subjects having sleep paralysis also had an out-of-body experience either during sleep transition or near-death," said Prof Nelson.
In a control group of 55 people, three reported an out-of-body experience. Two of them also suffered sleep paralysis. Prof Nelson says this suggests the same brain circuitry plays a role.
The sleep paralysis linked with out-of-body experiences was thought rare, but may strike between 40 per cent and 60 per cent of people at least once.
They report sensations of floating, flying, falling or leaving one's body. It ranges from relatively tranquil floating experiences to horrible feelings of falling or rising at high speed.
People Have NDEs While Brain Dead
Dr. Michael Sabom is a cardiologist whose latest book, Light and Death, includes a detailed medical and scientific analysis of an amazing near-death experience of a woman named Pam Reynolds. She underwent a rare operation to remove a giant basilar artery aneurysm in her brain that threatened her life. The size and location of the aneurysm, however, precluded its safe removal using the standard neuro-surgical techniques. She was referred to a doctor who had pioneered a daring surgical procedure known as hypothermic cardiac arrest. It allowed Pam's aneurysm to be excised with a reasonable chance of success. This operation, nicknamed "standstill" by the doctors who perform it, required that Pam's body temperature be lowered to 60 degrees, her heartbeat and breathing stopped, her brain waves flattened, and the blood drained from her head. In everyday terms, she was put to death. After removing the aneurysm, she was restored to life. During the time that Pam was in standstill, she experienced a NDE. Her remarkably detailed veridical out-of-body observations during her surgery were later verified to be very accurate. This case is considered to be one of the strongest cases of veridical evidence in NDE research because of her ability to describe the unique surgical instruments and procedures used and her ability to describe in detail these events while she was clinically and brain dead.
Yes, very interesting, but it would have been far more convincing if there wasn't a whole raft of books and music CDs being marketed on the strength of it....akaWiintermoon said:I found it interesting reading, not least as much because the woman was clinicly dead yet still reported an oobe with proven observations and an nde.