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Austin Idol

Michael McCord (born October 26, 1949) is an American retired professional wrestler, better known by the ring name Austin Idol. He is best known for his appearances in the Mid-South with the Continental Wrestling Association, in particular his recurring feud with Jerry Lawler.

Early life
McCord grew up in Tampa, Florida, where he attended Robinson High School. After graduating in 1966, he worked in construction. After developing an interest in becoming a professional wrestler, he eventually persuaded Mike Graham, the son of Eddie Graham (promoter of Championship Wrestling from Florida), to train him.

Early career (1972–1973)
McCord spent a year training to wrestle under Eddie and Mike Graham; during his training, he was stretched by Bob Roop, Hiro Matsuda, and Jack Brisco. He initially worked for Graham's Championship Wrestling from Florida promotion as a referee before debuting as a wrestler in early 1972 under the ring name Dennis McCord. McCord wrestled in Florida until mid-1972, then briefly for Nick Gulas' NWA Mid-America promotion in Alabama before joining the Carolinas-based Jim Crockett Promotions. In late 1972 and early 1973, McCord appeared in Sydney, Australia with World Championship Wrestling, where he and Jimmy Golden won a tournament to become the inaugural NWA Austra-Asian Tag Team Champions (they forfeited the titles in January 1973).

World Wide Wrestling Federation (1973–1974)
In March 1973, McCord joined Vincent J. McMahon's northeastern United States-based World Wide Wrestling Federation where he adopted the new persona of "Iron" Mike McCord and was given Lou Albano as his manager. In July 1973, McCord faced Chief Jay Strongbow in a memorable match in Madison Square Garden in New York City. As Strongbow applied a sleeper hold to McCord, Albano interfered by smashing a cast on Strongbow's forehead; McCord was disqualified, but Strongbow was cut wide open by Albano's blows. During his stint in the WWWF, McCord wrestled primarily in the mid-card, although he (unsuccessfully) challenged Pedro Morales for the WWWF Championship on several occasions. McCord remained with the WWWF until January 1974, when he left for Florida due to disliking the colder weather in the northeast.

Florida and Georgia; plane crash (1974–1975, 1977)
Upon returning to Florida in January 1974, McCord resumed wrestling for Championship Wrestling from Florida, this time as "The Super Texan", a masked heel allied with Dusty Rhodes. McCord was unmasked in March 1974 after losing a "mask versus beard match" to Jos LeDuc. In summer 1974, McCord began wrestling for Georgia Championship Wrestling as Mike McCord. He competed in Georgia until losing a loser leaves town match to Harley Race in November 1974, returning to Florida later that month.

On February 20, 1975, McCord and wrestlers Gary Hart and Bobby Shane were passengers on a Cessna 182 Skylane piloted by wrestler Buddy Colt between Miami and Tampa. While attempting to land at Peter O. Knight Airport in foggy conditions, Colt crashed into Tampa Bay. Shane was killed in the crash and the other wrestlers injured, with McCord sustaining two broken ankles, several broken ribs, and severe lacerations to his feet. McCord was inactive for several months while rehabilitating. Later that year, McCord wrestled a handful of matches for Georgia Championship Wrestling, some of them as the masked "Super A" - briefly holding the NWA Georgia Heavyweight Championship - before going on hiatus for the next two years. Following the accident, McCord reportedly developed a fear of flying, which led him to largely restrict his future wrestling career to the Mid-South. His return from injury led Pro Wrestling Illustrated to name him its "Most Inspirational Wrestler of the Year" for 1975.

In July 1977, McCord wrestled a handful of matches for Championship Wrestling from Florida before once again going on hiatus. By this point, McCord's weight had increased to 300 lbs.

Texas, Tennessee, and Alabama (1978–1979)
McCord re-emerged in March 1978 in Fritz Von Erich's Texas-based NWA Big Time Wrestling promotion under the new persona of "the Universal Heartthrob" Austin Idol. As part of his new character, McCord lost considerable weight, developed a more muscular physique, and bleached his hair blonde. Over the next two months, Idol competed in NWA Big Time Wrestling and Paul Boesch's Houston Wrestling (where he was briefly billed as "Often Idle" ). In May 1978, he unsuccessfully challenged Dale Valentine for the NWA Texas Heavyweight Championship. He left Texas later that month after losing a loser leaves town match to Kevin Von Erich.

Idol made a handful of appearances for Pacific Northwest Wrestling in Portland, Oregon and for Big Time Wrestling in Detroit, Michigan before joining the Memphis, Tennessee-based Continental Wrestling Association in December 1978. Idol was immediately booked as a main event star in the CWA. Shortly after debuting, Idol defeated Jerry Lawler for the AWA Southern Heavyweight Championship. He held the title until January 1979, when he lost to Ron Fuller. Over the following months, Idol feuded with Lawler (and his allies Bill Dundee and Jackie Fargo) until losing a hair versus loser leaves town steel cage match to Lawler in April 1979.

In May 1979, Idol began appearing with Southeastern Championship Wrestling in Alabama, briefly holding the NWA Southeastern Heavyweight Championship (Southern Division). He left the promotion in summer 1979 to return to Georgia Championship Wrestling.

Georgia (1979–1980)
Idol returned to Georgia Championship Wrestling in summer 1979. In November 1979, he and The Masked Superstar won a one-night tournament in the Omni Coliseum in Atlanta, Georgia for the NWA Georgia Tag Team Championship. They lost the titles to Jack Brisco and Jerry Brisco later that month. In December 1979, Idol defeated Ray Candy for the NWA Georgia Television Championship. In January 1980, Idol was named the inaugural NWA National Heavyweight Champion (the title was vacated later that year in unclear circumstances). Idol's reign as NWA Georgia Television Champion lasted until January 1980, when he lost to Steve Travis. Idol regained the title from Travis several days later, but lost it to Travis' ally Kevin Sullivan later that month. Idol defeated Sullivan to win the title for a third time in February 1980, but lost it to Tommy Rich two days later. In February 1980, Idol lost to Sullivan in a "Boston street fight". Later that month, he defeated Sullivan in a strap match. In March 1980, Idol defeated Mr. Wrestling II to win the NWA Georgia Heavyweight Championship for a second time. He held the title until June 1980, when he lost to Baron von Raschke. During his reign, he unsuccessfully challenged visiting NWA World Heavyweight Champion Harley Race. Idol left Georgia Championship Wrestling in July 1980, briefly returning to the Continental Wrestling Association before embarking on a tour of Japan.

All Japan Pro Wrestling (1980)
In August and September 1980, Idol made his first appearances in Japan with the All Japan Pro Wrestling promotion as part of its "Summer Action Series II" tour. He teamed with Ray Candy to compete in the PWF Cup Tag Team Tournament, defeating Atsushi Onita and Prince Tonga in the quarter-finals before losing to The Cruiser and The Destroyer in the semi-finals. Idol's other opponents during the tour included Giant Baba, Jumbo Tsuruta, Mil Mascaras, and Rocky Hata.

Georgia and Tennessee (1980–1981)
Following his tour of Japan, Idol began appearing for both Georgia Championship Wrestling in Georgia and the Continental Wrestling Association in Tennessee. In August 1980, Idol and Dutch Mantell won the CWA World Tag Team Championship. In October 1980, Idol defeated Billy Robinson to win the CWA World Heavyweight Championship; he lost the title to Bobby Eaton later that month. In Georgia, Idol formed a tag team with his former enemy Kevin Sullivan, with the duo feuding with the Fabulous Freebirds.

In January 1981, Idol reignited his feud with Jerry Lawler in the Continental Wrestling Association. Idol was presented as one of a series of "bounty hunters" brought into the territory by Lawler's enemy Jimmy Hart to try and defeat Lawler, who had recently returned after rehabilitating a broken leg. During a bout between the two men, Lawler threw a fireball at Idol while trapped in his Las Vegas Leglock, supposedly burning Idol's neck. Idol made his return in a memorable angle in which ring announcer Lance Russell announced that he had received a telegram from Mexican promoter Salvador Lutteroth announcing that Lawler had been voted the most popular wrestler in Mexico City, with the masked luchador "Black Diamond" to present Lawler with a plaque; during the ceremony, Black Diamond broke the plaque over Lawler's head, then unmasked to reveal himself as Idol. In March 1981, Idol and Mantell lost the CWA World Tag Team Championship to Bill Dundee and Tommy Rich. Idol left the CWA once more the following month.

Jim Crockett Promotions (1981–1982)
In May 1981, Idol began wrestling for the Carolinas-based Jim Crockett Promotions as a heel, facing opponents such as Johnny Weaver, The Masked Superstar, Ricky Steamboat, and Wahoo McDaniel. During his time in Jim Crockett Promotions, an angle saw Idol bring an 8 mm film camera to ringside and record other wrestlers' matches, angering them. Idol left Jim Crockett Promotions in March 1982.

Alabama, Tennessee, and Texas (1982–1987)
In mid-1982, Idol resumed wrestling for Southeastern Championship Wrestling in Birmingham, Alabama. He became the NWA Alabama Heavyweight Champion in unclear circumstances, losing the title to Wayne Ferris in September 1982. In December 1982, he won the NWA Southeastern Heavyweight Championship (Northern Division), with his reign ending in unclear circumstances. In December 1982, Idol wrestled visiting NWA World Heavyweight Champion Ric Flair to a draw. Idol faced Flair again in May 1983 but failed to win the title.

