“Second To The Right And Straight On Till Morning”

Those words are, of course, from that great children's classic, Peter Pan by JM Barrie. They are the charming, timeless directions to find Neverland. Many folks will always remember this story as it was interpreted by Mary Martin as Peter Pan with the incomparable performance of Cyril Ritchard as Captain Hook (and Mr. Darling). Later arrivals to the world may remember other stars performing in the role of Peter. Like Sandy Duncan or even Cathy Rigby. But enough of that trip down memory lane, because, of course, Peter Pan is a play. It is all fiction. 

The Animal Uprising™, however, is quite real. And Barrie, perhaps inadvertently, perhaps with great foresight, happened to give the directions not to Neverland, but to Raccoon Bay. Now while many people are familiar with Pelican Bay where some very bad humans happen to be housed, not many know of Raccoon Bay. That is where the hardest of the hard cases of the Animal Uprising are held. And there has just been a breakout of positively biblical proportions. Three of the ringleaders of the Animal Uprising™ have made an escape. We understand (ok, we really don't, but this is what we heard) that the escape involved cheese, rope, a tin whistle, two coat hangers, one goat, a pair of nylon stockings and a bat. A real bat, as in flying rodent. Which, while somewhat confusing, still leaves three very dangerous individuals on the loose. Don't believe us? We have evidence:

(Blame this post on George. He made me do it. Blame the picture on Gagdad Bob. I had nothing to do with it. Honest.)

We Are Sorry, Sir, But You Have Been Plutoed

I simply cannot wait until I hear that phrase spoken at an airport. The American Dialect Society has decreed the word "plutoed" to be its Word of the Year. They are the same folks who enshrined "truthiness" last year, so they must be right, right?

"Plutoed" was chosen 2006's Word of the Year by the American Dialect Society at its annual meeting Friday.

To "pluto" is "to demote or devalue someone or something," much like what happened to the former planet last year when the General Assembly of the International Astronomical Union decided Pluto didn't meet its definition of a planet.

"Our members believe the great emotional reaction of the public to the demotion of Pluto shows the importance of Pluto as a name," said society president Cleveland Evans. "We may no longer believe in the Roman god Pluto, but we still have a sense of personal connection with the former planet."

"Plutoed" won in a runoff against "climate canary," defined as "an organism or species whose poor health or declining numbers hint at a larger environmental catastrophe on the horizon."

Now last year, I saw the word "truthiness" used a number of times during the year leading up to it being declared the Word of the Year. I can honestly say I have never before seen "plutoed" or "climate canary" ever in print before reading this article. Perhaps that is a sign of the American Dialect Society's impending "plutoing" after a warning from the "irrelevance canary". Or maybe that's just me being snarky.

Ruminations On A Shotgun

Years ago, I took firearms training as part of a job I had just taken - that is another story entirely and I won't go into it right now. But the training was to familiarize the new employees with the firearms we might be called on to use one day. It wasn't military training, but it was taught by a former Army drill instructor who had been a member of the Olympic pistol team. (He was an incredible shot with a pistol).

We trained on three basic firearms, revolver, shotgun and mini-14. The revolvers were actually US Air Force surplus Smith & Wesson model 10s with 5-inch barrels. These guns had been through the wringer. They were old, worn out, shot loose, badly maintained - pretty much the works in beat to hell. The mini-14s were brand new out of the box and a real joy to play with. But the shotguns were Smith & Wesson 3000 pump shotguns in 12 gauge, long since discontinued.

We suffered through the revolver part of the course with guns that on a really good day might hit a barn at six paces two shots out of six. The mini-14 part of the course went far too quickly. It was really easy to go right through the whole magazine in a very short time. They didn't let us shoot all that many magazines. Then came those shotguns.

One of the trainees was a guy named Al. But I'll call him Al. He was a funny guy with a great sense of humor and a ready joke always at hand, very well liked, but also quite small. He was of Italian descent, which has not a bit of bearing on the story. But he was about 5 foot 4 inches tall and could not have weighed any more than 100 pounds wringing wet. He was funny, but he was also little. That shotgun was darn near as long as he was tall, or at least it looked that way when he held it.

