More on Humane Slaughter. Humane?

The only image I could find to show humane slaughter.

Thanks to Nicole for this reminder: slaughter should be humane and pets should not be slaughtered. I have always been concerned about the slaughter of animals raised as pets. They neither deserve to be killed and eaten nor abused and left to languish. Responsible pet ownership should be just that: responsible. Unfortunately too many people fail to look ahead when the get a pet; cat, dog or horse. These critters live a long time, eat every day, need care every day and need wellness and illness care too. They can’t be left alone without some kind of care either. So what happens if people get tired of them? The shelter, the knacker or the road. So very cruel.

Visit any animal shelter in a university town and you hear the same story: lots of adoptions at the beginning of the fall term, lots of returns at the end of the spring term. Pets of convenience. And the epidemic of feral cats is appalling. I do advocate exterminating feral animals, but humanely.
Off the soap box, Woody. Just wanted to add to the discussion. (I couldn’t find a single image out of 100s that could be used to illustrate the idea of “humane” slaughter. I am beginning to think it doesn’t exist. Maybe only when you ambush something. This is an evolving value. I never thought it would be.)

Image: http://b.vimeocdn.com/ps/254/255/2542557_300.jpg

Eat Trigger or Silver? Disgusting. Eat Bambi? Killer! Eat Elsie? Yumm.

So the question of the day seems to be “horse or no horse”? (Or in Iceland “Why the hell is there no meat at all in a meat pie”?

Not a thing in the world wrong with eating horse. Or donkey. Or mule. Or deer. Or elk. Oh, the list goes on and on, and still people foam and retch at the thought of eating something strange. You want strange? Try “net-catching dictyophora” or “green ant bums, mate, yumm”. I have eaten some strange things along the way. Strange things like baby octopi, eels in hot sauce, stew with chicken heads (feathers and all) and who knows what else? Donkey sausage? Yep.

So what is the big deal with horse? They are leaner than beef, better for you that lamb and more meat that a nice fat deer. You only don’t want to eat horse because of cultural issues. I accept that. But for heaven’s sake, get over the whining and moaning about what other people eat. I was at a market in Orlando where pig uteruses and ovaries were on sale. Yuck. But they do sell them to somebody. I was at a market in Taiwan where live snakes were skinned (alive) and sold for sombodies dinner. If it isn’t poison someone probably not only eats it but loves to eat it. And even some poisonous things like fugu are prized by some.

No, the issue is adulteration. Plain and simple. If it says “beef” it shouldn’t be horse. Eat Bambi or Trigger if you want to, just don’t mix it with my “100% ground Elsie”.

Image: http://www.unhipchick.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/10/elsie-the-cow-2.jpg

Sequester THIS!!!

I am really getting tired of the inability of the political types in D.C. to do their jobs and get the damn country going forward. There is only one word missing: cooperation. Regardless of party, most of us elected our representatives to get something done. Not to swan around the House or Senate pontificating about the other side. Not to lie and cheat and obfuscate. I think they all do it to an extent and it really pisses me off. Now I also think that one side does it more than the other and the other side thinks the same (but I think they know they are liars). Even if we assume they (all of them) think they are right, they need to GET OFF THE DIME AND GO TO WORK FOR THE PEOPLE!!!

We have had a couple of years of gridlock and financial brinkmanship and it doesn’t look like it is getting better, fiscal-wise. Look at this: good gains in the housing market; consumer confidence up; stock market up; auto sales up; travel up; unemployment down. And these CLOWNS dick with the system to make it weak and puny. It really sucks that we let them get away with it. What to do? Wait until election? Impeach the lot?

Hell if I know. Maybe have a massive uprising and take away their salaries. Demand that if they can’t get the job done, they shouldn’t be paid. Bet things would get moving then. Doubt if we can do it. Too much money supports them.  And they are all rich bastards anyway. They could take the hit and laugh at us. Maybe we should have a giant moon-in with gigantic signs that say “SEQUESTER THIS!!!!!”

