How Many Husbands has this Woman Killed?

I was looking at our local news online and came across this story about a local woman who was just indicted for killing her second husband:

The widow of a former Knox County District Attorney now faces first degree murder charges for the death of her second husband, a popular West Knox County barber. Raynella Dossett-Leath was free on bond Thursday night. She is charged with the 2003 murder of David leath.

David Leath was shot in the head on March 13th as he slept in the couple's bed. The death was ruled a homicide, but it took 3 years for a break in the case.

Late Tuesday a Knox County grand jury indicted the widow. She posted a $5,000 bond after turning herself in.

The crime scene was the family's 165 acre farm on Solway Road where Raynella still lives. Her first husband, former DA Ed Dossett also died there in 1992. That death was ruled an accident. In a wheelchair and weakened by cancer, authorities believe Dossett was trampled by cattle.

In 1995, Raynella Dossett-Leath was charged with attempted murder. She was accused of firing several shots at a man inside her barn. She was never convicted in that case.

I remember when this woman's first husband died--everyone said he was trampled by cattle but it sounded a bit suspicious then. Now that she has been indicted for the murder of her second husband, I wonder if there will be any investigation to see if there was any foul play in the death of her first husband?

A New Birth Control Pill for Men?

Is a new male birth control pill the answer for guys who don't want to be parents? (Hat tip: Salted Slug)

British scientists have developed a revolutionary pill that men could take as a one-off contraceptive just before a date.

The tablet would prevent a man from being able to impregnate a woman, but within a few hours his fertility would return to normal......Rebecca Findlay, of the Family Planning Association, said: "It gets really tiring for women to always be the one in charge of fertility.

"For women, it would be another form of liberation. It's great."

Yes, it's all for the women, but sexism aside, any guys out there who would feel comfortable taking this pill?

Podcast Interview: Orson Scott Card

Orson Scott Card is a New York Times bestseller; he is the author of Ender's Game, a book that has been cited as one of the sources of the Afghanistan battle plan and is currently under option for a Hollywood movie by Warner Brothers.

He has a new book out today, Empire, a fascinating thriller set in 2008 that tells the story of what will happen if the political polarization in America continues to divide this country on the issues. Card believes our country is divided between the urban, academic, and high-tech counties and the suburban, rural, southern, and conservative Christian counties. Can this polarization lead to another American Civil War? What can the average person do to make sure this doesn't happen?

Join us for this futuristic podcast with Mr.Card by clicking here to listen directly or for dial-up users by clicking here. You can visit our archives here to view our previous podcasts.

This podcast is sponsored by Volvo at volvocars.us.

The Carnival of Homeschooling is up!

Would You Mind Growing Old if You Were Treated Like You Were Young?

“I think inside every old person there probably is a young person screaming to get out, but your audience doesn't let you."--Estelle Strongin, FRONTLINE: "Living Old"

I found this quote from a 94 year old woman on the PBS site advertising their documentary, "Living Old" about how people cope with aging in America. I haven't seen the documentary and perhaps I don't want to; from what I can gather, aging in America sucks.

But not just for the physical reasons one associates with age such as illness, limited mobility, nursing home stays etc. but mainly because of the psychological ones: the loss of one's work, the way one is treated in society and the prejudice and dismissal that others often have for those who are older. It would be easy to say that other people's opinions of us don't really matter as we age, but in truth, they do, unless you live as a hermit which as far as I can tell, doesn't add to the well-being of the elderly.

I have always wondered why people tend to try and put those who are older in boxes--perhaps it is fear, denial or stupidity, or maybe just plain selfishness and prejudice. How many times do you hear people say, "Oh, so-and-so is just like that because they are old." I have and I can tell you that it makes me mad as hell. Does being old mean that people no longer have opinions, desires, the need for autonomy, longing, dreams, needs? Of course not. People are still themselves, just with a few more birthdays than some. Big deal.

