Disney World 2008 Pics Of The Day--Day 4

The flu attacked again in force today, slamming back down on me with swift and brutal determination. I tried to stay in the fight for a few hours this morning, but eventually succumbed to the increasingly urgent call of my pillow and bed, some orange juice and a couple of Nyquil Liquicaps. Hopefully a good night's rest will put my depleted body in a little better shape, and then we can pick up where we left off. Today's plan was to visit Animal Kingdom in the morning, and then Magic Kingdom for the afternoon and evening. We never made it past the animal part of the scheme, but maybe we can go see Mickey tomorrow. I don't have much to show you today. We only got a few snapshots taken before misery got the better of me, but what we did get I'll pass your way now, before I say goodnight again. There are a few lovely birds, most of which shall remain nameless, and another interesting creature or two. One thing you will not see, however, is the elusive Giant Red-Eyed, Red-Nosed Kat. It's dripping season for the Kat, and that's a time when the breed becomes particularly camera shy. The Ked too becomes scarce at such times, as it is only the lure of the Kat which draws him out into the open. Trust me when I tell you that right now the Kat is not very alluring...

We don't know what variety of bird this is. We just decided to call it "Pretty Birdie."

This is the same bird, but for lack of a better moniker, let's just go with "Pretty Birdie II."

Though not quite in focus, we thought the iridescence of this little beauty warranted its display here at the Meow.

This proud bird, all decked out in her (his?) Easter bonnet is an African Crowned Crane. Finally, a bit of actual information!!

This fellow (or lady) is a Military Macaw--the name having something to do with the color of Spanish soldiers' uniforms from some previous century or other. (While in my influenza-induced stupor, I take no responsibility for tracking down more specific information than that. If you'd like to research the topic more thoroughly and then educate us in the comments, please feel free to do so. Otherwise, we must all choose to live in unapologetic ignorance. Apologizing would be pointless.)

Here parades a Giant Anteater of some sort. I can't remember the entire name, but I do remember that it's the biggest variety of anteater. Giant is an accurate description, too. The brush on his back stood up about three-and-a-half feet, and he was probably seven feet strung out from tail to snout (or, tail to snot, as I originally typed it. I think I have a mental theme going here somewhere.)

Here's a Nile Crocodile, who looks so jolly we think someone must have cracked a funny right before Ked snapped the photo. Let's guess what it is, shall we? I'll start: "A crocodile and anteater walked up to a game warden and said, 'Did you see that Military Macaw that flew by? His tail was so green....'" This is where you come in... or not. It really is a lame idea, isn't it? I blame the Nyquil.

Disney World 2008 Pics Of The Day--Day 3

Ked and I had another lovely day today. After a VERY leisurely start to the morning, we headed on over to Epcot for some rainy-day fun. Most of what we did was of the indoor variety, which was a good thing, since every time we emerged from our sheltered pursuits we saw fresh evidence of the teary weather. Actually, though, we had very good timing for most of the day, and while we frequently trod on dewy pavement, we seldom saw (or felt) the showers that kept the sidewalks glistening. We popped from experimental greenhouse to aquarium, aquarium to ride, and so on, and barely noticed the weather--other than a experiencing a vague sense of homeyness, since rain reminded us of what it was like to be home in the Pacific Northwest.

I'm not going to babble much at you tonight. It's very late and we're both still sick, but I do have a few pictures to send your way, so here goes:

Just like the last time we were here, in January 2007, we couldn't resist climbing on board a couple of Segways and taking them for a spin.

We also enjoyed taking another tour of the experimental greenhouses where Disney magicians grow giant fruits and vegetables and work on new and innovative ways to increase product yields. The picture above shows some of the different ways their produce gets its start. One of the things they're working on is a way to grow plants with no soil, just water and nutrients sprayed right on the roots. They're hoping that maybe someday the folks at NASA can use this method to grow food in space.

We spent quite a bit of time around the aquariums, watching dolphins race by and manatee munch on romaine lettuce. We also had a look at some of the smaller aquatic scenes, such as the vivid tank pictured above.

We saw a few of Nemo's friends and family when we peered into their watery homes.

This Nemo wannabe tried to convince us he was our favorite little clown fish, but he couldn't fool us--not enough stripes!!

If this wasn't Dory, though, she was doing a pretty fair imitation.

I don't know what kind of creature-fish this is, but the whole scene, fish included, was such an intriguing combination of ugliness and beauty that I just couldn't resist giving you a glimpse, even though the picture is a little blurry.

On our way out of Epcot in pursuit of our dinner, we made our way through Canada and England, and headed off to enjoy what will almost certainly be the food highlight for the week. We ate at Flying Fish Cafe tonight, and it was stellar. The food, the service, the atmosphere, all of it added up to a great memory. The waiter was everything a waiter should be. The chef came to talk to us not once, but twice, and all that attention didn't even hold a candle to the wonderful food, so you can imagine what a fine meal it was.

Here's a sample of the decor. As you can see, the fish are flying.

I'll leave you with the images of our delightful repast. On the left is Ked's monkfish, followed by my potato-wrapped snapper, and a beautiful cheesecake with a walnut crust. Mmmm, cheesecake...

Good night.

