Midday August 1 2008

Some notes:

I went to get groceries. Today is payday and evidently the day that the Link Card (one way Illinois distributes food stamps) gets charged with money. One thing I noticed: Phil Gramm was actually right about something:

We’re the only nation in the world where all our poor people are fat.” — Gramm, 9/6/81

Every one of the adults using the cards was obese. Long gone are the days when obesity was a sign of wealth.

Once upon a time, poor people were thin and rich people were fat. Not any more.

The point was made during testimony on the genetics of body weight last fall, when members of Congress were treated to slides of President William Howard Taft, Socrates and King Henry VIII — all fat, prosperous men.

Emaciated men waiting in bread lines during the Great Depression no longer represent the face of poverty in the United States.

For the most part, “We don’t have starvation and we don’t have extreme malnutrition,” said Barry Popkin, professor of nutrition at the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill.

In recent decades, labor-saving devices, including washing machines and tractors, have virtually eliminated the calorie-burning manual labor jobs that were once the province of the poor, said Popkin.

In addition, government subsidies of corn and beef have put fatty, rich foods within reach of poor families, Popkin said.

“We have a lot of people with economic uncertainty and you buy the cheapest most filling foods when you’re in those circumstances,” he said.

Developing nations are now seeing the same trend, with increasing numbers of obese and overweight counted among poor women, according to a recent study published in the International Journal of Obesity.

But in nations with the lowest gross national products, it’s still uncommon for the poor to carry extra pounds, the study found.

In the above article there is a graph which points out that 21.8 percent of people living in households with incomes of 15,000 dollars are less are obese, whereas 14.6 percent of those living in households of income of 50,000 dollars are more are obese. These statistics are for King county, Washington state, and were from 2004.

Elections: Why isn’t Obama pulling away from McCain? Actually the economic numbers suggest a modest Obama victory, which is just fine.

Of course, some Republicans continue to use Obama as a positive for them! Note: this guy slams Bush too.

Of course, some people will always find something to complain about.

You see, Obama “isn’t focused enough” on Black issues.

But on Friday it was Barack Obama who found himself being yelled at — several times — by African-American attendees who argued that he ignores “black” issues.

In an appearance in St. Petersburg, Florida, the Illinois Democrat’s address was interrupted when several young black males stood up, hoisted a banner that read, “What about the black community, Obama?” and began peppering the Senator for not focusing on their concerns.

Obama told them they would have time to ask questions after the speech was over, and they did. They asked why he was not focusing on issues like the sub-prime mortgage crisis, Jena Six, Sean Bell and “the numerous attacks that are made against the African-American community.” Obama responded twofold: telling the hecklers that he had, in fact, been focused on these issues and explaining that there would never be 100% continuity between his agenda and that of the voters.

“Listen, I was a civil rights lawyer,” Obama said. “I passed the first racial profiling legislation in Illinois. I passed some of the toughest death penalty reform legislation in Illinois. That doesn’t mean I am always going to satisfy the way you want these issues framed… which gives you the option of voting for somebody else, it gives you the option of running for office yourself, those are all options. But the one thing I think is important is, that we are respectful towards each other.”

It is rare for Obama to be heckled in a political forum, but it’s not terribly surprising that the protest came from a fellow African-American. Moments after he took the man’s question, a nearby African-American woman yelled at Obama again. The Senator has trod a thin line on the racial components of this campaign. Witness the uproar over accusations — made by John McCain’s campaign manager Rick Davis — that he played the race card. And his posture as a post-racial candidate has struck some as discourteous (see: Jesse Jackson). Still, the idea that Obama will get anything short of an overwhelming portion of the black vote seems far-fetched.

Update: a report from someone who was there.

Note how easily Obama handled the situation. McCain’s staff would have gotten rattled and had the protesters arrested; remember the story of the 61 year old librarian who had the sign “McCain = Bush”? (that’s a good thing, right? )

(note: we are NOT like the Republicans at all!!! That is a good thing!)

No, I am not only picking on African Americans here; there are times when others on the left are just as bad. I’ve even had fights on this blog before.

You know, you just aren’t going to please everyone. This just comes with the territory if you want to be a politician. I admit that I sometimes chuckle a bit when a politician loses his/her temper and lets a remark slip out.

