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Reason Express - January 19, 2005

Reason's Weekly Dispatch
By Jeff A. Taylor and the Reason staff
 

January 19, 2005
Vol. 8 No. 3

In this issue:

1. Black and Blue Thursday
2. Iran: Not So Far Away
3. Colon Test Not Even Semi-Effective
4. Quick Hits
5. New at Reason Online - All Happy Families
6. News and Events

1. Black and Blue Thursday

An overlooked gem of our constitutional system is that we hand over supreme executive power in the dead of winter, all the better to keep the rabble out of the streets during this important business. The parade route for the George W. Bush's second inaugural should be chilly enough to keep the part-timers away, clearing space for the serious political junkies. But what will come of the various plans for protest?

The turn-your-back-on-Bush idea is simple and elegant and unlikely to land you spot on the human pyramid team at Camp X-Ray, but requires the active participation of the news networks for any real visual oomph. A tight shot of the parade that omits the about-face moment will not convey much info to the viewing public. And, even more likely, the about-face protestors will be buried so deep in the crowd it might be difficult to see them. Still, the prospect of something novel happening at the event should cheer everyone who has politics in their blood, be it Red or Blue.

Finally, the carping about Bush's $40 million party needs to answer one pregnant question: What would John Kerry have spent? Chances are about the same amount, and from much the same people to boot.

http://www.usatoday.com/news/washington/2005-01-16-inauguration-protests_x.htm <

http://www.capitolhillblue.com/artman/publish/article_6053.shtml

Reason Express is made possible by a grant from The DBT Group, manufacturers of affordable, high-performance mainframe systems and productivity software.

2. Iran: Not So Far Away

The Pentagon may have attacked reports of U.S. assets on the ground in Iran scouting out possible WMD sites, but if it hasn't happened already, it will. The Iranians surely realize this; what matters is how they react. Does it scare them? Anger them? Amuse them?

Washington's motives are also veiled. Does it actually contemplate military strikes on Iran's sites, or is the idea merely to get the Iranians worried enough about them to make a mistake and reveal something about the programs and their locations? Is the idea to provide psychological support for anti-regime elements in Iran? Are there really anti-regime elements in Iran that are capable of supplanting the current government? What does the Bush administration think?

By necessity a great deal more deception will accompany U.S. policy toward Iran in the coming months than we every saw with regard to Iraq. There just are not any more American troops to amass and telegraph your intentions, for one. Second, no one really knows if a post-election, Shiite-run Iraq will help or hurt the long-term goal of regime change in Iran.

http://www.aljazeera.com/cgi-bin/review/article_full_story.asp?service_ID=6700

3. Colon Test Not Even Semi-Effective

News that a widely-used colon cancer test fails up to 95 percent of the time tells us a bit more than that we need a new colon cancer test. The same study found that a take-home test was about five times more accurate than the doctor office test, which is still poor overall but much better.

These results invert the common notion that when it comes to "doctor's supervision," more is always better. Not in this case, where the self-test clearly outperforms the in-office test. Doctors may have legitimately thought that the in-office test was more accurate or, given loopy reimbursement rules from both public and private insurers, may have had an economic incentive to do the test in-house, who knows.

But many in the medical community have a vision of health care that relegates patients to junior partner status -- if patients are given any credit at all for being competent adults at all. There may be good reasons for such an approach in some circumstances where illness has compromised mental functions. However, the default stance of doctors should not equate caregiver with caretaker. Now, send the poop tests home and feel good about it.

http://www.indystar.com/articles/1/210370-8011-052.html

4. Quick Hits

Quote of the Week

"It's very beautiful, but it's not fashion -- it's something else. It's costume." - - 82-year-old designer Pierre Cardin on the current state of fashion.

http://au.news.yahoo.com/050118/11/sn32.html

Banned Unless It Is Prohibited

The United States Capitol Police has a list of a couple dozen items banned from the Presidential Inauguration -- including baby strollers -- that nonetheless concludes with "and any other items at the discretion of the security screeners that may pose a potential safety hazard." Oh.

http://www.uscapitolpolice.gov/pressreleases/2005/pr_01-13-05.html

The End is Near, if Pixilated

A naked cartoon butt was edited by Fox out of fear a "real" cartoon butt would prompt an investigation and fine from the FCC.

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/news/archive/2005/01/17/entertainment1639EST0076.DTL

I, Ratbot

Mix rat cells and silicon chips and what do you get? Evidently something real damn scary.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/6835423

5. New at Reason Online

All Happy Families
Sacrificing children in the name of "family values." Julian Sanchez

Still Victims After All These Years
Feminist excess revisited. Cathy Young

Social Security as Social Engineering
Why private accounts are all about values. Jonathan Rauch


And much more!

6. News and Events

THROWN TOGETHER - A reading to benefit Tsunami survivors

Jefferson | 121 W. 10th Street | New York City | Phone: (212) 255-3333

Sunday January 23, 6-9 PM

Complimentary Hors d'ouevres/Cash Bar/$15 at the door

Among the readers are Adam Goodheart (The Last Island of the Savages); Ayun Halliday (Sumatra's Men of the Forest); Suketu Mehta (Peace in Paradise On Sri Lanka); Bob Morris (Some Adventures in Karma on India's Holiest River); and Daniel Asa Rose (Prom Queens in the Mist -- A Thai Rhapsody).

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