(I initiated this blog to discuss science ideas and concepts. However, after taking the summer off, I find that science education does not seem to be the most pressing issue in my mind. I apologize if you came here for scientific enlightenment, but this entry will deal with a more pressing issue; FREEDOM.)
Debt is bondage. When you owe money on your car you are not free to buy another car. When you owe too much on your credit card you are not free to use your credit card for an emergency expense. When you owe money on your home you are not free to quit your job or move to another state. For a long time Americans have been prosperous enough to work around these limitations to a degree, but it does not change the fact that when a person owes money they are not totally free.
The crime that has been committed by the elected representatives in this country, for more than fifty years now, has been to slowly place the nation into debt. This debt has been accumulated for multiple reasons, many for seemingly good and kind humanitarian reasons. The reasons do not matter. We have spent money we did not have and borrowed to make up the difference. We can argue about the causes of these actions and the needs that have been addressed, but the bottom line is that now the United States is massively in debt. Now the United States is in bondage.
We would never have allowed a foreign invader to put us in bondage. But we have sold our liberty, and the liberty of our children, for questionable causes. Of course it is good to care for the poor. It is admirable to respect our elders. It is compassionate to care for the sick. But if I borrow money to donate to the needy, however that is defined; I will soon be a slave to my creditors.
Every responsible citizen knows they cannot have everything they want. Every successful household has discussions concerning what is wanted and what is needed. This is how reasonable people run their lives to avoid slavery and bondage. Can it really be true that different economic realities and rules exist for governments and world order? Of course not.
The argument has been for many years, and by every political party, that we need to be compassionate and we need to be efficient. Liberty has never been either. Liberty has been cruel and caused the death and suffering of millions who seek it. Liberty has always been messy and costly. Yet, among all men, it is the one attribute desired uniformly, regardless of culture, religion, or creed.
Americans may still be brave. But we are no longer free. We have allowed our elected representatives to again and again make foolish decisions that have left us debtors and in bondage. I do not know the motives of these many men and women who have participated. Some have resisted, but most have not. I will not say that they are wicked, evil, well meaning, idealistic, or selfish. It doesn’t really matter. The end result is that I am not longer a freeman.
The only sensible solution is the one every responsible person recognizes and applies in their life daily. Carefully manage our affairs. Do not spend what we do not have. Save some money for emergencies. Do not invest in new and risky ventures. Work hard and be frugal until the debt is paid. Deny one-self of many niceties in order to assure the necessities. Are there any candidates running for office today with these values and the ability to live by them when elected?
Saturday, August 15, 2009
Sunday, August 2, 2009
LUNCH WITH BLOODSUCKERS
When I was young I reveled in Edgar Rice Burroughs “Tarzan” books. I don’t know if I read all twenty three or not, but I read a lot of them. And while I didn’t exactly know what a tsetse fly was then, I knew it was dreaded and carried deadly disease. So I was excited years later when I found myself in a class studying African sleeping sickness, transmitted by the “dreaded tsetse fly”.
Tsetse flies are large flies, about the size of our western horsefly, that are only found in Africa. They feed during the day, and both males and females feed exclusively on blood. In feeding they transmit a microscopic parasite called a Trypanosome that in turn causes African Sleeping Sickness.
Now, there is a great fascination by young boys, of almost any age, with gory things like blood sucking. It is a recent phenomenon that so many young girls and women have become interested in blood sucking.
One fascinating subject is how a blood sucking insect finds its food. It is surprising to me how little is known about the insect food-selection process.
It quickly becomes apparent that the simple act of getting lunch, is actually a multistep, multisensory, complex, interaction of senses, behaviors and environmental cues for an insect. For example, how does an insect even know when it’s time to eat? It is generally thought that mosquitoes feed at dusk. But how do they know when it is dusk? Is it by day length and light? That certainly seems to be one cue. However, mosquitoes kept in captivity will become restless, act “hungry”, and feed when kept in constant light conditions, if presented with other cues. Then there are those species that feed at two in the morning; you know the one that wakes you up with that dreaded buzzing in your ear.