“Pontificating idiots” email
Clippings from articles about the email.
Clippings from articles about the email.

In June of 2005, Stephens sent an email to a discussion group, or “listserv” that focuses on the community of Brewster. He thought the message was going to Beth Coursen, an aide in his Assembly district office.[7] Instead he sent his reply to all subscribers, referring to them as pontificating idiots.[8]

The discussion group, called “Brewster10509″, has a web site describing what the list is for. Members are free to post anything that has to do with government, education, community organizations and a host of other things related to Brewster and the surrounding Town of Southeast.[9] After realizing his mistake, he issued an apology to the users of the message board to which he said, “In fact, now I most closely resemble the type of poster I described.”[10]

Text of Stephen’s Email[11]

Re: Comments on Stephens Campaign Website

more interesting crap.

I’m “on” 10509 to monitor what is going on in Brewster. I do not post anymore. Just watching the idiots pontificate. Keeping informed is important and it also gives me a window to what GB and some of his supporters are thinking.

Let me know how you think we should proceed with the website. I’d like to get it up and running before too long and don’t want to hurt Michele and Jay … I like them and they are talented. Maybe a collaboration of some sort? I’ll let you be my guide.

What’s the scuttlebutt on the election … is Hauser circulating a Conservative petition … are you going to do an opportunity to ballot on the “D” line? How about an independent line … like the Save Pawling Party or “Chicks with Balls Party” or some such thing?

If it is really hot tomorrow you are welcome to come for a swim (a suit would be appropriate :0 ) … I don’t think I’m around this weekend for Guinans … sounds like a blast though.

Got pozzi’s announcement in the AM and then its back to the Law Office …. I feel like I’ve been away for a month!

Later,
Will

Welcome to August 2008

Workout notes Yesterday I rode 12 miles with Olivia on the Rock Island trail. Interestingly enough, riding on the trail (which is a groomed crush limestone bikepath) is rougher than riding of pavement; you go slower, pedal harder and end up with a more sore rear end.

One other cycling note: after my rides, my left leg tingles a bit; longer rides irritate my left piriformis. Evidently I either need to severely limit my cycling or limit my harder walking. My piriformis can’t stand doing both.

Today I swam 3550 yards (2 miles) and jogged 3 miles and then did leg weights.
The swim: 500 warm up, 500 drill/swim (zoomers), 5 x (100 IM, 100 free with paddles) then 1500 free (8:48, 17:37, 26:20; the segments were 8:48, 8:49, 8:43). The jog was about 32 minutes outside.

Interestingly enough, when I was finishing my run, someone at the gym asked me “were your running or walking?” My running gait is so walk-like that I’ve been frequently told that I look as if I am walking fast; others have told me that if I could learn to straighten my knee that my run would be a good racewalk. Go figure.

Workout/Fitness/Training humor

My daughter introduced me to a new blog called the Fail Blog. Today, it had this photo:

I wonder if these guys are going to use the stairmaster?

Hey, you don’t have to work out anymore! We have the exercise pill!

It sounds like a couch potato’s dream come true – an “exercise pill” that keeps the body trim and fit without having to budge from the sofa.

The drug has already been tested in mice, and scientists are so concerned about the implications they are developing ways to prevent its abuse by cheating athletes.

Researchers made the discovery after studying the biological signals that allow the body to respond to exercise. They found that certain chemicals could stimulate the same pathways to boost endurance and burn up fat.

Mice fed the drugs were turned into mini-marathon runners with extra reserves of stamina that did not put on weight. Tested on treadmills, they were able to run faster and for longer than untreated animals.

One drug, called AICAR, increased running time by 44% even in mice that did absolutely no exercise.

Lead researcher Professor Ronald Evans, from the Salk Institute in La Jolla, California, said: “We were blown away. This is a drug that is like pharmacological exercise. After four weeks of receiving the drug, the mice were behaving as if they’d been exercised.”

Sedentary animals given the drug actually ran longer and further than than those which had exercise training, he said.

As well as having greater endurance, mice given the drugs experienced other benefits usually associated with exercise. They remained lean even when fed a high fat diet that would normally have caused them to become obese, and their insulin response improved, lowering blood sugar levels.

