Ignorant Design
Caveat: This is a rant. I reserve the right to disavow every word at some future time, when I simmer down.
I was going to write something studied and measured here, but this is so patently absurd, I've got to just go out and say it: The Kansas Board of Education is filled with a bunch of neanderthals. Today's vote to cast a shroud of doubt on the findings of evolutionary theory shows such a pathetic lack of respect for the scientific process, such a profound ignorance of what is and is not science, one can only assume that their fear of smart people got the better of them.
Undue Process
It is a testament to the enduring hypocrisy of humanity that there is still debate on the matter of the United States' handling of “Enemy Combatants”, particularly with respect to the prisoners of Guantanamo Bay. Hundreds of young men have been held without charge for over three years with no justification other than our fear of them. Their legal status imparts no recourse, no rights, and no hope, All this courtesy of a proud people who brought you “innocent until proven guilty”. It's just embarrassing.
I Won't Be Posting
What a rip off. After a long, lazy hiatus, I had come up with about a dozen witty, snarky comments concerning the Miers confirmation. I was going to use words like "Crony" and "Sycophant" and "Mediocre Blue-Blooded Draft-Dodging Frat Boy". I was going to make learned historical references like "Incitatus" and "Nationalized Health Care". And then I hear that Bush "reluctantly accepted" Miers' withdrawal from consideration. I am soooooo disappointed. This must be something like what comedians felt when Ford wasn't re-elected.
Pork Barrel Preaching
A Federal Judge in New York has ruled that, despite receiving 95% of its social programs funding from the federal government, the Salvation Army does not have to abide by Federal Equal Opportunity statutes. In practice, it means that they are free to hire and fire people based solely upon their religious beliefs. Normally, I'd be all for an openly religious organization making staffing decisions based on religion. The Boy Scouts, in one good example, do so and that's all good with me. But this is a little different. The Salvation Army is discriminating on my dime. That's not cool.
Excellent Cruft
Men never do evil so completely and cheerfully as when they do it from a religious conviction.
Just The Facts, Ma'am
Raised a Christian, I have long had a fascination with the phrase, "Let us proclaim the mystery of Faith". Later, in my searches for something, anything else, I came across the Taoist phrase, "The Tao you can know is not the everlasting Tao". They both strike the same way: as a celebration of ignorance.
John and Katrina
There's a great piece over at the Washington Post concerning the interplay between the Judge Roberts and Hurricane Katrina stories. Bush is praised as an evil genius and a short-sighted ninny for upping Roberts' nomination to that of the Chief Justice. He as seen as fortunate that Katrina will (probably) remove the rancor from the nomination process, and unfortunate that it's fall-out will be blamed on his administration. Milton Friedman, one of my personal favorite writers had this comment:
If 9/11 put the wind at President Bush's back, Katrina's put the wind in his face. If the Bush-Cheney team seemed to be the right guys to deal with Osama, they seem exactly the wrong guys to deal with Katrina-- and all the rot and misplaced priorities it's exposed here at home
