'Christian' Conservative: Jesus Wouldn't Want Me To Care About Global Warming

What would Jesus do about climate change? According to one self-described Christian, not much. 

Conservative pundit Erick Erickson fired off a tweet Wednesday saying his savior called on him to be a good steward for the planet… but that concept doesn’t extend to global warming:

The tweet drew a sharp response from many, including other Christians, and no small amount of bemusement from Erickson, who suggested people read the replies to get “your laugh for the night.” 

Here’s a sampling: 

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Ed Sheeran's 'Carpool Karaoke' Teaser Has Got Us Singing Like

Don’t fear ― Ed Sheeran’s much-anticipated “Carpool Karaoke” is *almost* here.

The Late Late Show” released a sneak preview Thursday of Sheeran belting out some of his biggest hits with host James Corden.

They look almost as excited as we are:

The full clip will air Tuesday.

In the snippet posted online, Corden also revealed that he was temporarily taking his show to London. His guests will include Tom Cruise, David Beckham, Emily Blunt, Kit Harington and Nicole Kidman.

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You Can Now Study ‘Game Of Thrones’ At Harvard University

Winter is coming early to Harvard University.

This fall, students at the Ivy League institution will be able to study how the fantasy world of Westeros relates to what life was really like in medieval times via a new “Game of Thrones”-themed class.

They’ll learn how author George R. R. Martin’s Song of Ice and Fire book series and the HBO epic TV show it inspires “echoes and adapts, as well as distorts” the culture and history of the age, reports TIME.

As Littlefinger says:

“When I read medieval verse epics with my students, they’d say, ‘Oh, that’s like in ‘Game of Thrones,’” said Racha Kirakosian, an assistant professor of German and religion who is teaching the class.

“No, if anything at all, it’s the other way around,” she added. “Isn’t it partly our job (as professors) to use that interest and go deeper?”

Kirakosian will teach the “The Real Game of Thrones: From Modern Myths to Medieval Models” course alongside Professor Sean Gilsdorf, who lectures on medieval studies.

It follows similar classes offered by University of California, Berkeley, and the University of Virginia.

Kirakosian hopes the “Game of Thrones” angle will prove an effective “recruitment tool” that encourages more students to sign up to medieval studies courses.

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Thousands Fought Against The Dakota Access Pipeline. Now It's Set To Flow Oil.

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In December, as authorities armed themselves with water cannons and rubber bullets, thousands of protestors camped near the site of a proposed oil conduit celebrated a historic victory: Federal authorities had halted construction of the Dakota Access Pipeline.

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers pulled the plug on the $3.8 billion project following an extended campaign by the Standing Rock Sioux that garnered international media attention and drew thousands of activists to a small region of North Dakota.

“My hands go up to all the water protectors who have stood up to protect tribal treaty rights and to protect Mother Earth,” said Brian Cladoosby, president of the National Congress of American Indians, in a statement at the time. “Thank you for Standing For Standing Rock.”

However, just a few weeks into his presidency, Donald Trump signed an executive order in January to reopen the project. In February, the Army approved the pipeline’s construction and it expects to ship its first barrels of oil on Thursday.

Now, the protest camps are gone and, as environmentalists feared, the Dakota Access Pipeline has already leaked. Take a look at some images from the #NoDAPL protests as the pipeline goes into full operation.

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Outstanding Pasta Salad Recipes, Because You Deserve Better

Pasta salad draws to mind images of sad, cold noodles, haphazardly chopped veggies and maybe some diced ham packed into a plastic tub. It’s filling, it’s fine, but it’s not even remotely exciting. It shouldn’t be that way though, because pasta is delicious, which means pasta salad should be outstanding.

That’s what we have for you right here: outstanding pasta salad recipes that completely reinvent the classic. (We also have one classic recipe because when it’s homemade it can actually be pretty good.) So get the pot of water boiling (don’t forget to salt it), start chopping the veggies and give pasta salad the makeover it deserves.

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It's About Time We All Learned How Quinoa Grows

Quinoa, the protein-packed seed that everyone loves to eat, has taken ahold of our pantries. Even though it hails from South America ― most famously Bolivia and Peru ― many homes north of the equator have found ways to incorporate it into our breakfasts as a porridge, and we’re happy to fry it up into patties for dinner. Not to mention all the different ways you can turn it into a salad.

Since quinoa has become such a staple in our diet, we thought it was time to know where those tiny seeds come from. In other words, how does it grow? If you don’t already know, you’re about to.

Quinoa is harvested from tall green plants. While the plant sprouts are slow-growing at first, the plant eventually shoots up to and beyond three feet. The leaves of the plant resemble that of the edible weed lamb’s-quarter. The two are closely related, which means that the leaves of quinoa are also edible (so if you grow your own, feel free to toss them into a salad).