Blood sucking insects can’t really expect dinner to remain in a fixed position until the next meal, like a McDonald’s resteraunt. So how do they locate a blood source? It is commonly thought that they follow a carbon dioxide plume, but carbon dioxide is actually only an exciter. The mosquitoes get excited whenever the concentration of carbon dioxide changes, whether it increases or decreases. They don’t follow the carbon dioxide as much as they react to it. Since carbon dioxide levels fluxuate continually, why don’t they react then? When presented with several selections on the menu, why do they always pick me? How do they decide between an arm and a leg, and which position on the arm is most attractive? The questions seem endless.
This is all complicated by the fact that there are over 3000 species of mosquito in the world and each has its own peculiar time, place, and preferred host for feeding.
Now for the amazing part: only half of mosquitoes take a blood meal, the females. The males feed entirely on plant sources of sugar. Females only require blood during reproduction. The rest of the time she lives on plant nectar also. So various floral and plant sources provide the great bulk of day-to-day mosquito energy needs. Yet our knowledge of when, where, why, and how they seek floral nectars is minimal.
Better understanding of the feeding habits of blood sucking insects would aid in the development of better control strategies, and improved disease prevention since most blood sucking insects are capable of transmitting disease. Answering questions like “How do tsetse flies know when it is dinnertime?” and “What flowers do mosquitoes prefer?” are what biologists do.
I have a couple of ideas about how to answer these questions. If you’re interested, wait until you are moved upon by some mysterious change in the carbon dioxide concentration and give me a call. We’ll do lunch.
Tsetse flies are large flies, about the size of our western horsefly, that are only found in Africa. They feed during the day, and both males and females feed exclusively on blood. In feeding they transmit a microscopic parasite called a Trypanosome that in turn causes African Sleeping Sickness.
Now, there is a great fascination by young boys, of almost any age, with gory things like blood sucking. It is a recent phenomenon that so many young girls and women have become interested in blood sucking.
One fascinating subject is how a blood sucking insect finds its food. It is surprising to me how little is known about the insect food-selection process.
It quickly becomes apparent that the simple act of getting lunch, is actually a multistep, multisensory, complex, interaction of senses, behaviors and environmental cues for an insect. For example, how does an insect even know when it’s time to eat? It is generally thought that mosquitoes feed at dusk. But how do they know when it is dusk? Is it by day length and light? That certainly seems to be one cue. However, mosquitoes kept in captivity will become restless, act “hungry”, and feed when kept in constant light conditions, if presented with other cues. Then there are those species that feed at two in the morning; you know the one that wakes you up with that dreaded buzzing in your ear.
Blood sucking insects can’t really expect dinner to remain in a fixed position until the next meal, like a McDonald’s resteraunt. So how do they locate a blood source? It is commonly thought that they follow a carbon dioxide plume, but carbon dioxide is actually only an exciter. The mosquitoes get excited whenever the concentration of carbon dioxide changes, whether it increases or decreases. They don’t follow the carbon dioxide as much as they react to it. Since carbon dioxide levels fluxuate continually, why don’t they react then? When presented with several selections on the menu, why do they always pick me? How do they decide between an arm and a leg, and which position on the arm is most attractive? The questions seem endless.
This is all complicated by the fact that there are over 3000 species of mosquito in the world and each has its own peculiar time, place, and preferred host for feeding.
Now for the amazing part: only half of mosquitoes take a blood meal, the females. The males feed entirely on plant sources of sugar. Females only require blood during reproduction. The rest of the time she lives on plant nectar also. So various floral and plant sources provide the great bulk of day-to-day mosquito energy needs. Yet our knowledge of when, where, why, and how they seek floral nectars is minimal.
Better understanding of the feeding habits of blood sucking insects would aid in the development of better control strategies, and improved disease prevention since most blood sucking insects are capable of transmitting disease. Answering questions like “How do tsetse flies know when it is dinnertime?” and “What flowers do mosquitoes prefer?” are what biologists do.
I have a couple of ideas about how to answer these questions. If you’re interested, wait until you are moved upon by some mysterious change in the carbon dioxide concentration and give me a call. We’ll do lunch.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
Posts