But apparently, it is a big deal and it starts early. Jennifer Anniston is now referred to as "looking good for her age." She's 37. Mention Brad Pitt and people pop up with quips such as "he looked better before he got old." He's 42. Sure, these are stars and have to look good etc. for their roles, but talk to other people 37 and older and you hear a lot of the same complaints about the general society.

The ironic thing to me is that people seem to go on and on about how young they or others are up until about 37 at which point you are told you are old. Isn't there any in-between? And if we are told we are old starting by our mid to late thirties, what if we live to our 80's? What are the psychological repercussions of being viewed as "old" for 50 years? How depressing, and unnecessary. Why don't we just give each other a break and start treating people as individuals with ideas, interests, opinions, and worth regardless of age? Because if we gave the same respect and time to those who are older as we do to those who are young, maybe the fear of growing old would not be such a burden.

Dr. Sanity takes a tour around the Psychosphere to check out the various psychbloggers. Go take a look.

"They Disrespected Our House"

Is that really any reason to stab a sixth grade girl to death? Apparently, it was reason enough for this female murderer in Chicago:

A police source said Jones claimed she stabbed Laura and her older sister, Mattie Bryant, because "they disrespected our house." Brooke Wright, 20, the older sister of both Laura and Bryant, said the woman who stabbed Laura had come to their block looking for a fight at about 9 p.m. Thursday.

When the woman she wanted to fight refused, she picked a fight with Bryant, Wright said. Laura got in the middle of it, and was stabbed in the chest and neck.

I thought women only killed in self defense, at least this is what so many "feminists" tell us. I wonder how they explain a woman on girl murder like this?

Bloggers, etc. I am Thankful For

Well, Thanksgiving day is over and I meant to write a post about the bloggers and others on the internet I am thankful for, but we had 25 people for Thanksgiving dinner and I did not get a chance. So now that I have some time, here are the bloggers and others on the internet that really make my days brighter and get me thinking, and why I am thankful for them:

Ann Althouse at Althouse.blogspot.com: Professor Althouse is really witty and doesn't take herself too seriously. She can talk about trivial topics like squirrels, wine and the childish behavior of other bloggers in one breath while handling more serious topics with ease. I love the way she links to and seems fairly friendly with her ex-husband, who has a blog of his own. She has an artist's eye and a psychologist's observation of human behavior that makes for great commentary when combined with her knowledge of the law and politics.

David Bernstein at the Volokh Conspiracy who is the author of one of my favorite books, You Can't Say That!: The Growing Threat to Civil Liberties from Antidiscrimination Laws. I admire Bernstein's libertarian style and his willingness to take unpopular views and defend them with facts and intellect instead of shrill emotion and opinion.

Beccy Cole: The anti-Dixie Chick: Ms. Cole is an Australian singer who stood up to her fans who disapprove of her support for the Diggers, the Australian soldiers fighting in the Long War. Instead of sulking and acting like a bunch of rebellious adolescents like our own Dixie Chicks, Ms. Cole chose to act in a mature and reasoned manner by putting out a video that displayed her bravery and loyalty towards her country. Whenever I feel discouraged and start to think that many people are apathetic, or worse, show loyalty towards our enemies instead of our country, I realize that bravery and a will to fight for freedom still exists.

Michelle Malkin at Michelle Malkin.com: I absolutely admire Michelle Malkin, she not only deals with verbal insults on a regular basis but stands up without fear to those who wish her harm. She is a role model to bloggers and women everywhere for her tenacity, bravery, and ability to withstand criticism without worrying about being popular to the masses. She is a terrific role model and citizen.

Jane Galt at Asymmetrical information : Libertarian Megan McArdle is a clear and clever writer and I like her views on economic and healthcare issues. She generates interesting discussion and I find I agree with her much of the time and even when I don't, I find myself being persuaded by her factual and straightforward positions.

And finally, of course, Instapundit, who seems to hear all and see all, even when I least expect it.

