Accidental Blogger

Summer has begun in earnest, at least in Houston and along with that will set in lethargy among bloggers and readers. Some bloggers I read regularly are slowing down. Others have disappeared inexplicably without so much as a "see ya later." My own co-bloggers will be scattered over the world – Anna in China, Sujatha in India and Joe is so impatient to start law school in the fall that he can’t gather his thoughts for blogging. A new guest writer might join me over the summer.

At the close of the week, George Bush has given me no compelling reason to write about him – busy as he was recently, trying to prevent gays from marrying .. or was it to keep them from having abortions?  Who knows? Nothing new there. Here instead are a few pieces of good news that I would like to share – some you must know, others may have escaped your notice and another that you may not care about.

1. The murderous Abu Musab al-Zarqawi was killed yesterday. Great relief for the US and the world but greater relief for the Iraqis who were by far the biggest targets of his brutal campaign. Now we must wait to see what effect his death will have on the terror campaign in Iraq – whether Zarqawi’s death has eliminated a significant source of terrorism or just one head of a Hydra-headed monster. This deranged, violent man was also responsible for the savage beheading of American Nick Berg. Amazingly enough, Berg’s father, Michael Berg had this to say about Zarqawi’s death.

"Michael Berg, whose son Nick was beheaded in Iraq in 2004, felt no relief at the killing of the al-Qa’ida leader blamed for his son’s death.  Asked what would give him satisfaction, Mr Berg, an anti-war activist and candidate for US Congress, said: "The end of the war and getting rid of George Bush." Mr Berg, who is running as a Green Party candidate, has repeatedly blamed Mr Bush and Defence Secretary Donald Rumsfeld for his son’s death."   

2. The first successful vaccine in preventing cancer has been approved by the FDA.  Gardasil is a vaccine against the human papilloma virus or HPV which infects 20 million Americans every year and is the leading cause of cervical cancer in women. The vaccine has tested 100% effective, especially if administered during pre-puberty years. Merck is already making the case that vaccinations should begin early and made routine like all other childhood vaccinations. It says one in four people between the ages of 15 and 24 are infected with HPV, and that 80% of mothers say that they would vaccinate their daughters, given the chance. This remarkable breakthrough predicatably was opposed by the religious reactionaries such as the Family Focus Group because they believe it would promote sexual promiscuity among young women. I wrote about that preposterous claim several months ago.

3. After enabling Bush and his lawless cronies to do their hatchet job on the world at large and the world of science for two unbearably long presidential terms, some conservatives are experiencing the mental equivalent of a cold shower. I came across this internet petition drive launched by CAID – Conservatives Against Intelligent Design (via 3 Quarks Daily) ! Better late than never, but what will Pat Robertson say?

"CAID holds that there is no conflict between evolution and religion because each speaks to a different level of understanding and to a different level of explanation: Namely empirical versus metaphysical. Neither threatens nor invalidates the other. However, by their very nature alternative theories like ‘intelligent design’ rely on the supposition of a metaphysical creator and therefore stand outside the domain of rational empiricism. Science–being based upon the latter–has no room within it for theological supposition; therefore such theories must remain outside the science classroom, being more suitable for discussion in philosophy courses.."

4. Every four years I experience something akin to  what a weary traveler lost in the desert must feel on nearing an oasis. Stuck in the arid sports zone of football, baseball and basketball (the last two a bit better than the first) in the US, I take a crash course in the latest soccer news when World Cup Soccer comes around. I no longer keep up with pro soccer and the emerging new stars of the game on various continents are mostly unknown to me. But during one month every four years, I focus again laser like on everything soccer and the extravaganza which is surely the most popular sporting event in the world although fans of the Super Bowl may find that hard to believe. The 2006 World Cup Soccer begins today in Germany and the frenetic action will last for a month, culminating in the final championship game in Berlin. During this one month fans all over the world will sway between extreme elation and abject hearbreak. I will try to absorb as much of it as possible via the internet, newspapers and ESPN 2. Despite fears of neo-Nazi attacks on non-white visitors, the possible embarrassing (for the German hosts) presence of Iran’s President Ahmadinejad at the Iranian games and human rights concerns over the import of prostitutes from east European nations (prostitution is legal in Germany), the real focus will be on the elegant game. And a good time will be had by all.

LONDON – Question: what quadrennial sporting extravaganza brings the world together for weeks on end, transcending war, poverty, class, and culture, and culminating in the most watched television event ever?  If you guessed the Olympics, odds are you’re an American. The rest of the world knows better. Soccer’s World Cup kicks off Friday in Germany. And while the month-long spectacle may not leave much of an impression on Americans, for most other nations it is an incomparable event.

Brazilian banks will close early, British productivity will nosedive, elections in Mexico could be affected, the fate of the French prime minister may hang on results. The event will touch even the frozen wastelands of Antarctica, where scientists have set up a live Internet feed so as not to miss the action.

And at the grand finale on July 9, as many as a billion people – one-sixth of humanity – are expected to watch 22 men, adept at propelling a piece of leather around, compete for the ultimate victory in team sports."