So, the day came when we were to start firing shotguns. We did it five at a time (I think there were twenty of us or so). My group of five happened to be next after the group that Al got assigned to. All of us were actually a bit concerned about Al and that big 12-gauge shotgun. When Al's turn came, he stepped right up to the firing line. Instructions were given to fire five rounds as fast as possible. Al braced himself and fired.

And went back three steps. (I told you he was little.) But he literally ran back three steps to the line, pumping the action as he went and fired again. And went back those same three steps. This little dance repeated for five shots. Al never gave up. He ran right back up to the line and fired again until the magazine was empty. He did the exact same thing every time we shot the shotguns and fired every, single round he was instructed to. (He had massive bruising on his shoulder afterward, too. It was painful for him to do that, but he did it.) Al was funny, little and had heart.

Al became "Shotgun" Al that day. Everyone called him that. He answered to it, in fact. And while it was humorous in tone, it also had a note of respect in it. Al never gave up and did exactly as he was asked.

I thought about Al today when I took my little girl to try out her Christmas present. We gave her a Charles Daly over and under 12-gauge shotgun this year. Not really all that expensive, but a nice gun to get her into trap and skeet - which she loves to do. Up until now she has used a 20-gauge pump. This is her first 12-gauge and first O/U. As I watched her walk up to the line and brace herself, I was thinking of watching Al all those years ago do the same thing. She pulled the trigger and I winced.

But she only shifted back in her stance, didn't fall back even one step. And she turned to me with her face lit up with a grin so wide you could see her braces and her tonsils all at the same time. And she said, "I LIKE it".

Al would really appreciate her, I think.

False Syllogism

The Anchoress has a post up about the ongoing Jamil Hussein/burning mosque/six burning Sunni controversy. As she puts it, there is a pissing contest going on between the left, the Associated Press and the right. Frankly, the left was completely silent about the entire story, or very nearly so, for six weeks while the controversy simmered. Then, after the AP "revealed" that Hussein actually existed and was "facing arrest" it became an important cause™ for the left. One they are willing to distort the truth on to push.

Indeed that does seem to be the narrative that the left is pressing - because Jamil Hussein has been “found” that means the story about four burned mosques and six immolated human beings must be true.

Let’s test that logic with a syllogism, shall we?

Major Premise: The AP reported four mosques burned down and six people were murdered, and their source was Jamil Hussein.
Minor Premise: Jamil Hussein exists.
Conclusion: Therefore four mosques burned down and six people were murdered.

No, that doesn’t work. The logic fails.

The fact that the AP itself could not find serious corroboration for the story, that it changed the “four” mosques to “one” but has not been able to provide a single picture, that it has never named the victims or talked to the victim’s families or done anything at all to substantiate the story beyond saying “we stand by it,” seems not to matter to some. But it matters, and that is what the bloggers on the right, “war” or otherwise, have been trying to say. A report matters. The credibility of a report (even if the story is “brief”) matters. It matters because every time a horrible story crosses the wires and into the public perception, it plays on gut-level emotions and raises discontent among already warring local factions. In the same way that some would use our own liberties to work against us, such reports embolden those who would take advantage of the fact that America is a compassionate country, that makes war only with reluctance. Am I saying that ugly or troubling stories should not be reported? Of course not. But they must be true.

Credible news reports matter because the press possesses the public trust and therefore they have a charge - a duty - to do all they can to ascertain that the information they pass on to the nation is as accurate as it can be. The embrasure of that duty is an honorable one and a privilege. Honest journalism - whether popular or not - is as much a service to the nation as is a noble military or an uncorrupted government. Honest journalism tells the good and the bad without passion or prejudice, respecting the right of the people to “know” and the right of the government to hold classified what it deems truly necessary for the good and welfare of nations. Honest journalism respects the reader enough to trust him or her to receive information with an active mind, and welcomes the reader’s ability to question what it reads, to look for clarification, if necessary. The craft of honest journalism is less an imperious handing down of selected information by “mediating intelligences” than a provocative waltz between writer and reader, both partners challenging, encouraging and turning in sync.

A lot of people on the left either do not get it or do not care. The former is unfortunate, the latter frightening. It matters - a lot - whether the media tells a story accurately. If the media lies or distorts it should matter to everyone, left or right, as The Anchoress points out. If the left does not care that the media lies, omits or distorts the truth, that can only mean they are happy that that is happening. That is a scary thing.

