Poor Mitt: He Sacrifices Gay Children...
and conservatives still don't like him.
Posted by Mike at 5:29 PM • 3 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
Mike the Mad Biologist
Mad rantings about politics, evolution, and microbiology
Search this blog
Profile
Mad rantings about politics, evolution, and microbiology. Comment policy: say what you want, but back it up with an email address. I don't like anonymous trolls.
Recent Posts
- Amanda: "I Love Vaccines"
- Thing You Don't Expect to Hear in Boston
- Influenza and Money
- Photo Contest: What's Your Workbench Look Like?
- SUVs: Not Schadenfreude, but Accountability
- Tristero: It's Not the Politics, It's the Collection Plate
- One Quibble with (One of) Angry Bear's Rules for Discussing Climate
- How to Buy 'Liberal' Media Pundits
- Creationism and Molecular Evolution
- The Silly Distinction Between CA-MRSA and HA-MRSA
Donors Choose Drive
Thanks!
Recent Comments
- Amanda Marcotte on Amanda: "I Love Vaccines"
- Felstatsu on Amanda: "I Love Vaccines"
- phisrow on Amanda: "I Love Vaccines"
- Esteleth on Amanda: "I Love Vaccines"
- Mark on Amanda: "I Love Vaccines"
- Felstatsu on Amanda: "I Love Vaccines"
- Robert Ward on Amanda: "I Love Vaccines"
- drdrA on Thing You Don't Expect to Hear in Boston
- Esteleth on Amanda: "I Love Vaccines"
- Brandee Mcdougal on Pandas or Wombats?
Archives
- May 2008
- April 2008
- March 2008
- February 2008
- January 2008
- December 2007
- November 2007
- October 2007
- September 2007
- August 2007
- July 2007
- June 2007
- May 2007
- April 2007
- March 2007
- February 2007
- January 2007
- December 2006
- November 2006
- October 2006
- September 2006
- August 2006
- July 2006
- June 2006
Blogroll
- All The World's A Stage, Act For Change
- MyDD
- Chris Mooney
- Thoughts from Kansas
- Pharyngula
- The Public Trust
- Keats' telescope
- Laughing Wild
- groupThink
- Dancing in the Divine
- Craig's Thoughts, Theories, and Tantrums
- media in trouble
- Neo Commons
- MajikThise
- Living the Scientific Life
- YoungFemaleScientist
- Respectful Insolence
- Everyone Loves Hedgical Trevor
- Salon.com
- The Gazetteer
- Nameless Rantings
- dadahead
- She Flies with Her Own Wings
- A Pondering of Fools
- Henry's Webiocosm Blog
- Jon Swift
- Divine Afflatus
- cannablog
- Independent Bloggers' Alliance
- The Thermal Vent
- The Burned Over District
- Mixter's Mix
- Lab Cat
- If I Ran the Zoo
- Rev. BigDumbChimp
- ... ponderings of a fool
- Drinking Liberally in New Milford
- Scientia Natura: Evolution and Rationality
- Middle Raged Punk
- Primordial Blog
- ... ponderings of a fool
- SuportVaccination.Org
- Aetiology
- Big Brass Blog
- driftglass
- Battlepanda
- Pandagon
- skippy the bush kangaroo
- The Scientific Activist
- Deep Weeds
- The Corpus Callosum
- Complex Medium
- This Human Project
- Left in the Heartland
- A Mind Occasionally Voyaging
- Nice Shoes, Wanna Fock?
- Societas
- Skeptico
- Tied To the Tenure Tracks
- The Raven's Gazette
- Studying Biology and Environmental Science
- postgenomic
- Welcome to Shakesville
- Military Religious Freedom Foundation Blog
- Mad Melancholic Feminista
- ¡Viva La Evolución!
- comment is free...
- Melissa McEwan
- Marisacat
- The Panda's Thumb
- King of Zembla
- are you effin' kidding me?
- Eccentricity
- A Concerned Scientist
- Utenzi Blog
- Graphic Truth
- Universal Acid
- Scriptoids
- phronesisaical
- Muton
- A Beginner's Mind
- Altair4 Redux
- PSoTD
- Liberal Street Fighter
- Jon Swift
- Tangled Up in Blue Guy
- Sorting Out Science
- The force that through...
