Jonathan's blog

From an article on Yahoo news:

Beginning March 16, 2006, fans will be able to watch live broadcasts of the NCAA tournament from outside their viewing area via NCAAsports.com, the official NCAA Web site. The effort will be supported by advertising sales.

From an article in USA Today:

Nearly 2,000 pastors have traveled to Orange County's Saddleback Church for a national conference that coincides with World AIDS Day on Thursday. On the agenda: How to start local AIDS ministries and free HIV testing in churches... Churches have realized that AIDS isn't a "gay disease" and can't be easily labeled, even in the United States, said Doug McConnell, dean of School of Intercultural Studies at the Pasadena-based Fuller Theological Seminary. Interest in domestic ministries has steadily grown in the past five years, he noted... "The church has the moral authority to say, 'Hey, it's not a sin to be sick,'" said Warren, author of The Purpose Driven Life, a best-selling book. "The Gospels repeatedly show that Jesus loved, touched, and cared for lepers - the diseased outcasts of his day. Today's 'lepers' are those who have HIV/AIDS."

Here's another article from Christianity Today.

A little good news...for the first time, Saudi women competed and voted in chamber of commerce elections.

I heard about this story in a segment of Science Friday, and it really struck me. Ferocity of chimpanzee attack stuns medics, leaves questions.

The Berenstain Bears series of books are some of the most popular in our house these days.  We picked up a big stack of them at the last Friends of the Library used book sale.  The books are written and illustrated by the husband and wife team of Stan and Jan Berenstain. Stan passed away this past Saturday at the age of 82 due to complications from cancer.  From an article in USA Today:

The real Berenstains collaborated on more than 200 books that featured the Bear family, from The Great Honey Hunt in 1962 to The Berenstain Bears and the Trouble with Chores, which was released this fall. Over the years, Papa and Mama Bear helped Brother and later Sister survive family vacations, messy rooms and a case of "the galloping greedy gimmies. It was a fantasy rooted in the realities of daily life and seasoned with gentle moral lessons. The Bear family tackled everything from stage fright to junk food to bullies. In 2002, Berenstain told the Associated Press that he liked to deal with the unchanging challenges of family life: "Kids still tell fibs and they mess up their rooms and they still throw tantrums in the supermarket." In Bear Country, "nobody gets shot. No violence. There are problems, but they're the kind of typical family problems everyone goes through. The Berenstain Bears became a daily animated cartoon series on public television and inspired two musicals. The latest, The Berenstain Bears Save Christmas, opened Thanksgiving Day. Stan continued to work on rewrites even as his health failed. Random House, which announced his death Tuesday, said the books would be continued by Jan and sons Michael and Leo.