I get a lot of people commenting (or trying to, in the case of banned individuals) who assume I am some right wing automaton based on reading one post - usually one linked by the Daou Report. They then swoop in and deposit a comment, often obscene or abusive (and therefore deleted). They fail to comprehend that my criticism of the media is not ideological. It is a problem with the credibility of a lot of reporting these days. And that credibility should matter no matter what side of the political spectrum you happen to inhabit.

I have received a couple of demands from left wing bloggers that I apologize for some posts. The problem with those demands is that they have demanded I retract a post about some item that I never posted about at all. Would I be considered credible if I demanded someone apologize for something they had never done?

I haven't seen one left leaning blog that said a single word about the New York Times Byron Calame and his conclusion last week that there had been a major - very major - lie told in the pages of the NYT Magazine. Nor have I seen any retraction or correction from the New York Times.(UPDATE: Anchoress points me to a correction published today by the NYT. I will leave it to the reader if it is sincere or a bit weasel-worded. I guess that kind of gives my opinion on it away. But the left demands absolute, abject contrition, why shouldn't we?) But the left is very fast to demand - demand, I say - retractions and corrections from right leaning blogs over sideshow issues to the real problems of the AP story.

So about syllogisms then. The left demands corrections from those they disagree with when it turns out a report was inaccurate. The left ignores acknowledged public lies by the media if they happen to agree with the lie. Conclusion: The left supports lies told in their favor.

Unfortunately, that syllogism did not fail.

Wal-Mart Goes On Offense

Wal-Mart has apparently had enough of the union led campaign of Democratic presidential hopefuls beating on them at every opportunity. They are going direct to the people with television ads designed to counter the offensive against them. Up until now, they have made their points to reporters, now they are going direct without the media filters.

The world's largest retailer, increasingly a lightning rod for politicians as well as labor unions and other activists, cites the legacy of late founder Sam Walton in a folksy 60-second ad. A 30-second ad focuses on Wal-Mart's health insurance plans for its more than 1.3 million U.S. employees.

"It all began with a big dream in a small town, Sam Walton's dream," a narrator says as one ad starts with a black-and-white photo of Sam Walton and a grainy shot of Walton's first five-and-dime store in what is now the chain's headquarters town of Bentonville, Ark.

"Sam's dream. Your neighborhood Wal-Mart," the ad ends.

Both ads recite key points Wal-Mart has been making to reporters for months about its record, but the ads now take the arguments straight to the public.

The nation's largest private employer says it creates tens of thousands of jobs a year, offers employee health plans for as little as $23 a month, saves "the average working family" more than $2,300 a year through its low prices and is a major contributor to local charities with donations last year totaling more than $245 million.

In a news release about the ads, Wal-Mart said a survey of its employees nationwide last summer found 88 percent believe the company is a good corporate citizen and 81 percent would recommend a Wal-Mart job to a friend.

Company spokesman David Tovar declined to say how much Wal-Mart is spending on the ads, which were tested last summer in Tucson, Ariz., and Omaha, Neb. They will run for an as-yet undetermined period on national broadcast and cable networks as well as in a "couple of dozen" individual markets, Tovar said.

Steven Silvers, a corporate reputation management expert with Denver-based consultancy GBSM Inc., said it was strategically smart of Wal-Mart to take its case directly to the public to counter mounting attacks.

"If they're targeted, they have to get their message out there," Silvers said. "It's because they have become political fodder. They have to frame the discussion."

There are millions of people who shop at Wal-Mart every week. The campaign against Wal-Mart is as much against those people as it is against the company. Wal-Mart is taking an opportunity to go direct to those people. The Democrat's embrace of the Anti-Wal-Mart jihad being drummed up by the unions could well hurt them.

Oh, This Will Be Fun To Watch

Microsoft and Ford Motor Company proudly unveiled a brand new software system for cars. The aim of the new "Sync" system is to bring the connectivity of a computer to an automobile.

The "Sync" system allows drivers to make hands-free phone calls, listen to music on digital media players, including Apple Computer Inc.'s iPod, and have cell phone text messages read aloud.

Ford and Microsoft announced Sync on the eve of the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas and the North American International Auto Show in Detroit.

Microsoft wouldn't say if it planned to pitch Sync to other auto makers, but Velle Kolde, a senior product manager, said the company saw an opportunity to put its software in more than 600 million cars worldwide.

