Swan Song
So, tomorrow is my last day at WNBC-TV. I have been having a fantastic time here, and have learned much (not least significantly that my typing skills suck). I have a new respect for the news, and the people who get it one the air everynight. Although, the news is now a much more human endeavor in my eyes than it was previously. I’ll miss working here for certain. It’s my hope that this experience will open new doors for me, and that it is just the beginning of a whole new life.
Thanksgiving will be spent here in the Big Apple. We were invited to dinner with some new friends, which I am really looking forward to. I’ll miss my family, but home is coming soon, and I will see them when I get there. I just couldn’t stand the idea of trying to brave the holiday travel on the biggest travel weekend of the year.
After Thanksgiving, we are expecting our friends Jeff and Kat to join us for a few days of unadulterated New York fun. Then, MIAMI! We are all planning a trip to the hurricane beaten southern state to visit some other friends. Then back to New York for packing and mailing, and then home. A lot to do in a couple of short weeks, but it should all be fantastic. Hopefully, I’ll have some time to post again before the adventure is over for real.
Filed under Esoterica | Comment (0)And the Scientists Speak
Dr. Alan Leschner of the American Association for the Advancement of Science has issued a statement regarding the decision of the Kansas school board regarding their science curriculum. I’ve had the chance to meet Dr. Leschner through the AAAS Fellowship I received, and this is a topic of utmost importance to him, definitely not one to be taken lightly by anyone.
There is no debate or controversy within the scientific community about the theory of evolution, and whether it should be taught in science classes. The media has been fueling the fire of the Creationism v. Evolution war where there should be no fire. Similarly to what is happening in other political arenas in our country, a few fringe goups are using the machinery of our society very efficiently to insert doubt about science into the educational forum. These people have an agenda that they will pursue until the end, whereas we as scientists haven’t taken the threat to our children and the future of science seriously. We have been sitting on our lofty laurels secure in our knowledge that science in all its objectivity is the obvious truth. And, just like the Democratic party we are being run over as a result of our arrogance.
Well, sorry folks, we have a fight on our hands. We need to get out and inform the public. They need to know that within the scientific community, there is no controversy between evolution and creation. Science in the science classes and creation in the religion or philosphy classes.
And, we push ever onward into the dark night…
Filed under Science & Politics | Comment (0)You Done it Again, Kansas
AAaaarrrrghhhhh!!!!!!!!!!!!!!………..
I have no comprehension of what could possibly be going through some peoples’ minds. This whole evolution versus “intelligent design” “debate” has got me so bound up with frustration I just want to scream. Is there no way to communicate? Is there no way to make these people realise that the science classroom is no place for religion?
Science doesn’t profess to be able to determine the big question of where we come from, how we were “created”. That is the kind of question that philosphers spend their days discussing, or that the religious take for granted from a book or prophet. Evolution is the tale of how life has cruised its meandering course since it began. That’s what science is figuring out… looking at the evidence available to determine life’s path.
So, get religion out of my science classrooms! Mind your own business! Talk about creation in a religion course where it belongs. Don’t mix your dogma with my education. I’ve provided the AP wire report in the extended entry…
Filed under Science & Politics | Comment (0)Ahhh… the Colors…
This past weekend was one of much needed relaxation. Marshall and I rented a car and headed to the Berkshires in Massachusetts for a couple days recharging. While the cold has been gradual and late in arriving this year, it still left us with beautiful views of reds, gold, and bronzes. Having never seen the color change on the eastern coast in the fall, I was duly impressed at the standards flown by nature.
Filed under Esoterica | Comment (0)Get it Together, California
OK, so I’m reading the Reuters newswire, and what do I see but a story about California. And, what I saw made me nervous for the future of our state and the women who live there. I’m posting the body of the article for anyone to read.
There is a proposition on the ballot that will most likely pass unless people make enough noise to stop it. Fight for women’s rights and safety by voting no on Proposition 73. While, it may sound like an honest enough proposal to have doctors notify the parents’ of girls younger than 18 if they are trying to get an abortion, the prop goes farther than that by including the “morning-after” pill, RU-486, and including language that would define the term abortion in such a way as to possibly open a door to future attacks on abortion rights.
This is an important issue to me. We don’t need to go backward in defining women’s rights, we should be moving forward, and this is an assault on what we have already gained.
Filed under Science & Politics | Comment (0)Holy Cow, Batman…
What an amazing weekend! Halloween in this city is amazing. I came home from a day at the office, getting off at my usual subway stop on 6th and 14th, and found a mass of people over flowing from the street level down into the stairwell. I had to fight my way out of the subway against this sea of people in all manner of costumes and decoration. The energy and excitment in the air was fully tangible, thick as butta.
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