Disney World 2008 Pics Of The Day--Day 2

After a leisurely morning spent posting pictures here at the Meow for the entertainment of friends and strangers alike, we headed over to Epcot on Friday for a day of fun and frolics. Most of our day passed pleasantly away, as we wandered from country to country in Epcot's World Showcase. We chatted with some singers from the Voices of Liberty (an absolutely amazing A Capella group performing at the American Heritage Gallery), and discovered that one of them was from our hometown of Portland, and we had acquaintances in common. Gives a whole new meaning to the phrase "Small World," doesn't it? The day was full of highs, very few lows, and one or two surprises. I think my favorite moment of the day, though, was when a six-year-old came up to me and asked me very sweetly and innocently, "Are you a teenager?" Talk about your Disney magic! This really is the happiest place on Earth!! I love that child. I truly love that child. On that note, on to the photos for the day. (Please be kind and refrain from commenting about how only a six-year-old could mistake me for a teenager. We are here to indulge in a little fantasy after all.)

Here's the ultimate landmark in Epcot. The big hollow ball behind me is one of our favorite rides, called Spaceship Earth. It's a gentle ride through human history, with a few tweaks since the last time we were here. They snap your photo at the beginning of the ride, and now at the end of the ride you get to see yourself zip around in a cartoon world of the future. It was so much fun we went around twice.

Ked insisted that we post this picture of me wandering around China. I decided to indulge him on this one. After all, it is his vacation too.

China kept us fascinated for quite a while, and these ladies were one of the highlights. Last year it was quite cold when we were here, so the acrobats performed indoors, but this year the weather is smiling, so we got to see the troupe contort out here in the open. No matter where they do their thing, though, it all looks equally impossible.

This gentleman had his work cut out for him when the wind kicked up. Despite the stiff breeze, though, he still managed to catch five bowls at a time on his head, while balancing on that teeter-totter.

I've been hitting the treadmill pretty regularly lately, so after a while Ked started thinking that borrowing that power chair beside him might be a good notion, just to keep up with Power Kat.

We just love all the interesting architectural details in Epcot, and Japan kept our cameras close to hand. I was thinking it might be of some use to have mine surgically implanted. Maybe once nanotechnology advances far enough that'll be an option, eh?

Scenes like this lake view panorama were what kept prompting the shutter-bug.

Here you get the flavor of the Moroccan souk. It was all incense and color, and crowds of bustling shoppers, just like the real thing--complete with the eager salesman who really, really wanted to make a sale--any sale.

The mosaic tile work throughout the Moroccan quarter is simply amazing. It's not a style that I would necessarily want to use to decorate my home, but you can't help but appreciate the intricacy and beauty of the designs.

Ked found the musical instruments fascinating.

He jumped at the chance to get "hands on" with some nearby drums.

Here's the atmosphere inside the Mexican temple where we ate our dinner. Our very, very yummy dinner.

This mariachi band kept the wait for our table lively. Disney musicians are soooo good!

Here's a shot of the World at night. Beautiful, isn't it? We'll leave you with this one--until tomorrow. Have a great day!!

Disney World 2008 Pics Of The Day--Day 1

Hello from the Magic Kingdom, or thereabouts. We caught a red-eye flight late Wednesday, so that we could hit the ground running on Thursday morning. Trouble with that plan was that both Ked and I have the flu, so it was more like we hit the ground limping. We were still going to stick to the plan, though, because our room here at the Animal Kingdom Lodge wasn't supposed to be ready until 3 or 4 in the afternoon. Our plane landed at 6:15 a.m. and we got to the hotel around 7:30, got checked in and all set up with our park passes, when what miraculous thing should occur? Our room was already available! It beckoned loudly, and thither we went. We slept for about 4 hours, and then wandered around Animal Kingdom for about three hours. You'd think after the long nap we'd have been up well into the night, but after a lovely dinner at Boma we crawled into bed at 7:30am. I didn't wake up again until 8:30--that's thirteen hours later for those of you who don't like math. Any of you who know me know that it takes a good bout of the flu to keep my eyes shut that long. Hopefully today we'll be a little more energetic.

Well, you didn't come here to read my drivel about sleeping and fluing. You came here for pictures! We will oblige. The sucky news is my camera was in a lousy mood and deleted most of the photos I took yesterday (most likely caused by my flu-induced stupor--I was not a happy camper when I discovered my own ineptitude). Believe me when I say some of the pictures I took were INCREDIBLE. It will make me feel better if you do believe me, and neither of us has any way to disprove the theory, so let's just run with it, okay? Despite my photographic mishaps, the good news is that since we are both snapshot junkies we are a two camera family, and we have lots of Ked's snaps to pass your way. Without further whining and other assorted forms of ado, I give you Disney World--Day 1. We'll start with the view from our balcony:

We didn't get one of the spendier rooms here at the Lodge, so imagine our delight when we found the pseudo-Savanna right outside our balcony (we have a balcony!), populated by giraffes, zebras, nyala antelope, ankole cattle, ostriches and various other bird life. At one point this morning we saw three zebras chasing an ostrich, while the giraffes looked on with amusement and the ankole cattle shook their heads in dismay. (You want to stay out of the way when the cattle shake their heads.)

This is one of the ankole cattle I mentioned. Those giant horns are common to both the males and females. They look like they can hold their own in a brawl, don't you think?

