How Science Works

Most people should have learned the scientific method. Form a hypothesis, test the hypothesis, revise based upon the data. It is very objective: a great scientist goes where the data leads.

The reality of science is very different than you learned in school. When a scientist forms a hypothesis, they become very emotionally invested in it. If they data doesn't confirm their hypothesis, their brains go into overdrive to figure out why. They will figure out any reason imaginable to throw out disagreeable data. Of course, if they data confirms their hypothesis, no such scrutiny is done.

This is why the peer review process is so important: those who disagree with the hypothesis will apply great scrunity to both the data and the methods for obtaining it. They may devise counter-experiments to disprove the hypothesis. This continues for years. Rival scientists are often very contentious, subjecting their intellectual opponents to ridicule and worse. It can take many years, often decades, but eventually enough data and facts are gathered that a theory emerges victories as one side admits defeat and there are virtually no credible scientists left opposed.

The human nature component affects all scientists, great and small. Einstein famously refused to believe in quantuum mechanics until the day he died, though it was well established by then.

Lastly, let's not forget how politics fits into all this. The greatest funding of science comes from government. Global warming advocates frequently paint opponents as being in the pocked of "big oil" based on the most tenuous relationships. Totally ignored is the other aspect: government spends many billions of dollars on global warming research. This attracts scientists to somehow relate their research to global warming. If they find some relationship between their research and global warming, they can get more funding to explore this further. If they find none, it is much harder to get funding. It is hardly surprising then that scientists find lots of evidence for global warming in order to keep the easy grant money coming. Those who don't believe the evidence on global warming suffer from a lack of funding, and often don't publish dissenting opinions to avoid the inevitable political pressure.
This same sort of effect occurs anywhere science and politics cross, which is almost everywhere anymore.

Don't construe this as me saying science is bad: to the contrary, it is the best thing we have going and the most successful way mankind has found to gain knowledge. But most people need to understand its limits and not look at it with such religious awe.

Science and Faith

A couple years ago, I had a brief discussion with a co-worker (who was the VP of Engineering) about science and faith. He was very religious, and claimed that science required as much faith religion. We debated this a bit, as I argued that science was not faith-based at all, requiring confirmation by real-world data to test the validity of claims.

It occurred to me later that he had a point, though I don't think this is what he meant. For the vast majority of people, science really is a matter of faith. They have absolutely no way to distinguish good science from bad (and there is plenty of bad science out there), and no way to seriously analyze opposing arguments of scientists. So, they take what scientists proclaim as simply a matter of faith.

For settled science, this is entirely rational. Science has a fantastic track record. I don't need to fully understand the details of quantuum tunnelling, for instance, to believe it exists and works pretty much as scientists say: if they were wrong, much of modern electronics would simply not work.

The problem is with the unsettled science. On issues like climate change, hardly anyone is qualified to join the debate, but this doesn't keep half the morons on the planet from not only proclaiming their view is right, but only morons could disagree. On stem cell research, I have never heard a single argument (much less of coherent one) why using pluripotent cells derived from adult stem cells would be not as good as using embryonic stem cells. Yet plenty of people cheered Obama for funding the later and unfunding the former, while derrided Bush for funding the former and defunding the later.

People need to understand the limits of their own understanding and let the science play out. Politics and science do not make a good mix.

Pining for the Fjords

Apparently I had been pining for the fjords, so off I went to Alaska.

We took a cruise along the inside passage. I learned a couple things. First, I knew a fjord was a long inlet of ocean. I didn't realize part of the definition is that they are all valleys carved by glaciers, like half submerged Yosemite Valleys. I didn't realize that entire coast was basically carved up by glaciers: something like 1000 miles of glacier carved coastline. We traveled up a few, including Misty Fjords National Monument, which was truly spectacular. We got within about 100 feet of one glacier (by canoe, not the large cruise ship).

On cruises I have been to, at each port they have a selection of shore excursions or tours you can take, usually around 6 or so. In Alaska, there was over 20 at each port. I think I could spend the summer cruising Alaska and trying out different excursions. If you ever take an Alaska cruise, pop the extra money for an outside stateroom, preferably one with a balcony. On most cruises, this is of minimal benefit as you see nothing but empty ocean. On the Alaska cruise, you see mile after mile of spectacular snow covered mountains, beautiful lush green forests, and islands all around.

