Why I will NEVER vote for McCain

Need I say more?

"You've just won a NEW CAR!"

To be honest, no cliche comes anywhere NEAR describing the irony of this story. There is a spanish language radio station in Chicago that was giving away a brand new Corvette in a promotion. This station has in the past supported illegal immigration. Guess who won the car. Yep, you guessed it! An illegal alien. But you see there is a problem with this. You see, without an SSN, the station can't give her the car because they can't turn it in to the IRS as taxable income. Giving her the car you see would violate federal law. So what does she do? She files a lawsuit to FORCE them to give her the car. The lawyer for the station turns around and informs the woman's lawyer that:

"I will caution you that if you insist on filing suit against SBS. I will in turn be forced to refer this matter to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement as I believe your client is in this country illegally. Please communicate that to your client for her consideration."

OOPS! Now the woman has gone into hiding, but she is pressing on with her suit.....

Governor Zoolander Wails on TSU

Perry has issued a ultimatum to TSU regents, they have 45 days to clean up their act or the hammer falls, but he never says what form that hammer will take.

Bomb Grade Uranium seized in sting

A sting operation involving both the Georgian Government as well as the US Government arrested a Georgian that had a small amount of HEU in a plastic bag and was attempting to sell it to Government agents and was bragging he had access to much more of it. The arrest happened last summer, but only now are details emerging. Attempts to trace the origins of the HEU however have been hampered by Russian refusal to cooperate in the investigation.

Violent crime up, Police overtime and cadet classes down

The title says it all, violent crime is up over 5%, but police overtime budget as well as cadet classes have been slashed in a back room move by the mayor, WITHOUT input from Council, and WITHOUT approval by Chief Hurtt. The city claims that overall the crime rate has gone down 5.7 percent, but violent crimes are up. A lot of scenarios could account for that, but I'm guessing some of that is underreporting.

"We have always been at war with Oceania..."

Yet more doublespeak in the media. Remember the Nuclear test that North Korea did a few months back? Remember how everyone in the media was saying it was a fizzle? That it went critical but did not achieve the expected yield? Now they are calling the test a success, JUST AS I DID.

What's worse is that now they are helping Iran to prepare one of their own because we did nothing about NK. JUST AS I SAID THEY WOULD almost exactly a year ago.

Oh and those SAMS that Iran bought from Russia? They've taken delivery....

BTW, Hat tip: Right Wing News.

State of the Union Report Card

Text of the Speech can be found here.

Balance Federal Budget by restraining spending. A+

Cut out Earmarks. A+

Social Security/Medicare/Medicaid Reform. Nothing but smoke here. All three are Ponzi Schemes that should never have been implemented if you ask me. Adding Medicare part D was stupid when we already knew the system was bankrupt. We should have implemented the reforms 6 years ago, but the Dems and the AARP complained then too. Doubt anything will change. D-/F+

Reauthorization of No Child Left Behind. The program has both good points and bad points but the biggest problem is that it tries implement a central command and control education economy. Typical socialist bullshit. C-

Healthcare insurance reforms. Tax deduction for health insurance: Good. Expansion of Heath care savings accounts: Good. Federal subsidies for state supported insurance: Conflicted. Too much of that goes to illegal aliens, and the libertarian in me balks at the whole concept that it is somehow government's responsibility (and by extension MY responsibility enforced by the threat of incarceration) to take care of people. On the flip side, much of that healthcare going to illegals is mandated by federal law, so if they are forcing us to do it, they should pay for it. But of course part of that money is mine to begin with, but part of it is also coming from Wisconsin and Minnesota and Massachusetts, and other libtard strongholds too, so they get to feel some of the pain as well. It had been rumored that he was going to propose that the employer paid portion of the premium would be counted as taxable income, and although he did not specifically state that, he may still be planning it. If so, that would fall in the Very Bad category. On the whole, I'd give this one a B-, based on what was said. If you include stuff he may be planning but left unsaid, I'd give it a C-.

Immigration. If he does what he says he will do, B+. If he does what I expect him to do, F- (0%), any takers as to which one he actually does? my money is on the F- side. Way too much talk and way too little action so far and I'm not holding my breath. We are being invaded and he's been too busy putting rosin on his violin bow to care.