These were also outside our balcony. (We have a balcony! Sorry. I'm just very taken with the fact we have our own little nature observatory right here in our room.) We're not sure what these are--maybe some kind of crane? Any bird watchers out there in the know? Anyway, we figure it must be mating season around here with all the bird ballet that's going on.

From here we move on to the Animal Kingdom park. These Hyacinth Macaws were among the first residents to greet us. They, like the birds surrounding our lodgings, seemed awfully affectionate as well.

This East African Crowned Crane only seemed interested in food.

These Scarlet Macaws seemed both affectionate and hungry at the same time. We distinctly heard one of them say, "Hey! My beak is not your food!!"

This tiger looked quite self-satisfied and regal. Definitely not a cat with troubles on his mind.

Apparently, these macaws thought that tiger's look of satisfaction meant he wasn't too hungry.

"So, anyway Joe, I says to him, 'You don't scare me Old Stripes. I'm fast. I can out-fly you any day of the week. Come on, try and get me! Just see how far you get.'"

"I wouldn't mess with Old Stripes if I were you, Red. He's a lot smarter than he looks."

"Mmmm, once you get past the feathers, those red things are delicious. I wonder what other tasty morsels are wandering around this place?"

"Oh Lord, please don't let the tiger out of his pen. Please don't let the tiger out of his pen..."

"Hey Baby, leave it to me. I'll protect you. I think I can take the tiger.... maybe."

"Sorry I can't be more helpful, old chap, but I find hiding to be the best way to avoid death-by-tiger."

"Just send a little fire my way, and old King Louie here can fix it for ya."

"Hey, don't look at me. I may look scary and evil, but I'm just a fruit bat."

Well, that's it for today. We're off to Epcot for some low-key adventure. We won't be riding into space, or anything stomach-churning like that, but I'm sure we'll have fun just the same. Oooh, maybe there'll be science stuff to do. We love science stuff....

My New Hobby

I'm having fun playing with jewelry, which is funny, because I hardly ever remember to wear jewelry. My ears go naked for weeks at a time without my even noticing, and it takes just the right neckline to get me to think about putting on a necklace. I have the wrists of an underfed spider monkey, so bracelets are almost out of the question, and most rings get in the way of using my favorite power tools. So why, you may ask, am I having fun with jewelry, despite all of the aforementioned hindrances to self-decoration? Well, I bought my niece jewelry-making supplies for Christmas--books, tools, beads, and silver wire--and it all looked like so much fun that I couldn't help but start to play. The designer in me is enjoying throwing together various combinations of sparkly stuff, and the tinkerer in me is enjoying the dexterity challenge. So, here's my first major effort:


I'm not much of a display photographer, but you get the general concept, right? It was so much fun making this necklace! I modified a bracelet I saw in a really great book called Making Bead & Wire Jewelry, by Dawn Cusick. Here's an Amazon link, just in case you want to play too!

Changing Seasons

Pictures to follow, but first, Happy New Year!! Yes, I'm a day late, but I think I have a few more days before the year no longer qualifies as "new." I'm squeaking in the sentiment before the last of the Christmas fruitcake turns to brick on the kitchen counter, so I think I can get away with saying it a bit longer. My theory is, as long as the fruitcake is edible the holiday season hasn't really come to an end. (That's assuming that the fruitcake was ever edible to begin with. I happen to believe mine was, and it's merely the superfluity of sugary treats from the three parties we've thrown in the past week which has prevented said fruitcake from garnering the attention which would otherwise have assured its complete consumption.)

Anyway, it's 2008, and I hope that this year will be notably benign to us all, especially those of you who faced many hardships and difficulties in 2007. I can't say that 2007 was unkind to me. In fact, in many ways it was a model year for the Meow household, but still, I struggled to keep my usual good humor through much of it. Some changes take their toll far beyond their initial impacts, and one's perspective and attitude can never be the same again. The last few years have had some moments like that for me, and I am more wary of the world at large than I ever was before. That's probably a good thing. I have always been too naive, and my natural optimism sets me up for the occasional fall, and, really, the more I age and gain experience the more I recognize the need for an eternal perspective. This life simply can't be all we want it to be. There are too many flawed choices from too many flawed people (myself definitely included) all interacting at once for everything to flow along all smoothly and predictably. My hope is in the day when the flaws of mankind will be transformed through truly seeing Christ to perfect understanding, and thus the chaos we now create with our imperfect choices will be transformed as well, to harmony and peace. I know not everyone reading this will agree with me here, but that is my belief, and that is what keeps me from the dark side as I wander my way through this crazy and often difficult world (a belief supported, in my opinion, by history, science, philosophy, and reason, but on this topic, as on many others, reasonable people may agree to disagree.) I don't have much hope that 2008 will hold fewer challenges than other years; it may, in fact, hold many more, but I do have hope that I will continue to learn and grow through them all. I hope that for you as well.