We traveled on Norweigian Cruise Lines. We had a great time because Alaska is so wonderful. NCL is just so so. Food was generally just OK. Dining room service was spotty: sometimes good, sometimes bad, never outstanding. Contrast to the Royal Carribbean cruise we took on our honeymoon: on that one, every single meal we received better service than I have every had before or since.

The shows on NCL were fantastic. The resident performers were quite good: we saw all 3 of their shows. They had Ivan Percell, 9 times world champion juggler, who was fun, funny, obviously extremely skilled, and bit arrogant (some of which was just his performance schtick). They also had Shawn Farquhar, who is the only magician in history to win both the stage magic and sleight of hand magic world championships. He was truly incredible, especially with cards, very funny, and a first rate nice guy. We ran into him on the ship during the cruise and got to talk with him for a few minutes: it was a real pleasure. I told him my daughter wanted him to perform a trick: make her brother disappear.

Gods of Nature

This quote struck me as quite insightful:

Finally, as a side note, it is interesting that the modern belief that our carbon emissions have caused the climate system to rebel are not that different from ancient civilizations that made sacrifices to the gods of nature in their attempts to get nature to cooperate. Technology might have changed over time, but it seems human nature has remained the same.

I pulled this off the latest blog entry of Dr. Roy Spencer, a climatologist and former NASA scientist who was a collegue of Dr. James Hansen.

Thanks Lee for pointing me at this blog.

5-1 Odds

Wow, "Iran on the Brink". The world is watching to see what unfolds in Iran. I'll give 5-1 odds that the Iranian government brutally crushes dissent, much like the Chinese did in Tianamen Square and Iran continues on its present course.

Here is a nice opinion piece about the world reponse to the election results in Iran: Don't Count on America (or any other country)

The people rising in the streets have no hope against the power of the government unless they get some outside help. Rare is the government that is overthrown without outside help. Our own American Revolution would have been yet another of many failures had we not had the aid of the French. Here we have an opportunity to crush an enemy and make new friends by helping the people of Iran overthrow their government. This opportunity will be squandered, because it will not even be considered.

What an Ordeal

I am not sure if Kenrick will be the first from his troop to be in the Order of the Arrow, but he will be the only one currently in the troop in it. This weekend he spent in Lost Valley, undergoing Ordeal to be admitted into the Order. I also went, because apparently I can be suckered into volunteering for almost anything. I cannot say a lot of what occurred there, as the Order does like to keep an "air of mystery" about it, but I can share a few things.

The first night we were led off into the darkness, sans flashlights, to sleep out under the open sky. It was cloudy, and fog came and went through the trees, giving the night a surreal and almost mystical appearance: very appropriate for the occaision. One of the tests was a "period of silence", where talking was not allowed. If any of you have ever been around a bunch of boy scouts, you will understand that few things we can experience in life are as as surreal as being around 100 scouts and not hearing anything but the wind in the trees. The Indian-like ceremonies to mark the beginning and end of Ordeal were truly inspiring.

As an adult who has been through far worse ordeals than this (think several all day black belt tests, or finals week at Caltech), it was pretty much a cakewalk. For the 12-14 year olds that made up the bulk of those in the Ordeal, I think it was a very worthy experience. I was proud of Kenrick as he is starting to show some true character and performed admirably. He has come a long way in the past two years of scouting.

Iranian Elections

As of this writing, both sides are claiming victory. Neither side said what their basis of claim was, but Mousavi's is probably based on something silly like exit polls, while Ahmadinejad's claim is probably based on the fact that he has the support of the ruling clerics.

I will give 2-1 odds on Ahmadinejad. Any takers?

Morality of Abortion

For those that want all abortion outlawed, read this: Conner and Dr. Tiller, A Remembrance. Even though posted on the site of a deluded and unrepentant Leftist, it should remind you that there are cases where abortion makes sense and seems justifyable. A complete ban is probably not in anyone's best interests.

For those in favor of abortion: at what point should it be allowed for a healthy woman to abort a healthy baby? If your answer is up until the moment of birth, then I have no problem calling you nothing short than an accessory to murder. That sort of thinking is comparable to eugenics and involuntary euthinasia.

