Bush was Right on Embryonic Stem Cells

Embryonic stem cell research is at the leading edge of a series of moral hazards. The initial stem cell researcher was at first reluctant to begin his research, fearing it might be used for human cloning. Scientists have already cloned a sheep. Researchers are telling us the next step could be to clone human beings to create individual designer stem cells, essentially to grow another you, to be available in case you need another heart or lung or liver.
[...]
My administration must decide whether to allow federal funds, your tax dollars, to be used for scientific research on stem cells derived from human embryos.

George Bush, when you're right, you're right.

Bet you have not heard the news this week about the greatest scientific breakthrough since the discovery of DNA? (I'll leave it up to you to figure out why this is not being reported. It's not rocket science.)

Well, Charles Krauthammer wrote a piece in the Daily News worth pointing out.

"If human embryonic stem cell research does not make you at least a little bit uncomfortable, you have not thought about it enough."

- James Thomson

A decade ago, Thomson was the first to isolate human embryonic stem cells. Last week, he (and Japan's Shinya Yamanaka) announced one of the great scientific breakthroughs since the discovery of DNA: an embryo-free way to produce genetically matched stem cells.

Even a scientist who cares not a whit about the morality of embryo destruction will adopt this technique because it is so simple and powerful. The embryonic stem cell debate is over.

Which allows a bit of reflection on the storm that has raged ever since the August 2001 announcement of President Bush's stem cell policy. The verdict is clear: Rarely has a President - so vilified for a moral stance - been so thoroughly vindicated.

Why? Precisely because he took a moral stance. Precisely because, as Thomson puts it, Bush was made "a little bit uncomfortable" by the implications of embryonic experimentation. Precisely because he therefore decided that some moral line had to be drawn.

In doing so, he invited unrelenting demagoguery by an unholy trinity of Democratic politicians, research scientists and patient advocates who insisted that anyone who would put any restriction on the destruction of human embryos could be acting only for reasons of cynical politics rooted in dogmatic religiosity - a "moral ayatollah," as Sen. Tom Harkin so scornfully put it.

Bush was right to tread carefully, to not just throw money at something that had potential to further diminish the value of human life.

Now that the embryonic stem cell debate is over, I wonder what our wonderful Governor Jon Corzine has to say about that defeated ballot question now?

After all,

Mr. Corzine — who made embryonic stem cell research a major issue in his 2005 campaign for governor — blamed himself and other supporters of the measure for not doing a good enough job educating the public about the potential economic benefits. He also said the campaign could have done a better job clarifying that the $450 million was to be borrowed over 10 years, rather than all at once.

Oh, we were educated enough alright. I'll admit, for some New Jersyians it was only about the money, but for some, myself included, it was about the sanctity of human life.

Aren't you smart enough to see that Jon?

Corzine to NJ voters: We're building it anyway

The voters speak but the politicians think they are ignorant and just need to be educated by commercials featuring Brad Pitt and other actors. That's the gist of this article:

As the battle over embryonic stem cell research raged for two years in California, Nancy Reagan made emotional appeals in countless television commercials and Brad Pitt passed the word in personal appearances, part of a well-organized $30 million campaign to persuade voters to approve the financing.

In 2004, California voters overwhelmingly approved $3 billion for the largest state-run scientific research effort in the country.

Three years later, organizers of a similar effort in New Jersey mounted a tepid two-month campaign with about $600,000, seeking voter approval for a $450 million bond issue for the scientific research. A television commercial featured a rap group that last had a significant hit 25 years ago.

After the last of the election results trickled in Tuesday night showing that the New Jersey initiative had failed, 53 percent to 47 percent, politicians and pollsters alike were confounded. Yet the result was little surprise to the measure’s most ardent supporters, some of whom had not formed a political action committee until September.

Supporters now say they were undone by assuming too much in a state that has become solidly Democratic over the last decade and by spending too little time and money trying to defeat a coalition of well-organized opponents.

“We were behind the eight ball right away, and we knew we had our work cut out for us,” said Russ Oster, a political consultant with New Jersey for Hope, a political action committee formed in support of the bond issue. “The right-wing groups really got a jump on this and had an instant campaign. They ran 365 days a year. We didn’t have a natural campaign in place.”

The initiative’s defeat was a blow to Gov. Jon S. Corzine, who made stem cell research a key part of his campaign in 2005.

The state also has recently broken ground on a $270 million research center in New Brunswick. Mr. Corzine said he expected lawmakers now to seek smaller appropriations for the research. The governor also said that despite Tuesday’s result, he believed that most New Jerseyans supported the effort.

“There’s still a favorable view about stem cell research,” Mr. Corzine told reporters Wednesday.

Yeah, you keep telling yourself that while you try to squeeze the money for it out of the budget or try to hit up Big Pharm.