Idol returned to Continental Wrestling Association in February 1983; upon arrival, he was named the inaugural AWA International Heavyweight Champion. He lost the title to Lawler the following month, with Lawler once again hitting him with a fireball. In summer 1983, Idol turned face and formed an alliance with Lawler. In August 1983, Lawler and Idol won the CWA World Tag Team Championship from The Assassins, only for The Assassins to regain the title one week later. In September 1983, Idol defeated Ken Patera to become AWA International Heavyweight Champion for a second time, only to lose the title to Stan Hansen two days later. Idol regained the title from Hansen in October in a bullrope match. In November 1983, Idol and Dutch Mantell defeated The Midnight Express for the CWA World Tag Team Championship; the title was later quietly abandoned. Idol's third reign as AWA International Heavyweight Champion lasted until April 1984, when he lost to Randy Savage. Idol regained the title from Savage in May, only to lose it to Masao Ito in June 1984. Idol left the CWA once again in mid-1984.

In July 1984, Idol returned to Southeastern Championship Wrestling in Alabama. In August 1984, he defeated Vic Rain to win the NWA Southeastern Heavyweight Championship (Northern Division) for a second time. He held the title until November 1984, when he lost to Jimmy Golden. In March 1985, Idol defeated Lord Humongous for the NWA Alabama Heavyweight Championship, losing the title back to Humongous the following month. In July 1985, Idol defeated Jimmy Golden to regain the NWA Southeastern Heavyweight Championship (Northern Division); his third reign ended the following month when he lost to Adrian Street. Idol left Southeastern Championship Wrestling once more later that month.

Idol returned to the Continental Wrestling Association in August 1985, teaming with Jerry Lawler in a short feud with the Fabulous Freebirds. In December 1985, he and Lawler defeated Bill Dundee and Dutch Mantel to win the AWA Southern Tag Team Championship. The title was vacated later that month when Lawler lost a loser leaves town match to Dundee, and Idol left the Continental Wrestling Association once again. In early 1986, Idol appeared in Texas with World Class Championship Wrestling and Texas All-Star Wrestling. In January 1986, Idol defeated Big Bubba in Ponce, Puerto Rico to win the Texas All-Star Wrestling USA Heavyweight Championship; he held the title until April 1986, when he was defeated by Al Madril in Pasadena, Texas.

Idol returned to the Continental Wrestling Association yet again in June 1986. In January 1987, he turned on Jerry Lawler, beginning what was regarded as "the most memorable series of their feud". In early 1987, Idol acquired Paul E. Dangerously as his manager. In February 1987, Idol won a tournament to become the new AWA Southern Heavyweight Champion, defeating Soul Train Jones in the tournament final. His reign lasted until April 1987 when Lawler defeated him in a chain match. One week later, Idol challenged Lawler for the title in a hair versus hair cage match. Idol defeated Lawler to regain the title after his ally Tommy Rich (This was the first incarnation of the Dangerous Alliance: Paul E Dangerously, Austin Idol, and Tommy Rich)- who hid underneath the ring for the entirety of the event - emerged to assist him, Following the match, Idol and Rich beat down Lawler and shaved his head, enraging the Mid-South Coliseum audience. Idol's third reign as AWA Southern Heavyweight Champion ended in June 1987 when he was once again defeated by Lawler. One week later, Idol and Rich lost to Lawler and Dundee in a scaffold match. Following this, Idol left the Continental Wrestling Association for a tour of Japan. The feud between Idol/Rich and Lawler was named "Feud of the Year" for 1987 by the Wrestling Observer Newsletter.

All Japan Pro Wrestling (1987, 1988)
Idol toured Japan with All Japan Pro Wrestling for a second time in August and September 1987 as part of its "Summer Action Series II". Upon arriving in AJPW, Idol and Stan Hansen were awarded the vacant PWF World Tag Team Championship. They successfully defended the titles in bouts against teams such as Hiroshi Wajima and Takashi Ishikawa and Jumbo Tsuruta and Tiger Mask before losing to Ashura Hara and Genichiro Tenryu on September 3. Throughout the remainder of the tour, Idol primarily competed in six-man tag team matches alongside Hansen and Joel Deaton.

Idol had a third stint in Japan with AJPW in March and April 1988 as part of its Champion Carnival tour. For the bulk of the tour, Idol teamed with Tommy Rich, with the duo facing wrestlers such as The Great Kabuki, John Tenta, Shunji Takano, and Takashi Ishikawa.

Late career (1988–1998)
Following his third stint in Japan, Idol began wrestling less frequently. In summer 1988, he appeared with the Continental Wrestling Association in Memphis, Tennessee - where he once again faced Jerry Lawler - and the Continental Wrestling Federation in Jackson, Mississippi. In 1989, he made a handful of appearances with the United States Wrestling Association (USWA) (the successor to the Continental Wrestling Association), both wrestling against and teaming with Lawler. Throughout 1990, Idol appeared with the USWA and with the Philadelphia, Pennsylvania-based Tri-State Wrestling Alliance. In October 1990, he competed in a one-night tournament for the vacant USWA Unified World Heavyweight Championship, losing to Lawler in the final bout of the tournament. In 1991, Idol made a handful of appearances with the Tri-State Wrestling Alliance and the Dallas, Texas-based Global Wrestling Federation. Idol wrestled very few matches over the following years. In 1993, he briefly ran his own promotion in Alabama. Idol formally retired in 1998 after appearing on the debut television episode of the Memphis, Tennessee-based Power Pro Wrestling promotion.

Retirement; various endeavours (1998–present)
After retiring, Idol went on to work as a real estate investor.

In August 2011, Idol broke his retirement for one night to wrestle a five-way match on the Juggalo Championship Wrestling pay-per-view "Legends & Icons" in Cave-In-Rock, Illinois, defeating Brickhouse Brown, Doug Gilbert, Dutch Mantel, and Koko B. Ware.

In November 2012, Idol launched the Austin Idol Rock & Roll Wrestling Show on American Hearts Radio. In 2017, after appearing on Jim Cornette's podcast, The Jim Cornette Experience, Idol began hosting his own podcast, Austin Idol Live. Idol discontinued the podcast after 31 weekly broadcasts.

In 2017 and 2018, Idol appeared alongside Nick Aldis as his manager.

On January 8, 2020, Idol made a guest appearance on All Elite Wrestling's AEW Dark webcast as part of a commemoration of Memphis wrestling.

In 2020, Idol established the Universal Wrestling College professional wrestling school in Greenville, South Carolina.

In 2021, Idol's likeness was featured as a playable character in the RetroMania Wrestling video game on Steam, Nintendo Switch, PS4, and Xbox One.

In 2021, Idol founded the stable "Idolmania Sports Management" - consisting of Jordan Clearwater, Marshe Rocket, BLK Jeez, and Tyrus - in the National Wrestling Alliance. The stable later expanded with the masked Cyon, who was portrayed as being Idol's son. Tyrus won the NWA World Television Championship on the August 6, 2021 episode of NWA Powerrr. In November 2022 at NWA Hard Times 3, Tyrus relinquished the NWA World Television Championship to challenge for the NWA Worlds Heavyweight Championship, defeating champion Trevor Murdoch in a triple threat match. Stablemate Jordon Clearwater also won the World Television Championship at NWA Hard Times 3 by pinning A.J. Cazana. Cyon with his "father" at his side won the NWA National Heavyweight Championship at the NWA 74th Anniversary Show in August 2022. From November 13, 2022, until February 14, 2023 (when Clearwater lost the World Television Championship to Thom Latimer), Idolmania Sports Management held every singles championship except the NWA Junior Heavyweight Championship.

Legacy
Fellow wrestler Jerry Lawler noted Idol's promo skills and impressive looks and physique. Professional wrestling manager and referee Scott Bowden described Idol as "a marginal worker... somewhat limited" but with "an excellent grasp of psychology" and being "great on the stick". Writing in 1986, journalist Dave Meltzer noted that Idol was "not considered a strong worker" but that he "got over on his looks and his arrogant interviews, both as a heel and a babyface" and had "a good physique".

Idol did not enjoy the colder weather of the north and, following his plane crash, also reportedly disliked flying;  as a result, Idol primarily restricted himself to the Mid-South rather than becoming a national star. In 2014, WWE named Idol as one of "the 10 best wrestlers you've never heard of".

In an interview on The Joe Rogan Experience podcast in 2023, Hulk Hogan credited getting the idea to cup his hand next to his ear to get a crowd reaction after seeing Idol do it, and the reaction he got. He also credited getting the idea for the term "Hulkmania" after hearing Idol use the term "Idolmania".

Professional wrestling style and persona
At the beginning of his career, McCord portrayed a powerlifter. In 1978, he adopted the new character of Austin Idol, a verbose bleach blonde braggart who called himself "the Universal Heartthrob" and fancied himself attractive to women and wore tie-dyed ring attire. At the beginning of his matches, Idol would often make a show of removing his robe by quickly outstretching his arms in a crucifix position to reveal his physique, and would swivel his hips from side to side while slowly continuing to disrobe. The character of Austin Idol was often compared to "Superstar" Billy Graham.

Idol's finishing move was the Las Vegas Leglock (a figure-four leglock). His signature moves included the piledriver, elbow smash, knee drop, and sleeper hold.