Image: http://blogs.seattleweekly.com/dailyweekly/mooning.jpg

The New Age of Sexism and Racism.

When I was a sprout, racism and sexism were more or less accepted as the norm for many Americans. (I was born in 1940). Of course there were also many people who opposed these principles, but the more common experience was of racism and sexism. During the 40’s, 50’s and 60’s laws changed and attitudes began to change. Women and minorities began to gain equality in many arenas. The gains seemed to plateau in the 90’s and a sort of status quo coasted along. But under this skin of equality there has been a steady attempt to erode the hard won rights and return America to an older time.  A time before Brown v Board of Education, Roe v Wade, the Voting Rights Act of 1965 and the Civil Rights Act of 1964. A time when all citizens were not equal in many ways.

And now all these advances are under attack, both overtly and covertly. Take Brown v Board of Education for example. This Supreme Court ruling in 1954 effectively eliminated the “separate but equal” myth from public education. It seemed to work until one after another States began the “Charter School” movement which ultimately will gut the public school systems and create elite quasi-private schools funded by tax payers. In many States public funds are being funneled into schools with religious agendas, clearly a Constitutional no-no. Public schools are under financial duress in many States anyway, and siphoning off funds is a sure way to cripple them further.

Look at Roe v Wade for another example. Since the Supreme Court in 1973 effectively affirmed that a woman had a right to unrestricted abortion services for the first 2 trimesters of pregnancy, many States have systematically attempted to chip away at that right by enacting a series of roadblocks to women seeking this service. The assault goes on today. It is, by the way, nearly 100% advocated by men, and the attempts to undermine a woman’s right to control her own body boils down to a “right not to choose”. The hard won freedom to control her own reproductive process is being assaulted from all sides.

As far as the Civil Rights Act and the Voting Rights Act one  needs look only as far as the Legislative assaults on voters by redistricting, manipulating voting access and election financing to see the corrosive  effect of partisan political influence and the impact of unlimited donations on elections. Tiny groups of outliers control agendas, in some cases a single person (Grover Glenn Norquist for example) influence outcomes of the political process in favor of a minority group such as very rich people.

In all these instances, hard fought and hard won battles are being undermined and threatened. The Right to Bear Arms is winning while the Right Not to Bear Children and the Right to a Quality Public Education are losing.

Shame on you America. You can and should do Better.

Image: http://martinanewberry.files.wordpress.com/2012/05/statueofliberty.jpg

Why is Gas Going Higher? Or, Suck it up America!

With the “drill baby drill” boom in America and a historic low in oil imports the price of gas should be going down, if you think logically. But it is going up. And there is a good reason for that: China. And possibly a few other growing economies. The simple answer is “supply and demand.” The supply is up by something in the range of 3% while the demand is up by around 7%. Not in America by the way. We are using less due to greater efficiency but the world use is way up. Therefore demand is up for crude and refined products and therefore our gas prices are up.

Want to bitch at someone? Bitch at the global oil companies who (remember, companies are people) sell to global markets. They charge what the market will bear and sell where they can get the most profit.

Suck it up America. We are owned by the gigantic corporations of the world. They Own Us. The Supreme Court said it, I believe it and that is the end of it.

Some statistics: http://oilprice.com/Energy/Gas-Prices/Why-Despite-the-Boom-in-Oil-Production-are-Gasoline-Prices-Still-High.html

Image: http://onyoursidedebtrelief.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/09/high-gas-prices.jpg

Science gets it wrong and corrects.

Science doesn’t always get it right. Correct that is. But, when Science discovers the error, mostly there isn’t a cover-up. Unlike belief-based “knowledge” where errors in assertion are usually met with a denial of the error and a reaffirmation of the erroneous belief. The Church and Galileo for example.

