Words Like Locusts Flew From Her Fingers

The Sleeper Awakes

Dan Froomkin – Cheney: Neither Here Nor There? – washingtonpost.com

[Glenn] Greenwald writes [in his new book, A Tragic Legacy: How a Good vs. Evil Mentality Destroyed the Bush Presidency]: “[T]he great and tragic irony of the Bush presidency is that its morally convicted foundations have yielded some of the most morally grotesque acts and radical departures from American values in our country’s history. The president who insists that he is driven by a clear and compelling moral framework, in which the forces of Good and Evil battle toward a decisive resolution, has done more than almost any American in history to make the world question on which side of that battle this country is fighting. The more convinced President Bush and his followers become of the unchallengeable righteousness of their cause, the fewer limits they recognize. And America’s moral standing in the world, and our national character, continue to erode to previously unthinkable depths.”

And yet, amazingly, sickeningly, frighteningly, a great many people in this country simply don’t see it!

How can that be?

I swear, sometimes it feels like being the only wide-awake person in a room full of sleep-walkers. It’s very hard to understand what causes this sort of thing. It’s got to be more than just stupidity or willful ignorance. Doesn’t it? I’m thinking there’s got to be a sociological explanation — something to do with people falling back on simplistic explanations about how the world works because they feel unsettled and uncertain about their place in our rapidly changing culture.

Well, whatever the explanation, this is one of Dan Froomkin’s best blog entries ever. It’s chock full of interesting tidbits — from how Cheney’s office tried to simply eliminate the jobs of the people in the National Archives who were charged with inspecting his records, to Rolling Stone magazine’s recent article about how Exxon got the Bush administration to fire a bunch of the scientists who were part of the Office of Science and Technology Policy — presumably because they were talking up that whole “global warming” thing a bit too much for Exxon’s taste.

Excellent, excellent effort on Froomkin’s part here. A fine collection of fascinating info-bits. Read it.

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“The Sleeper Awakes” is a reference to a very famous science fiction book, by the way. Who can name it?

Earth Without Humans

An Earth Without People — [ environment ]: Scientific American
It’s a common fantasy to imagine that you’re the last person left alive on earth. But what if all human beings were suddenly whisked off the planet? That premise is the starting point for The World without Us, a new book by science writer Alan Weisman, an associate professor of journalism at the University of Arizona. In this extended thought experiment, Weisman does not specify exactly what finishes off Homo sapiens; instead he simply assumes the abrupt disappearance of our species and projects the sequence of events that would most likely occur in the years, decades and centuries afterward.

Ooooo! This is VERY VERY COOL!

I fantasize fairly often about being not the LAST person on earth but, rather, being among a small group of spunky survivors.

I had no idea it’s a common fantasy, as Scientific American claims. In fact — I’d like to know what they base that claim on. I would imagine, considering how true introversion is a relatively uncommon personality trait, that the majority of people would NOT fantasize about being the last person on earth. I would imagine that the majority of people would find the whole idea somewhat disturbing.

Well… I digress. Whether it’s a common fantasy or not — and I suspect it’s actually NOT — it is a fantasy I regularly enjoy.

I’ve often noticed how really persistent life is! Even down in the subway tunnels, there are small plants growing. In the cracks of the busiest highways you’ll find them! Small animals exist in the most inhospitable conditions! It’s a wonderful thing. Life wants to BE on this planet!! I’ve understood for a very long time that if all — or even just most — humans were to disappear, plants would very quickly take over in lots of places. Even in the middle of big cities. Small animals would proliferate and, with them, the larger animals who prey upon them. It would be a glorious thing! Life! And no more humans to screw up the planet!

Aaaahhh!

You need to read this entire article on the Scientific American web site AND watch the cool little video they’ve got describing how a big city like New York would change if all the humans disappeared. They’ve also got a really neat interactive timeline describing how the earth without humans would change over the course of 5 billion years.

Made In China

I wonder whether the day will come — maybe sooner than even I imagine — where everything we eat and wear will have been imported from China.

I’m envisioning a Matrix-like world where Americans are the blobs of human meat hooked up to the big energy-generating machine, being fed happy dreams of success and comfort while the Chinese play the part of the alien spider creatures.

Sorry, Chinese people. I don’t really think of you as spider creatures. I’m sure you’re very nice and you certainly have every right to use the apparently unquenchable thirst of Americans for stuff to build the wealth of your nation. After all, we’ve never hesitated to use you — and dozens of other “developing” countries — in the exact same way.