Championships and accomplishments

 * All Japan Pro Wrestling
 * PWF World Tag Team Championship (1 time) - with Stan Hansen
 * Continental Wrestling Association
 * AWA Southern Heavyweight Championship (3 times)
 * AWA Southern Tag Team Championship (1 time) - with Jerry Lawler
 * CWA International Heavyweight Championship (4 times)
 * CWA World Heavyweight Championship (1 time)
 * CWA World Tag Team Championship (3 times) - with Dutch Mantel (2) and Jerry Lawler (1)
 * Georgia Championship Wrestling
 * NWA Georgia Heavyweight Championship (1 time)
 * NWA Georgia Tag Team Championship (1 time) - with Masked Superstar
 * NWA Georgia Television Championship (3 times)
 * NWA National Heavyweight Championship (1 time, inaugural)
 * Pro Wrestling Illustrated
 * PWI Most Inspirational Wrestler of the Year (1975)
 * PWI ranked him # 193 of the 500 best singles wrestlers during the PWI Years in 2003.
 * Southeastern Championship Wrestling
 * NWA Alabama Heavyweight Championship (2 times)
 * NWA Southeastern Heavyweight Championship (Northern Division) (3 times)
 * NWA Southeastern Heavyweight Championship (Southern Division) (1 time)
 * Texas All-Star Wrestling
 * TAW USA Heavyweight Championship (1 time)
 * World Championship Wrestling
 * NWA Austra-Asian Tag Team Championship (1 time) - with Jimmy Golden
 * Wrestling Observer Newsletter
 * Feud of the Year (1987) with Tommy Rich vs. Jerry Lawler

title: Austin Idol


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Template talk:Advert

Template-protected edit request on 18 October 2022
Can all three of the "Page Issue" templates be removed from this page? I worked to simplify, to make it no longer read like a resume and not sound like an advertisement. The man is super accomplished, but there aren't any mentions of "outstanding, remarkable etc." Thank you! Applepie65 (talk) 19:21, 18 October 2022 (UTC)
 * Red information icon with gradient background.svg Not done: this is the talk page for discussing improvements to the template . Please make your request at the talk page for the article concerned.  P.I. Ellsworth  , ed.  put'r there 19:58, 18 October 2022 (UTC)

Redesign idea
Propose we adopt Template:Advert/sandbox.

Current version:

Proposed version:

(no longer live; see https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Template:Advert/sandbox&oldid=1158319912)

Changes:
 * Header separation: title stands out, details are less obtrusive. Increases recognizability, reduces visual clutter, and fights banner blindness.
 * Completely optional: swap generic icon to increase recognizability, and copyedit for brevity.

I plan to propose the same header separation to all cleanup templates, inspired by frWiki. DFlhb (talk) 10:02, 3 June 2023 (UTC)

 * Like it. But for consistency this needs to be adopted more generally at ambox. Can we get rid of the "Learn how and when to remove this template message", maybe replace with an icon to click for more information? — Martin (MSGJ · talk) 12:55, 7 June 2023 (UTC)
 * Yeah, this was meant to gather feedback as a prelude to proposing at ambox; hadn't accounted for this page being pretty inactive.
 * I support removing that  ("Learn how and why...") and replacing it with a small blue clickable info icon in the top-right, like frwiki. DFlhb (talk) 13:19, 7 June 2023 (UTC)
 * I like it! Is the visual icon part of a larger suite with relevant options for the other amboxes? {{u| Sdkb  }}  talk 15:47, 7 June 2023 (UTC)
 * I made it lazily from this icon, from this banner; no icon pack. frwiki uses a bunch from this ElegantThemes pack, which is a little meh. Antü Classic has some great ones (e.g. ). Free symbols are easier to find than free icons, so more Antü-style icons could be created by looking for CC-licensed symbols (some are listed here), and adding a circle + gradient around them. DFlhb (talk) 19:40, 7 June 2023 (UTC)
 * That sounds like a good approach to me. A consistent style would be nice, but it's important that it have a lot of options, since there are so many different icons used on Wikipedia. If e.g. Nutshell can't find a nutshell icon in the new standard style, they're just going to keep using the old one, and there we are with standard proliferation again.
 * Courtesy pinging @Awesome Aasim, who I know has been interested in this area. {{u| Sdkb  }}  talk 21:53, 7 June 2023 (UTC)
 * Update: there are also a few in Commons:Category:French Wikipedia icons redesign. Quite like their disambig icon. DFlhb (talk) 07:36, 9 June 2023 (UTC)
 * I like the new "small" wording better. I'm not sure that "written like an advertisement" is quite the same as "excessively promotional tone".  I don't care much about the icons. WhatamIdoing (talk) 12:36, 2 July 2023 (UTC)

Edit request 9 November 2023
From the sandbox, remove the second sentence "Please help improve it by removing promotional content and inappropriate external links, and by adding encyclopedic content written from a neutral point of view." because it is self-evident. Replace that sentence with "You can help improve this article". Relevant discussion can be found here: Village_pump_(proposals). CactiStaccingCrane (talk) 13:23, 9 November 2023 (UTC)
 * I don't see a consensus at that discussion, and this template's content is already two sentences. The sandbox version would remove three "link(s) to other policy/guideline/how-to pages/resources", contrary to the VPP proposal. – Jonesey95 (talk) 19:39, 9 November 2023 (UTC)

Proposal: Make identification of issues mandatory
The documentation of this template says:

"If you add this tag, you should be able to identify specific, correctable content that tends to 'sell' the subject."

The documentation of COI goes further (highlighting in original):

"Like the other neutrality-related tags, if you place this tag, you should promptly start a discussion on the article's talk page to explain what is non-neutral about the article . If you do not start a discussion, any editor will be justified in removing the tag without warning."

I propose to change the former to the latter.

My rationale is that it is often impossible to determine what issues the tagger thinks are present, nor how to resolve them. Or even that they have already been resolved. Andy Mabbett ( Pigsonthewing ); Talk to Andy; Andy's edits 15:10, 29 January 2024 (UTC)
 * Support. I might soften the last few words to "justified in removing the tag if they judge that there are no promotional concerns in the article." – Jonesey95 (talk) 01:25, 30 January 2024 (UTC)
 * My thought was to keep the wording consistent between templates. Andy Mabbett ( Pigsonthewing ); Talk to Andy; Andy's edits 16:19, 2 February 2024 (UTC)
 * Not to make this task bigger, but I would change the wording on the COI template in a similar manner. I would write "justified in removing the tag if they judge that there are no conflict-of-interest concerns in the article." The phrase "without warning" seems out of place to me; who would be warned, exactly? – Jonesey95 (talk) 13:55, 5 February 2024 (UTC)
 * I support this addition. I have seen this tag on articles when it's obvious (to me) what the problems are, but I've also seen it when I have no idea what the alleged problem is, and no way of figuring out whether it's been addressed.  For example, this tag has been on Medical simulation for five years.  I see no advertising at a glance, and I see that two edits later, someone blanked a lot of content, but did that fix everything? WhatamIdoing (talk) 17:03, 2 February 2024 (UTC)
 * Alpha Omega Alpha seems to be a good illustration of the problem that needs to be solved. It's obviously not a case of Identifying blatant advertising (nor is it alleged to be), but that means that it's harder to tell if there's still a significant problem.  @Folly Mox cleaned up the article (thank you!) and removed the advert template.  @Pppery re-added the template with no explanation.  I glance through the article and have no idea what Pppery wants to have changed.  Did he just not notice the clean-up work, so it was a mistaken tagging?  Is there something wrong that I missed?  A note on the talk page like "Sentences such as and don't have an appropriate encyclopedic tone" would be really helpful at this point. WhatamIdoing (talk) 17:19, 2 February 2024 (UTC)
 * Not my responsibility - I readded the tag as a procedural action since my understanding was that Folly Mox only removed it as a hack to stop bad newcomer task edits, not becasue they thought the advert issue was resolved. * Pppery * it has begun... 17:20, 2 February 2024 (UTC)

license: Creative Commons - Attribution Share-Alike - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/

title: Template talk:Advert


text:
Eastern bearded dragon

The eastern bearded dragon (Pogona barbata), also known as common bearded dragon or simply bearded lizard, is an agamid lizard found in wooded parts of Australia. It is one of a group of species known commonly as bearded dragons. Other common names for this species include Jew lizard and frilly lizard, the latter being a confusion between this and another dragon, the frill-necked lizard (Chlamydosaurus kingii). This species was originally described in 1829 by Georges Cuvier, who named it Amphibolurus barbatus.

Description
P. barbata is one of the eight recognized species within the genus Pogona. Adult males can grow to about 60 cm from the snout to the tip of the tail, while females may reach 50 cm in overall length.

The head is large and triangular in shape. The throat is covered with spiny, dark grey scales which can be raised to form an impressive "beard". Several groups of even longer spiny scales are located at the back of the head, the corners of the mouth, the external ear openings, and running posteriorly along both sides of the abdomen. The thorax and abdomen are relatively slender and flattened dorsoventrally.

It is usually grey-black or red in skin colour and is sometimes reddish-brown, yellowish-brown, or dark brown. Juveniles are paler in colour than the adults and have patterns that fade as they mature. As the animal matures, it develops a subtle pale yellow, blue, or green tinge on the forepart of its head. If excited and at higher temperatures head, flanks and legs have a yellowish to orange colour. Usually however they are rather dark, from yellowish to grey and black. The inside of the mouth is generally a bright yellow colour.

P. barbata resembles its close relative, the central bearded dragon, but may be distinguished from the latter by its less robust body and the row of spines along the lateral edge of the body, which continues over the forearm.

Distribution and habitat
It is most common in eastern Australia south of Cape York Peninsula, but specimens have been collected from Cape York, through central Australia, and even from the west coast of Australia.

Ecology and behaviour

Eastern bearded dragons are diurnal. They are arboreal and perch on exposed places such as tree branches or logs, retreating to lower and cooler places when too hot. They are more aggressive than the central bearded dragon. The males are territorial and permit only females and juveniles in their territory. Dominant males are usually the biggest dragons and get the highest perches. Females tunnel into dry earth to lay a clutch of eggs.

When threatened, it inflates its throat and displays its beard. If further provoked, it opens its mouth to display the bright yellow colour of the lining of its mouth. In its close relative, the central bearded dragon; the lining of the mouth is of a reddish-pink hue. However the eastern bearded dragon will perform this beard display more often than its cousin.

Sex makeup
Recent observations concluded that hot temperatures were responsible for some of eastern bearded dragon lizards to change their sex makeup. Some lizards changed their male appearance to female, and have offspring, besides having the male ZZ chromosomes, of the genetic male lizards.