Prayer and Hatred at the Huffington Post

I have to wonder why some sites place a warning on the video of Michael Richard's statements as if people's ears are too sensitive to hear those words but no one places a warning on the Huffington Post when a writer prays for the death of Dick Cheney. Heart attack survivors everywhere should wonder about the cruelty and downright evil that possesses someone like the writer of this opinion piece to wish for the death of someone with heart disease. In my opinion, the latter statements about our Vice President are as bad or worse than those statements by Michael Richards. I wonder why one view is tolerated and probably exalted while the other is seen as vile and evil?

Potato Guns in the News

Watch out if you bought a potato gun last year like I did for Christmas presents--you might get arrested in Canada (Hat Tip: Say Uncle). Apparently, a 43 year old man was shooting a potato gun off a balcony and was arrested:

Officers swarmed the area and they, too, heard a sound like a gun being fired.

"We ... find out it’s this 43-year-old man and this potato gun. It’s a diversion of police resources [and] it’s a concern when we believe that we’re hearing gunshots.

"We haven’t found any damage or found anyone with injuries [but] the potential is obvious that someone could get hurt."

Getting hit by a potato would cause the same damage as a fast ball thrown by a major-league pitcher, said Sylven. Aiming a potato gun at someone can draw more serious charges than just firing it off a balcony, as this man is alleged to have done.

Okay, shooting those huge potato cannons off your balcony is just plain stupid. They could hurt someone. But, I still have a closet full of these little potato guns and was going to give out some more this year for gifts. Shush, don't tell anyone.

Outsourcing Compassion in Health Care?

I went yesterday to my regular check-up with my cardiologist and spent most of the session talking with him about socialized medicine and its repercussions. You know it's a sign your health is improving when your doctor talks more about what is going on in the wider world then your bum ticker. That is fine by me.

My cardiologist works in a large practice at one the local hospitals here in Knoxville. They have outreach care for heart patients in many of the small counties in this part of the state with physicians who are willing to drive many miles to see patients who cannot or will not come into Knoxville. Some of the cardiologists in my doctor's practice donate their time to the Interfaith clinic here in Knoxville that provides medical services to those who fall through the cracks:

In January, 1990 a twelve member committee worked together to create a place where people without insurance could receive affordable health care. On March 6, 1991 the InterFaith Health Clinic opened its doors to serve those earning too much to qualify for government subsidized insurance and too little to afford private insurance. Since opening, the clinic has served over 50,000 patients.

"What the general public does not realize," my cardiologist said, "is how much free work we doctors give away. We had a patient in here yesterday without insurance, nothing, and he was in the heart cath lab yesterday afternoon."

What will happen to this same patient of my doctor's if the United States had Universal Health Care? Would he have been put on a waiting list for the heart cath lab or for other necessary tests like so many in Canada? What will socialized medicine do to the compassion and/or working habits of doctors? Will taking away the free market in medicine start a new generation of doctors who see no incentive or reason to take on more patients when they draw a salary regardless of how many patients are seen? Have you ever dealt with HMO's who tried that approach? By paying doctors a fixed sum for so many patients, the incentive is to ration care, not provide more. In addition, if doctors are working for the government, they may see that as fullfilling their obligation already to the underprivileged etc., so they may not feel such a strong need to help out in extra ways.

Once the government is in charge, will doctors view their loss of autonomy over their practices as reason to turn compassion over the government? I think so. It is human nature to work for an incentive of some kind and to feel that one has some kind of autonomy over one's work--that is why capitalism is the only system that works, it allows people to reap the rewards of their own work and rewards those who are better than the competition. To completely take the market out of healthcare allows mediocrity to flourish. Can we really afford to do that with people's lives?

Shouldn't we be asking ourselves these questions before demanding that the government take charge of health care? Because asking them after the fact may be too little for many and too late for some.

Update on the "Lumpy" Case

It appears that the young man who attempted to rob Greg "Lumpy" Lambert that I posted about here is a suspect in another Tennessee murder (Hat tip: KnoxViews):

Knox County Sheriff Tim Hutchison says a man who allegedly tried to rob Knox County Commissioner Greg Lambert is a suspect in the murder of a Walgreens truck driver.

