Ones and Zeros

But then these sorts of things happen:

 A Wisconsin district attorney is urging schools to drop their sex-education programs, warning that the teachers involved could be arrested if they follow a new state law requiring them to instruct students on how to use condoms and other contraceptives….

So teachers who have a significant level of responsibility and who are often underpaid and dumped on, are now possibly subject to legal action of a type that could end their career.  And what for?  For following the state law that the Wisconsin DA is sworn to uphold.

The DA Scott Southworth considers the law a “sick and shameful piece of legislation” that encourages illegal sex among minors.  So he’s taking it out on the teachers instead of the legislature or governor. What is it with these far-right wing conservatives?  It’s clear that their support of the country and the constitution is selective to the laws they like and the legal process be damned.

From this article:

 Jon Kyl (R-Az) told Fox News’ Chris Wallace that Republicans are prepared to fight a nominee who might stick up for the little guy, a position he called “overly ideological.”

I’m just glad that Kyl wasn’t around during the American revolution.  He would have been a Tory, ie pro-King and against all those little guy revolutionaries.  I’m sure he’d think that stuff about “governments are instituted among men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed” is just so much nonsense.

It’s a really bad sign when an institution supposedly dedicated to ethical and moral behavoir is taking legalistic stands and blaming the media.  We expect that sort of thing from our worst politicians, not from a self-proclaimed institutional beacon of moral standards.

The Pope says through a spokesman that this crisis is a “personal test” for him.  He’s got that right.  But he omits that sexual abuses were personal tests for the victims too.   It’s not really about him is it?  So how will he do?

Separate from any homilies, and separate from any benedictions and statements of faith, the Church is a institution of politics and beaurocracy that’s existed for over two thousand years now.  It knows how to survive.  The only real question is if it will survive with something consistent with the stated beliefs of the Catholic religion.

Senator Jim Bunning has now apparently raised his block against extending unemployment benefits.  His stated motivation was to impose fiscal pay-as-you-go discipline by saying “Tough Shit” to Americans.  But in May 2007 Sen Jim Bunning voted for $120 billion for the war in Iraq.  He’s comfortable going into debt for war against a country that didn’t attack us (Iraq), but not for US citizens who’ve lost their jobs due to financiers.  Financiers that are already bailed out.

There’s also plenty of spin going on to attempt to make sense of Bunning’s effort. Michelle Malkin’s saying that he just wanted everyone on the record for example. Others have said that unemployement benefits cause people to NOT look for jobs.  The first is clearly overkill.  The second is ridiculous for anyone who’s been laid off.  Frankly unemployment benefits won’t replace any reasonable salary.