So, when I discovered that for 40 years I have been teaching as fact the reason hands and feet wrinkle when they get wet is NOT because the epidermis there absorbs water and swells I was surprised. And then motivated to set the record straight for all my former students who read my stuff and the rest of you who were no doubt told the same thing. See, we actually thought that was the correct mechanism. WRONG. The answer is this: In order to grip wet surfaces, when the nervous system detects such a surface the blood supply to the epidermis of the gripping surfaces (finger and toe pads and somewhat palms of the hands and feet) which in turn makes the surface wrinkle, thereby increasing the surface area for gripping. A simple adaption (this is evolution folks) to climbing around in wet places and/or gripping wet or damp things.

Now you know.

Image: Hand; http://www.dreamstime.com/wrinkled-fingers-thumb434852.jpg

Image: Foot; http://www.sciencebob.com/images/wrinkled_toes.gif

Why does Woody Worry?

I find myself re-posting a lot of stuff from the “Americans Against the Republican Party” and I wonder why? The Democrats won the election Woody, so why the continuing thrust?

The answer is really, really easy. The Republican Party is now engaged in a kind of warfare that boggles the mind, but does not surprise. Unrelenting attacks at the state and federal level on abortion rights; unapologetic support for guns, guns, guns with no shred of logic; passing or trying to pass legislation at the state level to gut the Electoral College to make is more likely for Republicans to get elected; stonewalling Obama when possible, for example, still blocking his appointments from 4 years ago and since; forcing the “fiscal cliff” crap on all of us when Congress is responsible for the spending (not the President); refusing to admit that the energy policies of the last years are working; refusing to admit that the economy is getting better. The list goes on and on.

We have to really worry about the next 10 years, and hope that the Democrats, the party of the People, keep in power. We may be screwed if they do; we will certainly be screwed if they don’t.

Image: http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7187/6908274137_e29e9408f8_z.jpg

Humpty Dumpty and Compromise

God, what a mess!!

The Election is over and the new President is installed in office (yes, I know Obama won, but each 4 years a “new” President is sworn in).  Now the work of putting Humpty Dumpty back together again. No doubt about it: the country is broken. And as I see it the cause is hyper-partisanship. The Right has moved farther to the right and the Left has moved farther to the left. Leaving very little in the middle.

In the old days political parties regularly switched places in the lineup and voting districts were filled with a mix of political types such that many, if not most, districts were able to put canditates in office who were “middle-of-the-roaders”.  No more. This trend is especially seen in the Republican Party, but is growing in the Democtratic Party as well. It bodes badly for the country and is manifested in the continuous gridlock seen in recent years in congress.

The old political art of compromise seems to have gone the way of the floppy disk. We now have the art of political confrontation and brinksmanship in plain view every day. Right now the Dems have the White House so the Republicans balk and block. It the situation were reversed I have no doubt that the Dems would do the same.

It is just a damn shame to ruin a good country with partisan crap like we see now.

There is a way out though: challenge the redistricting of congressional districts in the courts and hope for a better plan. Hope. Well, when all else fails there is always Hope.

http://jonathanfosteronline.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/03/humpty_dumpty.jpg

Woody Attempts to Clarify

I think I need to clarify and redirect my comments some comments about a women’s right to choose. Abortion is not an issue in and of itself for me. Personally I think termination of pregnancy should be a last resort taken very seriously. I believe that while no woman should ever be forced to have an abortion, no woman should be denied access to the procedure either. Whether to terminate or not should be, in my view, entirely up to the woman involved. So what about the man? Which man is that? The rapist? The woman’s father? Her brother? The drunken frat boys? None of them should have any say at all. There are times when consensual sex leads to pregnancy and there may be legitimate dispute about “keeping the baby”. If the father is willing to take over 100% of the care and support of the baby and leave the woman free to move on, then there could be a case for carrying to term. This is a problematic area that I agree has no easy answers. Still, I come down on the side of the woman and her absolute right to control her own body. And the rights of the embryo/fetus? None that I can see. Life begins at conception. Or does it? Isn’t an egg alive? Aren’t sperms alive? Of course they are. In many cultures both past and present babies are considered for life or death based on circumstances. They have no natural right to live. They have value or not, and on that basis are kept or discarded.

