High Fructose Corn Syrup defended in embarrassingly brazen commercial

This commercial speaks for itself – Paid for by the Corn Refiners Association…..

Mo. House passes bill allowing drug testing of some state aid recipients | Political Fix | STLtoday

I feel sorry for the innocent victims of desperation that will come as a result of the short-sighted ignorance of the Missouri General Assembly.  Unintended consequences are on they way if the Governor signs this in to law.  There are more reasons for welfare than altruism.  Governments and modern societies also provide welfare because the cost of doing nothing is much worse - in terms of both financial cost, as well as safety.  Not to mention, while the children of those in poverty are suffering anyway, this will pretty much do them in…only contributing to the cycle of poverty the writers of this terrible piece legislation are trying to avoid.

Of course, the people writing this junk only make $32,000 a year to do it.  We Missourians gets what we pay for, I guess…

The Missouri House of Representatives passed a bill that would allow drug tests for recipients of the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families.

Recipients who test positive would be referred to a substance abuse program and be ineligible for TANF benefits for a year.

Sponsor Ellen Brandom, R-Sikeston, said taxpayers’ money shouldn’t go toward drugs.

Taxpayers “feel like this is a misuse of their hard-earned money, to subsidize somebody who is misusing drugs,” she said.

But opponents, mostly Democrats, said the bill would ultimately hurt the children. They suggested funding treatment programs would be a better solution.

“We’re standing between hungry children — who are the children of drug-addicted parents — and their next meal,” Rep. Jeff Roorda, D-Barnhart.

But Rep. Bryan Pratt, R-Blue Springs, said the parents have options.

“If you are a drug user, and you want welfare benefits, guess what? Stop using drugs,” he said.

The bill is HB30.

UPDATE: An official estimate put the cost to the state at about $4 million for FY10, and a bit more for the two years after that.

Mo. House passes bill allowing drug testing of some state aid recipients | Political Fix | STLtoday

Experts Say Obama’s Stem-cell Funding Will Trigger a Worldwide Renaissance in Regenerative Medicine

Image by Getty Images via Daylife

As I continue to debate with my friends and family over the quality of Obama’s economic policies, I am always quick to let them know, that like this post from the Daily Galaxy, if Obama does nothing else during his President other than what he did this past week with stem cell research, I will still be ecstatic.

Obama has already lived up to his promise of change, signing stem-cell research funding into law and basically saying "Hey, how about we let the doctors and scientists run this medical research thing?"  It’s terrifying that that’s actually a new sentiment on Capitol Hill, but at least it’s there now.

Previous Presidential proclamations have paralyzed this lifesaving science for almost two entire Olympics, seven-and-a-half years of being restricted to less than 5% of the available stem cell lines.  Hundreds of ideal models for genetic diseases and organ replacement, ignored because people whose education in stem cells began with "no, they’re not part of a plant" said "Bad!"

There are hopes that this isn’t just throwing the shackles off stateside science, but could lead to a worldwide renaissance in regenerative medicine.  The idea is that other repressive countries might ask themselves "Wait, we’re writing rules AGAINST curing disease?  And do those people screaming against stem cells even know what they’re talking about?"

Experts Say Obama’s Stem-cell Funding Will Trigger a Worldwide Renaissance in Regenerative Medicine

One More Reason to Be Nice to Your Children - Freakonomics Blog

Image via Wikipedia

A parenting tragedy if I ever heard of one.  I read this while holding my sleeping 10 month-old daughter… Warning! Do not read if emotional

Before he got on the train, little Alexandra looked up and asked, “Daddy, will you bring me a cane?” Bucky [Fuller’s nickname] promised he would bring back the souvenir as he set off for an enjoyable day of football and friends.

Harvard won that day, and Bucky spent most of his time lost in drink, camaraderie, and parties, forgetting his troubles as well as his family on Long Island. When he arrived in Pennsylvania Station in New York the following afternoon, Bucky telephoned Anne [his wife] who could barely speak. She told him that Alexandra had suffered a relapse and was in a coma. Stunned, Bucky caught the next train to Long Island. Arriving home, he found Alexandra still unconscious and a doctor doing all he could to save her life.

Bucky could only sit near her bed looking on helplessly as the doctors and nurses continued their work well into the night. Eventually, the situation calmed down, but Alexandra’s condition did not improve. Then, in the early hours before dawn, she opened her eyes and smiled up at Bucky. As he bent close to his daughter, Bucky heard her tiny voice ask, “Daddy, did you bring me my cane?”

Fuller could only turn away in shame and agony. In the furor of drinking and celebrating, he had forgotten his daughter’s simple request. Following her question, Alexandra closed her eyes for the last time and died in her father’s arms a few hours later. Bucky never forgave himself for that incident, which, even in the last years of his life, would bring tears of remorse to his eyes.