The new research, published in the journal Cell, also suggests the drugs might help reverse the muscle frailty associated with ageing, or diseases such as muscular dystrophy.

Oh yes, a test for this pill has been developed, as this pill is supposed to make training even more effective.

Politics and extreme stupidity concerning obesity. The Wall Street Journal thinks that Obama is too skinny to be President! (hat tip to Bob Sackamento at the Daily Kos)

Speaking to donors at a San Diego fund-raiser last month, Barack Obama reassured the crowd that he wouldn’t give in to Republican tactics to throw his candidacy off track.

“Listen, I’m skinny but I’m tough,” Sen. Obama said.

But in a nation in which 66% of the voting-age population is overweight and 32% is obese, could Sen. Obama’s skinniness be a liability? Despite his visits to waffle houses, ice-cream parlors and greasy-spoon diners around the country, his slim physique just might have some Americans wondering whether he is truly like them. [...]

Obama still lags behind Republican John McCain among white men and suburban women who say they can’t relate to his background or perceived values.

“He’s too new … and he needs to put some meat on his bones,” says Diana Koenig, 42, a housewife in Corpus Christi, Texas, who says she voted for Sen. Hillary Clinton in the Democratic primary.

“I won’t vote for any beanpole guy,” another Clinton supporter wrote last week on a Yahoo politics message board.

The last overweight president to be elected was 335-pound William Howard Taft in 1908. [...]

According to Sen. Obama’s Chicago physician David Scheiner, the senator works out regularly, jogs up to three miles a day when he can, and has “no excess body fat.”

Dr. Scheiner didn’t disclose his patient’s exact weight, but medical observers estimate that the 6-foot-1.5-inch-tall senator appears to weigh at least 10 pounds less than the roughly 190 pounds that the average American man of his height weighs. The Obama campaign declined to comment for this article.

Though Sen. McCain cannot lift weights due to injuries he suffered as a prisoner of war in Vietnam, he “walked the Grand Canyon rim to rim in August 2006″ and hikes whenever he can find the time, according to John D. Eckstein, an internist in Scottsdale, Ariz., who treats Sen. McCain. At roughly 165 pounds, his weight is slightly above average for a 5-foot-7-inch man his age, according to nutritionists.

Let’s see: Jimmy Carter ran regularly while in the White House; he was a college cross country runner. Ronald Reagan chopped wood and made those “if The President can find time to workout, then so can you” commercials. George HW Bush ran regularly. Bill Clinton was a regular runner. George W Bush was an avid runner and is an avid cyclist; he boasts a more than respectable 3:44 marathon PR.

More Science

Yes, there is water on Mars. We now have proof.

NASA’s Mars Phoenix Lander quenched a longtime scientific thirst yesterday when it detected water in a soil sample—the first time liquid water has been touched or “tasted” on another planet.

The craft obtained water by heating an icy soil sample in its “bake and sniff” oven, called the Thermal and Evolved Gas Analyzer. “TEGA” identifies substances by heating them and analyzing the resulting vapors.

Energy There was a big breakthrough by an MIT scientist.

MIT chemistry professor Daniel Nocera has published in today’s issue of the journal Science an article (subscribers only) announcing a major discovery involving artificial photosynthesis. I’m not subscribed to Science, but the main gist of his research is available on several sites on the web.

In short, one of the problems with energy from solar cells is the inability to store the excessive energy produced on a sunny day for use on overcast days. Nocera came up with a process that used solar energy to disassociate hydrogen and oxygen in water thereby providing fuel for a fuel cell.

The Daily Kos diary I linked to provides other resource links.

Animals: not merely mindless brutes. Check out this short video; it is the kind of thing that makes you feel good.

Religion and Society

Wingnut religious group is organizing a campaign to…you guessed it….pray that it rains hard during Obama’s acceptance speech. No, I am not making this up (video).

Let’s see if I understand this: more prayers will make some deity alter the weather? I’m sorry; the only way to accurately describe this is bat**it crazy.

Millard Fillmore’s Bathtub Reminds us that the founding fathers did not intend for the US to be a “Christian Nation”.