Computer systems for cars represents a potentially lucrative opportunity for the world's largest software maker as it looks to branch out from its core computer business.

I see two outcomes here. One scenario: the car will suddenly halt and ask if you want to send an error report, then require you to open and close the windows to get moving again. The second scenario: your car is suddenly hacked and you find yourself veering off to a completely different destination than you were originally heading for.

And just wait until the popups start.

Good News

Whooping cranes are making a strong comeback. Although the flock numbers only about 237, that is one heck of a lot better than the 15 or so it was down to not many years ago. I actually remember when these really large birds were put on the Endagered Species list. Most people back then did not think the species could be saved as I recall. So this is a remarkable success. 

 Whooping cranes rebounding in Texas

HARLINGEN, Texas - Once down to about 15, the world's only naturally migrating flock of whooping cranes has continued its comeback, now numbering a record 237 birds in wintering grounds along Texas' Gulf Coast.

U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service biologist Tom Stehn, who tracks the flock, said 45 cranes were born last year, including a rare seven sets of twins.

He credited the increase to mild weather at their nesting grounds in Wood Buffalo National Park in northern Canada's boreal forest. There, the birds begin their 2,500-mile migration route from their summering grounds to Texas.

"They avoided having that cold weather hit, that just-above-freezing and drizzle that seems to kill the chicks," he said.

Stehn flies at low altitudes over the 35-mile stretch of Texas coastline where the birds feast on blue crab and wolfberries. The cranes tend to stay in family groups in territories about a mile wide.

Stehn, who plots the groups on photocopied maps of the areas, counted 220 of the endangered species in 2005.

Wildlife officials say the whooping crane, the tallest bird in North America, illustrates how a concerted effort of legislation and public awareness can help a species rebound.

Blue Crab Boulevard was not able to get a picture of the whooping cranes rebounding, but we did manage to catch them on a fast break.

(Oh, come on, you couldn't expect us to pass that line up, even on a serious story! More resources on whooping cranes here and here.)

Just Another Day In The Worker’s Paradise

Just don't give the kid a toy. The Cuban government is decrying the rise in "consumerism" of parents giving their kids toys on "Three Kings Day", January 6th. It accentuates social differences, don't you know.

In a two-page spread, the Juventud Rebelde reported on the revival of "Three Kings Day," a Latin American tradition of giving gifts to children on Jan. 6, commemorating the arrival of three wise men who offered the newborn Jesus gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh.

"A tradition that seemed extinct in Cuban society rises again," the state-run newspaper said. "Although no one sees celebrating the millennial festivity of the Three Kings as heresy, the danger could be in (the holiday) accentuating consumerist habits and social differences."

Christmas is a low-key affair in Cuba. The government discouraged holiday celebrations for religious and consumerist reasons for decades following Fidel Castro's 1959 revolution, but made Christmas a holiday in 1997 ahead of a visit by Pope John Paul II in 1998.

Christmas was declared a permanent holiday at the end of 1998, a decision religious leaders embraced while also echoing concerns that it would succumb to Western-style commercialization.

State-run department stores offer no special promotions or sales on toys this time of year. Those interviewed for the Juventud Rebelde article attributed the increase of gift-giving in Cuba to the influence of globalization and visits by Cuban-Americans and other natives living abroad.

It sucks to be a kid in Cuba. Or an adult.

Wool Gathering

Mark Steyn is discussing sheep today in the Chicago Sun-Times. The result is both funny and chilling. As always, Steyn makes you think.

As part of this column's ongoing commitment to in-depth coverage of the issues that matter, we're pleased to present the first of a new series: Sheep In the News. Here are two headlines from the last week.

From the Wall Street Journal: "Ritual sacrifice? Not on my street, some Belgians say."

And from the Sunday Times of London: "Science told: Hands off gay sheep."

The first story is about the 25,000 sheep in Brussels that a few days ago found themselves pointed toward Mecca and then slit through the throat and bled to death. Muslims do this to celebrate Eid al-Adha, which commemorates Abraham's willingness to sacrifice his son to God and God's willingness to settle for a ram in lieu. The Belgian Muslim population has grown so fast that there aren't enough places in the city to perform the ritual sacrifice, and come Eid it's like sheep drivetime at every Brussels slaughterhouse, with rams backed up ram-to-ram as far as the eye can see. As reported by the Journal, Mohamed Mimoun grabbed his sheep, took a number and realized he was in for a two-hour wait. Even worse, en route to the slaughterhouse, he was stopped by a cop and fined for having the sheep in the trunk of his Toyota. By law, the sheep is supposed to ride in the rear passenger seats. Baa, baa, back seat.

