On November 27, 1978, Dan White, a former firefighter and policeman, assassinated the Mayor, George Moscone, and a supervisor, Harvey Milk, of San Francisco. His guilt was not denied. But his lawyer argued that White had a diminished capacity for rational thought, and therefore couldn’t be guilty; he was suffering from deep depression, and incapable of premeditating murder. As a symptom of his wretched mental state, his lawyer pointed out that he was eating mostly sugary foods, including Twinkies (the ‘golden sponge cake with a creamy filling’, according to its maker Hostess Brands).… Read the rest “Do We Have Free Will? Or, The Twinkie Defense Reconsidered”
social justice
A great injustice
On March 19, 2023, the New York Times carried a story that began:
It’s one of the great injustices of this era that countries contributing negligible amounts to global carbon emissions are now feeling the most harrowing impacts of climate change. Pakistan, which makes up less than 1 percent of the world’s carbon footprint, had a third of its territory under water in last year’s floods. Parts of Kenya, Ethiopia and Somalia are experiencing the worst drought in 70 years of record-keeping, threatening millions with famine, even though the entire continent of Africa contributes less than 4 percen of global carbon emissions.… Read the rest “A great injustice”
Solving Poverty
The obvious solution to poverty is to give money to poor people. That may sound facetious, but there is a growing and serious interest in programs that do essentially that: provide every person an income that can sustain them. Such programs have various configurations, and operate by various models. What they have in common is that money flows, usually from governments, that is, from taxpayers, to people living in poverty. There are potential problems with any such scheme, and benefits, which require examination.… Read the rest “Solving Poverty”
The Gila River People, Victims of Modernity
The present-day Gila River in the Gila Box Riparian National Conservation Area in southeast Arizona.
Both nature and nurture affect human obesity. For some people, and for some populations, the genetic tendency to become obese is not fulfilled because of their environment, the circumstances of their lives. But when those circumstances change, the genetic potential may be realised quickly, and lead to the medical issues that follow from obesity. An example that starkly illustrates this comes from the sunbaked desert south of Phoenix, Arizona.… Read the rest “The Gila River People, Victims of Modernity”