And he plans to put it on the ballot again. Great! I hope that the message gets out there how expensive this boondoggle has been because NJ has already sunk millions into this swampland project:

The state is already heavily invested in stem cell research. Since 2003, the state Legislature has committed $270 million to building three stem cell research facilities, and $10 million in grants for researcher salaries. The state broke ground last month in New Brunswick for the $150 million Stem Cell Research Institute of New Jersey.

Corzine said he expects another $20 million will be allocated from the state's general operating budget to keep stem cell work going.

Thank you, Lord!! Embryonic stem cell funding has been defeated!

I'm shocked! The voters in my state haven't met a funding bill they didn't like! I thought that it was going to pass, maybe the voters have more sense than I thought...Nay! They still voted the Democrats into power. We have the highest taxes in the nation and yet they continue to vote for the tax and spend Democrats.

Silly String Is Shipped Off to Iraq

This is such a great idea! I wish I knew, I would have donated.

After months of frustration, Ms. Shriver has found someone who will ship her Silly String to Iraq, where troops use it to detect trip wires on bombs. They spray it 10 to 12 feet out and see if the string lands on the ground or hangs on the wires.

[...]

After an initial shipment went to Iraq in January without a hitch, Ms. Shriver — whose son Todd is a soldier there — struggled to find a way to send thousands of cans she was still collecting. One problem was that Silly String, sold in aerosol cans, is considered a hazardous material, meaning that only certain companies can ship it.

N.J. Students Forced To Eat On Floor

In NJ we pay over $14,000 per child to educate our children which is why it's incredibly aggravating to hear stories like this.

Bergen County parents are floored by a new school lunch policy. Their children were forced to eat their lunch on the floor.

[...]

The cafeteria holds around 300, some outside picnic tables are provided, and seniors can leave for lunch. But parents and some students were quick to speak out to school leadership against hundreds left to floor dining -- and got nowhere.

[...]

Even the local health department decries eating on the floor. In a letter they sent to the school, they call the practice, "very unsanitary." Yet in order for Mahwah High School to lengthen its teaching time, they opted to push all 1,000 students through a single, 43-minute lunch period.

"This allows teachers to go into greater depth in their discussions," Superintendent Montesano said.

[...]

Since our interview, the school says it forbids the floor dining, opting instead for gym bleachers and other seating.

(via)

It's stories like this that reinforce my decision to opt out of public education. Notice that the parents wishes are ignored. In private school these concerns would have been addressed promptly. Here mismanagement is tolerated and there's not much a parent can do to make sure the system is changed.

This is yet another example of the need for school choice. When the school district is doing a good job then people will want to send their children there but if the schools in a particular district are mismanaged then it's in the best interest of the community to introduce competition to provide the children with an education that is worth the amount being paid by the tax payers.

Shooting at Menlo Park Mall in NJ

OK, this is a little too close for comfort. Usually shootings don't occur in places I visit:

A man armed with a gun shot a woman, then killed himself inside the Menlo Park Mall Friday evening, according to police reports.

According to reports, the woman was taken to the hospital. Her condition was not immediately known.

The shooting reportedly took place inside or just outside Gymboree, a children's store, at about 9 p.m. A police officer who answered the phone at the store Friday evening said there was an investigation ongoing and referred calls to the Edison police watch commander, who referred calls to the Middlesex County Prosecutor's Office.

Update: I was asked to take the video down since it contain a shot of the victim. Even though it was blurry and you couldn't see too much, out of respect for those involved I have removed the video.

NJ Democrats arrested for taking bribes

This is what politics looks like in NJ:

FBI agents arrested 11 public officials in towns across New Jersey Thursday on charges of taking bribes in exchange for influencing the awarding of public contracts, the U.S. Attorney's Office said.

Two of those arrested are state lawmakers, two are mayors, three are city councilmen, and several served on the school board in Pleasantville, where the scandal began.

All 11, plus a private individual, are accused of taking cash payments of $1,500 to $17,500 to influence who received public contracts, according to criminal complaints.

"Today we witnessed another example of the disease that affects the state of New Jersey; the disease of public corruption that spread like wildfire from south to north," said the U.S. Attorney for New Jersey, Christopher J. Christie.

[...]

"This is another sad day for the people of New Jersey," said Assembly Minority Leader Alex DeCroce. "Once again, New Jersey's culture of corruption is national news."

Rivera is a former police officer and professional wrestler.

[...]

More than 100 public officials in the state have been convicted on federal corruption charges in the last five years. Two other Democratic state senators, Wayne Bryant of Lawnside and Sharpe James of Newark, are among others facing pending corruption charges.

(via)

I wonder how many of them are Democrats? I guess we can be happy that at least they're being caught.

Rocket Launcher Found on a Jersey City Lawn

How amazing to find a launcher on your front lawn! It's the kind that could take out a plane. Maybe a plane flying out of Newark? EEP! That's our airport.

A Jersey City woman made a shocking discovery on her lawn this morning when she noticed a military rocket launcher lying in the grass.