Energy policy. The one thing you'd think he'd have a clue on, total waste of time. 35 Billion Gallons of Ethanol and BioWillie? He's been partying with Willie Nelson too damned much. No mention of Nukes. No mention of Methanol or Natural gas or drilling in ANWAR, Florida or California. No mention of Methane Hydrates. D+

Conservative Judges? You mean like Harriet Meirs? C-

WOT. A-/B+

Nuclear brinkmanship in Iran and NK. D-. any plan having anything to do with the UN or China or Russia is wasted time and plays into their hands. China and Russia are the ones SELLING TO THEM! The UN is a waste of air.

Aid to Africa, D-. Africa has been getting trillions of dollars in AID from all over the world for years and it is still a cesspool. Waste of money if you ask me. Africa will emerge from it's troubles when it gets rid of the warlords, the socialists/communists, and the dictators and not a minute before.

I figure he gets a D+ overall.

The world is a scary place (Updated)

Today word is out that China has successfully tested an Anti-satellite Weapon.

UPDATE: China confirms missile test, claims that

"China has opposed the weaponization of space and any arms race,"

Yeah, and I have some bottom land in La to sell you too.....


Jordan's King Abdullah II says that his country will launch a "peaceful nuclear technology program" which is Diplospeak for "We are scared shitless of a nuclear armed Iran and if nobody else is going to nuke them back to the stone age, we had better build us some nukes too!"

UPDATE: Iran has denied yet another group of inspectors access to their nuclear facilities.

If you tax it, it will go away....

Much is made of the low rate of medical insurance in the media. A large number of those who are uninsured are young, healthy, and have chosen not to insure themselves. President Bush is going to propose tonight that medical insurance premiums should be deductible on your federal income tax. Ok, so far, so good, but here is where things get sticky. He also plans to propose that the IRS consider employer paid premiums as taxable income. This is a VERY BAD IDEA. Instead of encouraging people to take advantage of employer offered insurance it is a disincentive. Employer offered insurance is cheaper than individual policies because the risk is spread around, It is also easier to get for those who may have a medical condition such as myself. By taxing the income, they encourage employer to stop offering insurance. Instead of making the situation better, it will make the situation worse.

Finally a Candidate I could support...

Senator Sam Brownback, R-Kansas, has officially tossed his hat in the ring. Of those Republicans so far identified as candidates for President in 2008, he is, so far, the only one I think is worthy of the title.

Interesting goings on downtown

Watchdog around town, Tom Bazan emails me some interesting news. It would appear that The Downtown Association (correction: Downtown Management District) has a small maintenence problem. ALL SIX of the main pumps for the fountains at Main Street Square are being replaced. It would be understandable if one or two needed replacement, but to have all six go bad at once would indicate a systemic problem. It could be something a simple as someone forgetting to drain they system before it froze up, or they could have been allowed to operate dry or to cavitate (perhaps because a suction line froze up.).

They may also have been damaged due to stray current from the tram. Or they could have been corroded by all the fecal matter and urine that the bums "dump" in the fountain. Or the chlorine required to keep it semi-sanitary could have corroded them too.

Can you imagine the biohazard you'd have on your hands (and everything else) if there was inadequate chlorine to sanitize the water? You'd have a plume of untreated liquefied sewage mist wafting down Main Street. Excuse me while I go puke.

Where can I get one of these?

We've all wished we had one of those really cool Trunk Monkeys of our own. I just wish I had a House Monkey like this one.

Lessons Not Learned

For some time now, I've been railing over at METRO's new blog about the folly of replacing boots on the ground at the Park and Rides with cameras. Most everyone, not on METRO's payroll would appear to see the folly of this move, not just the fiscal waste of money, but the danger of increased crime as well. Cameras cannot stop crime. Cameras can only document it for insurance purposes. I've also been railing about Senator Hutchison's support for a "Virtual Fence" on the US/Mexican Border for similar reasons. I've found an interesting parallel and support for my position in an unlikely place.

In 1967, Secretary of Defense Robert McNamara instituted a project (without input by the JCS I might add), headed by Army Lt. Gen. Alfred D. Starbird that is known today as Project "Igloo White" to design and build a "Virtual Fence" (sound familiar Senator Hutchison?) consisting of seismic and acoustic sensors that operated via radio links to track and pinpoint supply shipments on the Ho Chi Min trail. (the real one in Laos, not the bike path in Memorial Park.). That 'Virtual Fence" was an abject failure. To quote General Westmoreland:

MACV commander Westmoreland met with Starbird and concluded that the plan was “a noble idea” but “also highly theoretical.” In his memoir, A Soldier Reports, Westmoreland said, “As any experienced military man would know, the concept had a basic flaw in that no fence—electronic or otherwise—would be foolproof without men to cover it by fire, which raised the specter of tying down a battalion every mile or so in conventional defense.”

