ideology
clock | October 3, 2006These three are best read together, one right after another: Amanda, Dave and Pam.
clock | September 29, 2006This is so old (December 03, 2004) and so long that I did not even bother to re-read it or check the the links. I am sure the commenters will draw attention to everything that is wrong in this post...
First, here is some science, or really problems with science policy, or better still, some top-down nonsense:
Two Must Reads
http://www.chriscmooney.com/blog.asp?Id=1425
What women are supposed to want
http://pharyngula.org/index/weblog/comments/what_women_are_supposed_to_want/
On the other hand, for some nice science, the new Tangled Bank is now online:
http://penn.typepad.com/penn/2004/11/…
clock | September 28, 2006What Would Real Election Integrity Mean?
The repeated use of the Illegal Immigrant frame activates deep frames related to police protection from a criminal threat. In such a law and order frame, progressives who oppose the House bill are characterized as failing to protect the citizenry from criminals. Moreover, progressives may be painted as corrupt, seeking to win the votes of such criminals at the expense of their legitimate constituents.
Thinking Points, new Lakoff's book, is now out. You can preview and order it on the Rockridge Institute website, where you can also download Chapter1 and…
clock | September 27, 2006Agonist (via Melissa and Amanda) reports that "comma" is a dog-whistle code word that Bush used to signal to the Fundies:
The phrase is: "Never put a period where God has put a comma." Which is to say - it ain't over yet, and God may well make it better. So Iraq's bad, but if we trust in God, he'll make it better.
Mark Liberman of Language Log, after a couple of funny riffs on "comma", starts digging into the dog-whistle theory and uncovers the antcecedents here and here.
clock | September 25, 2006Pam found the link to this article from LA Times in which Rev.Jerry Falwell compares Hillary Clinton with the Devil:
"I certainly hope that Hillary is the candidate," Falwell said, according to the recording. "She has $300 million so far. But I hope she's the candidate. Because nothing will energize my [constituency] like Hillary Clinton."
Cheers and laughter filled the room as Falwell continued: "If Lucifer ran, he wouldn't."
At that moment in the recording, Falwell's voice is drowned out by hoots of approval. But two in attendance, including a Falwell staff member, confirmed that Falwell…
clock | September 22, 2006From October 09, 2004. I'd write it differently today, but the main point still stands.
Life begins, takes its course, and ends.
The course of Life determines the directionality of Time. Without Life, it would be impossible to determine which way the Time goes, what is Past and what is Future.
Every living organism dies, ashes to ashes, dust to dust, Life becomes Non-Life.
But, when does Non-Life become Life? This seems to be the key question in the discussions about abortion, stem-cell research, and other touchy political/religious topics.
Usual answers: at the time of fertilization, or 40…
clock | September 20, 2006Amanda makes a correct connection between preformationism of old and the anti-abortion ideology of today. The only thing missing is the connection of both to Dawkinsian genocentrism which is just preformationism with modern rhetoric of DNA and genes and "blueprints of life". The history of the war between epigenetics and preformationism and, within preformationism, between spermists and ovists is masterfully covered in Clara Pinto-Corriea's book Ovary of Eve.
clock | September 19, 2006Chris Clarke explains Berube's new book (yup, I am hoping to buy it one day) for the masses.
I am assuming that Chris spent quite a lot of time and effort into making this from scratch. I could have saved him some of that by mailing him some of the existing stuff I had and read as a kid. Ah, the glory of growing up in a socialist country!
[Hat-tip: Amanda]
clock | September 19, 2006This is an excerpt from the first chapter of George Lakoff's new book Thinking Points. You can read more here or download a PDF of the first chapter here.
You have heard many of these ideas before, including repeatedly on my blog, but it is nice to see them all stated succintly and collected in one place:
1. The Issue Trap
We hear it said all the time: Progressives won't unite behind any set of ideas. We all have different ideas and care about different issues. The truth is that progressives do agree at the level of values and that there is a real basis for progressive unity. Progressive…
clock | September 16, 2006Town Tells White Separatist Singers 'No Hate Here'
The girls, their mother, April, and stepfather Mark Harrington recently moved to Montana from Bakersfield, Calif., after April told "Primetime" that Bakersfield was "not white enough." Now Kalispell has put the family on notice, "Not in my backyard."
Last week a group of neighbors printed information sheets about the family and distributed them door to door.
"This letter is not written as a means to harass the family or to begin a witch hunt," the flier said. "We wish the family no harm. Our goal is to peacefully communicate that this kind of…
clock | September 15, 2006An interesting new study of religiosity in America:
One God, four views:
"Not all Americans see the powerful old man in the sky"
Really?
The authors suggest religion may most successfully motivate individuals through what it can offer them in spiritual intimacy and congregational connectivity rather than through demands backed by threats of divine punishment. Believers in an "angry" God tend to reject the idea that church and state are or can be separate, and are more likely to feel that one's religious faith is exclusively the correct path of righteousness.
Read the whole thing...
clock | September 13, 2006Sara Robinson (since yesterday a permanent co-blogger on Orcinus - congratulations!): Tunnels and Bridges, Part IV: Landing Zones
clock | September 12, 2006Why are religious people religious, in two parts: Why do religious wingnuts think the way they do? Part I and Why do religious wingnuts think the way they do? Part II
Why are creationists creationists, in three parts: Why are creationists creationist?, Why are creationists creationist? 2 - conceptual spaces and Why are creationists creationist? 3: compartments and coherence.
Why conservatives take conservative jobs and suck if sucked into liberal professions, in two parts: It takes talent to make good schlock TV and Conservatives in the classroom
clock | September 6, 2006Obligatory Readings of the Day:
Amanda: Disney emerges from the grave, demands right wing propaganda so he can stop spinning
Publius: ABOUT THAT LENIN ANALOGY
David Neiwert: Projecting fascism
Sara Robinson: Tunnels and Bridges: A Short Detour
RobertDFeinmanOvercoming the Authoritarian Personality
Archy: I break with Olbermann
clock | September 4, 2006Sterotypes, Sellouts, and Winning the Meme Wars by Sara Robinson
The Beltway Freemen by David Neiwert
Dr. Bob Has The Map by Sara Robinson
clock | September 1, 2006There has been a lot of commentary online about the Inside Higher Ed article about an UCLA primate researcher who quit his research due to being terrorised by the Animal Liberation Front (ALF), and the follow up article about the steps UCLA and other Universities are taking to ensure the safety of their faculty and staff:
The announcement by Abrams follows an upswing in activities in which UCLA professors who work with animals have been targets. In June, the Animal Liberation Front took credit for trying to put a Molotov cocktail on the doorstep of Lynn Fairbanks, a researcher who does…
clock | September 1, 2006 In light of the recent cases of researchers quitting animal research under the duress of threats and attacks by Animal Rights groups, e.g., Dr. Ringach at UCLA, this may be a good time to repost this old rant from May 23, 2005 (originally here, then reposted here on January 16, 2006):
The story about the class dissection of a dog stirred quite a lot of controversy, including heated exchanges in the comments of these two posts on Pharyngula.
I joined in late to that discussion, not because I missed it, but because I did not know what to say before I knew more about the case, and also because…
clock | August 29, 2006Mr.WD continues with his series on "Postmodern" Christianity - here is It's still that old time religion, Part III.
Sara Robinson continues her series on authoritarians: Tunnels and Bridges, Part III: A Bigger World
clock | August 27, 2006Sara Robinson is on the roll: Tunnels and Bridges, Part II: Nothing to Fear But Fear Itself