Read the whole thing. The two items Steyn writes about are weirdly related. That a number of people are concerned about the "rights" of gay sheep as opposed to worrying about a nuclear armed Iran is not a good sign for society. There are priorities at work that do not seem to be in touch with any concept of reality.

Forget The Dead Vote!

Chicago, long reputed to be the world capitol of dead voting rights, has an even bigger and better program in place now! Forget the dead vote, that's passé. The new hot thing for dead people in Chicago is parking! That's right, forget dead man walking. Chicago has dead people parking!

Disabled drivers in Chicago can get a unique benefit from the city: For $70 and proof of disability, the city will mark off a parking space just steps from the person's door.

In 2006, 11,423 people participated, getting spaces on residential streets from Hegewisch to Rogers Park.

The only problem was, at least 260 of them were dead.

A Sun-Times investigation found that the spots sometimes remain for years after the disabled person has moved away or died, calling into question how well the city is monitoring the program.

Of course, this is small potatoes compared to Australia. Down under, the dead speeding problem is much worse. On the other hand, even zombies have to have a place to park, right? Chicago: pioneering the rights of the dead yet again!

A New Cuba

Venezuelan president (T)Hugo Chavez is now picking fights with the Organization of American States. It seems that OAS Secretary-General Jose Miguel Insulza criticized (T)Hugo's taking away broadcasting licenses from independent television stations. (T)Hugo is pitching a fit.

OAS Secretary-General Jose Miguel Insulza warned Friday that refusing to renew the license "would be seen as a form of censorship against freedom of expression" and serve as warning to other media critical of the government.

The Foreign Ministry accused Insulza of "improperly meddling" in Venezuela's affairs and denied that the decision had any "appearance of censorship." The ministry demanded Insulza "retract a series of comments that go against the truth."

Tensions have risen to a new level between the government and Venezuela's largely opposition-aligned private media since Chavez's December re-election to a fresh six-year term.

Chavez has promised radical changes, including revising the constitution — possibly to get rid of presidential term limits — and creating a single, pro-government party. Many Chavez critics say they fear Venezuela is heading toward the tightly regulated communist system of Cuba's Fidel Castro, Chavez's ally and mentor.

This is the logic of the left: shutting down opposing views isn't censorship. Less is more. Light is dark. Bad is good. (T)Hugo is trying hard to turn the nation into another Cuba.

Still More Bad British Bacon

Even though the Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals or RSPCA is in a state of denial about it, the fact is that British bacon is going bad at an astonishing rate. The Animal Uprising™ is using pigs as shock troops in Britain. In the latest incident, a herd of sinister savage swine acting like soccer hooligans attacked and beat a man. Um. Actually, it is awfully hard to tell them apart at this distance, isn't it? But back to our story:

The 51-year-old man was knocked over by a sow at a Norfolk farm, prompting the rest of the herd to attack him.

"It seems that when he fell, he was attacked by one of the sows and then the other pigs joined in," a Norfolk police spokesman told Reuters.

"He suffered bumps and bruises and a head injury though it is not considered to be life-threatening."

Police spokesmen also are playing dumb. They say they have not heard of any other incidents involving pigs attacking humans. Ahem. Perhaps they should read Blue Crab Boulevard so they would be up to date on all the really important news. We appear to be better informed than the British authorities. We're not really surprised. Or modest.

The Sobbing Crocodiles - Round Two

You see the crocodile tears all too often these days. When it is politically expedient even the worst people will be embraced and wailed over. So it is with those wailing over the hanging of the monster, Saddam Hussein. And Marty Peretz is having none of it.

Saddam Hussein's execution was another matter entirely. Those who do not see that are blind to the implicit social compact of any polity, and to its always precarious situation. What this tyrant did in murdering hundreds of thousands and terrorizing millions more, within Iraq and outside it, was to normalize brutality, establish falsity and hysteria as the common language, and routinely invade the boundaries of private life. Saddam's crimes unraveled whatever authenticity and spontaneity was possible in the artificial confines of a post-Versailles state.

