Nancy Reagan calls for embryonic stem cell research

And while I’m on the subjects of both Alzheimer’s and the committed stupidity of George Bush… I was listening to NPR’s Talk of the Nation today when they played a clip of an impassioned Nancy Reagan calling for increased federal funding for research on embryonic stem cells, which Bush has restricted for conservative ideological reasons. The conservative Mrs. Reagan talked about the research and her husband (quotes from WaPo):

"Ronnie's long journey has finally taken him to a distant place where I can no longer reach him," she said at the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation dinner. "Because of this, I'm determined to do whatever I can to save other families from this pain. I just don't see how we can turn our backs on this.”

 

“Science has presented us with a hope called stem cell research, which may provide our scientists with many answers that for so long have been beyond our grasp. . . . We have lost so much time already. I just really can't bear to lose any more."

According to NPR, “A bi-partisan group of 206 House members has signed a letter asking President Bush to expand the amount of federal funding available for stem cell research.”

Also on the program: "President Bush says Donald Rumsfeld is doing a 'superb job' as secretary of defense." All those who would use other words to describe it, raise your hands stand in line.

3:35:24 PM      trackback [] 

More on Abu Ghraib

Josh Marshall has a lot of good posts on the Abu Ghraib scandal. Today he is asking:

…how exactly did we find ourselves on the doling out end of this stuff? Morally, how did it happen? And in simply pragmatic terms, since this was a grand gambit for hearts and minds in a region awash in anti-Americanism and autocracy, how exactly did we get here?

Some of the answers might be found in his don't-miss links:

The Misunderestimated Man: How Bush chose stupidity (Slate)

Fareed Zakaria on The Price of Arrogance (Newsweek)

11:44:02 AM      trackback [] 

Mother's Day in NH

I hope you all had a lovely Mother’s Day. I went up to New Hampshire Saturday and took my mom shopping in Portsmouth, which she loves. We also walked over to Prescott Park to see the tulip garden in full bloom. Saturday was sunny if a bit chilly, but Sunday started out dreary. My mom kept lamenting that it wasn’t sunny out so I told her it was Mother Nature’s day too and Mother Nature was going to do whatever she damn pleased, which made her laugh. Apparently Mother Nature was celebrating by sleeping in late, because by early afternoon the clouds had all gone and it was warm and beautiful.

I think I mentioned before here how my mother cuts her hair whenever she’s mad at my father, snipping away at every little piece that seems out of alignment. This time it was really short, with little patches that were almost bald. Her latest source of frustration apparently is that she thinks everything on TV is a repeat. Everything. Brand new episode of some series? “This is a repeat!” New David Letterman complete with topical humor? A repeat. Live Red Sox game? Seen it. She keeps telling my father that he should be taking her “memory pills” because he’s the one who can’t remember that he’s already seen these shows. It’s a wonder he isn’t lopping off his own hair, if not pulling it right out of his head.

Anyway, otherwise she seemed in pretty good spirits and we had a good visit. I'll have to go up again soon to plant annuals in front of their condo and to check in on them.

10:27:49 AM      trackback []