I believe that in the next few years, we will witness absolute proof that consciousness exists outside the human body, that there is truly more than this material world, and that humans have a soul. At that point, those who support abortion rights will have to admit at some point a soul enters the body of a baby, and that abortion would in fact be murder after that point. Catholics believe it is at conception. Chinese medicine says it occurs at 8 weeks.

Regardless of when it occurs, if you are one of the vast majority of Americans who believe in a human soul, you must believe there is a time it enters the body of a baby, and that time clearly is long before birth, based on how much learning and awareness there is while the baby is in the womb. You must therefore oppose abortion from that moment in time forward, except in the most extreme cases.

To Violence or Not to Violence

Like pretty much any sane person, I condemn the murder of Dr. Tiller. For far too long, the abortion controversy has been between two very shrill voices: those who say all abortion is murder, and those who say a woman has a right to abortion for any reason right up until the moment of birth.

Obama was quoted as saying that "However profound our differences as Americans over difficult issues such as abortion, they cannot be resolved by heinous acts of violence."

I wonder. It took a lot of truly heinous acts of violence to end slavery. I hope it never comes to that. I hope 100 years from now we have total clarity on the issue.

A Strange World

For all of you who strictly believe in science and totally discount all forms of paranormal phenomenon, this is were I go off the deep end. I have said many times that the universe is a far stranger place than anyone knows. Or, to unleash one of my favorite Shakespeare quotes:

There are more things in heaven and earth, Horatio,
Than are dreamt of in your philosophy.

Today I will highlight an article in NPR.

Can Positive Thoughts Heal Another Person?

I especially like the "Love Study" section about two-thirds down the article. To summarize, they put couples into separate, electro-magnetically sealed rooms. One would demonstrate clear physiological changes when the other was seeing an image of them. Somehow, there was communication between them, when we have ruled out all forms of communication. Read about it. This study has been replicated multiple times. It is a very real effect.

Having been very spiritually inclined, I have done a lot of reading in this area. Most of what you read, by the way, is pure bunk. Invariably the author describes energy fields around the human body as some sort of electromagnetic fields. What we have here is a demonstration that it is not electro-magnetic in nature. Human energy fields, energy flowing through the body like the Force of Star Wars is very real. There are energetic connections between people. We don't really understand them. But at least we can put to rest the idea that they are electromagnetic. This is a form of energy that is currently unknown to hard science.

Lest you think I am totally bonkers, consider dark matter and dark energy. These are forms of matter and energy the scientists pretty much agree must exist, but have yet to detect in any way. They think it accounts for 90% of the mass of the universe, yet it doesn't interact with ordinary matter, which is why we cannot detect it, except by its gravitational effects.

I speculate that perhaps this dark energy is the same as the energy manipulated by mystics. Perhaps somehow our consciousness can perceive dark energy. This would explain why anyone who has experienced this energy knows it is real, despite the fact that scientific instruments cannot detect it. Of course, this is pure speculation on my part. They could be totally unrelated. But if you accept the concept of dark energy and dark matter as being 90% of our universe and completely invisible to our scientic instruments or normal senses, then you have to agree that the idea of chi is not far fetched. Perhaps scientists have discover the Tao.

Powell Powell Go Away

I am pretty fed up with Powell and like-minded "moderate" Republicans. They tell conservatives that the party has gone too far right, that we must nominate moderates in order to have a hope of winning. OK, I hear the words. So, I suppose that means if we nominated a moderate Republican against a far left Democrat, we would win. Except we did that: McCain is the very definition of a moderate.

But Powell went for Obama anyways. That is why Powell gets no respect whatsoever from me. I could understand if he went for Obama over a far right conservative. If Powell can't even vote for a moderate like McCain, on what basis does Powell consider himself a Republican? What Republican principles does he stand for?

If Republicans cannot nominate people who will act like actual conservatives in office, what is the point? I don't care whether someone has and R or a D next to their name. It's the policies enacted that are important. What is the point of electing someone with an R next their name if they enact liberal policies.

Want to know what happens with "moderate" Republicans are elected? They act like Democrats. Just look at Arnold in California.

