Like sooty1, my decision not to have children was based primarily on concerns about the planet. I just couldn't see how I could decide to add to the already overwhelming problem of population, a problem that WAY too many people dismiss as being "irrelevant". Hell, somebody recently responded to my comment about it here by calling such concerns a "red herring"! How anyone can be so blinkered is beyond me. It seems to me that ALL of our environmental problems can be traced simply to having too many people. This planet is perfectly capable of sustaining a reasonable population. After all, it did exactly that for a hell of a long time, didn't it?

It's time for humanity to wake up and stop thinking so selfishly. Reproducing your own personal genetics is no longer a viable way to look at things. We're breeding ourselves out of our habitat, and it won't be too long before nightmare scenarios like Harry Harrison's Make Room! Make Room! come to pass. What will we do then, start executing useless members of the population? (Though I'm sure there are those who would welcome just such an alternative.)

Americans don't like to be told NO. It's that simple. We don't like to be told not to drive, not to buy, not to pig out on anything. We want what we want, and like kids in a sandbox, we throw tantrums when we can't have it. Who cares if it's ruining the planet? We want our big cars and our half-a-million electronic gadgets and our plates full of beef and every other luxury to which we feel entitled. Poor people, other countries, the earth itself be damned. If our leaders can't give us whatever our whims demand, out they go and get us someone who can!

It's the basic American attitude about life that has to change. Our ideas about our place in the world, what we can have vs. what we ought to have. Learning to adhere to those precepts that Jesus taught, in which so many people claim to believe yet so rarely on which they so rarely act. We have to learn to be adults rather than whiny, petulant children, and learn that we can't always have everything we want.

In other words, we gotta grow up.

I remember watching this show; it was such a hoot. Thank you for letting us know that it's out on DVD. I'd completely missed the release.

*sigh* I miss the 70's, indeed.

I can't believe people still make a big deal out of prostitution. OK, if the prostitute is being forced or something, it's bad. But the idea that somehow an adult is not free to do with his/her own body whatever he/she wants is just...bizarre. Especially when those railing against it are also in favor of free choice in matters such as birth control and abortion. So it's not okay for the government to tell me I can't have an abortion, but it is okay for the government to tell me I can't have sex for money? How does that add up, exactly?

It makes no sense to me, and it never has. People should be free to do as they please, so long as no one is getting hurt. Myself, I think the sex trade should be regulated in the same way any other industry is, no more, no less. Fair and decent working conditions, with rules and benefits just like any other job. Remove the stigma and let's get on with more important things!

(I also agree about Spitzer and others like him being a hypocrite. If you're going to bust people under these ridiculous laws, you shouldn't be flouting them under cover of authority. That's definitely not on.)

Fun article, good information. What I find funniest, though, are the commenters going on about how offended they are. Uh, what part of "what is your poo telling you about your health" did you not understand? I mean, it was right there in the title heading, even in the link. So how is it that you clicked on that link and took the time to read an article whose very subject you find so offensive? Me, I avoid articles on shit I don't like. And the pun is definitely intended.

if it's true. I've learned to take what these people say with a grain of salt. Politics isn't necessarily about being honest, even when you're claiming you are.

Be that as it may, being nice when you're trying to get something out of someone isn't particularly impressive. My concern is not with whether McCain can avoid the foul language while he's on the campaign trail. It's whether he can restrain his violent impulses when he's actually the President. That's when it's going to count. He's reported to have a rather trigger-happy id, so I think I'll reserve judgment on his civility, thanks.