Of course, this being a presidential year, I have almost no hope for that eternal harmony and peace I mentioned earlier to hang out much here in the real-time world. People will continue to peck and claw their ways toward whatever goals and desires fill their "to do" list, especially those whose list includes "become the leader of the free world," and some of us will watch in combined amusement and disgust as this spectacle plays out on the national stage. (I don't know if I'll be commenting at all on the show. I really meant it in October when I said I don't have anything more to say--although, as the fact I'm posting this little ramble proves, that doesn't mean I will never have anything to say. I may, indeed, get inspired to spout occasionally and add my voice to the giant muddle of thought that is our beloved blogosphere. Then again I may not. Who knows? Who really even cares, eh?) In any case, 2008 should, at the very least, be an interesting one for the political junkie, as well as the science junkie, things changing as rapidly as they are on the medical and scientific frontiers. There's something new to be learned every day on this topsy-turvy planet. May you have pleasant companionship with which to share the lessons this year brings.

Okay, all this random chatter came from a completely unrelated reason for posting. If you've been here before, you might have seen the pictures of Mount Hood and Mirror Lake that I posted last summer. I thought I'd give you a glimpse of them both in their winter splendor. Just to refresh your memory, I'll show you the summer view again, and then move on to the frozen version that Ked and I saw as we strapped on the snowshoes for a winter excursion on New Year's Day, okay?

Is that beautiful, or what?

What a difference a few months can make. It's still beautiful, but oh so different.

With at least five feet of snow on the ground, Ked and I weren't sure part of the time if we were walking on water, or bushes. The lake behind him had ripples of snow drifting across it as "the frosty wind made moan." (Bonus points to anyone but Su for knowing in which Christmas carol that frosty wind was so vocal.)

The lady with no face is me. Despite all visual evidence to the contrary, the tree behind me is quite a bit taller than it appears. Here it looks like the perfect flocked Christmas tree, but its summer stature is significantly more impressive.

Well, that's all for today. Feel free to check back at the end of the month for new Disney World photos. I may not be really writing the Meow anymore, but Disney World is always inspiring, so I'm sure there will be posts aplenty from Orlando. If we can, we'll be taking in Sea World and the Kennedy Space Center too, so the camera shutters should be flying. See you then!

Worried About Global Warming?

Changing your lifestyle to save the planet? Here's a new one for you. Greenpeace says, "Eat more kangaroo!!" It's your low-gas nutrition alternative. Apparently, kangaroos don't have the flatulence problem that cows and sheep do. Flatulence is, as we know, a major greenhouse gas producer, and, short of giving Beano to all our hamburger-on-the-hoof, there's not much we can do about it--if we want to remain carnivores, that is. Greenpeace's solution is to suggest we stop raising cattle and start harvesting the hoppers. Of course, if you don't live down under, there's all that fuel oil it'll take to get this methane-efficient meal to your dinner plate, but hey, anything for the cause, right? Then again, maybe Beano for livestock isn't such a bad idea after all...

Hat tip: Best of the Web

From The Kitchen To The Supreme Court

This "How'd she get there from here?" moment, brought to you by ramblers anonymous.

Hello from flaky blogger central. Apologies and self-abasement to anyone who requires them for my random approach to posting since I returned from my summer hiatus. To be honest, I'm not particularly inspired to write much right now. I don't really have anything to say or share that isn't available from a plethora of other sources far more erudite and articulate than I, and it seems rather a waste of your time for me to spout off uninspired, when a Google search will lead you to a treasure trove of information, news and opinions on your topic of choice. My two cents seem overwhelmingly redundant these days, and not very shiny.


Further inhibiting my spouter's itch, I'm getting all domestic with the onset of fall. I've got sewing projects going, and autumn is cooking season here in Meowville (the only time of year that I actually have some personal inclination to camp out in the kitchen.) This foray into the wonderful world of cookery never lasts long--usually about as long as spring fever keeps me interested in gardening--a couple months, max. I'm not interested enough in food to keep up the culinary enthusiasm much past the first weeks of morning chill and changing leaves, but it's fun for a little while to fill the kitchen with warm, homey smells after the long heats of summer have ceased, and the very thought of turning on the oven doesn't oppress me. For the moment, the thought of homemade mac and cheese, with ham and sauteed onions, a side of green beans, and fresh-baked bread is all sorts of appealing. The big fall bonus is that I know I'll make Ked happy while the cooking bug lasts. I know, though, that it's only a matter of time (a very brief time at that) until nanobots win out over warm, buttery biscuits, and the opinion-spouter in me wins out over the dread of redundancy.


Another time-consumer in the land of Meow is some committee work Ked and I are doing at church. Our pastor is being called on to a different ministry, and now comes the task of finding someone to fill his sizable shoes. As part of the search committee, we have lots of papers and procedures to review and revise, so we've all got our editorial pens out as the committee wrestles with the job of searching for the right replacement. To be honest, I'm really not fond of committee work in general, and my personal motto is "I want no power of any kind," so I didn't sign up for this gig on a volunteer basis. My husband and I were asked to participate, and we prayerfully considered the choice before committing. So far, I'm glad we said yes. We will miss our current pastor dreadfully, but, despite myself, I'm finding it interesting work. The committee is formulating advertisements, questionnaires and interview questions, and discussing ways to determine who will be the right fit. The English major and blogger in me enjoys the writing tasks, and I'm fascinated by the group discussions of who we are as a church, what we want our church to be in future, and how to convey those ideas to prospective pastoral candidates.