Still, as an American, I have to wonder what would happen if for some reason the folks in China decided they no longer wanted to send us stuff. We’ve grown awfully dependent on your cheap dog food and electronics and clothes. Do we even have the factories capable of producing those kinds of things here in the US anymore??

I’ve said in the past that I planned to keep buying Chinese stuff because I figured international market forces would eventually straighten out any quality problems or concerns with how Chinese workers are treated. This morning, though… I’m seeing this whole issue in a different way. Consider what’s happened as the United States has grown more and more dependent on cheap foreign oil. (Put aside for the moment the havoc oil has wrought on our environment.) Isn’t it really foolish for us to rely so heavily on other countries for anything we need? Wouldn’t we really be so much better off if we were producing most of this stuff here at home? Sure, we’d be paying more for it — but there would be more jobs for unskilled workers.

I’m in favor of helping the Chinese — I really am. But maybe, instead of selling their stuff to US, they’d be better off too if they’d concentrate more of their efforts on improving the quality of life for all the Chinese people throughout their country.

For what it’s worth, I do realize it’s not as simple as all this — and I’d be the last person to claim I’ve got anything like a sophisticated understanding of international trade. It’s just a feeling I’m getting, though, and over the years I’ve learned to trust my instincts on this kind of thing.

It’s going to turn out that relying so heavily on Chinese goods is a HUGE mistake.

Pope Benedict Releases “Guidelines for the Pastoral Care of the Road”

Driver’s “Ten Commandments”
I. You shall not kill.

II. The road shall be for you a means of communion between people and not of mortal harm.

III. Courtesy, uprightness and prudence will help you deal with unforeseen events.

IV. Be charitable and help your neighbour in need, especially victims of accidents.

V. Cars shall not be for you an expression of power and domination, and an occasion of sin.

VI. Charitably convince the young and not so young not to drive when they are not in a fitting condition to do so.

VII. Support the families of accident victims.

VIII. Bring guilty motorists and their victims together, at the appropriate time, so that they can undergo the liberating experience of forgiveness.

IX. On the road, protect the more vulnerable party.

X. Feel responsible towards others.

The Holy Father also recommends that we make the sign of the cross before setting out on any journey.

I have to admit that this afternoon when a teenager in the car behind me decided it would be amusing to tailgate me at 60 miles an hour and I decided it would be a good idea to reduce my speed to 50 miles an hour (the legal limit on that road anyway), I did have a special gesture for the driver as he pulled around to pass me.

It wasn’t the sign of the cross, but the other drive graciously returned the gesture. I went on my way knowing I was in the right. For whatever that’s worth.

Trojan Condom Ad Rejected by CBS and FOX

Pure Pedantry : FOX and CBS reject Trojan condom commercial

Boooo, I say!

FOX and CBS have rejected a commercial for Trojan condoms on the grounds that they believed the ads stressed pregnancy prevention over disease prevention. From the NYTimes coverage:

“Fox and CBS both rejected the commercial. Both had accepted Trojan’s previous campaign, which urged condom use because of the possibility that a partner might be H.I.V.-positive, perhaps unknowingly. A 2001 report about condom advertising by the Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation found that, “Some networks draw a strong line between messages about disease prevention — which may be allowed — and those about pregnancy prevention, which may be considered controversial for religious and moral reasons.”"

Boo say I, too!!!

And yet these same networks have no problem airing shows like CSI (one of the goriest and most violent shows I’ve ever seen) and 24. I guess “religious and moral” sensibilities only apply to fucking — not to killing. Grrrr. What a completely screwed up country we live in, folks.

Happily, you can see the commercial on YouTube. It’s really well done. It’s funny and it makes an important point. Here, you can watch it for yourself.

Travolta on Psychiatry

Travolta Echoes Cruise on Psychiatry – washingtonpost.com
“I don’t want to create controversy; I just have an opinion on things, and there is nothing wrong with stating your opinion if you are asked,” he continues. “Everyone wants that right, and because you are famous doesn’t mean you have less of a right.”

Indeed. John Travolta has as much right to state his opinion as anyone else. Just as I’m fully entitled to state my opinion that, although he’s always struck me as someone who’s probably at heart a pretty nice guy, Travolta is — alas — as much an idiot as Tom Cruise is when it comes to psychiatry.