Sheriff Hutchison made the announcement today at the commission meeting.

Hutchison says he will ask a grand jury to indict 19-year-old Kane Stackhouse on murder charges Tuesday.

So far Stackhouse has not been charged with anything in connection with the murder of 53-year-old David Lindsey behind the Walgreens in Powell early in the morning on November 11th.

Stackhouse had not even been named a suspect until Monday.

But Stackhouse is charged with attempted robbery for allegedly pulling a gun on Commissioner Lambert about ten hours after Lindsey was found dead.

Deputies say Lambert foiled the alleged robbery by pulling a gun on Stackhouse.

Perhaps Mr. Lambert's quick thinking and act of self-defense saved other victims from further harm. Perhaps my hometown PC alternative rag The MetroPulse will eat the words they used in this sad editorial that described Mr. Lambert as a "clown" and his act of bravery as one of recklessness. What do they consider to be acceptable behavior when confronted with a gunman, groveling on the floor?

Health Care Podcast

Do you worry that we will be seeing Hillary Care or some version of socialized medicine in the near future? Is more government intervention into healthcare the answer? As a libertarian-leaning health service provider and psychologist, I say "no," it would be a step in the wrong direction with longer waiting times and horror stories for the truly sick. The healthy might think socialized medicine is an improvement because it's cheap, but you get what you pay or don't pay for. Imagine being put on a waiting list to have a life threatening condition like cancer or a heart condition evaluated. Isn't your life worth more than money?

In addition, do we really want the government making decisions about our healthcare and expanding the power it already has? I don't. American health care gets better and better, yet more and more Americans state they are dissatisfied with their coverage. Why? Are we a nation of whiners?

We talk with Dr. David Gratzer, a physician who has worked in both the Canadian and U.S. healthcare system and is the author of a new book, The Cure: How Capitalism Can Save American Health Care. He discusses how capitalism can improve health care, why we are so unhappy with the current state of health care and his proposals for reform. Both Glenn and I read the book and it is chock full of information about how the current health care system originated and how to change it for the better.

You can download the podcast directly here or for dial-up users, listen here. You can visit our archives here to listen to previous episodes.

This podcast is brought to you by Volvo at volvocars.us.

A Different New York

Okay, I was waiting for Megan McArdle, a lifetime New Yorker, to tell us her story of being robbed in the city for the first time in her 33 years...but the story has so far never materialized so I'll tell you my own "Robbery and the City" story. I am frankly amazed that it took 33 years for her to get robbed in NYC, for me, it was a matter of about a week or so before I was treated to what used to be a typical New York experience. But my experience in New York was a different one than the experience one would have in the city today--it was the 1980's, pre-Rudy Giuliani and during the crack epidemic around NYC. I was 21, a graduate student at the New School for Social Research and fresh from Tennessee where I had lived on my own for 3-4 years prior, but had never been robbed at knifepoint.

I had moved into an apartment on 11th street and first avenue in Manhattan over a rat infested bakery--that is a story for another day--but my graduate school was in walking distance of my apartment or I could take the subway from sixth avenue back to first on the L train. After class one night around 9, the other students and I walked out, most of the class was going in the opposite direction and one gallant fellow even offered to walk me to the subway. I, of course, declined, not being used to asking others to walk me anywhere.

I made my way toward the subway, thinking about what we had discussed in class, not paying attention to the fact that I was passing Union Square park, where drug dealers and junkies congregated, but for the most part, they just asked you if you wanted weed etc. This night, however, one of the junkies was hiding in the shadows near a building and grabbed my arm, branishing a knife. If you have ever been the victim of a violent crime, most likely, you will remember everything happening in slow motion, at least I did. The black male told me he had killed other women and made it clear that he would kill me. I felt sick as I gave him my high school class ring and a birthstone I had worn since childhood as well as the money I had in my pocket. I had no weapon and no way to protect myself, in New York at that time, it was illegal even to carry mace. I felt not only exploited by this perpetrator but by the city as well.