Westmoreland was not an idiot, but McNamara was, and METRO Police Chief Tom Lambert is as well if he thinks this will reduce crime one iota. Senator Hutchison is also an idiot if she thinks a "Virtual Fence" on the US/Mexico border will do the slightest bit of good. I guess it is true: Those who fail to study history are bound to repeat it.

METRO has an uphill battle...

...to get us out of our cars.

Waiting for the Worms....

Apparently the latest job Illegals do that Americans won't, is spreading deadly brain parasites.....

"Next" by Michael Crichton, A Review

Crichton, for those unfamiliar with his work, is a modern day Aseop or Grimm Brothers. The primary purpose of most of his writing is not to entertain, which he does, but instead to write cautionary tales with a moral and ethical lesson, about scientific and/or technological issues of the day. In previous works he has commented on subjects ranging from global warming ("State of Fear"2004), to extraterrestrial pathogens, ("The Andromeda Strain"1968), to Nanotechnology ("Prey"2002), to behavior modification through cybernetics ("The Terminal Man" 1972), to the dangers of genetically recreating extinct organisms ("Jurrassic Park"1990, and "The Lost World"1995), to the unreliability of photographic evidence in the age of digital imaging ("Rising Sun"1992), among many others. Often his bibliography is as enlightening as his novels which generally attempt to straddle the line between what is current reality and what may be possible in the near future. Crichton weaves current research with extrapolation and tries to blur the line of what is real and what is fiction. He is usually good in doing so, but occasionally he overreaches (Prey being a prime example.) resulting in what is clearly fanciful rhetoric.
In "Next" Crichton takes on the moral and ethical dilemmas posed by genetic manipulation and it's potential effects on behavior and intelligence, as well as the ethical and moral implications of genetic patents. Crichton examines how close, genetically speaking, our closest relatives, the Chimpanzee and Bonobo, are to us and what it means to be human and the ethics and rights of transgenic species that show human intelligence and sentience. He also looks at the societal implications of blaming behavior on genetics instead of taking responsibility for our actions. He examines what it means to own someone else's genetic material and the legal implications of genetic patents. Finally he examines the ethics of genetic manipulation of humans, as well as wild animals when there is no full understanding of the implications of such manipulation. This is one of Crichton's better offerings. The science involved is certainly possible although the difficulties are somewhat glossed over. Certainly Crichton's medical (he interned in Dr. Jonas Salk's lab before leaving to become a writer) and anthropology (he was the Henry Russell Shaw Travelling Fellow, 1964-65 and Visiting Lecturer in Anthropology at Cambridge University) background shows in his mastery of the medical and social aspects of the issues. The novel is a weaving of several separate plot lines that merge at the end of the story.




SPOILER WARNING, Plot lines and elements will be revealed below.

Plot line #1: A man finds that his tissue biopsies taken while being treated for cancer have been found to be efficient manufacturers of a potent cancer fighting peptide and have been patented without his knowledge or permission by a state funded university who in turn licenses it to a biotechnology firm. When the firm's cell lines are sabotaged by a competitor, they decide that they have the legal right to collect more of them from the original donor who is currently suing the university and the biotech company for the theft of his genetic material. When the original donor manages to disappear to prevent the harvesting of more of his tissues, they decide that they have the right to obtain the genetic material from his offspring. And even manage to have the courts declare eminent domain over the donor and his descendants tissues. His daughter and her son find themselves on the run from a pair of bounty hunters who are out to take biopsies without their permission, and are willing to kidnap their quarry to do so.

Plot Line #2: The same Biotech company is doing research into the gene that appears to modulate maturation. They have genetically engineered a mouse virus to turn this gene on in mice. One of the lab technicians is called away during the dosing of a batch of mice with the virus in order to bail his drug abusing and good for nothing older brother out of jail (yet again). He takes the aerosol dosing tool with him to ensure that it does not leave his possession, even though it violates a number of safety protocols to remove it from the lab. While the technician is busy getting gasoline after bailing his brother out, his brother starts playing with the dosing tool and inadvertently doses himself with the modified virus. The younger bother discovers he has done so and is very angry and scared but then reasons that the virus is specific to mice and does not infect humans and decides that his brother is probably in no danger. Soon thereafter his brother kicks the drug habit, gets and holds a good job and is soon living a model life. His mother, who sees the change, interrogates the older brother and learns that he was exposed to this virus. His mother then in turn insists that he dose the drug abusing son of one of her friends as well. He too cleans up his act and goes straight. He tells his boss who is angry but at the same time sees this as a possible way out of the company's problems with the lawsuit and sabotaged cell lines which were on the brink of becoming a commercial success and gives his tacit approval to move forward. Soon others have been dosed as well in a very unsafe and uncontrolled experiment. But trouble comes when the full effects of the virus are learned.