No, the issue isn’t abortion. The issue for me is control or lack thereof. Laws that require people to have medical procedures against their will have mostly been abandoned. Forced sterilizations of “undesirables” are mostly gone. So why should there be laws that criminalize voluntary procedures? Where is the constitutional basis for such laws? Well, one party wants to put the concept of “personhood” which by their reckoning begins at conception, into the Constitution. Then laws against abortion would be “legal”, and women would lose the right to choose. The RIGHT TO CHOOSE. The basis of such an amendment is biblical. It defines life as “god given” where there is no reason at all to believe that it is, in fact, anything other than natural.

So it boils down to this in my view: Laws that proscribe behavior based on the sanctity of life are in fact religious laws. And they are laws of convenience. “Thou Shalt Not Kill”. Did I get that right? Kill what, or who and under what circumstances? Not kill animals? Nonsense. Not kill in war or time of threat? Nonsense. Not kill in punishment? Nonsense. Not kill for mercy? Nonsense. Laws of convenience. The same legislators who want to pass ‘Thou Shalt Not Kill the Unborn” want to kill enemies, and criminals and animals. Many of the very same legislators who want to limit the rights of a woman to control her own body also want government out of their businesses, out of their taxes and out of the way of “progress”. What is going on here anyway? You mean it is all right to pour millions of gallons of poisons into rivers and lakes, and all right to pollute the air, and all right to “frack” the ground without concern for the water supply but is not all right for a woman to control her own reproductive functions? Nonsense.

And yes, a lot of women want to control the lives of other women by passing restrictive (religious) laws on the control of their bodies. So what? That doesn’t make it right, does it? The other day the Taliban beheaded 17 people for dancing. Dancing offended their concept of their religion so they killed the dancers. Ordinary people having a good time at a private party. That is what happens when religion runs amok. Passing laws based on any religion is the beginning of the end of real freedom. Our founding fathers had it right: Keep Religion Out Of Government and Governance. Still a good idea today. Or, you can move to Saudi Arabia were religion trumps everything.

Image: http://stocklogos.com/sites/default/files/imagecache/logo_preview/logos/image/clarify_2.png

"LIAR!!!"

"Liar" said Gavroche!

Is a lie still a lie if you don’t know it is a lie?

Suppose someone tells you that a friend is a Republican, but the friend is actually a Libertarian. You believe the person and tell someone else that this friend is a Republican. The first person lied to you. So the question is did you lie when you passed on the information or did you tell the truth?

I suppose there is some arcane philosophical discourse about this that involves truth tables or logic trees or something, but I am looking for a simple answer. And I think I have one: Yes, you are lying too. Why do I think this? Because I believe it is up to each of us to investigate the truth to the best of our ability before repeating an assertion. This could be time consuming and difficult but necessary if you want to be truthful. In the example above you simply make a phone call or send an email and ask, assuming you give a crap. If not, don’t pass it on.

The core of the question goes to the idea of “belief”.  If you “believe” something is true and pass it around as “truth” you are a potential liar. If the belief is actually true, then you don’t lie. If not, you do. You are the person responsible to verify the facts of your assertions before you assert them. You think there is a tooth fairy? Check it out and then tell your kids. You think there is a Santa Clause? Check it out. You think there is a God? Check it out before you go around proclaiming “TRUTH”. If you can’t come up with a factual basis for your belief in the tooth fairy or Santa Claus or God, qualify yourself with “I believe this to be true, but I have no evidence to support my assertion.” Now, what you really might mean is “I know this is true but a moron like you will never see my reasoning so I won’t even try.”

It is really simple: You pass on a lie, you are a liar. You question or qualify a lie, and you might just be a thinking person.

Image: http://www.lesmis.de/pics/gavroche.jpg