Legalize Marijuana, We Need It for MRSA

According to Technology Review, the bacteria that resist antibiotics can be handled with pot.

Trailing Clouds Behind 'Em

Eugene Volokh raises an interesting question at the Conspiracy:

"Say a blogger posts an accurate story -- perhaps based on a news report or a court decision -- that discusses some minor misconduct by some person. The post names that person.

Several years later, the person asks the blogger to remove the post, or to remove the person's name from the post. The person is not a government official or other important figure (at least at that point; one never knows what will happen in the future). The past misconduct was pretty minor, and doesn't suggest that the person will be a serious menace to his friends, neighbors, or others. But it's embarrassing, and the person doesn't like this story coming up whenever the person's name is Googled" [there's more]

He's gotten lots of comments, most of which lean towards being merciful and granting the request. It's nice to see the blogosphere is "Christian" in this sense. But as some point out, while you may be able to edit the past to make sins less visible, it's really impossible to change the past entirely, even on the Internet. That's always been true, I've a host of minor sins and faux pas wedged firmly in my memory which I can't drive out. Even though I may be the only one who remembers them, they're still part of the fabric of my life (changing metaphors there).

But the Internet changes things--Slate has a post noting the ways in which both campaigns have edited the past with respect to Gov. Palin. It's harder and harder for politicians to construct a consistent facade. I think we'll learn the best way is, don't hide, reveal, for the politician and for the public, as difficult as it may be, accept that politicians are human.

Tobacco After the Buyout

I've blogged a couple times (here and here) on the results of the buyout of the old tobacco programs. Here's another article, from Haywood County, NC (mountains) where they grew burley. In summary, North Carolina as a state is growing about as much tobacco as ever, the price is more volatile, the crop is riskier, "produce" (tomatoes and peppers) are competitive, the acreage in the mountains is down, the number of farms is down, the eastern part of the state has bigger, consolidated tobacco farms, some growing a new variety of heat-resistant burley. In the mountains, agriculture is down generally.

So, the program seems to have been effective in keeping smaller farmers in tobacco, presumably well past the time when it was the most economically efficient method of production. And it didn't, at least in the short run, mean lower prices for consumers, as the anti-smoking people claimed. (Full disclosure: I smoked over 2 packs day for the first 10 years or so of my bureaucratic career. Fortunately I was able to quit in 1978.)

Best Words I Read Today

It's National Hispanic Week so there was a do in DC. There was comedy, which as reported by the Post included this:

"By the same token, I hate when I hear some white people going on about 'those illegal aliens taking my job.' . . . Let me tell you something: If a guy gets here from another country, can't read, can't write, can't speak the language, has no technological skills and takes your job? You're a [expletive]."

What Does Reston Read?

This inventory from the Reston Friends (of the library) shows at least what Restonians are willing to donate:

Mysteries and History view for the top spot (47 and 44 boxes worth), with Romance and Children (can't have one without the other) fittingly tied at 33 boxes. But hardback fiction, a category I hardly ever read (I am, after all, a bureaucrat) comes in at 36 boxes!

Congress Giveth, Congress Taketh Away

Congress passed a farm bill loaded with goodies to attract enough votes. One might think that settles issues for 5 years. One would be wrong. What's in the farm bill is two things: "entitlement programs"--the sort of thing that leaps to mind when we speak of "farm programs", and other programs, programs for which the farm bill simply "authorizes" spending $X, but for which the appropriations committees have to appropriate the actual money, either in the annual appropriation bill for USDA or in an omnibus appropriation bill. (That's one of the problems with "earmarks", they are stuck in the appropriations bill either without a previous "authorization", or bypassing the bureaucratic process for prioritizing expenditures of authorized and appropriated money.)

Now the agricultural policy sites, such as EWG's, are full of coverage of fights over what money gets appropriated. Because the old-line farm programs tend to be entitlements, and the newer stuff favored by the greens are not entitlements, guess who's screaming.

Unkindest Cut of All

Poor George W. He didn't get to attend the Republican convention, McCain trashed his record, and everyone is treating him as a lame duck. You've got to feel for the guy.

And then comes the unkindest cut of all. Remember, this is the demon jogger who switched to trail biking when his knee gave out and just spent the weekend with Jim Zorn, new Redskins coach (with an 0-1 record) going a fast 12 miles. And what does Bob Woodward say? He has a "noticeable paunch", which already has 4,700 hits on Google.

Wheat and Beans

The Post writes about someone pushing the sales heirloom beans (dry edible type); the Times about reviving wheat/flour production in the Northeast.

The latter article was the more interesting. PA used to be the breadbasket of the U.S. before rust (a disease of wheat) and the availability of cheaper land had their effects. (There's an old economic geography theory that puts different agricultural products at different distances from population centers--livestock and wheat tend to be further away than dairy and fruits and vegetables.)

The problems in reviving wheat growing include lack of the milling infrastructure and knowledge, the inconsistency found in flour produced in small batches, which screws up the bakers with consequent waste. We as consumers are used to consistent products, whether it be apples or bread. That demand means a competitive advantage for the bigger operation and, in some cases, the use of more food additives. All of which creates problems for the locavore

Gender Differences

John Tierney reports in today's NYTimes science section that research seems to show gender differences are more evident in modern, progressive societies, and less evident in more "traditional" societies. If you're into the subject, it's a must read.

As for me, I'm not surprised (of course, how often does a supercilious blogger ever admit to surprise). A good part of the thing about modern society is there's more space for the individual, more room to "find oneself", to "self-actualize", or whatever other phrase is now current. That should mean there's more differences along all dimensions, not just the gender one.

Of course, that undermines the theory from the 1960's that a male-dominated society was responsible for creating the differences. Which may be why a semi-conservative like Tierney is open to these reports.

Why the Amish Stay Slim

They work, not office work, physical work. So even if their genes favor obesity, they're slim. So says this study.

I buy it. A rural society with lots of physical labor is not stout. "Stout" is a word from the past. Of course many so-called farmers now have a pot, "so-called" because they just drive tractors and because I'm feeling grumpy today. Contra Professor Pollan, the key variable is not the diet, it's the labor.


(Decided since I'm fascinated by the Amish, I need to add a tag for them.)