Plot line #3: A genetic researcher working with chimpanzees illegally creates a Human/Chimp Hybrid using his own DNA as the human donor, but thinks the female chimp pregnant with the fetus was killed by an outbreak of encephalitis, when in fact she was transferred to another lab and he is transferred as well to a different lab. Fast forward a few years, he is contacted by the director of the original lab when it is discovered that the offspring is genetically a human/chimp hybrid during routine bloodwork. The offspring is sentient and able to talk. They deduce that the chimp is a human/chimp hybrid and that the researcher is the "father" based on gestation times and who had access to the mother. He is told that the experiment is illegal and the chimp/human hybrid must be destroyed in order to protect the lab's funding. Instead of allowing the hybrid to be destroyed, he instead steals the hybrid, takes it home, shaves him and attempts to pass the chimp off as his adopted son who suffers from an exceedingly rare (and ficticious) genetic mutation that makes him look apelike. Even to the point of enrolling him in school with his human son. The researcher, his family, and "Dave" the chimp finds that chimpanzee instincts and human social interactions can lead to a dangerous mix.

Plot line #4: A genetic researcher studying the mimicry and language abilities of parrots creates a human/parrot hybrid but does not realize the bird's sentience and intelligence until it is discovered that the bird has been helping her son with his math homework. The researcher, discovers that her husband has been cheating from the bird's mimicry as well. The husband steals the parrot and sells him in a fit of rage. But the bird is angry and wants to be returned home to his family, he is mean and hateful to a succession of owners leading to the bird being set loose to survive on it's own in the wild.

Plot line #5: A transgenic orangutan with similar traits to Dave, apparently the result of a copycat experiment by the lab director where Dave was born, is discovered living in the wilds of Sumatra.

Plot line #6: The "inside man" that perpetrated the sabotage of the biotech company's cell lines is set up and accused of having sex with a minor. He is a pedophile and his lawyer instructs him that he will use a genetic predisposition defense and that he suffers a mutation in the "thrill seeking gene" despite the fact that the research in the subject is superficial at best. And to help bolster his defense he should go forth and ride roller coasters and have dangerous and unprotected sex (legally!) and drive fast and recklessly (and be sure to be ticketed for same) in order to document his lack of control. This leads to him committing murder.

Plot line #7: An ecoterrorist and artist wishes to protect sea turtles from roving jaguars during egg laying after being prodded in that direction by a nature preserve guide in South America. He researches how he might genetically modify the turtles so that the Jaguars would be scared away but learns that it is far more complicated than he thought when he attempts to perform said modifications at a home built lab. Meanwhile turtles with glowing shells are washing ashore and laying eggs. The ecoterrorist is arrested on suspicion of doing the modification, but he is however a patsy for the real culprit.

Yet more jobs Americans apparentlly won't do.

Here is a chilling statistic for you, 85% of all sexual predators arrested in a sting called "Operation Preadator" and run by the Department of Homeland Security were illegal aliens.

I suppose they were only raping kids that Americans would not.

Hat Tip: Chris Baker

You could cut the irony with a knife (updated)

Basketball player from the DeBakey High School for Medical Professions collapses on the court and coaches use portable defibrilator to save his life. Now, I certainly hope the player comes through this OK. Heart Arrythmias are nothing to joke about, I know, I have one myself. But the very day before, HISD contemplated RELAXING the rules for athletic exams so that RN's and Chiropractors can do the exams. Neither are qualified to run or read 12 lead ECG's or exercise stress tests, which by the way are NOT required for participation in sports, despite the fact that Houston had four deaths due to congenital heart problems last year alone. Chiropractors are NOT medical doctors, no matter WHAT they may claim. They may not prescribe medications. They may not order medical tests, and most insurance won't pay for Chiropractic services. All they may do is a variation on massage and physical therapy WHICH IS ALL THEY ARE LICENSED TO DO. Their main contribution is one of a placebo effect. It is clear to me, and I believe it should be clear to the UIL, that the current exam is woefully inadequate to protect our children.

UPDATE
For once The Chronicle's staff editorial makes sense.