One More Reason to Be Nice to Your Children - Freakonomics Blog - NYTimes.com

Boozy films and ads make viewers drink more - health - 04 March 2009 - New Scientist

I know it is anecdotal at best, but based on personal experience, I believe this 100%.  Not only does it make me instantly crave a drink on many occasions, what I crave depends on what the actor or actress is drinking.  Last evening was a perfect example.  My wife and I were watching Becoming Jane when the male lead sat in a pub with a mug of beer.  My taste buds instantly lit up.  If it wasn’t for the Strawberry Nestle Quick I had just downed, I may have given in to temptation.

If you find yourself craving a beer next time you’re watching someone do the same on your TV, you won’t be alone.

Two studies suggest that people drink more when viewing drinking behaviour in films and advertisements. The results strengthen calls for tighter regulations on how and when alcohol is portrayed in movies and commercials.

"Although we do not argue for banning alcohol portrayals in movies, it might be an idea to explicitly warn people, especially parents, that movies contain such scenes, and that these affect drinking directly," says lead researcher, Rutger Engels of Radboud University in Nijmegen, the Netherlands.

Boozy films and ads make viewers drink more - health - 04 March 2009 - New Scientist

Does the human race have a 50/50 chance of surviving the 21st century?

I have added a new book to my “hope to read soon” list.  It is titled, “Our Final Century,” by Martin Reese.  (Actually, I will probably read Our Final Hour, also by Martin Reese, instead.)  According to Amazon.com, “Sir Martin Rees FRS is the most eminent cosmologist in Britain, the Astronomer Royal and Professor at Cambridge. He lives in Cambridge.”

What he says in the book is quite distrubing.  Essentially, he puts the human race’s chances of surviving the 21st century at 50/50.

And I have to say, 208 pages in to Thomas Friedman’s ‘Hot, Flat, and Crowded,’ a 50% chance of human self-destruction in the 21st century is not implausible.

Here is the Amazon.com editorial review:

“‘It matters that one should understand the provenance of this important and disturbing book. It is not another futurological diatribe saying that the end is nigh, but a lucid, calm, profoundly well-informed work by a distinguished scientist, whose humanity - evidenced by a serious ethical commitment and a quiet sense of humour- balances the dispassionate logic with which he surveys his subject: the multitude of threats facing humanity in the twenty-first century from error and terror in the nuclear, biological and environmental spheres.’ Literary Review”

This just in, Brush Your Teeth! — Especially if you are female and pregnant

I wonder how many diseases and other medical problems are caused by weakened immune systems due to mouth infections related to poor oral hygiene.  Anybody?

Discovery Channel - Jan. 13, 2009 — Previously undiscovered bacteria usually found in the mouth could be responsible for up to 80 percent of early preterm labors, estimate doctors from Case Western and Yale Universities in a new study published recently in the Journal of Clinical Microbiology.

The research could help doctors prevent preterm births by encouraging oral hygiene or stop early labor from developing by prescribing targeted antibiotics.

“The earlier the woman goes into preterm labor, the higher the chance that she will be infected,” said Yiping Han, a doctor at Case Western University and the first author on the study.

Peanut butter is probably cause of salmonella outbreak

This is not all that exciting, but I am posting it because I came across the story as I was finishing my second peanut butter sandwich.  Thankfully, I was eating Peter Pan brand.

Peanut butter eyed in salmonella outbreak - Food safety- msnbc.com

ATLANTA — Federal officials have not yet identified the cause of a salmonella outbreak striking almost 400 people in 42 states, but state officials in Minnesota said Friday they believe peanut butter may be involved.

On Friday, the Minnesota Department of Health said preliminary laboratory testing found salmonella bacteria in a 5-pound container of King Nut brand creamy peanut butter. The tests have not linked it to the type of salmonella in the national outbreak, but additional results are expected early next week.

Related articles by Zemanta

• Choosy Terrorists Choose Jif

The St. Louis Post-Dispatch asks, “How do you want to die?”

Interesting discussion on The St. Louis Post Dispatch website today, in the sense that death is usually such a taboo subject:

More than 150,000 people die each year in Missouri and Illinois. The information comes from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, which compiles mortality data for the U.S. from death certificates in each state. Some deaths occur from multiple causes, but an overarching cause is determined for almost all deaths. More than 36,000 people in Missouri and Illinois died of some form of cancer in 2004. In St. Louis City, Jackson County, Mo., and Cook County, Ill., more people died from homicides than motor vehicle accidents in 2004.

…How do you want to go?

Some of the answers are pretty typical, some are decent:

• I want to die on my own terms, with dignity and while I still understand what is going on — Geek 

• with a beer in my hand and a smile on my face. — tigger71 

• When I pass on I would like for it to be out in the middle of the sea on a boat, the water blue as the sky, on a warm summer day, with a light breeze, enjoying the tranquility and not having a worry in the the world. That could be kind of scary too, because what if no one finds me? and when they do I’ll be wickedly scary corpse!! — Nikki

• When I’m 105, riding my Harley and shot by a jealous husband? — mick7

• Wanna go with a bottle of viagra in one hand and a blonde in the other.  — Jom

‘Abstinence only’ and ‘Virginity pledges’ are as ineffective as they sound - and more dangerous as well

This Johns Hopkins School of Public Health study shows that not only are ‘Virginity (abstinence) pledges’ ineffective, but they also lead to substantially lower usage of condoms and other forms of birth control.  Other studies have shown that ‘abstinence only’ programs in schools have been ineffective and pointless over the long term.