Sanity in California!

Hard to believe, but there are signs of some sanity in California, at least outside of Sacramento. Yesterday, we resoundingly defeated all propositions that the legislature wanted passed to help them balance their budget while continuing their unconscionable spending. It was a rare overwhelming rebuke of government by a very left wing state (the don't call this the Left Coast for nothing!).

Obama beware. California is often a bellweather for the nation. Citizens have had enough of profligate government spending, and this little taxpayer revolt is coming for you once the taxpayers realize that the bill for what you are doing to the country comes due.

Scientific Breakthrough

Neutron star crust may be stronger than steel, study suggests

This little headline in Yahoo tonight caught my eye. OK, I haven't take in Physics class in about 25 years, and anytime I see the word "study", red lights start flashing because studies are notoriously uninformative and generally just used for propoganda. I was especially intriuged by the word "may". You mean there is a chance that neutron stars are not as strong as steel?

For those clued out, neutron stars are made of pure neutrons. No atoms, no huge space between atoms; just tightly packed neutrons. A cubic centimeter of the stuff weighs about as much as a small planet. Heck, I learned this in Junior High some 30+ years ago. How on Earth could something like that possibly not be stronger than steel?

So there was the information in the 3rd paragraph: apparently they have been measured at merely 10 billion times harder than steel.

New headline: "Mountains May Weigh More Than Marshmallows!"

Alternative Medicine and Parent's Rights

Every year or two we hear about cases like this: Judge Rules Boy Must Take Chemo. I am a big believer in parents' rights, alternative medicines, and religious freedom. Did the judge make the correct ruling? Likely, his ruling will save this boy's life. But he has also deprived them of their religious beliefs in a clear violation of our 1st amendment.

Court ordered medical treatments of unwilling patients seems like a dangerous precedent. Where does it stop? If a teenage girl is pregnant, can the court order an abortion even though the parents and child all want to keep the baby?

There are deep flaws with Western medicine in many areas. I am a big fan of alternative medicines when Western medicine has no clue. But in this case, with a 90% chance of being cured, chemo is definitely the way to go.

I think the parents are religious wackos (with all due respect to non-wacko religious people, and to non-religious wackos). Allowing their child to die when Western medicine is highly likely to cure him is a tragedy. But freedom also means the ability to make choices others deem wrong-headed or stupid. Perhaps his death will change the parents' religion. Perhaps this object lesson will keep many away from this religion and save many more lives. Perhaps their alternative methods will cure the boy anyway. Perhaps he will die from the chemo treatments, leaving the parents and everyone else in their religion angry and bitter at the government.

Even the wisest amongst us cannot see all ends. Unfortunately, few are wise enough to understand that.

Destroying the Best Health Care in the World

The United States has the best health care in the world, and we are about to destroy it. This topic is so huge, I plan to spend several days blogging about different aspects of this issue. This is not to say there aren't problems that could be corrected. There are, and they should. But let's be clear about what the problems really are, and apply the right remedies.

Today I will focus on supporting the first sentence of this blog. There are many who disagree. There are studies that show that US health care is far worse than many countries. They are all bogus. As a generalization, they tend to measure things like longevity, which has far more to do with lifestyle than health care, or weight in factors like affordability and access to healthcare for the poor. In other words, these studies are heavily weighted towards socialized healthcare systems.

What those studies never really measure is outcomes for people with health problems. Take cancer: if you get cancer, there is no better place in the world to be treated than the US. Some countries have better survival rates on specific cancer types, but overall, the US is far ahead of the entire world in cancer care. The same is probably true for pretty much any type of disease or problem you come up with. There are reasons why the wealthy of the world come to the US to be treated, and not Canada, the UK, or France.

Furthermore, the only reason the rest of the world is even close is because they benefit from using treatments and drugs created in the US. The US outspends the entire world in medical research, and produces more medical treatments than the entire rest of the world combined. The entire world benefits from this as these treatments are made available to the world.

You might ask why the US, or all countries in the world, has such a spectacular record of medical advances. Are we smarted than the rest of the world? More educated? Raciall superior? No, the answer is simple: free enterprise. So much money is poured into R&D because it is a lucrative business. In the countries with socialized health care, medical breakthroughs do not get such great rewards, and so much less is spent on them. Furthermore, new treatments tend to be expensive, as anything new is. This makes socialized systems, which emphasize cost cutting, shy away from more expensive treatments.

