Search this blog
Profile
Joshua Rosenau spends his days defending the teaching of evolution at the National Center for Science Education. He is also a graduate student at the University of Kansas, completing a doctorate in the department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology. When not modeling species distributions or battling creationists, he writes about developments in progressive politics and the sciences.
The opinions expressed here are his own, do not reflect the official position of the NCSE. Indeed, older posts may no longer reflect his own official position.
Sb/DonorsChoose Drive
Thanks!
Recent Posts
Recent Comments
Archives
Blogroll
Progressive Blogroll Alliance
Show PBA Blogroll
Register here to join the PBA.
January 31, 2007
Category: Policy and Politics
According to The New Yorker of 10/31/1994, Ivins made a promise to her mentor, John Henry Faulk: "I don't want you to worry about the First Amendment. I'm gonna take care of it." As Lawrence Wright observed, "Ivins finds that humor is the best weapon in the war against intolerance." And for decades she's been at the forefront of that battle, a forceful voice for a set of values too rarely represented in the media. The Texas Observer has a great remembrance of her life and work. All we can do is take on the charge she accepted those many...
Read on »
Posted by Josh Rosenau at 11:04 PM • 2 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
Category: Policy and Politics
With Kris Kobach's return to Kansas politics, the anonymous Kriswatchers have returned as well....
Read on »
Posted by Josh Rosenau at 8:57 PM • 0 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
Category: Policy and Politics
The KC Buzz Blog has a subscription to Roll Call, thus leaned that this article about Republican comeback kids is down on Ryun. While "the National Republican Congressional Committee is prepared to back any former Member who gives the GOP its best chance of reclaiming seats the Democrats won last year," an unnamed strategist reveals that "Ryun falls into the question mark category." The other candidate that seems to be making headlines is state Treasurer Lynn Jenkins. The Buzz Blog says she is "a campaign dynamo," but others have noted that "Lynn Jenkins hasn't ever defeated an incumbent in a...
Read on »
Posted by Josh Rosenau at 3:50 PM • 4 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
January 30, 2007
Category: Policy and Politics
I like to joke that in Kansas, biology is political science. Even when I'm doing job interviews outside of this grand state, people usually get the joke, or need only slight prompting to get it. I take this to be a sad commentary on the state of politics in Kansas. There is no doubt that the discovery of Tikaalik plays into political battles over creationism in schools. I have even less doubt that the discoverers of that "fishapod" would still have been just as excited by that discovery without the political issues. It's a fascinating discovery, as are the results...
Read on »
Posted by Josh Rosenau at 4:26 PM • 0 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
Category: Policy and Politics
Via Uncertain Principles, we learn that dangerous terrorist Robert Weiler has pled guilty. So far as we know, the guilty plea is not the result of torture, illegal warrantless wiretapping, invasion of randomly chosen countries, denial of habeas corpus, or any other of the many sacrifices we've been asked to make on behalf of the War on Brown People Terror™. United States Attorney Rod J. Rosenstein explains, "Mr. Weiler's misguided plan to murder doctors and bomb an abortion clinic could have resulted in deaths or serious injuries. Outstanding investigative work by ATF, the Maryland State Police and the Prince George's...
Read on »
Posted by Josh Rosenau at 11:31 AM • 1 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
January 29, 2007
Category: Policy and Politics
The Nuclear Regulatory Commission, after dealing with patients who get busted by portable nuclear detectors after getting medical procedures with radioactive materials, they've decided defending nuclear plants against aerial assault is impractical: The new defense plan -- most of which is classified -- offers provisions related to "multiple, coordinated groups of attackers, suicide attacks and cyber threats," the agency said in a statement that provided few details. But plant operators should not be expected to protect their reactors against a "deliberate hit by a large aircraft," the NRC said. The agency suggested that would be unreasonable because "the active protection...
Read on »
Posted by Josh Rosenau at 5:59 PM • 3 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
Category: Policy and Politics
Energy policy is one of those nerdy things that no one pays attention to until it starts to go wrong. And that's where we stand today. Electricity demand continues to rise, as documented by this report by the Energy Information Administration. And most of that electricity is generated by coal plants. This is bad, because burning coal causes climate change. Burning coal releases more pollutants than other fossil fuels, as well. The advantage of coal is that the United States has a lot of it. We are, as people like to say, the Saudi Arabia of coal. Unfortunately, mining that...
Read on »
Posted by Josh Rosenau at 3:03 PM • 0 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
Category: Chatter
Every few weeks, we gather the finest of Kansan and Kansas related bloggery. This week, a series of recipes. Modern science: Drop an apple on Isaac Newton, wait until he realizes that the laws of nature apply to the whole universe. Use those laws to fly missions around the Moon, as described by Paul Decelles, and to produce cover art for one of rock's greatest albums. Brussels Cockaigne: Wash and cut in half a dozen of honorary Kansan Bill Farrell's brussels sprouts. In a skillet, brown a couple cloves of garlic in a couple tablespoons of butter and an equal...
Read on »
Posted by Josh Rosenau at 2:14 PM • 0 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
Category: Policy and Politics
Pat Roberts has been putting together another campaign for Senate. He's given up his seats on the Intelligence Committee and the Armed Services Committee in exchange for more pork-filled seats, apparently worried that a resurgent Kansas Democratic Party might remember to run someone against him this time around. With no major party opponent in 2002, he managed to get 83% of the vote, and a Democratic challenger could well give him a run for his money. Pat Roberts has hurt himself by defending an unconstitutional wiretapping program, by bragging about his memory problems and by being Dick Cheney's puppet on...
Read on »
Posted by Josh Rosenau at 9:13 AM • 0 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
January 28, 2007
Category: Culture Wars
Cato defends children's liberty to be wrong. This is not the first time that Andrew Coulson has advanced this line of argument. Essentially, his claim is that the only way to end the wars over creationism would be to let children learn whatever they want in schools that their parents pay with other people's tax dollars. Doing otherwise, he insists, would be "illiberal, undemocratic, divisive, ineffective, and counter-productive." That "someone who agrees wholeheartedly that a natural process of evolution is the best explanation of how human beings came to be" finds this argument compelling is very odd, and his consistent...
Read on »
Posted by Josh Rosenau at 8:43 PM • 17 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