- jobsanger
- no fish, no nuts
- The Barefoot Bum
- ywut
- miriam's ideas
- decrepitoldfool
- Philosophers' Playground
- Yhetti
- Endosymbiosis
- The Crone Speaks
- blue collar scientist
- Crinch Pin
- Moue Magazine
- Balls and Walnuts
- over the cliff, onto the rocks
- Argue With Everyone
- Passing Afternoon
- Centerface! Adventures in Post-Democracy
- La Casa de Los Gatos
- CultureVultures
- Lance Mannion
Science Links
These links do not indicate support of this blog's statements by these groups
January 31, 2008
I Don't Deserve This Government, but...
the morons at Bucky's Family Restaurant do.
Posted by Mike at 9:33 AM • 17 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
January 30, 2008
And Republicans Wonder Why They Don't Fare Well Among Women
Conservative blogger Ben Domenech demonstrates why in an imaginary speech for Fred Thompson's withdrawal announcement.
Posted by Mike at 5:36 PM • 10 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
Edwards Is Out
Category: Democrats
I guess I won't be voting for him on Tuesday.
Posted by Mike at 11:59 AM • 3 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
Not Everyone Is Losing Out in the Housing Market
New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady is doing just fine.
Posted by Mike at 9:29 AM • 0 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
January 29, 2008
Superdelegates Are Stupid and Aravosis Can't Do Arithmetic
The twenty percent of unelected Democratic convention delegates known as superdelegates is an undemocratic idea.
Posted by Mike at 5:01 PM • 5 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
The Bizarre Frontiers of Racism: 'Canadian' as a Slur of African-American
Because why offend one group of people, when you can offend two at the same time?
Posted by Mike at 12:11 PM • 11 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
What the NY Times Presidential Endorsements Say About the Traditional Media
If you're like most sentient humans, you don't care whom the NY Times editorial board decided to endorse for president. But the 'logic' behind the endorsement of Clinton is revealing. The Mandarin Class still doesn't get it.
Posted by Mike at 9:37 AM • 3 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
January 28, 2008
A Federal Agency More Stupid Than the Office of Human Research Protections
Say hello to the Office on National Drug Control Policy and to faith-based drug overdose prevention.
Posted by Mike at 5:21 PM • 5 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
'Hopeful Monsters': Nothing in Evolution Makes Sense Except in the Light of E. coli (and Shigella)
Bacterial evolution muddies up the water.
Posted by Mike at 10:37 AM • 4 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
January 27, 2008
Bush: Methodist Preacher or Horse Thief?
Category: Art History
Bush demonstrates why art education is important.
Posted by Mike at 5:23 PM • 8 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
This Is Why I Left Long Island
Race is going to an issue in the 2008 elections, definitely.
Posted by Mike at 1:12 PM • 6 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
January 26, 2008
Senator Kennedy Writes the Mad Biologist
So I wrote Senator Kennedy (and Senator Kerry) an email about the upcoming FISA/retroactive immunity legislation. Here's his response.
Posted by Mike at 4:27 PM • 3 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
The Morality of Walking Away: How Deregulation Hurts a Conservative Ethos
You're a sucker if you do play by those 'old' rules of thrift and prudent spending.
Posted by Mike at 11:03 AM • 2 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
Senator Obama, Enough with the Fuzzy Wuzzy Talk
I don't want "hope", I want good policies, politics, and results. Obama demonstrates exactly how not to argue against Republican militarism.
Posted by Mike at 10:01 AM • 3 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
January 25, 2008
Yersinia pestis and the Black Death
Category: Yersinia
Did Yersinia pestis cause the Black Death? ScienceBlogling Tara says yes.
Posted by Mike at 12:48 PM • 0 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
Beijing Olympics: Don't Breath the Air?
Category: Environment
Some people erroneously, since the U.S. water supply system is actually cleaner than most bottled waters, buy bottled water to avoid contaminated water. Unfortunately, there's no way to buy bottled air. And in Beijing, air pollution is a real threat.
Posted by Mike at 9:38 AM • 5 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
January 24, 2008
Five Simple Steps to Cutting Nosocomial Deaths
A couple of weeks back I posted about the Office of Human Research Protections' shutting down a highly effective infection control program. Here's the list of the five things the hospitals used to combat hospital-acquired infections
Posted by Mike at 5:37 PM • 4 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
The Big Two Dems Display the Quality of Leadership-iness
If you think that preventing retroactivity immunity for the telcos is a good thing, you might expect political candidates to demonstrate leadership by filibustering the bill.
Posted by Mike at 10:21 AM • 1 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
January 23, 2008
What's Your News IQ?
Category: Stupid Internet Quiz
Unlike most internet quizes, here's one that seems designed not to be ridiculous.