Okay, that wraps up the State of the Meow Address for October 9, 2007. I had an awful lot to say for someone who said that they didn't have anything to say right now, didn't I? Apparently, my two cents are shinier than I thought, at least to myself anyway. Having rendered my long-winded, and possibly unnecessary excuses for bloggish flakery, I'm going to toss out another quick link for anyone who might be interested. I read an op-ed in The Wall Street Journal today on Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas that was quite informative and interesting. (I warned you that I was somehow going to get from the kitchen to the Supreme Court.) The recent release of Justice Thomas' memoirs has set tongues awagging throughout pundit-dom, and John Yoo, "a professor at the Law School of the University of California at Berkeley, and a former Supreme Court clerk for Justice Thomas," examines some of Thomas' opinions and history. If SCOTUS is your bag, have a look. It's worth your time.

Health Decision Nightmares

...in the making. Oh, and while we've got the medicine cabinet open, let's talk about doctors grilling kids for dirt on their parents, shall we? ("Spy Kids" link via Instapundit)

Shades Of Gattaca

Remember the movie Gattaca? Ethan Hawke played a non-genetically modified human in the midst of an entire society of genetically enhanced over-achievers. His parents made the dire mistake of letting God decide who their child would be, rather than laboratory eugenics, and Vincent (Hawke's character) payed the price for that indiscretion. His genetically tweaked younger brother was taller, smarter, healthier and much more socially acceptable in a world where a DNA sequencing served as a job interview, and human potential was just a line on a bar graph. Vincent, limited by his poor vision and weak heart, as well as his otherwise unacceptable DNA, became the dregs of society, an "invalid," a man whose only value to the people around him was as a janitor, allowed by their benevolence to earn his keep by picking up their trash, as was fitting a "God-child" in their world of scientific perfection.

The movie's plot centers around Vincent's attempts to buck the system and overcome his genetic limitations, fulfilling his dream of becoming an astronaut and travelling to another world--all the while pretending to be someone with the right genetic profile for the job. The challenge for Vincent is not only overcoming his physical limitations, but fooling all the perfected humanity around him into thinking he is one of their own. Of course, in the end, the movie is about the triumph of the human spirit and Vincent's victory over the cold, hard world around him--an offering of comfort to all of us living here on the edge of our own scientific hurdle into this "brave new world."

This is just a movie, though, right? We aren't really all that close to choosing how smart, or how tall our kids will be, are we? Well, let's see how far off the mark this particular piece of science fiction is, shall we? We all know that genetic tests for Down Syndrome are routine in pregnancies where the mother is over thirty-five, and fetuses are regularly aborted for that genetic abnormality. There are also many people in countries such as India and China who are already pre-selecting for gender, aborting their girl babies in favor of boys, leading to an imbalance in gender ratios, and an increase in social aberrations like wife-sharing (via Futurismic.) So, we can see that we already select, in some cases, for intelligence, health and gender. Alarmingly, James D. Miller writes at TCS Daily that we are just not all that far from moving on to selecting for these and other traits on a much larger scale. Want to raise a baby Einstein? Science may soon give you much better odds than God and nature ever did:

By some predictions, within five years the cost of sequencing DNA will be "affordable enough that personal genomics will be integrated into routine clinical care." Once millions of people have their DNA sequenced researchers may quickly determine which combination of genes gives people the best chance of having a high IQ. Parents using embryo selection could, therefore, screen their embryos and pick the one with the greatest intellectual potential.

A recent advance in gathering eggs from women will make it much easier for choosey moms to give birth to geniuses. Two British fertility clinics have found a way of safely obtaining thousands of eggs from a woman. Fertility clinics, therefore, will soon be able to give a couple thousands of embryos to pick from. So let's say that a certain couple's genes mean that normally they have only a 1% chance of conceiving a child with the genetic potential to reach a genius IQ. With the ability to select among thousands of embryos, however, this couple could now almost guarantee that their offspring has the genetic potential of a genius.

Some people might look at this as a wonderful breakthrough, a boon to the future of humanity. Who wouldn't benefit from having a world full of Smart People? However, I am not nearly so sanguine about the prospects. Setting aside for now the embryos that will be created simply so someone can pick their favorite, putting babies on the level of shoes in a department store (except that the unwanted shoes, unlike the embryos, don't get destroyed when a particular shopper decides they aren't the right style), what happens when an ambitious nation decides that part of their future military and expansionist plans include raising swarms of state-controlled super-smarties, capable of shifting the balance of power in the world, simply by virtue of their superior intellects and numbers? Miller presents a China scenario that doesn't give me much comfort:

Embryo selection gets even more interesting when we consider how a nation such as China might use it. Imagine that in ten years China forces all its college students to get genetic tests. Students with intelligence genes in the top 1% of the top 1% of humankind are then forced to donate sperm or eggs. China then uses the sperm and eggs to create a billion embryos each year. The genetic intellectual potential of all these embryos is checked. Those in the top 10,000 are implanted into women. Each of these embryos has the intellectual potential to be in the top one-billionth of humankind. Now because of environmental factors many of these embryos won't turn into intellectual titans. But let's say that one in ten does. This means that each year 1,000 people with the scientific ability of Einstein will be born. By 2035 they will become adults and start doing scientific research. I imagine these Einsteins will be rather helpful to China's economy and military.