Diet
The eastern bearded dragon feeds on a variety of small animals, including mice, smaller reptiles, and insects. In captivity, it also eats leaf vegetables such as clover and small flowers, fruits, and berries.

title: Eastern bearded dragon


text:
Unfrozen Caveman Lawyer

Keyrock, known as "The Unfrozen Caveman Lawyer", was a recurring character created by Jack Handey and played by Phil Hartman on Saturday Night Live from 1991 through 1996. He was a caveman with the beetle brows of a Neanderthal who had fallen into a glacial crevasse, or "Big Giant Hole in Ice", during the Ice Age, thus preserving his body well enough for scientists to thaw him out in 1988. He subsequently studied law at the Oklahoma City University School of Law. The character exploits his humble origins with thinly-veiled cynicism in order to manipulate others.

Keyrock became a defense and personal injury lawyer, and in a later sketch, a politician running for the Senate on the platform of reducing the capital gains tax. He was portrayed as a selfish, well-dressed attorney who repeatedly claimed to be a simple-minded caveman, and would employ simple folk wisdom to win his cases. He also enjoyed significant wealth, driving luxury cars like BMWs and Range Rovers, as well as owning a home on Martha's Vineyard.

Opening scene
"One hundred thousand years ago, a caveman was out hunting in the plains, when he slipped and fell into a crevasse, where he was frozen solid. In 1988, he was discovered by scientists and was thawed out. He then attended law school and became...the Unfrozen Caveman Lawyer!"

The scene would then be accompanied by a song, beginning "He used to be a caveman...," showing Keyrock in animal skins beating a club against his hand, "...but now he's a lawyer!" and showing Keyrock's clothes changing from animal skins to a suit, and his club replaced by hands gesturing to emphasize a point: "Unfrozen Caveman Lawyer!"

Recurring humor
The running gag was that Keyrock would speak in a slick and smoothly self-assured manner—but with obviously feigned naiveté—to a jury or an audience about how things in the modern world supposedly "confuse and frighten" him. He often emphasized the latter phrase with air-quotes or a showy gesture, which underscored his obvious disingenuousness. He would then list several things that confounded him about modern life or the natural world, such as: "When I see a solar eclipse, like the one I went to last year in Hawaii, I think 'Oh no! Is the moon eating the sun?' I don't know. Because I'm a caveman -- that's the way I think." This pronouncement would seem ironic, coming from someone who had, for example, just ended a brisk cell phone conversation, or indeed attended law school. Keyrock would always finish a disquisition, however, by asserting in a burst of righteousness that nevertheless, "There is one thing I DO know...." That one thing would be that his client was either innocent, or was entitled to several million dollars or more in both compensatory and punitive damages for an injury. The jury or counsel is invariably swayed by Keyrock's argument, except every time the Judge announces the verdict in his favor, Keyrock is distracted by some other event like watching a Knicks game on his portable TV ("I'm sorry, Your Honor, I was distracted by the tiny people in this magic box"), or by a cell phone call, and the verdict has to be repeated.

The scenes would usually end with a small "outro" scene of "a sneak peek at the next episode" showing Keyrock making arguments. One such scene diverted from the usual "caveman argument" when a tipsy Keyrock was aboard a plane, being told by a stewardess that the chief steward has declared no more Dewar's and water would be served to Keyrock. The stewardess in that episode was not persuaded by Keyrock's whining that "I'm just a caveman" and that he is "frightened by the flying machine," and continued her duties. An enraged Keyrock then roared "Listen up, I will sue you and your whole crummy airline!" What happened afterward remained to be seen, but it was one of the few cases where Keyrock did not have his way.

Like many Saturday Night Live sketches at that time, "Unfrozen Caveman Lawyer" was presented as a parody of a television show. During the opening and closing of the "show," the announcer would list some of the "show's" highly unusual sponsors, such as "Big Fat Bean" ("Why eat a lot of little beans when you can eat one big bean?"); "Gas Plus" ("Actually gives you gas, for those times when you feel like being the joker!"); "Dog Assassin" ("When you can't bear to put him to sleep, maybe it's time to call Dog Assassin"); "Cubic Yard of Earthworms" ("What you do with it is your business"); "Wilson Ear Drill" ("We don't recommend that you use an ear drill, but if you insist, why not get the best!") and the popular Happy Fun Ball ("still legal in 16 states — it's happy, it's fun, it's Happy Fun Ball!").

The sketch was a parody of the "simple country boy beats city slicker" genre, such as then-popular series Matlock in which an older, "country-boy" type Southern lawyer bamboozled "big city" or "sophisticated" lawyers. "Unfrozen Caveman Lawyer" upended the form by replacing the humble hero with a craven yuppie.

The full list of "Unfrozen Caveman Lawyer" "sponsors" include:

 * Lawn Destroyer - when you don't even care anymore.
 * Cubic Yard of Earthworms - what you do with it is your business.
 * Wilson Ear Drill - we don't recommend that you use an ear drill, but if you insist, why not get the best!
 * Gas Plus - actually gives you gas, for those times when you feel like being the joker.
 * National Escort Services - if we don't get a prostitute to your door in 15 minutes, you don't pay.
 * Happy Fun Ball - still legal in 16 states - it's legal, it's fun, it's Happy Fun Ball!
 * Chili-B-Gone - soothes eyes inflamed by chili spray.
 * Spider Whistle - spiders come crawling when you start blowing, also works on certain ants.
 * Clyde Baxter - if you're on his jury, won't you please vote not guilty? Clyde would appreciate it.
 * Dog Assassin - when you can't bear to put him to sleep, maybe it's time to call Dog Assassin.
 * Big Fat Bean - why eat hundreds of little beans when you can have one big bean?
 * Chemical Sheller - why spend hours shelling pecans and walnuts? Pour on Chemical Sheller and shells just melt away.
 * Planet Xylon - change your ways or we'll come there and destroy you.
 * Stink Pies - smell awful but taste great. Now available in Outhouse Coconut.

title: Unfrozen Caveman Lawyer


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Fast of Esther

The Fast of Esther (Ta'anit Ester, תַּעֲנִית אֶסְתֵּר) is a fast on Purim eve commemorating two communal fasts undertaken by the Persian Jewish community of Shushan in the Book of Esther, for the purpose of praying for salvation from annihilation by an evil decree which had been instigated by the royal vizier, an anti-jewish enemy, of the Amalekite nation.

This fast, unlike other fasts, is a custom. It is not mentioned in the Talmud; however it is mentioned in the Midrash and other later sources from the days of the Gaonim. Therefore it is considered less severe than the other fasts.

Esther asked Mordechai to have the Jews fast and pray on her behalf for 3 days and 3 nights, before she approached her husband, king Ahasuerus to beg for the life of her people. Another is presumed to have occurred on the 13th of Adar, the day before the Jews fought a battle to defend against their enemies, who had been given an irrevocable permission to murder Jews for one day a year on the 14th of that month, which is now a Jewish holiday of Purim on account of their victory.

Before approaching the king unbidden at risk of her life Esther told Mordechai "Go, gather together all the Jews that are present in Shushan, and fast ye for me, and neither eat nor drink three days, night or day; I also and my maidens will fast in like manner; and so will I go in unto the king, which is not according to the law; and if I perish, I perish."

Laws and Customs
The fast is from dawn to dusk.

It is a common misconception that this fast dates to the time of Esther. states "They had established for themselves and their descendants the matters of the fasts and their cry", but this refers instead to the fasts mentioned in.

The first mention of the fast of Esther is as a minhag that is referenced in the Gaonic period. A 2010 study examines the origin of the fast and the reason for its arising in the Gaonic period.

The fast is observed on the 13th day of the Hebrew month of Adar (when the year has two Adar months, it is observed only in the second Adar). If the date of the Fast of Esther falls on Shabbat (Saturday), the fast is instead observed on the preceding Thursday, this was the case in 2004, 2007, 2010, 2011, 2013, 2014, 2017 and 2024. (Shulchan Aruch S.686 s.2)

As the fast of Esther is not one of the four public fasts ordained by the Prophets, the laws concerning its observance are more lenient; pregnant women, nursing mothers, and those who are weak are not required to observe it.

Fasting in the Book of Esther
It is generally accepted in the rabbinic tradition that the original three-day "Fast of Esther" mentioned in chapter 4 of Book of Esther occurred on the 14th, 15th, and 16th days of Nisan, these being the eve and first two days of Passover. While halacha normally forbids fasting on Passover, it is believed that Esther reasoned it would be better to fast on one Pesach lest they all be destroyed and thus never be able to observe the holiday in the future. But due to the normal prohibition of fasting on Passover, the "Fast of Esther" instead became attached to the eve of Purim, the 13th of Adar.

The 13th of Adar itself was a fast day for the warriors while going out to battle, as it had been customary to fast during battle in order to gain divine favor.

Date in the Gregorian calendar
The Gregorian calendar dates correlated with 13 Adar, from dawn until nightfall, for 2021–2026 are:

title: Fast of Esther


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Ernest Goes to Jail

Ernest Goes to Jail is a 1990 American comedy film directed by John Cherry and written by Charlie Cohen. It stars Jim Varney, Gailard Sartain, Barbara Bush, Charles Napier, Randall "Tex" Cobb, Bill Byrge, Barry Scott and Dan Leegant.

It is the fourth film to feature the character Ernest P. Worrell and the third film in the Ernest series, after Ernest Saves Christmas (1988). It was released on April 6, 1990. It grossed $25 million and was the second highest grossing film in the series. The next film in the series, Ernest Scared Stupid was released in October 1991.

Plot
Ernest P. Worrell is employed as a night janitor at the Howard Country Bank & Trust where his friends and neighbors, Chuck and Bobby, work as security guards. While trying to use a floor polisher, Ernest makes an enormous mess that results in him being electrocuted with strange results. His body becomes magnetized and while trying to escape the various objects attracted to him, he goes into the vault but a pair of safety deposit boxes knock him out just as the effect wears off.