Deputy King, on trial for his life. UPDATED

Simon Gutierrez Jahuey endangered hundreds of people that day. He sped north on I-45, reaching speeds of up to 120 MPH for half an hour. He was thought to have a 13 year old girl that he had been sexually molesting in the van with him. He was running from the cops because he knew if caught he would be going to prison for child molestation. Child molesters don't have an easy time in prison. Deputy King, a 20 year veteran with a spotless record, managed to pull along side the van and fired his weapon through the passenger side window of the van, striking Jahuey in the neck. Jahuey lost control of the van and crashed, ending the danger to both the police, as well as the innocent citizens placed in harms way by this madman. It was July 3rd, 2005. Good ending to a sordid tale? If only.

Jahuey survived his shooting. The girl had just been dropped off outside her mother's apartment moments before the chase began so was not in the vehicle as thought. The girl's mother, who was Jahuey's estranged wife's sister, took the child out of state to prevent her from testifying against Jahuey, destroying any hope of prosecuting him for the molestation.


Prosecutor Joe Owmby has brought Deputy King up on charges of aggravated assault by a public servant. Deputy King violated a sherrif's department policy put in place in 2004.

Harris County forbids officers from firing into vehicles except when someone inside is pointing a gun or using deadly force other than the vehicle. The policy began in June 2004 after a four-month Houston Chronicle investigation found that of 184 police shootings in Harris County since 1999, deputies had killed six and wounded 16 by firing into vehicles.

King's Union attorney, Richard Cobb, criticized that policy.

"The policy is there to protect the politicians, not the public," Cobb said. "Policemen aren't supposed to let crooks get away. That's not what we pay them for."

Therefore, Deputy King is on trial and if convicted, he faces a punishment range from probation to life in prison, all because The Houston Chronicle decided it needed to stir up something to sell more papers.

UPDATE:
Aquitted in under 45 minutes!
Now the question is, how long before Joe Owmby is brought up on charges of official oppression and malicious prosecution?

Pollution is the Solution!

There is a way to effectively reverse "global warming" whether it is human caused or not. And the solution is within our grasp and could be implemented tomorrow with relatively little effect on the economy compared to other proposals. Mind you it is not a perfect solution, it does have it's own drawbacks, some are not inconsequential. But it is a solution that is working today and is economically speaking relatively benign. The answer? Pollution. Specifically soot and particulates like those that are generated from coal fired boilers and heavy diesel engines. When these particulates are released into the atmosphere they act as nucleation sites for water vapor. Droplets formed on soot tend to be smaller than those formed conventionally in nature. and clouds formed by smaller droplets have a much higher albedo than naturally occurring clouds.

Over the last 45-50 years, cloud cover generated in this manner has lowered the amount of sunlight reaching the earth by an average of 10-15% worldwide. Resulting in what is thought to be around 1-2 degrees C worth of cooling. So in forcing the implementation of the Clean Air Act, environmentalists have in effect made the situation worse. Sure, we don't have the acid rain, or the respiratory problems we used to have, but now we have a problem of too much CO2 and not enough clouds to counter it.

Here is my proposal. Scrap the "Clean Air Act", remove the scrubbers from power plant stacks and eliminate the requirement for catalytic converters and low sulfur diesel. Spend the money saved on building nuclear plants and CO2 sequestration systems. This should buy us enough time for the population to peak in the next 50 years and start retreating.

Was Austin just a warm up act?

Thousands of birds are falling from the sky in Australia and nobody knows why.

Hat Tip Chris Baker

Ever have that "Not so Fresh" feeling?

Maybe undies made of this stuff might help.....

Hat tip: Right Wing News.

Tax rates over the years....

Over on Rush Limbaugh's site, he has a chart from the National Taxpayer's Union up that really drives the whole tax rate issue home.

And here is a chart showing tax revenue since 1940, Can you see where the tax rates changed? I can.....

Open Season

Like all invasive species, there is no "season" for METRO buses, nor is there a bag limit. Some lucky hunter tried to bag a beauty of a bus last night, but unfortunately the bus managed to run off and hide to lick it's wounds and the hunter lost the oil trail...

It is all about Efficiency!

Spectrolab, a subsidiary of Boeing, has announced that a multi-junction solar cell using GaAs, GaIn, and Ge in a concentrator has achieved 40.7% efficiency. This is a big improvement over the commercially available ones that top out at around 28% bare. This may well lead to commercially viable PV power generation if the cell can be ramped up to mass production.