I'd love to cling to the message of Gattaca, the triumph of the human spirit over adversity, physical and mental limitations and all that--Stephen Hawking is a shimmering, glowing star in the mental firmament, after all--but the whole notion of mankind genetically manipulating our potential sends up red flags all over the place for me. I acknowledge that every parent on the planet would want to give birth to healthy babies, and that, even if I would not do the same, many of them would think that genetic profiling was a reasonable way to achieve that end for their child, but in a non-personal, non-specific-individual way, many of our potential problems in the world are held in check by the fact that lots of people who have evil plans simply can't carry them out yet. I do not like the notion of an entire generation of enhanced nuclear scientists growing up in Iran, for example, or a crop of bio-weapons experts-in-the-making springing up in Pakistan. Equally repugnant is the notion of a whole generation of Islamic women bred to be subservient by nature (or in this case design), or a slave-class enhanced for their endurance. Don't tell me that there aren't societies in the world that would pursue these goals. Sudan, Myanmar, North Korea, Nazi Germany, and even today's China, among others, put the lie to such thinking.

These are not desirable outcomes to scientific "advancement" if you ask me, and yet, is there really any way to prevent the undesirable in the quest for the arguably desirable--healthier, smarter children? As seemingly heartless as it is to want to limit parents' abilities to produce the best children possible, this is one area of "progress" I would rather see slowed, hindered, and even halted altogether than continue on to an unavoidably negative end. However, is there anything that will prevent this science from its inexorable march into the future, with both the good and bad it holds in its hands? I can't see a way to separate them, nor can I see the scientific community having the wisdom to refrain from following this particular yellow brick road. The technology will continue to advance, unless God himself chooses to halt the momentum.

I love science. I really do, and I'm thrilled as can be with the giant leaps that science has made in medicine, agriculture, bio-pharming, environmental protection, tech toys, space travel--you name it, but I really don't like to see the world presented in Gattaca coming to pass. Give me a whole world full of God-children. He is a designer who is not out to fulfill some selfish need, or evil scheme of His own, and the beauty of a Stephen Hawking comes not from any form of perfection, but from the understanding we gain from his example that our struggles define us just as much as our giftings. Our character comes, in part, from the effort we have to put into overcoming life's challenges. A person is not made more precious by virtue of more "perfect" DNA. I have no profound thoughts to offer here, and no answers to help mankind pursue its own improvement while avoiding the pitfalls that are inherent to high-tech eugenics, just a warning that, unless a way can be found to separate the good from the bad, this is an area best left alone. Designer people won't make the world a better place. They'll only fill the world with more potential for human abuses.

Hat tip: Instapundit

Talking The Talk

But not walking the walk (and making it harder for other people to trudge the path, too.) The not-in-my-backyard brigade continues to put up obstacles to energy alternatives. Question--Do we want renewable energy, or not? Yes? Then stop making it so goll-darned difficult to implement!!

(via Instapundit)

News Of The Weird And Freaky

Read in your best Rod Serling impersonation (or get someone else to read it for you):

Imagine this--you're sitting at your computer reading James Taranto's Best of the Web, blithely perusing the elegant and edgy editorial offerings and choice sampling of significant stories from across America and beyond, when you come across this headline: "Amputated leg found in second-hand smoker." At first you are taken aback, thinking that Joe Camel's wife has gone Hannibal Lecter, consuming the appendage in the appropriately moody tobacco haze of her husband's forty-second cigarette of the day--a grisly thought which is disturbing, but remote, since no such atrocity has ever entered your reality. Then you discover that the second-hand smoker in question is the kind used to cure meat, the tender ham you ate last Easter, or the delectable salmon you sampled last Saturday. Your stomach heaves as this horror hits closer to home. Could it be that you have entered The Twilight Zone?

Okay, that's about as far as I can take this without rather more caffeine than I am willing to consume. Here's the story in a nutshell: This guy goes to an auction where he bids on, and wins, a smoker which was left in a storage locker and sold along with other abandoned items. When the lucky new owner later looks inside, he discovers a human leg, chopped off just above the knee. Turns out somebody had to have his leg amputated and was saving it "for religious reasons." The smoker just happened to be the storage place of choice for his own personal religious relic. Don't ask me what religious reason anyone could have for keeping his amputated leg. I have no idea. I don't even think I want to know. I also haven't a clue why a leg that was important enough to keep wasn't important enough to keep track of (and yes, I do know that I ended that sentence with a preposition.) The real question that I would like to have answered is, "Does the guy who bought the smoker plan on actually using the thing now that he's found the Cracker Jack toy surprise inside?" Would you?

Health Insurance

Here's one for you to ponder. John Stossel has some interesting thoughts about health insurance, at Townhall.com. What he has to say runs contrary to currently popular political speech on both sides of the aisle, which bemoans the under-insured state of many Americans. Stossel suggests instead that Americans have way too much insurance, rather than too little. That's something of a counter-intuitive statement, given the discussion that's going on in political circles these days about how to get more coverage for more people, but I tend to agree with him, based upon my own experience and that of my family.

