Politics
clock | February 4, 2007Alan Sokal (famous for attacking the Lefty postmodernist abuse of science in the 1990s) and Chris Mooney (famous for attacking the Republican War on Science in the 2000s) sat down and wrote an excellent article in LA Times that came out today:
Can Washington get smart about science?
The article gives a historical trajectory of the problem, how it moved from political Left to the Right and what the new Democratic Congress is doing and still can do to bring back the respect for science, or for that matter, the appreciation for reality (which, no matter what the Bushies wish, they cannot make…
evolvingthoughts | February 4, 2007
In Yet Another Example of Our Continuing Slide into Mediocrity, the UK government has slashed funds for the British Library, which is going to cut access hours and have to charge researchers. And this from a Labour government, supposedly the champion of public education and culture. Ha!
evolvingthoughts | February 3, 2007
The maker of laws should not practise disputation, but should administer justice. Nor is it fitting that he should appear to have framed the law by contention, but in an orderly manner. For the transaction of public affairs does not demand, as a reward of his labors, the clamor of theatrical applause, but the law destined for the salvation of the people. [From the Visigoth Legal Code]
evolvingthoughts | February 3, 2007
What would you say if a government kidnapped someone in a foreign country, who had by their own admission done nothing against their own country, nor broken laws in the country they were kidnapped from, nor of the country they came from, locked them up in solitary confinement for 5 years, tortured them incessantly, refused to give them independent medical treatment, access to their family, lawyers of their own choosing, and refused to charge them with any criminal acts in defiance of their own legal system and constitution? What would you call that government? Would you call them a rogue…
grrlscientist | February 3, 2007Here's a story that needs no commentary from me;
A Blue Ridge Mountains Boy Scout troop accidentally discovered Vice President Dick Cheney's "undisclosed location" last week, a press officer with Boy Scouts of America said. The troop, consisting of a Scoutmaster and 17 boys from the region who were planning to camp for the night in the heavily wooded area, reportedly found the undisclosed location while hunting for shelter during a sudden hailstorm.
"We were heading to a nice clearing near Brushy Mountain we've used before when the squall hit," Pete Pubert, Scoutmaster for the troop, said. "…
clock | February 3, 2007Global Warming threat may be even harsher than the latest UN report suggests, but the Wingnuts want to make sure we teach the kids quite the opposite. Yeesh!
oracknows | February 3, 2007Remember how often I rail against misguided laws that seek to criminalize Holocaust denial, laws such as the one in Austria under which David Irving was imprisoned? I've referred to them more than once as "stomping free speech flat," and I still believe that's what they do. I've also pointed out the danger of a potential slippery slope, an assertion for which I've been criticized, sometimes vigorously. Well, take a look at this (via the History News Network):
PEOPLE who question the official history of conflicts in Africa and the Balkans could be jailed for up to three years for "genocide…
pharyngula | February 3, 2007When will the Democrats learn? We are in an unpopular and failed war, and what a successful presidential candidate has to do is openly and uncompromisingly slam this unjust travesty and the incompetents who initiated it, yet Clinton and Edwards are enabling war fever, if not directly feeding it. Face it, war with Iran is off the table. It is not an option, unless we want to ruin our military and our economy; and the nuclear option is evil and unconscionable, and would utterly destroy our fast-fading moral standing. I wish we had a candidate who would just come out and say that.
I hate to say…
clock | February 2, 2007On Iran:
Ezra Klein gets the interview and comments on it. Breathe a deep sigh of relief.
The House:
Elizabeth explains and Jim Buie and Sam Spencer defend. Nature preserve and a Green House, not a McMansion.
Gay Marriage:
Better honest and open than wishy-washy, says the LGBT community.
clock | February 2, 2007Some politicians fear blogs. They must have something to hide, dontcha think?
Other politicians love blogs and run their own. Unsurprisingly, they are beloved by their constituencies.
pharyngula | February 2, 2007
Maybe I should plan on steering clear of the place—they do seem a little trigger-happy. The must-reads of the day are Bruce Schneier and Teresa Nielsen Hayden on the ridiculous over-reaction of the mayor and police in Boston to a trivial (if obnoxious) ad campaign.
clock | February 2, 2007...here are brief summaries of what they said and how they were received (e.g., how many standing ovations, bloopers, etc.):
DNC Winter Meeting: Chris Dodd On The Stump
DNC Winter Meeting: Barack Obama On The Stump
DNC Winter Meeting: Ret. Gen. Wes Clark
DNC Winter Meeting: Ex-Sen. John Edwards On The Stump
DNC WInter Meeting: Hillary Clinton On The Stump
purepedantry | February 2, 2007I was reading the article that is currently was on the Buzz in Scienceblogs. It is about President Bush issuing an executive order to the bureaucracy curtailing the use of guidance statements and insisting that political appointees evaluate the costs and benefits of these statements. The story was in New York Times:
In an executive order published last week in the Federal Register, Mr. Bush said that each agency must have a regulatory policy office run by a political appointee, to supervise the development of rules and documents providing guidance to regulated industries. The White House…
clock | February 2, 2007Continuing with the last week's topic (originally posted on March 11, 2005 - click on the spider-clock icon to see the comments, including by Mark O'Connell - who I subsequently met and blogged about, on the original post)
-------------------------------------------------
Last night I listened to NPR's "On Point" about adolescent sex (http://www.onpointradio.org/shows/2005/03/20050310_a_main.asp). As you may have guessed, I am interested in this topic as it can reveal something about the current fixated-on-sex femiphobic culture, as well as evolution of the institution of marriage (http://…
j7uy5 | February 2, 2007I almost wrote about this yesterday: a pair of articles indicating that
the FDA is getting more serious about protecting people:
href="http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/01/30/AR2007013001496.html">FDA
Revamps Process for Safety of Drugs After Approval
href="http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/01/30/AR2007013001388.html">FDA
to Monitor Post-Market Drug Safety
The need to bolster post-marketing surveillance has long been a sore
spot with FDA-watchers. It seemed that improvements were on the
way. Plus, it appeared to be the case, that…
clock | February 1, 2007A tale of two candidate's video distribution strategies:
These examples highlight an interesting problem for candidates: while YouTube offers tools to manage posting comments, you cannot control what content your page links to. In going to "where the people are," you leave yourself open to direct commentary from the people. Counter-commentary may be located directly beside your stumping. Contrast this to Brightcove's promise of control, an interface that does not link directly to intertextual documents. Additionally, even when you find commentary on Brightcove, it is coming from established…
clock | February 1, 2007The Way Down South: Johnny Populist & The Born Fighter:
In short, Moser's new article (part of a series on Southern Politics) debunks the myths perpetuated by the DLC and national pundits, skewering John Kerry's "anti-Southern strategy" and Thomas Schaller's "Whistling Past Dixie" and advocating a new Democratic Populism to win back not only large sections of the South (not to mention the industrial Great Lakes states).
Former NC Senator John Edwards to Walk In Our Shoes:
Edwards Is First Presidential Candidate to Accept SEIU Challenge to Spend a Day in the Life of a Working Family
---…
pharyngula | February 1, 2007Go, Al! Franken will definitely be running for Coleman's senate position in 2008. This is promising: the Republicans are already upset.
After seeing an account of Franken's calls [to DFL leaders] on the Star Tribune website, Minnesota Republican Party Chairman Ron Carey issued a statement criticizing Franken's "anger and slash-and-burn partisanship."
That's an excellent endorsement right there.
pharyngula | February 1, 2007Commenter Rheinhard worked hard to get this up last night, so how can I not promote it to more prominence, and so everyone can see the inimitable Molly Ivins?