You nationalize health care in the US, you will literally destroy the R&D that drives healthcare improvements in the entire world. Expect the pace of medical advances to slow dramatically.

Numb

I haven't posted in awhile mostly because I am completely numb from the massive idiocy coming from the Obama administration and the media. Practically every day comes some idiocy of breathtaking enourmity, so much so fast it's hard to take stock and sieze on what's important. But what do I know? I am clearly a right-wing kook who believes in less federal government and states rights. This of course puts me on the watch list with the Department of Homeland Security.

Swine Flu

Every year in the US, 30,000 people die for the flu. So far, we have 1 death in America from Swine flu, out of 91 cases. In Mexico it is about 160 out of 2400 cases. So, in undeveloped countries with poor health care, we have about a 10% mortality rate, with about a 1% mortality rate in the US.

Apparently Tamiflu takes care of this flu easily. Of course, you can't buy Tamiflu in Orange or LA counties right now: sold out everywhere, no idea when we'll have more.

Compare this to the avian flu in 2006: 122 infected and over 60 dead, for about a 50% mortality rate. That was real scary. Fortunately, that one didn't pass from human to human, only bird to human.

My prediction: there will be no statistical difference between flu deaths in 2009 compared to 2008. Liberals will praise Obama's response as if it was in any way different from responses to previous flus.

Good Riddance

So, Senator Arlen Spector is leaving the Republican party. His brand of unpricipled power-mongering is much more suited to the Democratic party, and it is a good thing (for him, anyways) that he is leaving because he was unlikely to get past the Republican primary (as he so much as admitted) in 2010.

I am glad to see him go, even though it helps the Democrats get to their 60 seat super-majority. I want Democrats to have as little cover as possible from the results of their policies.

Prosecute 'Em

President Bush expanded Presidential powers. This is not the first time, nor has he taken as much power as some in the past. For instance, it is well known that Lincoln suspended the writ of Habeous Corpus. Not so well known is that is actually arrested and jailed politicians and reporters to silence dissent, people who did nothing more than speak out using their 1st amendment rights. And of course the powers assumed by FDR are pretty well established. Bush's power expansion pales compared to either of these.

Some Republican (maybe Newt?) once told Bush that eventually Hillary would be President, and did he really want her to have the powers he now has? Far worse happened, as I don't believe Hillary could not possibly have been as audacious as Obama has been, taking Bush's powers and raising him big time. Do those who are now cheering Obama and agree with his grab for power realize that we will eventually have a Republican President with the same powers they are granting Obama?

So now we have Obama opening the door for prosecution of the lawyers who gave the legal opinions authorizing certain harsh interrogation measures (which the Left and media calls torture, though use of that term is debatable). Once those prosecutions get going, how long before Cheney, Rumsfield, and even Bush himself are prosecuted?

Let me be clear: I am firmly in favor of this prosecution. Not that I believe these people need to be punished. I don't. These are not evil men. These are good men who did what they believed was necessary to protect this country. You can disagree with their methods, but you cannot impune their motives.

No, I am in favor of these prosecutions for the precedence they set. Once the Republican's are back in power, they will then have the precedent set to prosecute members of the previous administration. I am thinking treason trials for some in the current administration. And once that happens, what do you think will happen to the peaceful transfer of power after elections?

Think people. Is this really the path we want to go down?

That's What Gasoline is For

My family watched a silly movie together, a straight to DVD movie offshoot of the latest Get Smart movie which followed the adventures of two tech guys working for control. Not a great movie, but me and my family were entertained.

So, in one scene, the evil dictator wanted to capture these two guys to create weapons for him and replace the scientist he had imprisoned for the last 15 years. When asked why he wanted them instead of the guy he already has, he said "In 15 years, all he has invented is an engine that runs on water. Duh! That's what gasoline is for!"

Tea Parties

Tea Parties were held yesterday across the country, with many hundreds to thousands of people showing up at each site. The local paper says only hundreds showed up at the biggest one here in conservative Orange County. Meanwhile, in Atlanta, the number was like 15,000, 8,000 in WI. Overall, it was a terrific outpouring for a basic principle: we want less government, not more.