Blaming school violence on psych drugs is simply a willful ignorance of history and of co-existent factors.

• There has been violence and mental illness for as long as people have been keeping track of these things — long before psychiatric drugs or psychiatry itself were ever even conceived. Back in the old days, they used to call it “being possessed by demons”. Intelligent people have moved far beyond that sort of naivete but, sadly enough, Scientology (Travolta is a member) still subscribes to a version of the “possessed by demons” explanation.
• In the past 30 years there has been a huge increase in the amount of violence children are exposed to. Violence in television dramas, violence in computer games, violence in the news. At the same time, parents are spending less time with their children because very often both parents work. You do the math, folks: [increasing exposure to violence] + [decreasing parental supervision] = ?? Answer: more kids with mental health problems who are more likely to use violence to express themselves.

There’s been an increase in the number of kids who are diagnosed with psychiatric problems for two reasons. First, we’re better at recognizing the problems earlier on. Second, there simply are more kids with these problems — for the reasons described above. Psych drugs work well for most people and that’s why they’re prescribed. Concluding that psych drugs cause violence, though… frankly, that just demonstrates an inability to think rationally about a complex subject.

The Unbearable Burden of Chit-Chat

Caring for Your Introvert
With their endless appetite for talk and attention, extroverts also dominate social life, so they tend to set expectations. In our extrovertist society, being outgoing is considered normal and therefore desirable, a mark of happiness, confidence, leadership. Extroverts are seen as bighearted, vibrant, warm, empathic. “People person” is a compliment. Introverts are described with words like “guarded,” “loner,” “reserved,” “taciturn,” “self-contained,” “private”—narrow, ungenerous words, words that suggest emotional parsimony and smallness of personality. Female introverts, I suspect, must suffer especially. In certain circles, particularly in the Midwest, a man can still sometimes get away with being what they used to call a strong and silent type; introverted women, lacking that alternative, are even more likely than men to be perceived as timid, withdrawn, haughty.

I can’t believe I’ve never linked to this wonderful essay before. It seems I must have, but I can’t find where I did, so… here it is. The first time I read Jonathan Rauch’s piece in The Atlantic, it was like emerging into the sunlight after having spent too long in the dark. At last! Someone who understands!!

The topic of introversion versus extroversion came up just recently when I was complaining to a friend about the excessive chattiness of some of the people with whom I make music. Understand, these aren’t bad people — just very chatty. And it drives me crazy. I’m regularly reminded by my spouse and by my friend that, for lots of people, playing in a musical ensemble is as much about socializing as it is about the music. I understand that — in an abstract way — but it doesn’t make it any less maddening for me. I’m an introvert and I’m fairly focused and when I want to play music I want to play music. The yacketa-yacketa-yacketa-yacketa-yacking between pieces drives me CRAZY!!!!

Shut up! SHUT UP!! SHUT UP!!!!!

Glaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaarrrrrrrrrggggggghhhhhhhh!!!!!!!!!!

Whew. Okay. I’m calm now.

Food Stamp Budget

Sally Squires – How Far Can Your Dollar Stretch? – washingtonpost.com
In short, eating on a food stamp budget was challenging, but not as difficult as some members of Congress might think.

Exactly as I’ve pointed out in the past.

Not only can a person on a tight budget eat well in terms of their food being delicious, they can also eat MUCH healthier than most people who spend a whole lot more money.

Example: This morning’s breakfast consisted of a cup of organic mixed vegetables (bought frozen, nuked for 2 minutes in the microwave), a cup of basmati rice left over from another recipe I made yesterday, a few shakes of some organic no-salt seasoning stuff, and about 1/4 cup almond slivers — all stir fried in a little bit of olive oil. It was fabulous. And it was CHEAP. The veggies were purchased at CostCo — a 5 pound bag of them was some absurdly low price. Less than 10 bucks, I’m sure. The rice I also bought in bulk at a warehouse store several years ago. (I bought 20 pounds and am only now finally finishing it off.) The organic no-salt seasoning was also purchased at CostCo. I got a big jug of it for something like 6 bucks and it’s really delicious. It’s got little bits of dehydrated veggie, some herbs, some pepper… Mmm.

Healthy. Yummy. Cheap. What more could you want?

Yes, it takes extra time to make food like this — but if you cook big quantities on the weekends, you’ll have delicious leftovers to eat all weak!