The next morning, co-worker Charlotte Sparrow, whom Ernest is smitten with, asks him out to “just dinner” to discuss Ernest's desire to move up and become a clerk. However, this goal is hampered by his knuckleheaded antics and the ire earned from bank president, Oscar Pendlesmythe. Meanwhile, at the Dracup Penitentiary, convict Rubin Bartlett kills a fellow prisoner and seeks help from Mr. Nash, a convicted bank robber and death row inmate. Unable to offer anything in return, Rubin goes on trial. At the same time, Ernest receives a summons to perform jury duty on the same trial. In the courtroom, Rubin notices Ernest has an uncanny resemblance to Nash. In league with Bartlett and Nash, the defense makes a successful motion for the jury to see the scene of the crime so the switch can be made.

Nash and his silent yet hulking henchman, Lyle, make the switch. Nash coerces the jury to acquit Rubin while Ernest, unknowingly at first, takes Nash's place. Upon realizing his predicament, Ernest makes a series of unsuccessful attempts to escape the prison while also trying to keep up the ruse that he is Nash out of fear of reprisal. At the same time, Nash is planning to rob the bank but gets distracted trying to keep a suspicious Bobby and his smooth, un-Ernest like demeanor from exposing him.

In prison, Ernest is taken to be executed via the electric chair. Having given up on escaping and trying to convince the warden of his identity, Ernest makes a final speech and is electrocuted. The massive voltage puts him in a kind of trance and he becomes magnetized again — only this time, he can zap bolts of electricity from his fingers. He uses this power to comically subdue the guards and blast a hole in the main gate. Rubin attempts to stop him but Lyle, speaking up for the first time, steps in and knocks him out. He tells Ernest to flee so he can stop Nash and save his friends. He also rejects Ernest's request to come with him, saying his place is in the prison but that he will miss him. Ernest escapes and after a changing out of his prison uniform, races to the bank with his dog, Rimshot.

Nash has set up an explosive and handcuffed Chuck to the vault. Charlotte arrives, after an earlier encounter with Nash at Ernest's home that went bad, and is taken hostage as well. Just as Ernest arrives, so do the prison officials. Bobby appears and almost gains the upper hand over Nash but fails. An electrified security cage that Chuck and Bobby installed also fails as Ernest and Nash fight. Nash throws Ernest against the cage and is electrocuted again. This time, his body is electromagnetically polarized allowing him to levitate erratically. Ernest uses the floor polisher against Nash, dragging him up along the ceiling, resulting in him being dropped out cold. With seconds left on the explosive timer, Ernest heroically grabs it and flies up and out of the bank to a safe distance, but it explodes in the night sky. The guards are devastated that Ernest may have been killed but Nash recovers and holds the group at gunpoint. Before he can use Charlotte as a hostage, Ernest's charred body lands on Nash and stops him, charred but alive, Ernest is hailed as a hero.

Production
Principal photography took place in Nashville from September 25 until November 15, 1989. A former manufacturing plant in Nashville was converted into a 100,000-square-foot studio by the production designer. This is where the sets were built for, Howard County Bank & Trust, two three-story jail cell tiers, an electrocution room, and Ernest's house. Scenes were shot at the Tennessee State Prison for three days.

Release
Ernest Goes to Jail was released theatrically in the United States by Buena Vista Pictures Distribution on April 6, 1990. It is the third film in the Ernest series, and the third in a four-film deal with Touchstone Pictures.

Critical response
Caryn James of The New York Times commented that "Ernest Goes to Jail so resembles a high-spirited cartoon that it is likely to be more amusing to children and less painfully obnoxious for parents than its predecessors." She considered the film's heavy focus on slapstick humor and comedic interactions with inanimate objects to be the biggest improvement, saying that while the film is not particularly inventive with this sort of humor, it would appeal to its young target audience more. Writing for the Sun-Sentinel, Roger Hurlburt agreed that Ernest Goes to Jail is a major improvement over the first two Ernest films, due to Ernest's comic mishaps being tied into a solid storyline, but cautioned that it is still a highly uneven work. He elaborated that "Undeniably, Varney is an adroit physical comedian with a flair for making faces, contorting his lean body and evoking a sensation of the heebie-jeebies at appropriate moments.", resulting in a number of inventive laughs, but that in the more dialogue-heavy scenes the characters become dull. In contradiction to Hurlburt, Ty Burr of Entertainment Weekly said that the use of a full plotline in Ernest Goes to Jail makes it a worse film than the previous two Ernest installments, arguing that the Ernest character is best used in short gags and could never become a sympathetic hero. He gave the film a D.

Box office
The film debuted in third place during its opening weekend, earning $6.1 million. Its total gross was $25 million, making it the second highest grossing the Ernest series.

Home media
Earnest Goes to Jail was released on Laserdisc and VHS in January 1991. Mill Creek Entertainment released the film on Blu-ray for the first time on March 29, 2011, in a single disc Double Feature set along with Ernest Goes to Camp.

title: Ernest Goes to Jail


text: Category:Reference material lists

title: Category:Reference material lists


text:
Baháʼí views on homosexuality

The Baháʼí Faith has an emphasis on what it describes as traditional family values, and marriage between a man and a woman is the only form of sexual relationship permitted for Baháʼís. With an emphasis on chastity and restraint outside of matrimony, Baháʼí practices exclude premarital, extramarital, or homosexual intimacy. Baháʼí institutions have taken no position on the sexual practices of those who are not adherents, and Baháʼís have been discouraged from promoting or opposing efforts to legalize same-sex marriage.

The scriptural basis for Baháʼí practices comes from the writings of Baháʼu'lláh (1817–1892), the faith's founder, who forbade fornication, adultery, and sodomy. The Baháʼí position towards homosexuality was elaborated on by Shoghi Effendi, Baháʼu'lláh's great grandson and appointed head of the religion from 1921 to 1957. He answered specific questions and described homosexuality as an affliction that should be overcome, while leaving Baháʼí membership open to anyone regardless of sexual orientation. This position leaves Baháʼís with a same-sex orientation under similar guidance as a heterosexual person: if they find themselves unable to contract a marriage with someone of the opposite sex, they should remain celibate.

The supreme governing institution of the Baháʼí Faith is the Universal House of Justice, first elected in 1963, which has written more extensively on the subject of homosexuality. For example, they have clarified that Baháʼís should not single out homosexual practice over other transgressions of Baháʼí conduct, should not treat those with a homosexual orientation with disdain or prejudice, and should not attempt to impose their standards on society.

The exclusion of same-sex marriage among Baháʼís has garnered considerable criticism in the western world, where the Baháʼí teachings on sexuality "may appear to be unreasonable, dogmatic, and difficult to apply in Western society". Particularly in the United States, Baháʼís have attempted to reconcile the immutable conservative teachings on sexuality with the otherwise socially progressive teachings of the Faith, but it continues to be a source of controversy. Former Baháʼí William Garlington said the Baháʼí position in America, "can at most be characterized as one of sympathetic disapproval" toward homosexuality, and professor Melissa Wilcox describes Baháʼí teachings as leaving "little room for tolerance of same-sex eroticism", "not given to statements of its disapproval", and "not generally vocally anti-LGBT."

Baháʼí views on sexuality
Baháʼí teachings stress the importance of absolute chastity for any unmarried person, and focus on personal restraint. The Baháʼí Faith, however, leaves the application of laws of social conduct largely up to the individual, and Baháʼís do not advocate for or discriminate against homosexual people.

While in authoritative teachings homosexuality is described as a condition that an individual should control and overcome, Baháʼís are left to apply the teachings at their own discretion, and are discouraged from singling out homosexual practice over other transgressions, such as the consumption of alcohol, or heterosexual promiscuity. Membership in the Baháʼí community is therefore open to lesbian and gay adherents.

The Baháʼí Faith has been described as a religion "ambiguous or contested on the issue of LGBT inclusion". The religion has a strong emphasis on traditional values found in Abrahamic religions, which discourage liberal sexuality.

Baháʼí teachings state that Baháʼís should not treat homosexual people as condemned outcasts, nor expect people who are not Baháʼí to follow Baháʼí laws. The Baháʼí writings teach adherents to treat everyone with respect and dignity, and to eschew an attitude of discrimination and social intolerance toward homosexuals.

The opportunity for civil same-sex marriage was mentioned in a 2010 letter by the Universal House of Justice as being a public issue that is not in keeping with the Baháʼí teachings, but one that Baháʼís "would neither promote nor necessarily oppose."<!--

New converts
Individuals with a same-sex orientation are not prevented from entering the religion and joining in community life; however, someone involved in a same-sex marriage or union will be prevented from registering as a Baháʼí. Baháʼí teachings make a distinction between those who have a same-sex attraction and those who practice homosexual relations.

The religion's guidelines recommend not emphasizing Baháʼí standards of conduct to new believers, but gradually introducing the idea of fully accepting all Baháʼí practices. Spiritual Assemblies, the local elected bodies that manage the affairs of the religion, are instructed to act patiently and persuade members to accept principles inwardly and “out of pure conviction and desire.” New converts who are already engaged in a homosexual relationship will be expected to make a sincere effort to conform to the Baháʼí teachings over a period of time.

Role of Spiritual Assemblies
As a general rule, the Spiritual Assemblies do not get involved in the private lives of believers, unless their actions are considered flagrantly immoral or to be causing some harm to the community.

An individual may be subject to administrative sanctions if a Spiritual Assembly decides that they are openly disregarding the Baháʼí teachings and their actions are damaging to the image of the Baháʼí Faith. This response removes the right to contribute to funds, vote in elections for spiritual assemblies, hold office, or attend the Nineteen Day Feast. It may be applied to extreme cases of alcoholism, sexual promiscuity, and anything that is considered flagrant immorality. However, this consequence is meant only to be applied in cases of "public scandal", "very flagrant cases", or if the conduct of the Baháʼí is "seriously injuring the Faith in the eyes of the public". In cases of Baháʼís who are flagrantly promiscuous, they are to be approached by a Spiritual Assembly and informed of the teachings on personal conduct. If after a probational period the person continues to present a disregard towards the laws in a public way, then the assembly may remove the person's administrative rights, "administratively expelled from membership in the Baháʼí community", though this action is not the same as ex-communication, as there is no directive to avoid fellowship with the individual.

