America—Most Barbaric Nation in the World?

Off With Their Heads! (By AForestFrolic)

Of course many would argue that the U.S. doesn’t come close to Ali Abdullah Saleh or Bashar al-Assad or Kim Jong-il, but compared to the rest of the wealthy industrialized nations of the north, no other country holds a candle to the U.S.

We are the only wealthy northern democracy that has and uses the death penalty and we just used it to execute a man who was probably innocent. Troy Davis was executed last night in Georgia, even though there was no physical evidence linking him to the crime and despite the fact that 7 of the 9 non-police witnesses have since retracted their testimony. Furthermore, one of the remaining two stalwarts was a suspect in the crime and would have had very good reason to lie on the stand.

The fact that a man was executed on such flimsy evidence and despite so many lingering questions about his guilt should make everyone skeptical about the true nature of the American justice system. It certainly is not a system in which everyone is innocent unless proven guilty, nor is it impartial, nor does it treat all Americans equally. Death rows are overwhelmingly populated by poor people while people of color are disproportionately arrested, convicted and imprisoned.

Of course this doesn’t explain why Troy Davis was executed even when there was more than reasonable doubt about his guilt.

In Davis’ case, there was an urgent need for him to be put to death because he was accused of committing the absolute most heinous crime imaginable in America: killing a cop.

When a cop is killed, someone must pay and doesn’t even matter who. The only thing that really matters is that someone must die. Of course it is ideal if that person is a poor person of color. It’s a lot easier to railroad an ordinary black man who lacks the wealth and connections to hire Johnny Cochran or some other high profile attorney.

One might argue that Davis’ execution was really just an extension of Jim Crow, as it took place in Georgia. However, Davis was granted a 1-7 day reprieve last night, hours before his execution time. The reprieve was for the United States Supreme Court to weigh in on his case. One would think that if the highest court in the land had any interest in justice, fairness or humanity, it would have granted a stay of execution and insisted on a retrial, particularly in light of the flimsy evidence used to convict him. Yet the Supreme Court not only said “off with his head,” but they did so within minutes, even though they had a week to weigh the evidence and circumstances of the case.

The federal government also has an interest in seeing cop killers executed, or at least creating the perception that a cop killer has been killed.

Cops are the shock troops of capital. It is their job to protect private property, particularly the private property of the wealthy, their factories, shops and estates. They are called upon to suppress civil unrest, student demonstrations, workers’ strikes. Imagine what would happen if a cop was killed in such circumstances and the perpetrators only earned a few years in prison? Imagine if thieves, pimps and gangsters got the notion that they could shoot their way out of bust while only risking a dime in the penitentiary?

However, this is just the tip of the iceberg.

In the process of trying a capital case and then carrying out the execution, the state gets to create a bogeyman, a vile enemy of the people, and then demonstrate its compassion and defense of the public by wiping this villain off the face of the planet. The public, for its part, gets to participate vicariously, insisting on revenge for a crime that was not even perpetrated against them. Yet a crime against a cop is virtually a crime against the people, since the cop’s job is to protect the people, or so they mistakenly believe. Killing a cop becomes tantamount to killing the only parent of a small child or a mother deer.

Executions are also a sign of virility and strength. In third world dictatorships, they are used to terrorize the populace and keep them in line. In America, they are used to win elections by proving that one is tougher on crime than his opponent. Bill Clinton had a mentally retarded man executed prior to his election to demonstrate his manhood. Rick Perry delighted his followers last week when he proudly declared he felt no remorse or doubts about any of the record 234 men executed under his governorship. In fact, they lustfully applauded his record.

The Pot Calling the Kettle Dumb—Bachmann, Paul Try to Out-Stupid Perry

As reported earlier this week on Modern School, right wing Christian fundamentalist Rick Perry, supported rampant teen sex in the state of Texas by mandating Guardsil (HPV) vaccinations for teen girls, in opposition to the rhetoric and philosophy of his ilk. Not surprisingly, it turns out that nearly $30,000 was donated to his gubernatorial campaign by drug giant Merck, manufacturer of Guardasil.

Regardless of his motivations, the policy would certainly save lives. Guardasil protects against human papillomavirus, which can cause cervical cancer, a disease that currently has a fatality rate higher than 30% (see Discover Magazine Blogs “Bad Astronomy”).

Despite the benefits in terms of public health, Perry’s GOP presidential nemesis Michele Bachmann used the Guardasil flap as an opportunity to rip him a new orifice to stick his head into (and in the process, wedged her head more deeply into her own orifice). During the recent GOP debate she said that Gardasil "can have very dangerous side effects." She also said that a woman came up to her claiming that her daughter became mentally retarded because of a Guardasil vaccination.