Those that are saying those protesting are misinformed because taxes are only going up as much as they were under Clinton have a point. Either they are informed and being disingenuous, or they are worefully ignorant. Very few are protesting the current actual tax proposals. What is really being protested is the dramatic increase in government spending, which is going to be paid for either by ever increasing taxes or through inflation. When you would have to tax 100% of all income over $75K to pay for the current level of spending, it doesn't take a genius to figure out we are all going to pay for it somehow, sometime.

Meanwhile, here is how the completely unbiased and esteemed CNN reported on these:



Mr. Fascist is a prime example of a loon: you are going to find these characters at any rally for any cause. He certainly didn't represent the majority of people at these rallies. But note how the CNN "reporter" argues with and gets confrontational with the people she is reporting on. Gotta love that media spin.

Lastly, those of us in California have good reason to protest. Taxes are going up dramatically here, mostly because our government simply can't stop spending money it doesn't have.

Pass

Somali pirates take an American flagged ship its captain as a hostage. Over the course of a few days, the Right talks about how weak our reponse to the piracy is, which it certainly appeared to be. Looked like Obama was just going to jaw jaw over this one. Then, by complete surprise, a Navy Seals team takes out the pirates and rescues the Captain. The surprise was certainly aided by Obama looking so weak in the first few days.

Being the right wing nutcase I am, I think he should also have invaded Somalia, or at least bombed a few villages or something. But all in all, well done, Mr. President. You pass this test.

A Renewal

Over the past several years, my wife has asked me if I wanted to renew our wedding vows. Besides thinking the concept was silly, my response has always been the same: "why, have you broken any?"

I have always thought it would be cool to be married on a ship by the Captain. But a church wedding is the more proper way, surrounded by family and friends, so a church wedding I had. I always figured being married on a ship would be appropriate for a second wedding: not that I had any intention of leaving my first.

So, this spring break I took my family on a short little cruise: 4 nights to Catalina and Ensenada (for dirt cheap, comparatively). A great time was had by all, but I pulled a little surprise for my wife. I told her we were having dessert with the Captain after lunch. I didn't lie: I just failed to tell her the dessert was wedding cake to be had after we renewed our vows.

The ceremony was short and nice, with my kids and dad in attendance. Pam cried while she recited our vows. Whether because she was touched or just realized she was going to spend the rest of her life with me, I'll never know for sure.

My New Star

Kenrick has achieved the rank of Star Scout. This is well above the rank I achieved as a scout, and well on his way to Eagle Scout. I am quite proud of how he has grown in 2 years of scouting. After about 6 months, he wanted to quit scouts. I made him stay in until he got to First Class, then I told him he could make the decision. By the time he reached First Class, he had his eye firmly set on Eagle, and is starting to show signs of true leadership and responsibility. He will probably achieve Life Scout in another 6 months, the minimum time required.

Note to any parents of scouts who want to quit. First, don't let them, if at all possible. They will thank you later. I have never met an Eagle Scout who never wanted to quit scouting, nor one who wasn't very glad they didn't. If you believe in the goals of scouting, then keep them at it. Scouting is not about camping and hiking: scouting is about character and leadership.

For Kenrick, I think taking him to a couple Eagle Court of Honors helped inspire him to that goal. He also wants a military career, and being an Eagle Scout will help him greatly in that career path, but really any other career path he chooses.

Hopeful Signs and ODS

Lest I be accused of ODS (Obama Derangement Syndrome), let me say there are some policies of Obamas that actually have my agreement.

First, his new policies relating to the SBA and small business loans sounds very encouraging. Not the sort of thing that someone who is planning on destroying capitalism would do, so we can take some comfort that his harshest critics are probably a bit off base.

Secondly, his policies in both Iraq and Afghanistan are pretty much indistinguishable from Bush's. In Iraq, we have won the victory and are now just working on winding down the engagement. Afghanistan continues to be very troublesome. Perhaps it is time for a very different approach. However, Obama is not doing it. He is doing exactly what Bush said he would do, and probably what McCain would do as well. It's not an unreasonable policy and he has my support.