The story ends well for me, I noticed the junkie was high and he seemed shaky and nervous. I saw a cab coming towards us and I jumped in front of it, figuring it would be better to be hit by a cab and go to the hospital than risk getting knifed. Luckily, the cab stopped before it hit me and I jumped in and asked the driver to take me home. I had no money and the cab driver cursed me, even when I asked him to stop at my bank (I had my bank card in a pocket). When I told him I had been robbed, his reply was, "that was your boyfriend, quit trying to put one over on me." "Wow", I thought to myself, "welcome to New York."

My roommate just laughed when I got back to the apartment and told her I was going to call the police to report the crime and she was right, no one took it seriously.

I still wonder sometimes if this thief ever hurt someone else who didn't get away. I blame myself for not doing more to have stopped him, but I am grateful that I got away that night without being physically harmed.

I sometimes wonder what it would have been like to have lived in New York when Giuliani was mayor or afterwards, for it seems like night and day when I go to visit now. It is so much cleaner and nicer and I hear that the police take crimes more seriously now. Any mayor (along with the police department) who could so totally change that city from the post 80's New York that I knew to what it is today must surely have what it takes to be a fine President.

Support Conservative Nonconformists

I checked out this post on Rudy Giuliani at the blog of one of my readers, Will Conway, who describes himself as "a high school student from Connecticut, and I am interested in US politics. I consider myself pretty far right on the political scale, and hold some controversial opinions. I hope you enjoy this blog."

Please go take a look at his blog and support young people who lean right--the new generation of nonconformists. Young people love to think of themselves as rebels and nonconformists in their "liberal" outlook, but the truth is, any kid who leans right today is the real rebel and has to go against the grain to have such views. Please support those young men like Will who are willing to be different.

The New Underclass

Are White, working-class boys the new underclass? (Thanks Mercurior):

White working-class boys have become the new "underclass", a report by Iain Duncan Smith, the former Conservative leader, warns today.

Boys from low-income white families are bottom of the heap in school performance, trailing behind every other major ethnic group.

The report argues that family breakdown, parental breakdown and peer pressure that it is not "cool to study" are the key factors in the collapse in educational achievements. It also cites drug and alcohol abuse by parents.

Where do boys get the idea that it is "not cool" to study?

Another Stupid Quiz

Okay, the anchoress sucked me into this quiz and I don't even watch South Park:

Which South Park kid are you most like? Tweek You are extremely hyper... mainly because of your high caffiene intake. You feel like you're under too much pressure.

Click Here to Take This Quiz Brought to you by YouThink.com quizzes and personality tests.

Anyone out there watch South Park--who is this Tweek fellow? Is he lame?

Carolyn Ramsey, who is guest blogging at the Volokh Conspiracy shares her research on Intimate Homicides--here is a sample:

Lack of attention to non-lethal intimate violence may have been ‘the normal state of affairs’ throughout most of American history. Prior to the 1980s, only the colonial era (especially 1640 to 1680) and the late Victorian era (especially 1870 to 1890) witnessed sustained efforts to curb wife-beating and ‘unnatural severity’ toward children. However, scholars have overstated the level of public apathy toward men’s homicidal aggression against women. Leading criminal law casebooks, numerous law review articles, and books by influential legal scholars and historians repeat the erroneous claim that, in the past, the legal doctrines of self-defense and provocation endorsed men’s brutality, whereas women were severely punished for perpetrating intimate violence.

In fact, the converse was true. Data culled from dusty criminal case files in New York and Colorado demonstrates that, in both the eastern and western United States, men accused of killing their intimates often received stern punishment, while women charged with similar crimes were treated with leniency . . .

It is quite an eye opener--go take a look.

Interview with Popular Mechanics

Glenn and I have been getting a lot of out of town visitors lately--this time it's Popular Mechanics editors, David Dunbar and Angela Diegel, who joined us for dinner. What do you do if you are like me--mechanically challenged to the point where installing a DVD player is considered a huge triumph and using a light kit to screw in a light bulb is your biggest victory? These experts have the answers.