I'll give you a few examples. Several of my close relatives have to provide their own insurance, for various reasons. Being farmers. my in-laws have no employer to provide it as a perk, so they have opted for the most cost-effective option available to them. They have very high deductible insurance. They pay for routine medical out-of-pocket, and save the insurance for the big-ticket medicine, saving them money on premiums, but still ensuring that they don't lose the farm (literally) over catastrophic illness or accident. They decide for themselves what doctor to see, and how often, and whether a given medical procedure is worth their hard-earned money. They may have to plan a bit to make sure they have the money available when it comes time to go to the eye doctor, but the big stuff is covered and they're not paying through the nose for the monthly premium.

My sister's family, on the other hand, pays for HMO-type insurance (Kaiser), which supposedly covers every scratch. When they can get in, that is. This costs them a staggering amount of money monthly, and also has the disadvantage of putting their medical choices in the hands of a very inefficient bureaucracy. Not only does the HMO chose for them which medical treatment is covered, but because the system is in many ways unaccountable, important decisions get lost in the system. My sister was once diagnosed with a serious medical condition, and didn't receive proper treatment for eight years. The right hand didn't know what the left hand was doing. I grant you that this is anecdotal, but it still influences my opinion of insurer-makes-the-decisions healthcare. I can only imagine how much worse it would be if that insurer was the federal government. Can anyone say DMV?

My husband and I have a different, and much better, situation than my sister. Our insurance, although employer-provided, shares some of the better aspects of his parent's self-insurance arrangement. Ked's office went the HSA (health savings account) route a couple of years ago, and we love how the whole thing works. Instead of low-deductible, high-cost insurance, we now have high-deductible, low-cost insurance. You may be asking, "What's to love about a high deductible? Doesn't that mean you have to pay for more of your medical expenses yourself?" Well, that's where the HSA comes in. Because the insurance company doesn't have to pay for the minor and routine medical stuff, Ked's boss saves money on insurance premiums. He passes those savings on to his employees. He deposits enough money to cover that high deductible into the HSAs, which are under employee control. We pay for routine medical out of that account, and--here's the good part--we get to keep what we don't spend, like it's in a retirement account. This gives us incentive not to run to the doctor for every sniffle, while still covering us for major health issues. We and our doctor decide what to spend the money on medically, and we get a retirement savings bump if we're frugal.

Stossel's article is quite interesting. He has some convincing things to say about how much is added to the cost of medicine in America simply because the insurance industry is so intimately involved with it. He also discusses how it came about that insurance got so interconnected with routine medical care in the first place, and whether the push for government intervention is a good idea. (Interestingly enough, he makes the case that government is responsible for the current state of affairs in the first place.) You may agree with his conclusions; you may not, but have a look.

Arrr, I Almost Fergot, Matey!

Avast!! A dear lass called me today to remind me that it's International Talk Like A Pirate Day. Well, blow me down--I feel like such a lubber that I almost let the day pass unheralded. Perhaps I should make meself walk the plank, or deny meself me ration o' grog. Maybe, though, I'll just let meself off with a few Hail Mateys, and a promise to be a smarter wench next TLAP Day. Aye, that sounds more likely.

While We're Talking Economics, Let's Throw Some Climate Science Into The Mix ...

A comment on my last little toss-out post, which listed a couple of articles on economics that I found interesting, pointed the way to this post by John Tierney, pitting economists against ecologists as predictors of climate change. Not a fair fight? Well, the match-up may surprise you. By Tierney's reckoning, economists have the shinier resume when it comes to examining potential global crises. He gives some track record comparisons that certainly lend credence to his point of view. The really good news there is that the economist crowd also seems to be a lot more optimistic:

The classic example is the “population crisis” of the 1960s and 1970s, when biologists like Paul Ehrlich were convinced humanity was about to suffer massive famines and devastating shortages of energy and other resources because the growing population would exceed the planet’s “carrying capacity.” This concept seemed obvious to biologists who study ecosystems, but economists realized there’s a big difference between animals and humans: Humans are remarkably adaptable and creative. When confronted with shortages and environmental problems, they have a long history of coming up with solutions — new methods of farming, new and cheaper sources of energy, cleaner technologies — that leave them better off in an environment that’s less polluted.

Of course, population sustainability and climate are clearly different animals, but the point remains the same. Humans adjust, and even manage to think about the rest of the ecosystem occasionally. Now, if you read the Meow at all, you probably know that while a thermometer (and common sense) can tell you that the climate has changed over time, and will continue to change, I'm a pretty big skeptic of the idea that human beings can be pegged as the source of that change. (Click on the climate science label below to get a Kat-centric view of the topic.) Nonetheless, since there are plenty of folks out there determined to blame humanity, and determined to find a solution to the weather, I'm glad to see some other disciplines chiming in on this debate. They may not have the scientific background of the "experts," but just might have a valuable word or two to contribute as the global powers mull our future. Have a look.

Note: Thanks for the link, Rich.

Update: Thought I'd throw this one out there for fun...

Spontaneous Order

Interesting economic chat from Arnold Kling.

Update: More econ-speak from Kenneth Fisher.

X-citing

We're heading to the coast now, so I shouldn't be blogging, but this is just cool. The X Prize Foundation is at it again, with $30 million in the kitty for whoever can put a robot on the moon. Note for the day: Incentives work, and they're especially positive things when there's no hint of government involvement about them.