David Horowitz, the former Liberal activist turned conservative, has a nice article on ODS in which he beseeches the more frothing critics to cease frothing. He is right, of course. But still, every conservative that voted for Obama and a lot of Democrats were expecting (though I have no idea why) Obama to lead as a centrist. Except for a couple moderate moments as noted above, he has pursued a far more extreme leftist agenda than I had ever imagined could be accomplished in such a short period of time.

No Good Will Come of This

Seems to me that the Board of Directors and/or the sharedholders of GM should be deciding whether or not the CEO should stay on or not. But now the White House is apparently firing CEOs, or at least forcing them to resign.

I know from hard experience that very few people really know how to run a company. Employees of a company often think their management are idiots and they could run the company better. I invite them to try. They will soon find out that running a business is far harder than it looks. Management is far more than taking it easy and telling other people what to do.

Obama, having never in his life been employed by a private company, is even more clueless than the average employee about how to run a company. Yet he figures he can run the car companies better than the existing management. I am appalled at his sheer audacity and arrogance.

Cold Fusion Again

It is looking like a complete replay on cold fusion. Some Navy scientists just announced they may have achieved cold fusion. A physicist who reviewed the work noted that their paper didn't contain any theoretical basis for cold fusion, and it failed to rule out alternative explanations.

In typical reporter fashion, the article quoted the editor of New Energy Times with a gushing opinion of the potential to balance it out, as if the opinion of this editor should be worth as much as that of a physicist.

I am betting that this turns out to have an explanation unrelated to cold fusion, and it is worthless as a power source. Of course, I will be thrilled to wrong.

The Coming Test of Character

With Obama's popularity rapidly slipping in the polls, there will soon be a true test of his character. Will he stick to his policies, despite the growing disapproval? Or will he become more of a moderate and try to keep is approval rating up?

Bush stuck to his guns and did what he felt was right. He was rewarded with victory in Iraq, when most people thought we should accept defeat. I repsect him greatly for that trait, even as I despise many of his policies.

I will certainly respect Obama's courage if he sticks to his policies in the face of sinking approval ratings, even as we watch his policies do more damage to this country than our enemies ever could.

We are in for some interesting political theater.

Enraged About Stem Cells

Until yesterday, I have always been just kind of luke-warm on the whole stem cell research debate. While people have tried to paint Bush as banning the practice of embryonic stem-cell research, the reality was he merely didn't allow federal funds to go to it. Still, billions in private and state funds have gone into that research [with absolutely no results to show for it, I might add].

An important thing to realize, is there is nothing magic about embryonic stem cells. What we really want are pluripotent stem cells, which are stem cells that can change into any other kind of cell. Until a couple years ago, the only place we could get those was from human embryos. However, recent developments have come up with additional sources, including using adult skin. It turns out this method is also cheaper than using human embryos, and many noted scientists, including the one famous for cloning Dolly the Sheep, have decided to switch to using exclusively that technique.

Bush recognized this for the great scientific advance it was, and signed Executive Order 13435 which simply allowed federal funding to go to that sort of research.

Obama's executive order allowed Federal funding to go to embryonic stem cell research. OK, I disagree with that, but really it's not that big of a deal since that research is already being done anyways.

Here is where I get enraged. While he waxed piously about keeping politics out of science, that same executive order also rescinded executive order 13435. So, the only pluripotent stem cell research that can be financed by the federal government is embryonic stem cell research!

Now who is being "anti-science"? What rationale could he possibly have for that? The government will only fund research that is ethically contentious, yet denied funding for research that everyone agrees is good?

I usually oppose Obama's policies on the grounds that they are misguided, but this is just plain evil.

No More Liberals

Have you noticed there are no more Liberals? The policies of Liberals became so discredited, that nobody wants to be known as a Liberal anymore. Now they call themselves Progressives.

But we had a Progressive Era before. It was roughly from 1890 to 1920. After that time, the policies of Progressives became so discredited, that no one wanted to be known as a Progressive anymore. So they then started calling themselves Liberals.

By the time Obama thoroughly proves to America how foolish Progressive policies are, what are these people going to call themselves then? Surely it is too soon to go back to Liberal. I have a few ideas, but I think I best keep them to myself.