LINKS:
One day you may find these links throughout site in appropriate locations as well. Double exposure. For now, here they gather, arranged by topic.

Disclaimer: Ajaban will neither confirm nor deny that it endorses the sites listed here. Some of them are hostile to the tenets of Ajaban, but they are here just to give you choice. A lot of the links are really cool, though, and favorites of mine - maybe.

Please note, if you know of an excellent link, or if you notice a link here does not work, please drop me a line at links@ajaban.com

• Skepticism - general
• News
• Environmentalism
• Emotional Health
• Christianity
• Islam
• Judaism
• Interfaith Dialogue (Still looking for some good ones)
• Beauty
• Coming soon: Right Wing Sites, Left Wing sites, Guisseppe Garibaldi fan club site, Iran sites, God Bless America sites, Techspertise sites, etc. etc.

SKEPTICISM - GENERAL:
Well, there's always the Internet Hoax site which investigates the rumors floating around on the internet and determines if they are true or not (to the best of their ability). That is located at: http://urbanlegends.about.com/ God bless your host David Emery and the crew at urbanlegends.

And don't forget to protect yourself from shemes, frauds and scams (or learn how to perpetrate same...how are you people using this knowledge anyway? Confess!) by checking out http://www.crimes-of-persuasion.com/

But what we really need around here is the Skeptics Dictionary. Don't take my word for it, look up "Ad hominem" attack for yourself at http://www.skepdic.com/ except, WHOOPS, it doesn't actually define "ad hominem". Dang. I'll have to send an email.

And, of course, a personal favorite, the Domain of Patriarchy, debunking all those flaming myths about feminism - er, feminist myths! (Come on sisters, get me a great feminist debunking site as well. Something as fun as this one. Oh, it makes me cry for the boys) http://www.debunker.com/patriarchy.html

NEWS:
Just want to put in a plug here for the amazing Christian Science Monitor. http://www.csmonitor.com/ Excellent source of news, tries to keep perspective. Surprising that such reporting should come from a religious entity.

ENVIRONMENTALISM:
Hmmm. OK, let's start with this one. It's the Fostering Sustainable Development site, "Community-based social marketing draws heavily on research in social psychology which indicates that initiatives to promote behavior change are often most effective when they are carried out at the community level and involve direct contact with people. ...programs which rely heavily or exclusively on media advertising can be effective in creating public awareness and understanding of issues related to sustainability, but are limited in their ability to foster behavior change." Oh well. So much for my website changing the world. More at http://www.cbsm.com/ This is a great site for those of you who want practical advice on how to make the world a better place, so I urge you to take the time to sign in (it's free).

One stop environmental shopping - the Working Assets site. http://www.workingforchange.com/index.cfm Links to all kinds of environmental and social groups, news and suggestions of action to take. Plus it's a phone company. They have "Shop for Change" http://www.workingforchange.com/shop/index.cfm, "give for change", and "Activism" options. Great resource. A wee bit on the "left". Links you to articles such as "When Satan needs groceries he takes the SUV". It does link you to a couple of conservative sites, but marks them with the label: "The Far Side - From the Right".

Then there's FINCA, Foundation for International Community Assistance which gives small loans to people (mostly women) to start small businesses. You can reach them at www.villagebanking.org They've been voted one of the top 100 charities by Worth Magazine (who is that?), and you can find out about the other TOP ONE HUNDRED CHARITIES here.

And then, the famous Earth Architecture site! You, too, can build your own home that will last for a thousand years. All under $5000, and most of that is labor and barbed wire. Check out http://calearth.org/

EMOTIONAL HEALTH:
OK, I had a lot of books to recommend. There must be websites associated with that. Nothing comes to mind at this moment. OK, how about personality tests? Check out one of many Enneagram sites (haven't determined if it's the best) at http://www.enneagraminstitute.com/ and then, if you want to determine your type today, just rush over and click on the RHETI sampler (Free), or pay more, but that's you and your money. The URL is: http://www.enneagraminstitute.com/dis_sample_36.asp

CHRISTIANITY:
Any suggestions? There is such a large selection. So many flavors.

ISLAM:
Islam is just too much fun. As I know least about this one, I'm having the most fun looking up sites about it. Here are a few:
The Rope: http://www.ropelist.com/
The objective of this site is to "expose the falsehood in all religions including the Ahl Sunnah Wal Jemaah or Sunni, Shia'ah, Salafi, Wahabi, Tabligh Movements, Ahmadiah, the cult 19 or Millata Rashad Khalifa and other such man made inventions that is attributed to God." Purports to be Quranic. Is it heretical? How should I know. These folks are also affiliated with:

Signs International: http://members.tripod.com/Signs_Magazines/signs_maga.html
Purports to be Muslim, and free thinking. Quotes the Quran: "In the creation of the heavens and the earth, and the alternation of night and day, there are signs for those who possess intelligence; those who commemorate God." The Quran : (Ali-Imran 3:190 - 191) They go on to say: "Do not read to contradict and refute nor to believe and take it for granted, but to weigh and consider". Consider what? Well, for example, consider the suggestion (we neither confirm nor deny) of this conspiracy theory explored in an article: The Ulema (Muslim clergy) are actually the manipulated tools of Zionism! I'm shocked, shocked. Here's the link to that article: http://members.tripod.com/Signs_Magazines/issue10/ulema-zionist_tools.htm

Oh, and the Surat Al Jinn, in which the word "Ajaban" appears in the Quran, is explained in this website: http://www.nuradeen.com/Reflections/SuratAlJinn1.htm

From Pakistan, we get the incredible site which translates the Quran, line by line. For those of you catching up on their Arabic, this is a keeper. But warning, the translation is very literal. So sometimes it doesn't make much sense. http://www.etaleem.com/quran/ For a look at the Surat Al Jinn (#72) where "Ajaban" appears, go straight to http://www.etaleem.com/quran/Chapter.asp?ChapterID=72. Of course, the site is more than just the Quran. It's also a big Muslim community thing. Nicely done. Stop at: http://www.etaleem.com/ Who knew?

JUDAISM:
Any suggestions? Let's explore. There is bound to be a plethora of good ones.

BEAUTY:
OK, I'm just trying to broaden the appeal of this website. I know you're all narcissistic beauty freaks out there. Well, as we say at Ajaban, Deeper Depths, Slicker Surfaces™. You go girl. Of course, we're also about skepticism, so, even while attempting to appeal to consumers of beauty products, we still have to have some edge. Check out Paula Begoun, the Costmetics Cop - busting your myths about skincare at http://www.cosmeticscop.com/skinfacts/mythbusting.htm And then when you're done with the myths, go straight to the facts at http://www.cosmeticscop.com/skinfacts/wrinkles.htm

After that, I have some great toothpaste to sell you. Sadly, the company went bankrupt. Oh, Enamelon. Rest in peace.