The obvious medical problem is that with the lack of use of condoms and other forms of birth control, teens are at higher risk for pregnancy and sexually transmitted diseases.  (And according to the Population Council, abortion rates increase with the non-usage condoms and other forms of birth control.)

Study: ‘Virginity pledges’ are ineffective - Washington Post- msnbc.com

The new analysis of data from a large federal survey found that more than half of youths became sexually active before marriage regardless of whether they had taken a “virginity pledge,” but that the percentage who took precautions against pregnancy or sexually transmitted diseases was 10 points lower for pledgers than for non-pledgers.

“Taking a pledge doesn’t seem to make any difference at all in any sexual behavior,” said Janet E. Rosenbaum of the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, whose report appears in the January issue of the journal Pediatrics. “But it does seem to make a difference in condom use and other forms of birth control that is quite striking.”

Related articles by Zemanta

• Religious right “virginity pledges” do not work
• Abstinence programs still don’t work

“No Duh” of the day - Head-Banging Bad for the Brain

This finally explains what has happened to most of my long-lost friends - but I wonder about the quote below about headbangers looking dazed and confused.  Doesn’t he know what that smell is at concerts?

Head-Banging Bad for the Brain: Discovery News

Dec. 18, 2008 — Led Zeppelin’s immortal song ‘Dazed and Confused‘ might well have been a clinical observation on the state of their audience’s brains, say Australian researchers who have found over-enthusiastic head-banging can cause mild brain injury.

In a study published in the British Medical Journal this week, two University of New South Wales (UNSW) researchers concluded that head-banging to a typical heavy metal tempo could cause mild traumatic brain injury or concussion, and neck injury, particularly as the tempo of the music and angle of movement increased.

“Clearly it’s a serious issue,” said Associate Professor Andrew McIntosh, co-author and professor of biomechanics at UNSW.

“If you observe people after concerts they clearly look dazed, confused and incoherent, so something must be going on and we wanted to look into it.”

Enhancing Evolution - an ethical question from John Harris

I am not sure how I feel about this.  Bioethics professor, John Harris, really does make some good points in this synopsis, but I think I am going to have to read the book (Enhancing Evolution: The Ethical Case for Making Better People) to get a better feel for it.  I hope he delves in to the possible consequences of what he is proposing and what societies can do to prevent some of the worst.

What do you think?

Enhancing Evolution: Do We have a Moral Duty to Improve the Human Race? -A Galaxy Insight

If it is right to save life, Harris says, then it should also be right to postpone death by stemming the flow of diseases that carry us to the grave. And we should make any such technology available as soon as we can, even if it means there will be some “haves” and “have-nots”.

“Certainly, sometimes we want competitive advantage – but for the enhancements I talk about, the competitive advantage is not the prime motive. I didn’t give my son (Jacob, to whom the book is dedicated) a good diet in the hope that others eat a bad diet and die prematurely. I’m happy if everyone has a good diet. The moral imperative should be that enhancements are generally available because they are good for everyone.” The only other route to equality, he says, is to level down so that everyone is as uneducated, unhealthy and unenhanced as the lowest in society – which is unethical. Even though we can’t offer a liver transplant to all who need them, he says, we still carry them out for the lucky few. Much better to try to raise the baseline, even if some are left behind.”

Related articles by Zemanta

• Controversies In Bioethics

Natural Stevia sweetener approved by the FDA today

Everyone will probably begin to hear a lot about Stevia in the near future.  It is a natural sweetener, several times sweeter than sugar, that was approved by the FDA today.  It is expected that Coke and Pepsi will be right behind the approval with several new products.  Here is an advocate’s list of questions and answers about Stevia.

Questions & Answers about Stevia - David Richard Stevia - Naturally Sweet - Recipes, Cooking Tips, Articles, and leading Stevia Products

Q) How sweet is Stevia?

A) The crude Stevia leaves and herbal powder (green) are reported to be 10-15 times sweeter than table sugar. The refined extracts of Stevia called steviosides (a white powder, 85-95% Steviosides) claim to be 200-300 times sweeter than table sugar. My experience is that the herbal powder is very sweet while the refined extract is incredibly sweet and needs to be diluted to be properly used. Both products have a slight bitter aftertaste, also characteristic of licorice.

Q) Can Stevia replace artificial sweeteners in the diet?

A) Yes! I do not believe that humans should consume anything artificial in their diets. Stevia offers a safe, all-natural, alternative to these “toxic time-bombs.” And industrial usage in Japan proves that this substitution is both practical and economical.

Q) How many calories are in Stevia?

A) Virtually none. And the refined Stevia extracts are considered to be non-caloric.