Such high profile criticism of a vaccine will certainly provide strong inspiration to the anti-vax movement, which thrives on pseudoscience, superstition, and unsupported claims. The problem is that there is no evidence whatsoever that the vaccine can cause mental retardation, while other side effects and dangers are relatively minor (see Michele Bachmann needles Perry on vaccinations from Discover Magazine blogs).

Not only has there never been a single confirmed case of Guardasil-induced mental retardation, but a bioethicist has offered Bachmann $10,000 if she can provide some evidence for her claim.

What is most appalling and dangerous is that such a claim could be made by a presidential candidate and left unchallenged by the media. Bachmann’s source was an unnamed woman who may or may not exist, while there was no vetting or confirmation by any doctors or scientists. As far as anyone knows, the claim could have been fabricated by Bachmann or her handlers. However, even if the woman does exist and did make the claim, that does not make it true and Bachmann should not have publicized the claim until she had solid evidence from medical or scientific professionals. By doing so, she fanned the flames of anti-vaccination hysteria and the general anti-science tendency that has been growing in this country.

The anti-vaccination movement is based almost entirely on fear, while fear itself depends more on the perception of a threat than the actuality of a threat. It is like crying “fire” in a crowded theater: people will likely react first to the cry, and not stop and consider whether there is any truth to the claim.

When the government said Saddam Hussein was responsible for the 9/11 attacks or that he had weapons of mass destruction, this was sufficient to terrify the American public and convince them to support an unprovoked war and the curtailing of their rights and freedoms at home, despite the fact that neither claim was true and the evidence against both claims was readily available to those willing to look a little more deeply.

When Andrew Wakeman claimed he had evidence that vaccines caused autism, parents were quick to believe him and to deny vaccinations to their children, placing their own children and everyone else at increased risk for measles, pertussis, and other serious and preventable diseases. Yet when Wakeman was completely discredited, his paper retracted, and his license to practice medicine revoked for fraud and misconduct related to his anti-vaccination work, the damage had already been done. Despite the fact that it has been repeatedly demonstrated that vaccines do not cause autism and that there have been no documented and verified cases of vaccines causing autism, the seeds of fear had been so deeply planted that large numbers of people are still convinced that vaccines do in fact cause autism.

GOP contender Ron Paul has also jumped into the fracas. A political action committee supporting his candidacy produced a video calling Gardasil "a STD vaccine," a clever manipulation that implies that the drug allows wild, disease-free sexual activity. This, of course, is exactly the kind of anti-sex, anti-health and anti-teen spin that religious conservatives have been putting on the drug all along.

In actuality, Guardasil is a drug that protects against one deadly but preventable disease. It does not protect against any other STDS or against pregnancy, so it is not even close to a free-ticket to free love. Vaccinating teenagers against this disease does not promote or encourage unprotected or premarital sex any more than sex education programs or access to condoms do. There are still plenty of reasons for children to avoid or delay sexual activity and there are plenty of children will continue to have unprotected sexual encounters despite access to condoms, birth control and Guardasil.

What this debate is really about is America’s Puritanical attitudes toward sex and its hypocritical attitudes toward teenagers (plus some political grandstanding). In reality, teenage pregnancy and STD rates have been steadily declining for the past decade, while STD and unplanned pregnancy rates for their parents’ and grandparents’ generations have been climbing.

Rick Perry, Idiot or Greedy Idiot?

It’s easy to write off Rick Perry as a right wing lunatic and an idiot. After all, he denies climate change and evolution and believes social security is nothing more than a taxpayer financed Ponzi scheme that must be abolished. However much Perry believes the absurdities he spews publicly, it is not simply ideological jibberish. In fact, one might wonder if it is ideological at all.

Case in point: as governor of Texas, he mandated HPV vaccinations for teenage girls. It was a great move in terms of public health. However, it was the antithesis of what a typical right wing Christian fundamentalist would support. Many fundamentalists argue that HPV vaccinations promote premarital sex and teenage sexuality, that it is an invasion of privacy and usurps parental control, and that it is classic Big Government waste and repression.

It turns out that Perry’s seemingly hypocritical policy on HPV was shaped by his ties to Merck, which produces HPV vaccine. When confronted with this fact, Perry claimed he only received $5,000 from the pharmaceutical giant, according to Democracy Now. “If you think I can be bought for $5,000, I’m offended.”