Hat tip: Futurismic

Gutter Rants

Rant to follow, but first a look at this week in Meowville. I'm working up the energy to start another day of manual labor. Ked and I have been hard at it for days, doing much needed home repairs in preparation for the rains to come. Last year, some of you will remember, we jumped through the hoops demanded by the City of Portland to pass inspection on our new garage. Well, now we're trying to catch up on all the work we neglected while doing the City's bidding. Ked's taken the week off, and we have been going like gangbusters. Sunday we jacked up both our front and side porches and replaced the rotting pillars. Monday and Tuesday we replaced the gutters.

You may be saying to yourself, "Wow, gutters aren't that hard. Why'd it take them two whole days to get them done? Ked and Kat must be incompetent!" Without arguing the finer points of the incompetence question, allow me to offer a small bit of self defense. Although we live in quite a small house--only about thirty feet square--it has a hip roof, which means that the gutters go all the way around, with twists and turns for the porches to boot. We have almost one hundred and sixty feet of gutters, and a dozen corners to turn!! We are quite thrilled that the project went so smoothly and that we will no longer have to put out buckets to catch the water pouring from the leaking gutters to prevent it from soaking our basement bedroom. (NEVER install plastic gutters. They are nearly worthless.) Anyway, today we're heading out to paint the chimney and trim that didn't get finished last year in the height of City appeasement season. The happy thing for us is that after all the work is done, once we can face the coming winter weather with equanimity, we're going to head to the coast for a couple of days of camping and resting. That thought will keep us going for today. That and caffeine. Praise God for caffeine.

Anyway, I'm sure you didn't check in here for an update on Meow home improvement, so I'll toss you a little something from the "Good Grief, Save Me From The Nanny State" files. Looks like Los Angeles lawmakers are looking for ways to keep other people from packing on the pounds. No, they're not sponsoring fitness walks and heart-health awareness lectures. They're not giving tax breaks to fitness centers, or even signing "good example" pledges, where they promise that they will forgo dessert in favor of an after-dinner walk in hopes that where they lead Los Angelenos will follow. No, they have a much more "we know better than you" approach, compounded with a little "do as I say, not as I do" for good measure. According to The Center for Consumer Freedom:

Yesterday, with that unique blend of condescension and stupidity all too common among nanny staters, Los Angeles lawmakers unveiled plans to “fight” obesity by prohibiting fast food restaurants from building new outlets in one of the city’s poorest districts. The bill’s sponsors claim that fast food restaurants are crowding out “healthier” outfits in low-income communities, leaving poor Los Angelenos with exclusively high-fat, high-calorie food options.

Wow, they're only planning to stop the building of fast food places in poor neighborhoods, so that "healthier" restaurants will stop being "crowded out." Like there's simply not room for them with all those fast food restaurants forcing people to patronize their establishments. Do these people not realize that stopping the installation of a McDonald's is not going to drive the poor hapless ignorant masses to Tofu Heaven? Do they think that, just by virtue of having less money, poor people somehow have less of an understanding than the well-to-do that a Whopper is going to have more calories than a side salad with fat-free dressing? People eat what they want to eat! McDonald's and Wendy's and Burger King all offer salads and fruit and milk and other "healthy" choices. If people don't order them, it's because they don't want to. Some of them want triple burger combo meals with fries and a milkshake, and no amount of salad options is going to distract them from their culinary goal. They don't want salad! Is the solution to make the choice for them, and deny them them options they do want? Maybe in "we know better than you do" world, but not in anyplace that I want to live, and not in anyplace realistic either.

Hint to legislators: People find ways to get what they want--even poor people. Some of them might even hop on the bus to head to the restaurant in your area that offers the food they actually want to eat. Worse, some of them might get in their cars to do it, burning fossil fuels and cash to get to the thing that is okay for you, but not for them! Take away the burger joints in their neighborhoods, and you're still going to have poor fat people running around offending your sensibilities, but they'll be doing it in your neighborhood. Now, who's going to legislate a solution for that one?

Okay, rant over. Have a lovely day!

Is Organic Healthier For Us And The Planet?

Here in Oregon, as in much of the rest of the affluent world, where many of us can afford to spend a little extra money on what goes in our cooking pots and on our dinner tables, lots of folks are keeping stores like Wild Oats hopping with the demand for organic edibles. Many people believe that organic is healthier, both for us and the environment. Cosmos (a magazine which examines "the science of everything") has a long, but very interesting article, by Elizabeth Finkel, on organic versus more conventional farming methods (which employ chemical pesticides, herbicides and fertilizers), comparing their effects on both people and the planet. You might be surprised at how the two stack up against one another, and how many chemicals occur naturally in "natural" foods.

I don't have anything of significance to say about the topic myself, since I lack both knowledge and firm opinions, and haven't even indulged in much idle speculation about this particular subject matter, but I found this article very informative, and thought Finkel's analysis was worth your perusal. Here's my one-and-a-half cents before I send you on your way. Sounds to me like pressures from environmental groups and organic advocates have pushed and changed all farming for the better over the course of previous decades, but that their philosophies shouldn’t be allowed to limit future improvements from other philosophical and scientific ways of thinking. It's king of a "can't we all just get along?" reaction. That may be too bland and middle-of-the-road for some, especially here in "green" Oregon, but I calls 'em as I sees 'em. Anybody else have an opinion?