Overcoming homosexuality
Early letters written by Shoghi Effendi's secretaries on his behalf described those with a homosexual orientation as having a handicap that can be overcome "through the advice and help of doctors, through a strong and determined effort, and through prayer". The reference to overcoming or reversing a sexual orientation has garnered considerable criticism from those who regard it as innate and unchangeable.

The Universal House of Justice has written its own correspondence to individuals, encouraging them to divert thoughts into spiritual channels and the nature of man, and to "resist wayward impulses each time they arise". The Universal House of Justice has responded to research that claims that homosexuality is innate and not changeable by asserting that homosexuality is one of
 * "many problems, both physical and psychological. Some are the result of the individual's own behaviour, some are caused by the circumstances in which he grew up, some are congenital... homosexuality is an abnormality, is a great problem for the individual so afflicted, and... he or she should strive to overcome it."

It also argues that statistics may be distorted due to under-reporting, that other genetic predispositions to undesirable behaviors exist, and that other types of bias may exist in the present-day research.--> <!--==Basis from texts== In one passage of the Kitáb-i-Aqdas, Baháʼu'lláh writes "we shrink, for very shame, from treating the subject of boys." In the context of the original Arabic text, this passage implies pederasty, or erotic relations between adult males and adolescent boys. Such practices were not uncommon during the time of Baháʼu'lláh in the Islamic world, and in some cases were socially acceptable (see bacha bazi). Baháʼu'lláh condemned such relations, and Shoghi Effendi, the authorized interpreter of the Baháʼí writings, has more clearly defined a prohibition on all homosexual relations, stating that, "No matter how devoted and fine the love may be between people of the same sex, to let it find expression in sexual acts is wrong. To say that it is ideal is no excuse. Immorality of every sort is really forbidden by Baháʼu'lláh, and homosexual relationships He looks upon as such, besides being against nature."

Baháʼu'lláh clearly forbade fornication and adultery, referring to any form of premarital or extramarital sexual intercourse. He also forbade sodomy and lechery. The Universal House of Justice, in its notes on the text of the Kitab-i-Aqdas, stated that the Baha'i laws restrict "permissible sexual intercourse to that between a man and the woman to whom he is married".

Letters from the Universal House of Justice
The head of the Baháʼí Faith, the Universal House of Justice, has addressed the issue in letters in recent years and brief excerpts:
 * 9 May 2014 to an individual
 * "The contemporary discussion surrounding homosexuality, which began in the West and is increasingly promoted in other parts of the world, generally takes the form of a false dichotomy, which compels one to choose between a position that is either affirming or rejecting."
 * "While Baháʼís hold specific beliefs about human identity, sexuality, personal morality, and individual and social transformation, they also believe that individuals must be free to investigate truth and should not be coerced."
 * "To regard a person who has a homosexual orientation with prejudice or disdain is entirely against the spirit of the Faith. And where occasion demands, it would be appropriate to speak out or act against unjust or oppressive measures directed towards homosexuals."
 * "Just as Baháʼís do not impose their views on others, they cannot relinquish their principles because of changing trends in popular thought."
 * 23 April 2013 letter to a National Spiritual Assembly
 * "…their ("institutions of the Faith") aim (should) be to raise consciousness and to increase understanding. Theirs is not the duty to pry into personal lives or to impose Baháʼí law on the individual…"
 * "Gossip and backbiting have no place in the Baháʼí community; nor do judgmental attitudes and self-righteousness."
 * 19 April 2013 letter to a group of individuals
 * "The result (of "the expenditure of enormous energy and vast amounts of resources in an attempt to bend truth to conform to personal desire") is a culture that distorts human nature and purpose, trapping human beings in pursuit of idle fancies and vain imaginings and turning them into pliable objects in the hands of the powerful. Yet, the happiness and well-being of humanity-depend upon the opposite: cultivating human character and social order in conformity with reality."
 * "(Baháʼu'lláh's) teachings serve, then, to empower humanity; they are the harbinger of human happiness, whose call, far from compelling obedience to an arbitrary and dictatorial regimen of behaviour, leads to true freedom."
 * "Throughout the world, in diverse cultures, Baháʼís encounter values and practices that stand in sharp contrast to the teachings of the Faith. Some are embedded in social structures, for instance, racial prejudice and gender discrimination, economic exploitation and political corruption. Others pertain to personal conduct, especially with respect to the use of alcohol and drugs, to sexual behaviour, and to self-indulgence in general."
 * "The institutions of the Faith, for their part, strive to ensure that such an environment ("in which a spirit of unity animates one and all") is fostered. They do not pry into the personal lives of individuals. Nor are they vindictive and judgmental, eager to punish those who fall short of the Baháʼí standard."-->

Excerpts from letters
This section is to accommodate the long quotes that accumulated in the tags and made the article almost impossible to edit. Some tags point to this section's citations. Additional tags in this section point to citations in the references section. This section is sorted chronologically.

"...they [homosexuals] should be treated like any other people seeking admittance to the Faith, and be accepted on the same basis. Our teachings, as outlined in the Advent of Divine Justice, on the subject of living a chaste life, should be emphasized to them just as every other applicant, but certainly no ruling whatsoever should be laid down in this matter. The Baháʼís have certainly not yet reached that stage of moral perfection where they are in a position to too harshly scrutinize the private lives of other souls, and each individual should be accepted on the basis of his faith, and sincere willingness to try to live up to the Divine Standards;"

"Baháʼu'lláh has spoken very strongly against this shameful sexual aberration, as He has against adultery and immoral conduct in general."

"No matter how devoted and fine the love may be between people of the same sex, to let it find expression in sexual acts is wrong. To say that it is ideal is no excuse. Immorality of every sort is really forbidden by Baháʼu'lláh, and homosexual relationships he looks upon as such, besides being against nature. "To be afflicted this way is a great burden to a conscientious soul. But through the advice and help of doctors, through a strong and determined effort, and through prayer, a soul can overcome this handicap."

"Amongst the many other evils afflicting society in this spiritual low water mark in history is the question of immorality, and over-emphasis of sex. Homosexuality, according to the Writings of Baháʼu'lláh, is spiritually condemned. This does not mean that people so afflicted must not be helped and advised and sympathized with."

"The question of how to deal with homosexuals is a very difficult one. Homosexuality is forbidden in the Baháʼí Faith by Baháʼu'lláh; so, for that matter, is immorality and adultery. If one is going to start imposing heavy sanctions on people who are the victims of this abnormality, however repulsive it may be to others, then it is only fair to impose equally heavy sanctions on any Baháʼís who step beyond the moral limits defined by Baháʼu'lláh. Obviously at the present time this would create an impossible and ridiculous situation. “He feels, therefore, that, through loving advice, through repeated warnings, any friends who are flagrantly immoral should be assisted, and, if possible, restrained. If their activities overstep all bounds and become a matter of public scandal, then the Assembly can consider depriving them of their voting rights. However, he does not advise this course of action and feels that it should only be resorted to in very flagrant cases."

"Homosexuality is highly condemned and often a great trial and cause of suffering to a person, as a Baháʼí. Any individual so afflicted must, through prayer, and any other means, seek to overcome this handicap. But, unless the actions of such individuals are flagrantly immoral, it cannot be a pretext for depriving them of their voting rights."

"...it is clear from the teaching of Baháʼu'lláh that homosexuality is not a condition to which a person should be reconciled, but is a distortion of his or her nature which should be controlled or overcome. This may require a hard struggle, but so also can be the struggle of a heterosexual person to control his or her desires."

"Baháʼí law restricts permissible sexual intercourse to that between a man and the woman to whom he is married. Thus, it should not be so much a matter of whether a practicing homosexual can be a Baháʼí as whether, having become a Baháʼí, the homosexual can overcome his problem through knowledge of the teachings and reliance on Baháʼu'lláh."

"Concerning your question whether there are any legitimate forms of expression of the sex instinct outside of marriage; according to the Baháʼí Teachings no sexual act can be considered lawful unless performed between lawfully married persons. Outside of marital life there can be no lawful or healthy use of the sex impulse."

"While recognizing the divine origin and force of the sex impulse in man, religion teaches that it must be controlled, and Baháʼu'lláh's law confines its expression to the marriage relationship. The unmarried homosexual is therefore in the same position as anyone else who does not marry. The Law of God requires them to practice chastity."

"The House of Justice comments that while there is little in Baháʼí literature that specifically points to the causes of homosexuality itself, there is much that concerns the nature of man, his inner life and growth, and the way to a true Baháʼí life. If you are sincerely intent on overcoming your problem, you must yourself determine to resist wayward impulses each time they arise and the House of Justice feels that there is no better way than to turn to the Writings to divert our thoughts into spiritual channels..."

"Assemblies, of course, must exercise care not to pry into the private lives of the believers to ensure that they are behaving properly…."

"…the Faith does not recognize homosexuality as a "natural" or permanent phenomenon. Rather, it sees this as an aberration subject to treatment, however intractable exclusive homosexuality may now seem to be. To the question of alteration of homosexual bents, much study must be given, and doubtless in the future clear principles of prevention and treatment will emerge. As for those now afflicted, a homosexual does not decide to be a problem human, but he does, as you rightly state, have decision in choosing his way of life, i.e. abstaining from homosexual acts. "Your plea for understanding and of justice extended to homosexuals is well taken in many respects, and the House of Justice assures you of its concern for the large number of persons so afflicted. Your work with the homosexual community is praiseworthy, and it permits you personally to exercise the support which is necessary for these often harassed persons, support which you call for in your essay. Moreover, your interest cannot but be therapeutic, at least for the more superficial elements of the problem; however, definitive therapy of the underlying predisposition, which you consider to be innate but the Teachings do not, may have to await additional investigations. As for the responsibility of Assemblies and of individual Baháʼís, certainly all are called upon to be understanding, supportive and helpful to any individual who carries the burden of homosexuality."