It turns out that he actually received $30,000 from Merck and he can be bought—it just requires slightly more money. However, $30,000 is still pretty cheap, and a fantastic deal for Merck.

Perry’s connections with Merck are not limited to direct campaign donations. One of his aids was also a lobbyist for Merck. The drug company has also donated $380,000 to the Republican Governors Association since 2006, the same year that Perry began to play a prominent role in the organization.

Liars, Thieves & Lunatics Guarding the Hen House

From Our Load of Malarkey Department

Michelle Bachman, defending her stint as an employee of the IRS, told supporters that she had infiltrated the IRS to better learn about “the enemy” so she would be better able to dismantle the evil enterprise (see Democracy Now). Clearly, this lie was a lame attempt to mollify her anti-tax Tea Party supporters who were considering jumping ship at the thought that she was a carpet bagging tea bagger. Regardless of her motivations, the statement is an admission that she opposes a fundamental branch of the government she intends to lead. (Will Rick Perry accuse her of treason, too?)

Speaking of Rick Perry, he not only denies that climate change is real or even a threat, but believes that the Earth is likely only 10,000 years old and that creationism should be taught in science as a legitimate theory (again, see Democracy Now). In other words, here is another contender for chief of the most powerful nation in the world, who happily admits that he is dumb, superstitious and crazy.

Politics and Capitalism Make Kids Stupid

While pundits, billionaires and politicians continue to scream that the educational sky is falling because of teachers’ selfishness, laziness, poor training and lack of accountability, they simultaneously erode the chances that our students will believe anything they learn at school by bombarding them with pseudoscience and other absurdities.

In one of the latest instances, Gov. Rick Perry, of Texas, has called climate change a hoax, according to the Guardian. This is a man who is considered a serious contender for president, despite the fact that he unabashedly pronounces his stupidity, gullibility and superstition. Then again, he has also suggested that Fed Chair Ben Bernacke could come to great physical harm should he step foot in Texas, a threat that would land most other people in prison, or least earn them a visit from the FBI. So perhaps public displays of stupidity and violence are now considered legitimate and inspirational.

Of course Perry is not as stupid as his climate denials would have him seem. He knows which side his bread is buttered on (the oily side). Perry has received $11 million in donations from Big Oil, according to ThinkProgress.org. If Big Oil says climate change is an unproven “theory” (by which they mean opinion, since theories, by definition, are considered satisfactorily proven), then it must be the case. And if the real estate lobby, which gave him nearly $8 million, says there is no foreclosure crisis, then by god, the housing market must be peachy keen, as well. And if the liquor lobby, which gave him more than $2 million, says that drinking is good for your driving, then dang nammit, Americans need to carry open containers in their cars more often, like they do in Texas.

But Mr. Dunn, aren’t you being a little bombastic? Isn’t Perry just a Tea Party hack, with no influence over our children’s education?

Perry is just the tip of the iceberg, the most visible and newsworthy climate denier of late.

The latest issue of Science wrote about the Los Alamitos School Board, in California, which has ordered that environmental science classes include “both sides of the climate debate.” This is kind of like Flat Earthers demanding that geography classes provide both sides of the “debate” on the shape of the Earth, or English classes presenting both sides of the “debate” about “ain’t.” There is no debate or question about whether or not climate change is happening or its causes. The facts are clear and the data overwhelming. What might be considered debatable is what we should do about it, but only if you stand to lose financially, should regulations and limits be placed on the extraction and use of fossil fuels. For the rest of us, the solution is pretty obvious: stop burning fossil fuels, reduce energy consumption and massively invest in carbon-neutral energy sources.

It is certainly bad enough to have your school board meddling in curriculum decisions, particularly when their meddling forces you to present pseudoscience to your students as if it were legitimate science. However, the abuse does not end there. The board also voted 4-0 to require that teachers make an annual presentation on how they are teaching the class in order to demonstrate that they aren’t skewing the lessons with their “liberal” biases (see Los Alamitos Patch). This will be the only course in the district in which teachers must prove they are providing politically balanced lessons.

Return Prayer and 10 Commandments to Public School

Here are the Top 5 most outrageous statements from Rick Perry’s prayer rally (from the Secular Daily News)

5. Public Schools Should Bring Back Prayer and the Ten Commandments

4. Jews Should Convert to Christianity

3. Humanists Can’t Be Good Without God

2. Jesus Was Anti-Gay Marriage and Anti-Choice

1. God Is Not Political (Says the Would-Be Presidential Candidate Hosting the Prayer Rally)