What Caught My Eye Today

Economy - Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke told Congress that the country's economic outlook has deteriorated and signaled that the central bank is ready to keep on lowering a key interest rate — as needed — to shore things up. In remarks to the Senate Banking Committee, Bernanke said the one-two punch of the housing and credit crises has greatly strained the economy. Hiring has slowed and people are likely to tighten their belts further, as they are pinched by high energy prices and watch the value of their single biggest asset — their homes — weaken, he warned. Well golly gee, Mr. Bernanke, thanks for clearing that up for us. I had no idea the economy was in such a predicament. I just assume the recent plunge in the stock market, housing prices and pretty much every other downward spiraling economic indicator were just a coincidence. But if you are saying that there is actually something to be worried about, well I guess we should start paying attention.

China - This one cracks me up. A new breed of criminal has emerged in China: "pigjackers." Soaring pork prices in China have sent thieves roaring off with truckloads of hogs. The increase in pork theft is no joke to China's leaders. But it sure as heck is amusing to the rest of us. They see it as a sign of a much larger problem: they dread the kind of mass unrest that could erupt out of a spike in pork prices. A full 65% of the country's total protein consumption is pork. Food prices in general, and pork in particular, have been skyrocketing in recent months. This next part, really gets the funny bone going. In an effort to head off serious trouble, Beijing has tapped the country's official "pork reserve." It's the actual term for the special stash of meat the Chinese government keeps frozen in case of a sudden supply crunch--not unlike America's Strategic Petroleum Reserve. Okay, you all need to stop this. Seriously, just stop it. You're killing me.

Military Honors - Here's a fascinating piece on the U.S. military's recognition of military valor, or rather, lack thereof. The U.S. government has bestowed more than 3,400 members of the military with the Medal of Honor. It is the highest military decoration that can be awarded to those who serve. 18% of the recipients got the award postumuously. 124 Medals of Honor were bestowed for World War I, 464 for World War II, 131 for the Korean War, 245 for the Vietnam War, and 3 so far for the war on terrorism (all for actions in Iraq). Pentagon officials say the disparity has to do with the nature of combat in Iraq: less face-to-face fighting and fewer occasions for valor. Most American troops never see Iraqi insurgents. About 40% of the fatalities in Iraq have been caused by roadside bombs planted in secret and detonated remotely. I'm not so sure I would be splitting hairs over the definition of valor if I were one of these Pentagon officials. These guys are fouling up things badly enough in Iraq and Afghanistan. Do they really need to insult the memory of its fallen soldiers by bungling this up as well?

Obesity - The Mississippi legislature is considering a bill that would ban restaurants from serving food to very fat people. The proposed law would revoke the license of any restaurant caught repeatedly feeding the obese. Mississippi has a 30% obesity rate, the nation's highest. The bill's sponsor said he was trying to call attention to a neglected public-health crisis. Did I mention that this story comes out of Mississippi? I don't want to trivialize the growing problem of obesity, but is denying folks the right to eat really the best way to tackle this issue?

Geology - NERD ALERT - Besides my fascination with space, the nerd in me also happens to have an inexplicably interest in geology. You won't offend me in the slightest if you want to skip over this one. The impact on human activity on the globe has been so profound that some scientists say we have entered a new geological epoch. The current epoch, the Holocene ("entirely recent") encompasses the last 11,500 years. It is defined as the time period since that end of the last ice age. Since the human population hit 1 billion about 200 years ago, a group of geologists has suggested that the landscape of our planet has been profoundly transformed and is proposing that we christen modern times the "Anthropocene" epoch. See the problem with this proposal is that we are talking about geological time. 200 years amounts to the blink of an eye in geological terms. I'm not suggesting that the human race has had no impact on the planet, but realistically, we're going to need to wait for at least a couple more centuries--at least--before we can begin to suggest that the earth has entered into a new era. I'm surprised, to tell you the truth, that geologists are proposing this. Scientists are notoriously slow when it comes to introducing new classifications. Geologists these days. Always in a rush.

Public Service Announcement - Not exactly a news item, but I read an article recently about some web sites that offer services to cut down on the amount of spam and junk mail you receive.

Dmaconsumers.org, the Direct Marketing Association's site, provides consumers with an "opt-out offer." Pay $1 to have your name removed from mailing, telemarketing, and e-mail lists. The association also provides helpful hints to protect you from identity theft.

Optoutprescreen.com exists to "stop the credit-card-offer madness." Once you sign up on the site, you can choose to "stop receiving all those offers permanently or for 5 years at a time."

Catalogchoice.org offers a free service to help you "cut off the catalogs" for good. Simply click and select which ones you no longer want, rather than having to call each company to cancel.