They discuss how Popular Mechanics uses the web and their magazine to provide information to people with how-to clinics and articles that help both the novice like myself and those who are much more experienced expand upon their mechanical skills and understand how things work. They also tell us how their magazine holds the attention of scores of male readers (90% of their circulation) without sports or naked women. How do they do it?

You can listen directly by going here and clicking on the gray Flash player, or you can download the file directly by clicking right here. A lo-fi version suitable for dialup is available here. Better still, you can subscribe via iTunes, by clicking here.

This podcast is sponsored by Volvo at volvocars.us.

Self Defense, Tennessee Style

Last night while watching the local Knoxville news, the lead story was a triumph in self defensive gun use. Greg "Lumpy" Lambert, a Knoxville commissioner was robbed at gun point at his car dealership. Even though the robber had the draw on Lambert, that did not stop him from protecting himself and his business:

Lambert, who is a strong gun rights activist and member of the National Rifle Association, reached into his pocket and pulled out his gun.

"I did a more proper draw out and up, and of course at that point I said, 'Drop it,' Lambert said. "He said he didn't want any trouble. He just wanted to leave. I said, 'You're not leaving with that gun.' Of course, I was using some profanities. I have to confess in a tense situation I can have a potty mouth."

Lambert says Stackhouse dropped his gun on the floor and fled. He left his driver's licence at the business.

Knox county authorities arrested him several hours later.

I love the picture of "Lumpy" drawing his gun here--I wonder how many news stations would feature such a positive gun story like this outside of Tennessee or the South?

Dr. Helen--a therapeutic version of Little Green Footballs?

The Lure of the Big Screen TV

Glenn and I recently turned part of our basement into a podcast studio and media center, and just bought a big screen tv for it, actually this one, which is 46 inches long. I do watch some TV, but usually dvd's or shows like Sex and the City that I record. But watching the news on the big screen tv with high definition has a different feel than watching it on my small one without high def. It is more personal and engaging, like I know the people who are coming up on my screen. The news seems more "real" and urgent than it does on a small tv. I wonder how this feel plays into our psyche. Given the more personal feel of newer and better TVs, I wonder if people are more swayed by the media images that they see, since it sounds and feels more real than in years past. I wonder how this plays itself out in politics.

My patients, regardless of political party, often come in and parrot to me the news they hear on tv without question. You know, the Dems are great, the Republicans evil and such. When I watched the news just now with Nancy Pelosi and Wolf Blitzer, it seemed that they were right in my media room, talking to me personally. TV encourages people to think by linking images in their brains. Are these images stronger and more persuasive on a big screen with high def like the new ones out than they were on the smaller less clear ones? Now that tvs are getting cheaper and cheaper as well as bigger and clearer, will the emotions of viewers become even easier to manipulate? And if so, how will that play out in a medium that is captured by the liberal media? As tv's get bigger, clearer, and cheaper, will we start to see blue everywhere?

Is Rumsfeld Rigid?

I spent all day at a conference Saturday at the University of Tennessee on the use of a psychologicial instrument, the Personality Assessment Inventory or PAI. The author of the instrument and a subsequent book on the topic, Leslie Morey, was there to explain how to use the test to evaluate personality traits. The workshop was informative, the presenter solid in his knowledge and the material was interesting.

If you have been reading my blog for a while, you will know that I am not very happy with the political correctness of the majority of liberals in the psychological field. I try hard to avoid workshops where I will be bombarded with politically correct positions about men as perpetrators and women as victims to the negative traits of conservatives. Why, you might ask do I avoid such drivel? Because I have been bombarded with that viewpoint throughout my career and do not want to hear the conservative bashing that often goes on in seminars like this. I go to workshops simply to learn the material outlined in the brochure like scoring and using a test and I do it only because I need to meet the Continuing Eduation requirements for psychologists in Tennessee. I can read, after all, and would get more from a book much of the time than from a lecture. If I wanted to hear about politics, I would be at a covention for that discussion. But I digress.