Niranjana Besai was leaving her house at 88 Nelson Street, to go to work at just after 8 a.m. when she saw the launcher on her front lawn. She immediately called police.

Besai's neighbor, Joe Quinn, saw her pointing at the equipment from her front porch. When he walked over to the six-foot-long weapon, he was just as shocked. �It looked like a bazooka,� he told CBS 2 News.

Quinn tells CBS 2 HD he originally thought the launcher was just a pipe, but after noticing it had a picture of a soldier on it, he realized it looked similar to a missile launcher he'd seen on television.

(via)

The Miss NJ Scandal

The girls on the "Girls Gone Wild" videos better not run for anything if the reaction to Miss NJ's pictures is any indication.

Polumbo announced last week that she was the target of a shady scheme but that the pictures a blackmailer—who called him or herself the Committee to Save Miss America—was threatening to publish were neither lewd nor explicit. She said that she had already posted the photos years before on her facebook.com page.

[...]

"This was Halloween, long before I even imagined I would be a pageant contestant," Polumbo explained. "My friend was joking around that I was flat-chested, and I decided to be a goofball and be funny.

I saw the pictures and I have to say they're mild compared to what's posted on MySpace. I agree with Henry Neufeld it's stupid.

A PSA from the Reformed Chicks: Don't speed in NJ this month

How does one teach their children that the police officer is their friend, when they want to punish us because they are taking the heat over one of their own speeding and allowing the governor to drive in the front seat without his seatbelt.

Some state troopers, feeling they have been publicly ridiculed for the accident that almost killed Gov. Jon S. Corzine, appear to be plotting a ticket blitz against the public this month, followed by a slowdown in June, according to a chilling series of anonymous online postings.

And the state's top trooper says he won't tolerate it.

""Great idea,'' wrote a person posting under the name "soundsgood.' ""Absolutely hammer everyone (obviously except cops and family) who does 1 m.p.h. over the limit.,Let's really give them something to complain about.''

""I am all for the May 1st blitz, Better start presigning my summonses,'' wrote
another poster going by the handle of "reckrids.'

""Everyone has to take part in this,'' wrote "20alphabravo.' ""We are taking an absolute beating from the public and media, and the so-called "officers' are doing nothing about it to protect or support us in any way. May 1st. Spread the word. It's go time.''

The comments appeared on a password-protected section of the Web site for the state troopers' union, the State Troopers' Fraternal Association. Union president David Jones issued a lengthy statement, saying it was irresponsible for the media to traffic in the postings.

[...]

But State Police Superintendent Col. Joseph ""Rick'' Fuentes took the postings serious enough to order commanders to try to make sure troopers don't launch the ticket storm. ""He made it clear to the command staff, what is posted there he won't tolerate,'' said Capt. Al Della Fave, spokesman for the patrol.

The comments were first reported publicly by Craig Carton and Ray Rossi, the afternoon ""Jersey Guys'' on New Jersey 101.5 FM radio.

""We must all do this together. Don't let the brass tell us any different,'' wrote
"soundsgood.' ""When they were on the road, they could deal with people the way they needed to be treated, but unfortunately it is a different time.''

""Soundsgood'' went on: ""No matter how junior you are, you must stick it out regardless of threats to be "sent to the pike.' We can't all be sent to the pike, and it's not that bad a gig out there anyway. Crush 'em in May.''

Corzine's trooper-driven sport-utility vehicle was leading a two-car state police caravan at 91 mph with its emergency lights flashing when it crashed on the Garden State Parkway April 12, critically injuring the governor, who was not wearing his seat belt.

[...]

""There are many more of "us" than there are of "them,''' wrote "letsroll,' adding, ""The tickets generate a large revenue for the state, and if the slowdown is done properly, we can make a change!''

It's such a joy to live in NJ, even our state troopers sound like thugs. And for really thugish behavior, how about this?

The head of a State Troopers union today suspended his campaign to publicize the home addresses of radio presonalities critical of the State Police pending a meeting Monday with State Police Superintendent Rick Fuentes.

"I made a promise to the Colonel (Rick Fuentes) that I would stand down until Monday," said David Jones, head of the State Troopers Fraternal Association.

Jones is facing the possibility of an Attorney General's review of his decision to hold a press conference yesterday at which he displayed the home address, license and car model of Craig Carton, a host of the Jersey Guys radio program on New Jersey 101.5 FM.

Jones promised to reveal the same information about Carton's co-host, Ray Rossi, and other 101.5 executives starting today.

Jones was retaliating against the radio hosts for reporting on the air on Tuesday about anonymous postings on a password-protected Association website that enouraged troopers to harass motorists with a "ticket blitz" in May.

And then there's this:

Jones said the accusation that troopers are conducting a blitz has led to arguments between motorists and troopers on highway roadsides, creating danger to both troopers and the public.

Trust a New Jerseyan to use the blitz to try to argue his way out of a ticket. Typical.