Posted by Mike at 5:53 PM • 11 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
Anti-Vax Idiocy Gets Mainstreamed by ABC TV
I'm posting about this because I want Orac's head to explode.
Posted by Mike at 1:05 PM • 4 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
Creationists Are TEH STUPID: The Natural Experiment Edition
If creationists are going to be stupid, couldn't they at least be creative about it? Once again, they misunderstand the potential and limits of experimentation.
Posted by Mike at 10:18 AM • 0 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
January 22, 2008
Some (Relatively) Good News About Piggies and Resistant Bacteria
An epidemic strain of MRSA doesn't survive very well in the food chain.
Posted by Mike at 5:36 PM • 0 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
Time Magazine: One Out of Five Iraq War Veterans Has Experienced Brain Trauma
Time magazine, Time will run with a story claiming that twenty percent of Iraq War veterans have suffered brain trauma.
Posted by Mike at 12:01 PM • 1 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
Rabies, Annual Influenza, and Low Hanging Fruit
Eliminating rabies and greatly reducing influenza deaths could be done. Yet we do nothing.
Posted by Mike at 10:49 AM • 2 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
Stock Markets Tank...Everywhere
Category: Economics
It takes real skill to simultaneously screw up munies and the stock market.
Posted by Mike at 8:30 AM • 3 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
January 21, 2008
Why Are Investment Banks Laying Off Employees?
You're probably aware that major banks and investment firms have taken huge financial hits. As a result, they are laying off thousands of workers. This puzzles me.
Posted by Mike at 5:50 PM • 5 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
Feral Pigs, Spinach, and E. coli O157:H7
According to a recent article, the explanation for the contaminated spinach just got a lot more complicated. And LOLFeral Pigs too.
Posted by Mike at 1:39 PM • 9 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
Martin Luther King: "All Labor Has Worth"
Category: Basic Human Decency
What is forgotten--often willfully--is that King was an advocate for economic justice.
Posted by Mike at 9:52 AM • 2 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
January 20, 2008
Municipal Bonds Hurt by 'Subprime' Loan Crisis
Category: Big Shitpile
That bond issue to build a new school or road just became more expensive. Say hello to higher property and sales taxes or cuts in services.
Posted by Mike at 5:32 PM • 2 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
I Told You Edwards and Clinton Were Competing for the Same Electorate
Never underestimate the power of cognitive dissonance.
Posted by Mike at 10:48 AM • 1 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
January 19, 2008
What Really Going on with Interest Rates and Inflation
Category: Economics
Physioprof simplifies it for us.
Posted by Mike at 5:17 PM • 6 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
Abortion and the First Amendment
I happy to see that others are coming around to the idea that the abortion debate is ultimately about the establishment of religion.
Posted by Mike at 10:30 AM • 7 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
January 18, 2008
States' Rights: Amanda Speak, You Listen!
Amanda Marcotte reminds us of the origin of the states' rights claim.
Posted by Mike at 10:34 AM • 9 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
Guilt, Neocons, and the Swing to the Israeli Right
"[Irving] Kristol, then a 24-year-old Trotskyist, held fast to his conviction that the Allies were no different from the Axis in their imperialism." That explains a lot.
Posted by Mike at 9:46 AM • 7 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
January 17, 2008
Women Who Have Abortions Are Mothers
61% of women who have abortions already have children. So much for the 'irresponsible slut' propaganda.
Posted by Mike at 5:52 PM • 14 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
Dems: Romney Is Our Worst Nightmare
Other than Atrios, I'm the only one who thinks Romney would be the hardest Republican for Democrats to beat. Here's why.
Posted by Mike at 10:11 AM • 6 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
January 16, 2008
Rep. Bachmann: Take Your Two Jobs and Shove It (or Is It Them?)
Rep. Michelle Bachmann (MN) is trying to prove that she is more stupid than the congressman who thought we could eliminate the National Weather Service because the Weather Channel had it covered.
Posted by Mike at 6:12 PM • 2 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
A Nation of Nine-Eleven Ninnies
Tens of millions of U.S. residents believe that they could be the victims of a terrorist attack.
Posted by Mike at 6:03 PM • 9 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
New MRSA Strain Spreading Among Gay Men
One of the depressing things about the ascendancy of the Christopaths is that they hate any public health interventions that involves gay people. In the case of antibiotic resistance, that's not only evil, but it's also stupid.
Posted by Mike at 2:45 PM • 4 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
Evolution as Policy, Not Symbolism or Critical Thinking
Did you really need to know Huckabee's position on evolution to realize he's a lunatic? Biologists need to stop selling evolution short: evolution is critical for improving human health and combating infectious disease. It's not an indicator, but a good in its own right.
