things i think

Wired News: Gunning for Stem-Cell Naysayers:
just a couple pull-outs from the article...

"Anyone putting theoretical possible life ahead of actual life is someone who should not be in office."

"I am for life and I'm for the quality of life, but I don't want another 6-year-old to die," Cunningham said, referring to a child with juvenile diabetes. "I opposed the California bill; it went too far. I don't support cloning. But you cannot look a child in the eye when the only chance they have to live is this."

and then there's Bush... with, yes, a semi-valid argument... but if his answer is to affirm life with adoption, why not encourage people to adopt any of the many children already out there in the system? help take them out of bad foster care. but of course, they're already out of the womb, so we can't help or protect them....

"Rather than discard these embryos created during in vitro fertilization, or turn them over for research that destroys them, these families have chosen a life-affirming alternative," Bush said in a statement.

and of course there was also the quick rebut by supporters of the bill that "approximately 400,000 embryos are now languishing in clinics," and i doubt there's 400,000 couples out there looking to adopt embryos... or that even know it's possible.

why we let religious beliefs get in the way of scientific progress (especially in this area where the promise of helping so many is so great) i'll never understand. yes, there needs to be limits on what we do. we can't just "play god" and mix-and-match to do whatever we please, but that's what the scientific code of ethics is there for. that's why there is (and always should be) an open discussion and debate of issues. we shouldn't be forced to fall back on mythologically based beliefs to make our decisions for us.

Ministry uses dinosaurs to dispute evolution

prepare for a non-argument that merely expresses frustration....
i fucking hate people. ignorant, backwards people. trying to fit their naive believes into a real, modern world. go back to thinking the world is flat and the Earth is the center of the Universe with the Sun revolving around it. see if i care. i'll be out accepting the way things are without trying to make up some stupid-ass story to fight it.

In Kansas, Darwinism Goes on Trial Once More - New York Times

my favorite quote:

"There is no science without criticism," said Charles Thaxton, a chemist and co-author of the 1984 book "The Mystery of Life's Origin: Reassessing Current Theories."

"Any science that weathers the criticism and survives is a better theory for it," Mr. Thaxton said.

so since Darwin published The Origin of Species in 1859, that apparently hasn't been enough time for it to weather criticism? or how bout that whole Scopes Monkey Trial back 80 years ago? just a thought.

Does the Real ID act contain a Constitution-busting Trojan horse?

so i hadn't really been paying too much attn to this whole real id thing cause i figured it'd surely get voted down... until i read about how it passed because i was a rider on the military spending bill... how the fuck is shit like this legal?

i'm guessing it gets started something like this: "hey, let's make a bill everyone wants to pass (cause if they don't attack ads will destroy their next campaign) and slap on some crazy ass shit no one in their right mind would vote for."

just insane. and people wonder why no one trusts politicians? why there's no faith in the american political system? let's just hope somehow this gets corrected... although i doubt it will seeing how the patriot act is still around and seems to keep getting renewed...

Bush in 30 Years

so i'll be the first to admit i haven't really looked at the details of bush's proposal or the dem's response... but this flash seems fairly self-explanatory (even if it is biased)

Wired News: Plan B: Ignore the Science?

controversy over the "morning after" pill. the concern is valid, in that we should be cautious with drugs like this, but misplaced since all but the anti-abortion groups agree this pill does not cause arbortions. the overzealousness that many of these so-called "pro-life" groups (don't even get me started on how contradictory most of their actions are) go after anyone or anything that seems to be helping women prevent contraception is just amazing.

Music + movement = better brainpower

apparently brett's fidgeting made him smarter? guess that means when i sit here drumming away on my desk i'm actually working more too? that's a nice bonus.

Legal Fiction

some funny stuff there... although it's sad that so much of it is based on how truly hateful and ignorant people are. banning books that:

directly or indirectly, sanction, recognize, foster, or promote a lifestyle or actions prohibited by the sodomy and sexual misconduct laws of the state of Alabama.

is just insanely ridiculous to me. apparently tolerance is just not even close to something far too many people consider.

POE News: None of the news you need - all of the news you want: Eighty years.

it's amazing to me how great the POE Forums are sometimes. Said it before, will surely say it again.

But other than praise this wonder, I can't help but agree. How can we have made so many great accomplishments and people still can't accept this? Yes, it questions their religious beliefs... but that's all they are! Beliefs! It shouldn't lessen their faith any. (Said this many times as well) Faith != Religion != Faith. Period. They do influence each other, but they are not the same. Just cause some mythical story about the earth and everything being created by some magical dude might turn out to have science behind it (big bang, followed by evolution, etc), does that mean you can't accept the science? I don't see how it does, unless you're just choosing to be ignorant.

Yes, it's still called the Theory of Evolution, but with the staggering amount of evidence behind it now I'd say it's a pretty fucking solid theory. And (as explained better here) Evolution itself is viewed as a fact due to this evidence, it's merely the mechanics of Evolution that remain theoretical.

I just don't see how it's that hard for people to accept. If you can take for granted that this black box that sits in your house connects to some hidden source, by a means unknown to most that use it, to receive signals that are then sent to another black box that allow you to read this, is it that much harder to accept we were once monkeys? If that doesn't work, how bout the fact that every day people all over the world get into vehicles made out of materials dug from the earth or created by other people, travel at speeds much greater than any other beings on the planet by harnessing the power of many small explosions cause by burning a material that is made from decaying plants and animals? Honestly... some people... I just... it blows my mind.

Ultra-thin client to close digital divide | The Register

Very cool idea. Not really sure if it will take off, or just die the slow death of so many other cheap computers to bridge the gap. And I can't decide how I feel on these things anyway, as far as whether they're necessary or good. Will they really serve a purpose? Is some village somewhere out in the jungle or desert really going to get into computer use? I suppose it's bound to happen sometime and machines like these could lead the way, I just don't know how much they'll actually accomplish.

But I suppose even small progress is still progress, so that counts. And if the divide is closed, one can hope this results in better conditions in those areas of the world. With the popularity of blogging, and the previous instances of Iraqi bloggers, etc, you could assume there would be more awareness of issues in those areas as well. I guess we'll just wait and see.

The Time Traveler Convention - May 7, 2005

definitely a cool idea. would be pretty sweet if anything actually happened with this. guess i'll have to wait to hear about it.

The Lemon: History Of The Internet: "Instant messaging created as a way for people all over the world to interrupt each other."

all too true. even if it is off a wonderfully sarcastic, bitter "history" page.