Quinoa thrives in cooler weather, and is extremely drought tolerant. It can also tolerate high levels of salt, wind and frost, which allows it to be cultivated in high risk areas. That’s why it was a main crop in the Andes, cultivated by the Incas since before 3,000 B.C.

The part of the quinoa plant that we typically eat is the seed. (Remember, quinoa is a seed and not a grain.) In order to get the seed, the plant first needs to flower. This is what flowering quinoa looks like: 

And this is a closeup of the flower buds. 

Quinoa is ready to harvest when all the green leaves have fallen off the plant, and the plants are just seed heads on a stalk. Quinoa should be very dry when harvested, dry enough that you can’t dent the seed with your fingernail. Sometimes it’s left to dry on the stalk, other times it is dried post harvest.

Once harvested, the quinoa seed is fairly easy to remove from the seed heads. A hard shake can release most of them. 

But in commercial production they might use something a little more advanced. Quinoa needs to be polished or rinsed before eating to remove the seeds’ saponin coating ― the plant’s natural protectant from birds and insects ― which can taste quite bitter.  

Now that you know how this seed makes it to your grocery store, pick some up and try it in one or two of these recipes.

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The Raging Debate On The Difference Between Barbecue And Grilling

Since the very founding of our nation, there’s been a noticeable difference between life in the South and life in the North. And that difference becomes even clearer in the warmer months when folks start cooking meals outside. We’re talking about barbecue.

Barbecue, the coveted cooking method so many of us hold dear to our hearts, is in fact not the same in the mind of a Northerner and that of a Southerner. In the North, the two terms can often be used interchangeably. But in southern or south central states, you had better be talking about meat that’s been cooked low and slow if you use the word barbecue. Just because you’re cooking something on the grill, they say, does NOT mean you’re barbecuing. But don’t take our word for it. Matt Moore, food writer and Southern gentleman, says it best in his book The South’s Best Butts:

“For the Yankees, BBQ in the South is not to be used as a verb. Rather it is a noun. Throwing meat on a grill and slathering it with sauce is never referred to as barbecuing, or barbecue, by any true Southerner. In fact, if you invite me to a barbecue and you don’t serve me slowly smoked pig, I will refer to you properly and promptly as a Yankee. So, instead, when you grill your hamburgers, brats, pork chops, or steaks, invite us to a cookout or simply tell us you are grilling out. Got it? Good.”

So if you’re making burgers, you’re grilling. If you’re cooking a steak, you’re grilling. But if you’re spending hours slow cooking some pork butt, you’re making barbecue. There is another side to this opinion, though, and it might come as a relief to all of you guilty of “barbecuing” your hamburgers.

According to Meathead Goldwyn, best selling author of Meathead: The Science of Great Barbecue and Grilling, barbecue is too global for the South to reserve it to use for their own specialty. 

Meathead told HuffPost: “The ‘that is not barbecue’ statement makes my blood boil. I spent 20 years in the wine world as the wine critic for The Washington Post, Chicago Tribune, and others, and I hate seeing barbecue getting snobby like wine. The divide is false and it is a myth.”

The fact is that there are many forms of barbecue around the world and it is the presence of smoke that unifies them all,” he writes on his blog Amazing Ribs.

He also made a graphic to illustrate his point: 

Meathead elaborates, “Barbecue around the world is far too complex and wonderful to be oversimplified like that. It was not invented in the U.S., and it is not exclusive to the U.S. Barbecue is a big word that encompasses grilling and many cooking methods as shown in the illustration above.”

Whichever side of the line you stand on when it comes to barbecue, we can all agree that anything that comes off the grill ― so long as Governor Scott Walker has nothing to do with it ― is worth celebrating. 

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Google's 'innovative' new London HQ features giant moving blinds

They’ve been a long time coming, but Google has finally laid out its plans for its new “innovative” £1 billion London headquarters located in Kings Cross. This week, the company submitted a detailed planning application to Camden Council, outli…

The Morning After: Thursday, June 1st 2017

Hey, good morning! The biggest aircraft ever is ready for testing. (No it’s not a blimp.) We hacked our very own proper D-pad for the Nintendo Switch and also took a closer look at how AI is changing our world — and doing things better than humans.

You can now buy an unlocked Samsung Galaxy S8 in the US

Although there have been efforts to encourage consumers to buy their smartphones directly from manufacturers or retailers, carrier subsidies still held sway over the market. This was mostly because of the staggered payment system and warranties offered by carriers. OEMs like Huawei, Honor, and ZTE have recognized that pattern and have set up programs to match carrier offers. Samsung is … Continue reading