"As you know, Baháʼu'lláh has clearly forbidden the expression of sexual love between individuals of the same sex. However, the doors are open for all of humanity to enter the Cause of God, irrespective of their present circumstance; this invitation applies to homosexuals as well as to any others who are engaged in practices contrary to the Baháʼí teachings. Associated with this invitation is the expectation that all believers will make a sincere and persistent effort to eradicate those aspects of their conduct which are not in conformity with Divine Law."

"A survey of the letters written on behalf of the Guardian shows that he advised the National Spiritual Assemblies that they should resort to the severe sanction of deprivation of a believer's administrative rights only for such matters as 'disgraceful conduct, flagrantly contrary to our Teachings', 'seriously injuring the Faith in the eyes of the public through his conduct or flagrantly breaking the laws of God', 'gross immorality and open opposition to the administrative functions of the Faith, and disregard for the laws of personal status', 'conduct which is disgracing the Cause', and 'breaking of laws, such as the consent of parents to marriage', or 'acts of such an immoral character as to damage the good name of the Faith'. "It is clear that the removal of voting rights is a serious action which an Assembly should take reluctantly when the circumstances require that the Baháʼí community or its reputation in the eyes of the public must be protected from the effects of an individual's behaviour, and where the authority of the laws of the Faith must be upheld. It should be the hope and prayer of the Assembly that the believer who has been administratively expelled from membership in the Baháʼí community will come to see that his behaviour is in violation of the teachings, will endeavour to rectify his conduct, and will thus open the way to being welcomed back into the community so that he can lend his support to the vital and glorious task of establishing the World Order of Baháʼu'lláh."

"Human beings suffer from many problems, both physical and psychological. Some are the result of the individual's own behaviour, some are caused by the circumstances in which he grew up, some are congenital. Some human beings are born blind, some suffer from incapacitating accidents or diseases. Such conditions present the individual affected, and those around him, with serious problems, and it is one of the challenges of the human condition that all those concerned should strive to overcome such problems and have understanding and sympathy for the individual so afflicted. "There is a wide range of sexual abnormalities. Some people nowadays maintain that homosexuality is not an abnormality and that homosexuals should be encouraged to establish sexual relations with one or more partners of the same sex. The Faith, on the contrary, makes it abundantly clear that homosexuality is an abnormality, is a great problem for the individual so afflicted, and that he or she should strive to overcome it. The social implications of such an attitude are very important. "...If a homosexual cannot so overcome his or her condition to the extent of being able to have a heterosexual marriage, he or she must remain single, and abstain from sexual relations. These are the same requirements as for a heterosexual person who does not marry. "This law is no reason for Baháʼís to consider homosexuals as outcasts. If they are not Baháʼís there is also no reason to expect them to obey the Baháʼí law in this respect any more than we would expect a non-Baha i to abstain from drinking alcohol."

"The statistics which indicate that homosexuality is incurable are undoubtedly distorted by the fact that many of those who overcome the problem never speak about it in public, and others solve their problems without even consulting professional counsellors. "Baháʼí Assemblies can testify to the number of Baháʼís who, although having had homosexual orientations, have been able to lead normally happy married lives and raise families. "Nevertheless there are undoubtedly cases in which the individual finds himself (or herself) unable to eliminate a physical attraction to members of the same sex, even though he succeeds in controlling his behaviour. This is but one of the many trials and temptations to which human beings are subject in this life. For Baháʼís it cannot alter the basic concept taught by Baháʼu'lláh, that the kind of sexuality purposed by God is the love between a man and a woman, and that its primary (but not its only) purpose is the bringing of children into this world and providing them with a loving and protective environment in which they can be reared to know and love God. "The condition of being sexually attracted to some object other than to a mature member of the opposite sex, a condition of which homosexuality is but one manifestation, is regarded by the Faith as a distortion of true human nature, as a problem to be overcome, no matter what specific physical or psychological condition may be the immediate cause. Any Baháʼí who suffers from such a disability should be treated with understanding, and should be helped to control and overcome it. All of us suffer from imperfections which we must struggle to overcome and we all need one another's understanding and patience. "To regard homosexuals with prejudice and disdain would be entirely against the spirit of Baháʼí teachings. A Baháʼí who has a homosexual orientation is not automatically barred from Baháʼí community life or acceptance or excluded from worship. It is only as a result of behaviour which flagrantly violates the laws and principles of the Faith that a Baháʼí would be advised and cautioned and, if he did not rectify his behaviour, would be deprived of his or her administrative rights."

"...if persons involved in homosexual relationships express an interest in the Faith, they should not be instructed by Baháʼí institutions to separate so that they may enroll in the Baháʼí community, for this action by any institution may conflict with civil law. The Baháʼí position should be patiently explained to such persons, who should also be given to understand that although in their hearts they may accept Baháʼu'lláh, they cannot join the Baháʼí community in the current condition of their relationship. They will then be free to draw their own conclusions and act accordingly. Within this context, the question you pose about the possibility of the removal of administrative rights should, therefore, not arise."-->

Baháʼí primary sources

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title: Baháʼí views on homosexuality


text:
Uli figure

Uli figures are wooden statues from New Ireland in Papua New Guinea. Like their neighbors to the north and south, the artistic traditions of the peoples of central New Ireland formerly focused largely around mortuary rites. In contrast to the intricate malagan carvings of the north, artists in central New Ireland produced less ornate but more permanent figures known as uli, which were kept and reused many times. No longer made today, uli were displayed as part of lengthy fertility rites involving the exhumation and reburial of human skulls, which accompanied the planting of sacred plants.

When a newly carved uli was brought out, a shaman assisted in inducing the spirit of the deceased chief to enter the carving, and after the ceremony, the work was kept in the "men's house" where it would continue to aid the successor and his people.

Uli figures appear hermaphroditic, having both a phallus and prominent breasts. This blending of male and female features possibly symbolized the fertile and nourishing powers of clan leaders, who were expected to provide for the other members of the clan. The Uli figures probably symbolized the connection between paternal and maternal life energy in initiation ceremonies.

title: Uli figure


text:
Category:Neurosurgeons

Neurosurgeons practice neurosurgery, the surgical discipline focused on treating those central and peripheral nervous system diseases amenable to mechanical intervention.

title: Category:Neurosurgeons


text:
Famous Thirteen

The Famous Thirteen (Spanish Los trece de la fama, "the thirteen of the fame", or Los trece de Gallo, "the thirteen of [Isla del] Gallo") were a group of 16th century Spanish conquistadors that participated in the Spanish conquest of Peru (second expedition) along with their leader, Francisco Pizarro. In 1527 Pizarro and his men were waiting on the Isla del Gallo, in bad conditions, when the supply ship returned from Panama, commanded by Juan Tafur with orders from the Spanish governor to abandon the expedition. According to the traditional version of the story, Pizarro drew a line in the sand with his sword and said, "those on that side of the line can go back to Panama and be poor; those on this side can come to Peru and be rich. Let the good Castillian choose his path." In the traditional telling of the story, only thirteen men chose to stay with Pizarro.

Historians have noted inconsistencies in reports of the identity of the Famous Thirteen, and have identified as many as nineteen candidates for the thirteen spots.

One list of names is as follows:

 * Nicolás de Ribera "el Viejo", born in Olvera, Andalucía;
 * Cristóbal de Peralta, hidalgo of Baeza;
 * Antón de Carrión, born in Carrión de los Condes;
 * Pedro de Candia, a Greek born in Candia, Crete;
 * Domingo de Soraluce, or Soria Lucina, a Basque merchant from Vergara
 * Francisco de Cuéllar, from Cuellar;
 * Joan de la Torre y Díaz Chacón, born in Villagarcía de la Torre de Extremadura, near Llerena;
 * Pedro de Alcón, from Cazalla de la Sierra north of Seville;
 * García de Jeréz or Jaren, Utrera merchant
 * Alonso de Briceño, born about 1506 in Benavente;
 * Alonso de Molina, born in Úbeda;
 * Gonzalo Martín de Trujillo, born in Trujillo;
 * Martín de Paz.

Also, the "brave pilot" Bartolomé Ruiz.

Aftermath
The Capitulacion of 1529, made Ruiz Grand Pilot of the Southern Ocean, while Candia was placed at the head of artillery, and the remaining eleven "were created hidalgos and cavalleros.

title: Famous Thirteen


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A Fable

A Fable is a 1954 novel written by the American author William Faulkner. He spent more than a decade and tremendous effort on it, and aspired for it to be "the best work of my life and maybe of my time". It won the Pulitzer Prize and the National Book Award. Historically, it can be seen as a precursor to Joseph Heller's Catch-22.

Synopsis
The book takes place in France during World War I and stretches through the course of one week in 1918. Corporal Stefan, who represents the reincarnation of Jesus, orders 3,000 troops to disobey orders to attack in the brutally repetitive trench warfare. In return, the Germans do not attack, and the war stops when soldiers realize that it takes two sides to fight a war. The Generalissimo, who represents leaders who use war to gain power, invites his German counterpart to discuss how to restart the war. He then arrests and executes Stefan. Before Stefan's execution, the Generalissimo tries to convince the corporal that war can never be stopped because it is the essence of human nature.

Following the execution of the Corporal, his body is returned to his wife and his sisters, and he is buried in Vienne-la-pucelle. However, after the conflict has resumed, the Corporal's grave is destroyed in a barrage of artillery. The spirit of the Corporal has transferred to a British message runner, who eventually confronts the old Generalissimo.