Gas like odor permeates Manhattan

In another odd occurrence this morning, much of Lower Manhattan is engulfed in a noxious cloud. Authorities started receiving calls about a strong gas-like odor that was inundating a large portion of Manhattan including Rockefeller Center around 9AM local time.

Downtown Austin Closed, Large Numbers of Birds found Dead

The Houston Chronicle is reporting as of 8:44 this morning that a 10 block section of Downtown Austin, leading up to the Capitol Building has been cordoned off while the Austin Fire department continues to test. Anyone who works in the area is advised to stay away. The concern is that this may not be a natural event and that this may be a chemical/biological attack. The area included in the exclusion zone is from Cesar Chavez to Eleventh Street and some side streets. The area is expected to remain closed until at least noon.

North Korea Prepping to do it again

North Korea has apparently put everything in place needed to test another nuclear warhead without notice and at any time. I wonder if this one will be deemed a "fizzle" or not.

National Guard Border Checkpoint Attacked, Overrun by Armed Mexicans

Wednesday night, at around 11 PM local time, a Border Patrol Entry Identification Team site manned by (unarmed of course) National Guard soldiers in Arizona between Nogales and Lukeville was overrun by armed and masked invaders from Mexico. There are no reports of any American casualties but the National Guard was forced to retreat due to the lack of weapons. Shortly after gaining control of the checkpoint, The intruders retreated back across the border to Mexico.

Hat Tip: Right Wing News

Playing god with children's sexuality....

Clayton Cramer has a post up about some interesting research that is being conducted at Oregon State University. Seems researchers have been able to "cure" homosexual rams by altering their hormonal balance. The article goes on to speculate that such "straightening" might be accomplished by giving expectant mothers a hormone supplement. Gay people, such as Martina Navratilova, have decried the research, claiming that it denies people the RIGHT to be gay. My beef is not with that at all. If a parent can prevent their unborn child from developing what can honestly be called a socially and psychologically debilitating attraction to the same gender, I think parents have a duty to do so. However, that means that if a child can be "straightened" in such a manner, it also means they can probably be made gay in a similar manner, and this frightens the hell out of me. Why? Because the same idiots that claim that this denies people the "right to be gay" may make a conscious decision to make their children gay in some kind of perverted political statement. That would be tantamount to child abuse. Let us be honest with ourselves. How many gay people, if they had the ability to chose, would honestly chose to live a life of social scorn and psychological rejection and trauma? Probably only a few who have drank deeply of the "if it feels good, do it" kool-aid. What kind of parent would intentionally cause their child to experience all of the angst, rejection, scorn, ridicule and abandonment that a person coming to grips with an altered sexuality have to deal with? It would take a person who would choose to further their own distorted political and social agenda over the health and wellbeing of their own child. But the sad fact is there are people that would be happy to do so, and those people deserve nothing short of a bullet to the brain.

Another ethical problem I have with this is that this procedure currently only works for males. (and for the time being, only on sheep. Which begs the additional ethical question of how to test this on a developing fetus.) Currently, the sex of a child cannot be accurately determined until 17-18 weeks, and then only when the child decides to cooperate with the ultrasound operator, without an invasive and somewhat dangerous amniocentesis, which would allow for genetic testing. But the fetal brain starts to form within the first 4-6 weeks of life. What would happen if a hormone regime designed to ensure a healthy boy were inadvertently given to a female fetus? would she become lesbian? What about cases of fraternal twins where both sexes are present?

I applaud the researchers in their attempts to decode the mystery of homosexuality, but this path is also fraught with dangers as well and not all of them are medically driven. We as a race will be forced to come to grips with the meaning and the ethics of this knowledge. I hope we choose well.

NYT Lies, Calame Dies (figuratively speaking)

Michelle Malkin has a scathing column up about the lies that the New York Times have been writing. And their response to the Reader Ombudsman's calling them on the carpet for it. Specifically a story by Jack Hitt (cached reference that quotes the story.) about Abortion in El Salvador which was completely false. The story has been since pulled. It referenced the case of a woman named Carmen Climaco, who Hitt claimed was serving a 30 year sentence for having an abortion. But the fact of the matter was that the woman had a live full term birth and then choked the baby to death. She is not serving time for an abortion, she is serving time for murder. For many of us, the difference between abortion and infanticide is moot and I wholeheartedly agree with that stance. To add insult to injury, Hitt used a translator that had worked for IPAS, which just happens to make vacuum aspirators for abortions. However, Calame appears to be taking the fall for this call out as well as the one for the (belated) admission that the NYT committed treason by revealing the SWIFT banking intelligence program.