17 Apr 98: A new study by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention purports to show that the United States has the highest rate of gun deaths per capita among the world's 36 most developed nations. The study was based on data collected for 1994 and showed that the US death rate was 14.24 persons per 100,000. By comparison, Japan had the lowest rate at .05 per 100,000. Exponents of gun control are hailing the study as a sign that the US needs to clamp down on gun ownership. However, the study did not take into account the number of overall violent deaths. For example the number of ritual suicides in Japan was not compared to the number of person's in the US who purposefully shot themselves. And the number of violent deaths of spectators at soccer matches in England was not even considered. Had overall violent deaths been taken into account the US would not necessarily have proven the most violent. Indeed, it is not the gun which is the culprit in violent deaths; it is the criminal who is willing to wield it, just as he might wield a baseball bat, a knife or a machete. The reduction of violent deaths in America will come, not when guns are banned, but when criminals are treated as criminals and when people are held personally accountable for their actions.
16 Apr 98: Greenpeace, the Sierra Club and American Oceans Campaign filed a suit in federal court against the National Marine Fisheries Service saying that not enough has been done to protect the Stellar sea lion. The sea lion has reportedly experienced a population decline. The three environmental organizations allege that the decline is due to over-fishing allowed by the Fisheries Service. Steve Pennoyer, the regional administrator for the fisheries service in Alaska said "We continue to do research into that and I don't think, at the moment it is understood. We are taking measures that seem prudent…" Green Peace, et al, would probably have blamed el Nino if they could have sued an agency or company for weather trends - heck, that's probably next.
Pol Pot the former leader of the Khmer Rouge who was primarily responsible for the deaths of 2-3 million Cambodians died in his sleep yesterday. Heart failure was reportedly the cause of death. Pol Pot's re-education camps made his totalitarian regime one of the most brutal of the century. An international tribunal was endeavoring to get hold of him to try him for crimes against humanity.
15 Apr 98: Happy National Tax Return Deadline Day!
A new study sponsored by the insurance industry shows that sixteen-year-old drivers are dying at twice the rate that they were 20 years ago. In 1975 the death rate was 19 per 100,000. Now the death rate is 35 per 100,000. The study attributes this trend to 16-year-olds driving more often under high-risk conditions. It may also be that parental control on 16-year-olds has become increasingly lax. Parents are more likely to allow their children to get into circumstances that could be potentially fatal. Insurance industry recommendations to curb this growing trend of 16-year old deaths is to create a 6 month learners period where new drivers must have another licensed driver in the car with them, and an additional six months in which same drivers cannot drive at night or with other teens in the car. The real solution is for parents to step up and show a little more responsibility for their children and for the state to stay out of the business of parenting.
14 Apr 98: The Federal Trade Commission is looking at whether the Cigar Industry should be more strictly regulated. The National Cancer Institute released a study last Friday showing that the number of Cigar Smokers has risen by 50 percent since 1993. They also are saying that Cigar smoking can be just as deadly to the health, ignoring studies showing that cigar smokers live to a greater age than even non-smokers. It seems the FTC has found out that most cigar smokers are conservative and are out to curtail what it sees as a frightening trend. At the present rate of growth in cigar smoking, conservatism may just take over the national political scene. Robert Pitofsky, the FTC chairman has said that the cigar industry may eventually face rules similar to those imposed on cigarette manufacturers. They are contemplating a warning label, "Cigar smoking may be habit forming and cause common sense in voting." Indeed, tobacco has been shown to foster clear thinking and a heightened sense of ambition. Maybe we should sponsor a government program to hand out cigars on the streets.
13 Apr 98: Another Chinese scandal is raising its ugly head for the Clinton administration. It seems that the biggest single donor to the Democratic Party last year was the Chairman of Loral Space. Hughes and Loral, a high tech aerospace company, was in deep trouble with the justice department for passing on guided missile technology to the Chinese. President Clinton personally compromised the investigation of Loral by suddenly approving the transfer of the same strategically important information to the Chinese at a later date. It is known that the '96 Clinton/Gore Campaign received large donations through surrogates from the Chinese Government. It is also known that the Democratic Party took huge donations from the Chairman of Loral, Michael Armstrong. Such indicators might lead the dispassionate observer to conclude that the President is selling out US security interests to America's only potential significant military competitor, China.