Posted by Mike at 9:47 AM • 1 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
January 15, 2008
Where I Fall on the Electoral Compass
Category: Stupid Internet Quiz
Inspired by ScienceBlogling Razib, I wanted to see where I fell on the Electoral Compass. Not too surprising.
Posted by Mike at 4:49 PM • 6 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
John Aravosis' War Against the Poor
Not only is it stupid to blame the poor for the home mortgage scandal, what is going on with so-called progressive John Aravosis' anger at helping the poor?
Posted by Mike at 10:28 AM • 6 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
January 14, 2008
Needed: News Reports That Use the Words Alleles and Genes
Category: Genetics
If the word allele were used, it would make stories easier to understand and the reader more informed about biology.
Posted by Mike at 4:53 PM • 3 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
Romney's Assisted Suicide Plan: The Gay Teen Suicide Edition
Certain political acts are beyond the pale, such as cutting a teen suicide hotline. Unless they're gay, then it's called positioning.
Posted by Mike at 10:38 AM • 3 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
Is Bisphenol A Responsible for Obesity?
Category: Obesity
Bisphenol A levels lower than those found in 93% of people led to obesity in mice.
Posted by Mike at 8:56 AM • 2 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
January 13, 2008
Like the Mighty River Jordan*...
Category: Bloggity Blog
the blogs keep rolling on. More Blogroll Amnesty Day.
Posted by Mike at 4:18 PM • 9 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
Maybe There's a Simpler Explanation for the Failings of the Traditional News Media
TEH STUPID.
Posted by Mike at 10:38 AM • 4 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
January 12, 2008
Great Map Exhibit at the Boston Public Library
Category: Maps
Whether or not you like maps, if you're in Boston, you should see this exhibit.
Posted by Mike at 1:30 PM • 0 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
How Does Dan Balz Know What 'Democrats' Think?
Once again, someone in the traditional media is projecting their personal opinion onto millions of people without any evidence. This is how bullshit political narratives are made. And that kills democracy.
Posted by Mike at 10:38 AM • 3 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
January 11, 2008
Income Taxes and Speculative Bubbles
The connection between personal economic incentives and corporate behavior.
Posted by Mike at 4:21 PM • 1 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
Creationism and Goldberg's Liberal Fascism: One and the Same
Neiwert: "[I]t selects a narrow band of often unrepresentative facts, distorts their meaning, and simultaneously elides and ignores whole mountains of contravening evidence and broader context."
Posted by Mike at 10:41 AM • 0 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
'Defending' Freedom Isn't Free, Particularly When Wiretappers Don't Pay Their Bills
The sound you're hearing is the heads of everyone who cares about civil liberties going BOOM!
Posted by Mike at 8:37 AM • 4 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
January 10, 2008
Push 'Focus-Grouping'?
You might have heard of push polling. But now there is 'push focus grouping', which is another way of saying televised propaganda.
Posted by Mike at 4:21 PM • 0 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
A Case Study in Pundit Over-Analysis
Here's one example, brought to you by Frank Rich, of how writing political narratives instead of discussing data leads to unsupported conclusions.
Posted by Mike at 10:05 AM • 2 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
January 9, 2008
An Air Car?
No, I'm not referring to the Jetsons.
Posted by Mike at 7:49 PM • 1 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
Girly Versus Manly
A tale of two video political clips.
Posted by Mike at 4:29 PM • 4 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
Ayala on Religion and Science
Francisco Ayala in the most recent edition of The Proceedings of the National Academy of Science makes a good distinction between religion and science.
Posted by Mike at 12:09 PM • 1 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
Where I Disagree with Orac About OHRP
Do I think that Bush or Cheney (or their minions) sit around thinking about how to kill effective public health interventions? Of course not (really). But one of the Republican core issues is opposition to government regulation and bureaucracy, often referred to as "the Nanny State."
Posted by Mike at 10:38 AM • 0 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
Some Follow Up on Last Night's Primary Post
I'm not sure why people are shocked by last night's results; it wasn't that surprising, except for one thing: it was Clinton and Edwards who were competing for the same pool of voters, not Obama and Edwards.
Posted by Mike at 8:56 AM • 0 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
January 8, 2008
I Told You That Counting on Younger Voters Would Be a Problem
Category: Voting
Where's da yoot'?
Posted by Mike at 9:07 PM • 5 Comments • 0 TrackBacks