In his Autobiography Jefferson recounted the 1786 passage of the law he proposed in 1779 to secure religious freedom in Virginia, the Statute for Religious Freedom:

The bill for establishing religious freedom, the principles of which had, to a certain degree, been enacted before, I had drawn in all the latitude of reason and right. It still met with opposition; but, with some mutilations in the preamble, it was finally passed; and a singular proposition proved that its protection of opinion was meant to be universal. Where the preamble declares, that coercion is a departure from the plan of the holy author of our religion, an amendment was proposed, by inserting the word “Jesus Christ,” so that it should read, “a departure from the plan of Jesus Christ, the holy author of our religion;” the insertion was rejected by a great majority, in proof that they meant to comprehend, within the mantle of its protection, the Jew and the Gentile, the Christian and the Mahometan, the Hindoo, and the Infidel of every denomination.

Social. Evidently this cop doesn’t like bicyclists.

Politics and political issues.

Walmart: openly pulling for a John McCain/GOP win.

Conservative Hate Speech Here is an incomplete collection. Hat tip to Edge of the American West.

What I will do is list the quotes. You tell me who said it; go to the above link for the answer.

1. “I tell people don’t kill all the liberals. Leave enough so we can have two on every campus — living fossils — so we will never forget what these people stood for.”

2. “I think our motto should be, post-9-11: ‘Raghead talks tough, raghead faces consequences.’”

3. “We need somebody to put rat poisoning in Justice Stevens’ creme brulee. … That’s just a joke, for you in the media.”

4. “This free speech thing is a canard. … How about not letting traitors teach at universities? Yes, I realize I’ve just proposed firing the entire Harvard faculty. These institutions can be shaken — look at Dan Rather. He’s out. Or, as I look at it, one down, two to go. We’re going to need a much bigger trophy case for all these stuffed heads.”

5. “I would have no problem with [New York Times editor Bill Keller] being sent to the gas chamber.”

6. “A great deal of good could be done by arresting Bill Keller having him lined up against the wall and shot.”

7. “I repeat: Should the entire American Left fall over dead tomorrow, I would rejoice, and order pizza to celebrate. They are not my countrymen; they are animals who happen to walk upright and make noises that approximate speech. They are below human. I look forward to seeing each and every one in Hell.”
(ok, this isn’t from someone famous)

8. “My only regret with Timothy McVeigh is he did not go to the New York Times Building.”

9. “Where does George Soros have all his money? Do you know? Do you know where George Soros, the big left-wing loon who’s financing all these smear [web]sites, do you know where his money is? Curaçao. Curaçao. They ought to hang this Soros guy.”

10. “Right now, even people sitting on the fence would like George Bush to drop a nuclear weapon on an Arab country. They don’t even care which one it would be. I can guarantee you — I don’t need to go to Mr. Schmuck [pollster John] Zogby and ask him his opinion. I don’t need anyone’s opinion. I’ll give you my opinion, because I got a better stethoscope than those fools. It’s one man’s opinion based upon my own analysis. The most — I tell you right now — the largest percentage of Americans would like to see a nuclear weapon dropped on a major Arab capital. They don’t even care which one. They’d like an indiscriminate use of a nuclear weapon.

In fact, Christianity has been one of the great salvations on planet Earth. It’s what’s necessary in the Middle East. Others have written about it, I think these people need to be forcibly converted to Christianity but I’ll get here a little later, I’ll move up to that. It’s the only thing that can probably turn them into human beings. … Because these primitives can only be treated in one way, and I don’t think smallpox and a blanket is good enough incidentally. Just before — I’m going to give you a little precursor to where I’m going. Smallpox in a blanket, which the U.S. Army gave to the Cherokee Indians on their long march to the West, was nothing compared to what I’d like to see done to these people, just so you understand that I’m not going to be too intellectual about my analysis here in terms of what I would recommend, what Doc Savage recommends as an antidote to this kind of poison coming out of the Middle East from these non-humans. “

I defy anyone to come up with a similar list of quotes made from liberals; especially from mainstream liberals who have a public platform and a wide following.

Note: wingnuts like to mention “Ward Churchill”, who has no syndicated column or show, and who does NOT campaign with Democratic candidates; one of the authors of the above quotes spoke at a Conservative political action event and posed for photos with one of the mainstream Republican party candidates.