Cancer Cover-Up In Minnesota

Effect Measure
If you’ve ever been [to] Duluth, Minnesota in the wintertime, at the top of the state on Lake Superior, you know how cold it can get. And if you go another 50 miles up the shore you’ll come to Silver Bay. Also cold. And dangerous in another way. It is a cancer hot spot for perhaps the deadliest cancer we know, mesothelioma.

Well. This is quite the story. It turns out the Minnesota Department of Public Health has known about this cancer risk since 2006 and the State Health Commissioner, Dianne Mandernach, tried to keep it under wraps.

Even if the Department wasn’t completely persuaded that there was a link between taconite mining and mesothelioma, they should have released this information as soon as they learned of it — perhaps with a carefully worded disclaimer that additional study was needed. To leave hundreds of miners at risk the way they did is really unconscionable.

Looking at Ms Mandernach’s employment and educational background (on the state web site link to her name above), I can’t help but wonder how someone with apparently NO public health experience got a job as Minnesota Commissioner of Health. She’s a political appointee — appointed by Minnesota’s Republican governor, Tim Pawlenty. All I can figure is that somebody owed somebody else a BIG favor. If you’ve never been to northern Minnesota, let me just clue you in that Moose Lake is hardly a metropolis. So, being the CEO of a hospital in Moose Lake wouldn’t typically be considered sufficient preparation for running the Public Health Department of an entire state. Jeez… I mean, what kind of public health challenges must Ms Mandernach have encountered in Moose Lake? Five separate guys who’ve accidentally impaled themselves with their own fish hooks all in a single day?

It has to be said: Heckuva a job, Mandy!

Tough Titty Said The Kitty

Confessions of a Gay Male Feminist: Pornography or Abstinence
Although I agree that young children shouldn’t being trying to emulate adults (which is a belief also existing on the social construct that children shouldn’t be sexual), we have given them only two alternatives to explore their sexuality: Pornography or Abstinence. We decry their desire to mimic what they are exposed to, yet, parents and schools enforce a notion of abstinence-only-until-marriage. There is no safe, respected middle ground that adolescents are encouraged to explore as their bodies grow and their libidos increase. And given the choice between sexual freedom and a youth free from sexual exploration, I certainly would prefer the former.

My online friend, Matt, turned me on to this web site and this particular post. Thanks, Matt!

Pornography, yes… hm. Well, I think, first of all, we need to distinguish between pornography and public sluttiness. When pop stars dress provocatively and gyrate around on stage in a sexually suggestive way, that I call sluttiness. And THAT’s the kind of stuff most children are exposed to on a regular basis and that, very likely, isn’t really the best thing for them to emulate. On the other hand, real pornography is, by my definition, pictures of people having sex. As long as the people in these pictures are adults who are doing it by choice, I don’t have any problem with pornography whatsoever. For that matter, I don’t have a big issue with children seeing these kinds of pictures. (I’d certainly rather they see pictures of adults having sex than pictures of adults killing one another.) Children are curious. Hell, adults are curious! People need to know what goes where — and why. Porn helps people understand what the possibilities are. And, when a person is horny and there’s no appropriate partner around, porn can help with that too. Big deal. Poodles rub on footstools. Humans look at porn online.

I was recently reading about a study (sorry, I’ve forgotten where!) comparing attitudes towards adolescent sexuality in the US and in Europe. In much of Europe, it’s just expected that of course adolescents are going to have sex! It’s not forbidden and the kids aren’t made to feel dirty or bad for doing so. These cultures realize that sexuality is normal and healthy — even for teenagers. Not surprisingly, the incidence of STDs and unplanned pregnancy among teenagers in these same cultures is also quite a bit lower than in the US. Kids in Sweden, for example, have easy access to inexpensive and effective contraceptives and they make use of them — because, in that culture, having sex is not a big deal. Getting pregnant before you’re ready to raise a child is what’s shameful.

It’s also worth noting that most european cultures are a whole lot less hung up on nudity than we are. Even the German’s, for God’s sake!, are less prudish than we are here in the US. It’s absurd. I’m reminded once again of the whole to-do about the brief glimpse of Janet Jackson’s boob during the Super Bowl half-time show a few years ago. Good lord. How idiotic. It makes me embarrassed to be an American… AND, I’m also reminded of something I saw more recently about people in this country who are all offended by mothers nursing their babies in public. Ai-yi-yi. They’re just boobs people.

People are such idiots.

Now I’m just getting annoyed all over again, so I’d better end this post right here.