I did not hear one bad joke about Bush, politics or any other crack for three-fourths of the lecture. Just as I was falling into a false sense that perhaps I had found the perfect workshop where the topic was adhered to and no mention of politics was forthcoming, there it was. As the speaker explained one of the scales of the PAI having to do with treatment motivation, he quipped, "If the scale is too high, the person is too rigid and set in their ways, like Donald Rumsfeld." So there it was, I was hoping I could make it through the seminar without the cracks and putdowns of the current administration but it was not going to happen. To the speaker's credit, he did mention that he worked at Texas A & M and Robert Gates was one of the best administrators he had ever seen. However, the use of Rumsfeld's name to make a point about the negative aspects of a test score on a scale measuring rigidity was not science or fact. It was an opinion and was not necessary.

So is Rumsfeld rigid? I don't think that rigid is the right word. If rigid means uncompromising, demanding of high quality work, sticking to your guns as an agent of change, then yes. But the use of the term rigid by the speaker above makes these traits sound negative, when they can indeed, be positive in certain settings, like in the military. My problem with some psychological tests and their inventors, is that what they perceive to be psychological well-adjustment in their eyes is not always what we need in times of war, in the military or in the society in general. Only history will tell us if Rumsfeld's traits were really rigid, or if they were the traits that we needed at the time but cast aside because we misinterpreted the traits of a leader in a negative light. By contrast, who would decribe the civil rights leaders or suffragettes as "rigid" even though they stuck to their guns for decades?

How many paedophiles can there be?

First, it was the New Zealand airlines demonizing men as potential pedophiles and having them change seats if they were sitting next to a minor child--now it's British Airways (Hat tip: Mercurior):

I mean, come off it, folks. How many paedophiles can there be? Are we really saying that any time an adult male finds himself sitting next to someone under 16, he must expect to be hustled from his seat before the suspicious eyes of the entire cabin?

What about adult females? Every week there is some new tale of what a saucy French mistress is deemed to have done with her adolescent charges behind the bicycle sheds; and, disgraceful though these episodes may be, I don't hear anyone saying that children should be shielded from adult women. Do you? Or maybe I'm wrong — maybe all adults will have to carry personal cardboard partitions with them on every plane or train, just in case they find themselves sitting next to under-16s.

Even as I write, I can imagine the lip-pursing of some of my lovely high-minded readers. How would you like it, they will say, if some weird chap was plonked next to your kids? And they are right that I would worry about some strange adult sitting next to my children, chiefly because I wouldn't want the poor fellow to come to any harm.

To all those who worry about the paedophile plague, I would say that they not only have a very imperfect understanding of probability; but also that they fail to understand the terrible damage that is done by this system of presuming guilt in the entire male population just because of the tendencies of a tiny minority.

The author of this opinion piece is right that the damage done to society because of the mistrust of men is high and far reaching--he points out that many men no longer teach kids, particularly in the area of physics, math and chemistry and it is hurting our science base. Just when we need more physics teachers teaching young people, we may see fewer men who are willing to take the job because the stakes of being called a perp are too high. Will the demonization of men hurt the science profession? I sure hope not.

A Step in the Right Direction

A while back, I wrote a post on the possibility that the APA would consider therapists treating those who were distressed by unwanted homosexual attractions as unethical. However, it now appears that patient autonomy and self determination has finally been acknowledged as more important than political correctness by the APA:

New Orleans, August 12, 2006 - Surrounded by President-Elect Sharon Stephens Brehm, CEO Norman Anderson and other prominent members of the American Psychological Association (APA), President Gerald P. Koocher voiced support for the treatment of those distressed by unwanted homosexual attractions.

In a Town Hall Meeting dedicated to open exchange between members and APA leaders, Dr. Koocher fielded a question from NARTH President Joseph Nicolosi about APA's position on the treatment of unwanted homosexuality.

Highlighting the importance of client autonomy and self-determination, Dr. Koocher stated, "APA has no conflict with psychologists who help those distressed by unwanted homosexual attraction."