He also brought dread to this state's neighbors. Men and women trembled at his name. And for what purpose did Saddam put the people of Iraq and the region through these horrors? For the nihilistic purpose of sustaining his rule and that of his clan. And yet, as no one has reminded us in recent times, he also murdered kith and kin.

Seen from this perspective, the attacks on Saddam's death sentence, self-righteous and oh, so elementally moral, are petty and falsely framed. I am afraid it is the Vatican that has failed humankind most glaringly in this regard. True, it is not the Vicar of Christ who has spoken, but his designate, Cardinal Renato Martino, head of the Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace. Rome tends to speak portentously, urbi et orbi. Yet such speech is also often simple-minded.

His scorn is not limited to Cardinal Martino, who actually has a rather lengthy history of anti-American rhetoric. There are more targets for Peretz to hit. In fact, it's very much like shooting blue whales in a rain barrel. And Peretz has a full box of ammunition.

Two surprising trends, one a great relief. The relief is that the people of Western Europe seem to be more sensible than their governments. Even the French, the Italians, the Spanish and others support the taking of Saddam's life. Like the Poles, and their prime minister, Jaroslaw Kaczynski. You have to have lived under a tyranny within your own memory to know why the tyrant should be punished, and punished decisively.

The other trend is a bit confusing. It shows itself especially in our stalwart ally, Great Britain, where the Labour government still adheres to the traditional alliance, in war and in peace. Margaret Beckett, Tony Blair's foreign secretary, spoke strongly in support of the hangman's noose.

But, ironically, there were counter-indications from the Tory right. Frustrated by its years in the political wilderness, the Conservatives much resent Labour's alliance with George Bush, even though they ridicule it. The brilliant showman-parliamentarian Boris Johnson, shadow minister for higher education, elicited from Ms. Beckett's predecessor, Jack Straw, already two years ago a statement of opposition to the ultimate penalty. Relying on Britain's longstanding opposition to capital punishment, they were working in consort against Mr. Blair's fidelity to how America sees the world. The prospect of Saddam's hanging would be their instrument.

I linked to a post from David's Medienkritik last week that showed that, contrary to the anointed conventional wisdom as delivered on media-provided stone tablets, the majority of people in Europe supported the hanging of the monster. The objections are not coming from the public, but rather from self-appointed elites. And the crocodile tears are flowing.

The Democrats Big Chance!

The Democrats in the Congress have a chance to show real leadership and to solve one of their biggest problems all at once. That's right, they really can make a difference. As they found out just the other day, playing doctor can be dangerous. As in Doctor Frankenstein. When you build and unleash a monster it can turn on you at any moment. So it was on Wednesday of this week when Cindy Sheehan and her pals drove Rahm Emanuel away from the microphones and killed a Democratic party press conference.

Today comes news that Sheehan is in Cuba to lead a protest.

Sheehan is among 12 human rights and anti-war activists who will travel across this Caribbean island next week, arriving at the main gate of the Guantanamo base in eastern Cuba on Thursday — five years after the first prisoners were flown in.

"Anyone who knows me, knows that I am not afraid of anything," Sheehan said when asked about the possibility of U.S. sanctions for traveling to communist-run Cuba, which remains under an American trade embargo.

So all the Democrats have to do now is pass legislation requiring Cuba to keep her!

On The Other Foot

William Saletan, writing in an op-ed in the Washington Post, delivers one of the most elegant slams against the left that I have seen in a long time. This is brilliant and quite devastating. The subject is the left's instantaneous, knee jerk reaction to the FDA approval of cloned animals for human consumption. He has a lengthy examination of the real issues and real science involved, which is well worth the read. But the best part in the entire piece is this:

The same liberals who demand stem cell research using human embryos and who blasted the FDA for delaying approval of emergency contraception now accuse the FDA of recklessly approving cloned food.

The shoe is on the other foot, and the reaction is highly predictable. I would only take exception to Saleton's use of the word liberal. He is talking about the left, who are anything but liberal these days. I would highly recommend reading all of Saleton's piece, though. It takes a good, hard look at the real issues and does a good job of discussing them. He also gets in more than a few stinging slaps at extremists and junk science along the way.