Critical analysis
In his contemporary review of A Fable, Philip Blair Rice noted that the novel returned Faulkner in subject matter to the one general subject that engaged him besides Mississippi: the First World War. Dayton Kohler, in his contemporary analysis of the novel, discusses an approach to the novel through myth. Ernest Sandeen has elaborated in detail on the parallels between the corporal and Jesus Christ. Julian Smith has noted similarities between A Fable and Humphrey Cobb's novel Paths of Glory. Frank Turaj has examined opposing images and themes in terms of the dialectic in the novel. Thomas E Connolly has discussed the relationship of the three main plots of the novel to each other.

Richard H. King has interpreted A Fable as the one major attempt by Faulkner to depict political action in his novels, and has characterized the novel as "Faulkner's failed political novel". Robert W Hutten noted Faulkner's reworking of material originally from the story "Notes on a Horse Thief" into A Fable. William J Sowder has analyzed in detail the character of the Generalissimo.

Awards

 * 1955 Pulitzer Prize for Fiction
 * 1955 National Book Award for Fiction

title: A Fable


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Skating on Thin Ice

Skating on Thin Ice was a short-lived Australian celebrity reality television programme broadcast on the Nine Network in 2005. Hosted by Jamie Durie, nine celebrities learnt to skate with the ultimate goal being to perform with Disney on Ice, with proceeds going toward children's charity, CanTeen.

Nine revived the concept more successfully in 2006 as Torvill and Dean's Dancing on Ice, also hosted by Durie.

Contestants
The celebrities included:
 * Deni Hines – singer
 * Kim Kilbey – presenter
 * Imogen Bailey – model
 * James Blundell – singer
 * Belinda Green – former beauty queen
 * Regina Bird – Big Brother 3 winner
 * Vince Sorrenti – comedian
 * David Whitehill – presenter of Hot Source
 * Peter Everett – presenter and home designer

title: Skating on Thin Ice


text:
Short stature

Short stature refers to a height of a human which is below typical. Whether a person is considered short depends on the context. Because of the lack of preciseness, there is often disagreement about the degree of shortness that should be called short. Dwarfism is the condition of being very short, often caused by a medical condition. In a medical context, short stature is typically defined as an adult height that is more than two standard deviations below a population’s mean for age and sex, which corresponds to the shortest 2.3% of individuals in that population.

In popular culture, the Napoleon complex, also known as "Napoleon syndrome" and "short man syndrome", is a purported condition normally attributed to people of short stature, with overly aggressive or domineering social behavior, and is named after Napoleon Bonaparte, the first Emperor of the French, who was estimated to have been 5' 2" tall (in pre–metric system French measures), which equals around 1.67 meters, or just under 5' 6" in imperial measure.

Causes
Shortness in children and young adults nearly always results from below-average growth in childhood, while shortness in older adults usually results from loss of height due to kyphosis of the spine or collapsed vertebrae from osteoporosis. The most common causes of short stature in childhood are constitutional growth delay or familial short stature.

From a medical perspective, severe shortness can be a variation of normal, resulting from the interplay of multiple familial genes. It can also be due to one or more of many abnormal conditions, such as chronic (prolonged) growth hormone or thyroid hormone deficiency, malnutrition, disease of a major organ system, mistreatment, treatment with certain drugs, chromosomal deletions. Human growth hormone (HGH) deficiency may occur at any time during infancy or childhood, with the most obvious sign being a noticeable slowing of growth. The deficiency may be genetic. Among children without growth hormone deficiency, short stature may be caused by Turner syndrome or Noonan syndrome, chronic kidney disease, being small for gestational age at birth, Prader–Willi syndrome, Wiedemann-Steiner syndrome, or other conditions. Genetic skeletal dysplasias also known as osteochondrodysplasia usually manifest in short-limbed disproportionate short stature.

When the cause is unknown, it is called idiopathic short stature. Short stature can also be caused by the bone plates fusing at an earlier age than normal, therefore stunting growth. Normally, the bone age is the same as the biological age but for some people, it is older. For many people with advanced bone ages, they hit a growth spurt early on which propels them to average height but stop growing at an earlier age. However, in some cases, people who are naturally shorter combined with their advanced bone age, end up being even shorter than the height they normally would have been because of their stunted growth.

Some of the reasons growth development may slow include:
 * Genetics. When a child’s parents and grandparents are short, the child may also be short; this is known as familial short stature. Also, the target height is merely an estimate and some children simply don't grow as tall as expected.
 * Genetic conditions. Several genetic syndromes can lead to short stature, including Prader-Willi syndrome, Turner syndrome and Noonan syndrome.
 * Chronic diseases. Growth hormones are produced by the pituitary gland, located in the middle of the brain. Therefore, chronic medical problems that affect the pituitary gland may also affect growth. For example, radiation to the brain can affect pituitary function, so pediatric cancer or its treatment can lead to short stature. Gastrointestinal diseases that impair nutrition, such as inflammatory bowel disease and celiac can affect growth, can also be a cause. Many other conditions can also delay the growth rate, including hypothyroidism, heart disease, kidney disease, immunological disease and several other endocrine disorders.
 * Growth hormone deficiency. Some children simply don't produce enough growth hormones, including those born with a poorly developed pituitary gland.
 * Malnutrition. This is caused by an inadequate food supply, an eating disorder, or an underlying condition or treatment that affects appetite, lack of nourishment is a common cause of growth delay.
 * Psychosocial stress. Exposure to violence because of war or famine or just being in a home environment that’s not very nurturing, children can also experience a psychosocial stress that keeps them from growing properly,” Dr. Patel says. “That can be reversed just by removing them from the stressful environment.”

Classification
Chronic illnesses, malnutrition, endocrine, metabolic disorders or chromosomal anomalies are characterized by proportionate short stature. On the other hand, most genetic skeletal dysplasias are known for short stature that may be proportionate or disproportionate. Disproportionate short stature can be further subdivided as specified by the body segments affected by shortening, namely limbs versus trunk: Short-limb short stature can be further subcategorised in accordance with limb segment affected by shortening. These subcategories of limb shortening include, rhizomelic (humerus and femur), mesomelic (radius, ulna, tibia and fibula) and acromelic (hands and feet). Anthropometric measurements provide are very beneficial tools to the diagnostic process of genetic skeletal dysplasias. The anthropometric measurements include height, sitting height, arm span, upper/ lower-body segment ratio, sitting height/height ratio, and arm span/height ratio for age. They also aid in the differential diagnosis of skeletal dysplasia subtypes.
 * Short-limb short stature in which there is limb shortening as achondroplasia, hypochondroplasia, pseudoachondroplasia and multiple epiphyseal dysplasia.
 * Short-trunk short stature in which there is trunk shortening as spondyloepiphyseal dysplasia and mucopolysaccharidosis.

Treatment
The decision to treat is based on a belief that the child will be disabled by being extremely short as an adult, so that the risks of treatment (including sudden death ) will outweigh the risks of not treating the symptom of short stature. Although short children commonly report being teased about their height, most adults who are very short are not physically or psychologically disabled by their height. However, there is some evidence to suggest that there is an inverse linear relationship with height and with risk of suicide.

Treatment is expensive and requires many years of injections with human growth hormones. The result depends on the cause, but is typically an increase in final height of about 5 to 10 cm taller than predicted. Thus, treatment takes a child who is expected to be much shorter than a typical adult and produces an adult who is still obviously shorter than average. For example, several years of successful treatment in a girl who is predicted to be 146 cm as an adult may result in her being 151 cm instead.

Increasing final height in children with short stature may be beneficial and could enhance health-related quality of life outcomes, barring troublesome side effects and excessive cost of treatments.

Cost
The cost of treatment depends on the amount of growth hormone given, which in turn depends on the child's weight and age. One year's worth of drugs normally costs about US$20,000 for a small child and over $50,000 for a teenager. These drugs are normally taken for five or more years.

Cultural, social and economic issues
From a social perspective, shortness can be a problem independent of the cause. In many societies there are advantages associated with taller stature and disadvantages associated with shorter stature, and vice versa.

In popular culture
In popular culture, the Napoleon complex, also known as "Napoleon syndrome" and "short man syndrome", is a purported condition normally attributed to people of short stature, with overly aggressive or domineering social behavior, and is named after Napoleon Bonaparte, the first Emperor of the French, who was estimated to have been 5' 2" tall (in pre–metric system French measures), which equals around 1.67 meters, or just under 5' 6" in imperial measure.

Short stature as a disease
Pharmaceutical companies Genentech and Eli Lilly, makers of human growth hormone, have worked to medicalize short stature by convincing the public that short stature is a disease rather than a natural variation in human height. Limiting sales of the hormone to children diagnosed with growth hormone deficiency, rather than being short for any reason, limited their sales market. Expanding it to all children whose height was below the third percentile would create 90,000 new customers and US$10 billion in revenue. In the early 1990s, they paid two US charities, the Human Growth Foundation and the MAGIC Foundation, to measure the height of thousands of American children in schools and public places, and to send letters urging medical consultations for children whose height was deemed low. Parents and schools were not told that the charities were being paid by the drug companies to do this.

Paired with a campaign to advertise the hormone to physicians, the campaign was successful, and tens of thousands of children began receiving HGH. About half of them do not have growth hormone deficiency, and consequently benefited very little, if at all, from the hormone injections. Criticism of the universal screening program eventually resulted in its end.

Advantage
Short stature decreases the risk of venous insufficiency.

History
During World War I in Britain, the minimum height for soldiers was 5 ft. Thus thousands of men under this height were denied the opportunity to fight in the war. As a result of pressure to allow them entry, special "Bantam Battalions" were created composed of men who were 4 ft to 5 ft. By the end of the war there were 29 Bantam Battalions of about 1,000 men each. Officers were of normal size.

title: Short stature