Blog Archives
PETA McNuggets, Part II
A comment from a friend of mine makes me want to say a bit more about this, so I will.
The actual point of the initial post was that, for the PETA vegans, this must be maddeningly dischordant. It may appear, however, that I have a moral objection to this proposal, and I don’t. I have a scientific objection to this that falls in line with previous opinions I’ve issued on drugs and cloning. This is a prime example of bad science.
It has long been my contention that we rush headfirst into new technologies that have the potential to effect our longterm health. Even after 100 years of use, we are still unsure as to the exact mechanism of action for aceteminophen–which means we don’t know just exactly how Tylenol works on your body, we only know that it works. The FDA continually allows new medications to be ramrodded into the open market without adequate study, only to have people die and the drugs recalled after a year or two or five. (See Baycol,Bextra,Vioxx)
We have not had long-term studies of genetically engineered crops, because the crops themselves haven’t been around long enough. Yet we rush into introducing these things into the food supply.
Animal cloning is a new technology with potentially severe risks for food safety. Defects in clones are common, and cloning scientists warn that even small imbalances in clones could lead to hidden food safety problems in clones’ milk or meat. There are few studies on the risks of food from clones, and no long-term food safety studies have been done.
And then there’s the rising trend in antibiotic-resistant strains, which is giving scientists cause to rethink antibiotics, which have been commonly used for over 100 years.
So now we’re willing to bioengineer edible proteins without studying their effects? Of course, we’d need animals to do that, which would piss PETA off. It seems to me that PETA’s proposal is: let’s just test it on people, and learn what happens the hard way. 
That’s It. I’m Turning Hermit
If this is an indication of how dumb this world is becoming, I’m glad we’re getting closer to being self-sufficient at our house. If I could only figure out how to make electricity from horse manure . . .
It’s clearly not safe to leave the house anymore. Not with people like this on the road:
A 22-year-old carnival worker blames two friends having sexual intercourse in the back seat of his car for an accident in which his Chevrolet S-10 Blazer struck a telephone pole.
Two words: PULL OVAH!!
Why Aren’t We Using This?
Any word on whether this is viable or not? According to the Australian Navy it is:
Metal Storm Inc. (MSI) has advised it has been awarded a Sole Source Contract from the Naval Surface Warfare Center, Dahlgren Division (NSWCDD) for Qty 1 4 barrel 40mm Weapon Pod Assembly, Qty 1 Electronic Fire Control Unit and Qty 3 40mm 4042 Weapon Assemblies. The contract is valued at USD$63,864 with delivery to occur on or before 31 October, 2007.
I didn’t know Australia had a Navy.
I’d say a million rounds a minute could help our soldiers a wee bit.
Then I say we bring on the Robots.
Ethanol: WORSE For The Environment???
From SevenDays
Truth or Consequences Rather than reducing pollution, ethanol could make it worse, according to researcher Mark Jacobson of Stanford University. Reporting in Environmental Science & Technology, Jacobson found that ethanol-burning cars emit fewer carcinogens such as benzene and butadiene, but they give off 20 times as much acetaldehyde as conventional fuels. Acetaldehyde reacts with sunlight to form ozone, a main ingredient of smog. “There are so many people barking pretty loud about biofuels,” Jacobson told New Scientist. “They’ve been pushing these things before the science is done.”
Think we’ll see this in the mainstream media? Doubtful.
Pam’s House Blend
Stephen King
Becoming Human