Dr. Koocher, the APA president, also acknowleged in an article in the APA monitor that some studies showed that women (shockingly!) can be capable of acting out physical aggression in equal numbers to men.

Several studies of domestic violence have suggested that males and females in relationships have an equal likelihood of acting out physical aggression, although differing in tactics and potential for causing injury (e.g., women assailants will more likely throw something, slap, kick, bite, or punch their partner, or hit them with an object, while males will more likely beat up their partners, and choke or strangle them). In addition, data show that that intimate partner violence rates among heterosexual and gay and lesbian teens do not differ significantly.

It's nice to see that the APA is listening to other points of view and is doing the right thing instead of bowing to political correctness.

Post Election Podcast

Our two favorite military analysts, Jim Dunnigan of Strategy Page and Austin Bay of AustinBay.net discuss the resignation of Donald Rumsfeld, what the mid-term election results mean for the war and military tactics as well as the "new direction" of the Democratic party. Listening to these two experts put the elections and the war into perspective from a historical point of view cheered me up and made me feel more positive about the direction of both.

You can listen to the podcast directly here at Pajamas Media by clicking on the gray flash player or for dial-up users, click here. Subscribe via iTunes (you know you want to!) here.

You can see our previous podcast archive here.

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Post Election Hangover

I stayed up late last night watching the election returns come in. Okay, late for me, midnight. I even swigged down some wine (half a glass) which for me is a big deal, given the amount of heart drugs I take, which exacerbate the effect of alcohol to the point where half a glass is like four glasses for a normal person.

I was pleased to see the Tennessee elections turned out exactly as I had hoped and all of the candidates I voted for, Corker, Campfield, Duncan and Bredesen won. I am always proud of Tennesseans who do not look to the national media to make up their minds for them and march to the beat of their own drummer. Apparently, so far Corker is the only freshman Republican Senator in the country (Hat Tip: Instapundit). Congrats to him! And how was your election night?

Podcast with Irish TV Reporters

Have you ever wondered what people in other countries think of our politics and how they perceive our upcoming elections? Mark Little and Ken O'shea of the Irish TV program Prime Time--a kind of Irish version of Nightline--were in Knoxville to cover the Ford/Corker race and met up with us at Calhoun's Barbeque. We talk with them about politics, religion, and American society from an outsider's perspective and what they have learned by visting the villes so far, Ashville, Knoxville, and Nashville.

You can listen to the podcast here, if for no other reason than to hear their lovely Irish accents (and they're smart and interesting too!). you can get a lo-fi version suitable for dialup by clicking here and selecting the lo-fi version. Better still, you can subscribe via iTunes by clicking here. If you would like to listen to more of our podcasts, go to our podcast archive at GlennandHelenshow.com.

This podcast is sponsored by Volvo at volvocars.us.

A Psychosphere Roundup

Dr. Sanity has a roundup of posts across the Psychosphere. Go take a look.

No Gun, No Chance

Are schools just trying to get people killed? School security officer, Russ Kocur, at Halls High School in Knoxville was shot and killed by a fugitive from the law who was sitting in a parking lot at the school. The officer went to check out the car and was shot. One has to wonder why a school security officer who patrols a school at night does not carry a weapon or wear a bullet proof vest:

Hutchison says Lineberry was only in Knoxville a short time.

He had a flat tire and was stranded at Halls High School.

Lineberry has no known connection to Knoxville and has an extensive criminal history, including distributing marijuana in a school zone, breaking and entering and assault and battery.

Police say officer Kocur, who was unarmed and not wearing a bullet proof vest, was shot by a .22 caliber revolver, probably after discovering the suspect had a gun.

"The guard was struck one time in the upper back...between the liver and the heart," says Knox County Sheriff Tim Hutchison.

So here is another instance where a gun might have saved this man's life--but I bet that won't make headlines. Why should a school be allowed to have a security guard with no weapon patrol at night alone? Shouldn't a school be held liable for placing a person in such danger? I don't know why anyone would take a job as a security guard without a weapon. What are they supposed to do if they see a crime taking place, hide under a desk?