Leave it to capitalism

Steven Milloy wrote a very interesting article a few days back on what he calls the "smoke and mirrors" of stem cell research. The most interesting point in the article is that conducting research using the morally questionable destruction of embryonic stem cells is not illegal, so long as the funds being used for that research are private. The reason so many medical researchers are so adamantly opposed to this policy is because the private funding for stem cell research is drying up. The reason for the lack of private funds? As one might expect, investors do not see the promise of a strong return. As my good friend John Fulton put it, "Leave it to capitalism to really show the potential for legitimate success in a venture."

Lessons learned from a bike "gang"

I had the singular honor of attending a "motorcycle run" this past weekend, hosted by the Unknowns. For those of you not familiar with the term, a "run" is a gathering of motorcycle riders in a single location, generally for the purpose of hanging out. This particular gathering happened to be at the home of a member of the club known as the Unknowns. There were members there from Brother Speed, The Highwaymen, The Outsiders, some other clubs I'm sure I missed, and of course people who were not members of any club, such as myself.

Of course I would not normally be entirely welcome at such a gathering (I'm not really biker material, what with my '97 4Runner with the Thule ski racks, cargo pants, polo shirts, Smith sunglasses, etc.), but my dad happens to be one of the charter members and first president of a club started here in Boise by the name of Brother Speed. We ended up at this shindig because one of the guys he used to ride with thirty years ago came up from Portland to see him and invited him over. Amazingly, there were a lot of people there he knew from his days in the club (he quit some twenty-five years ago), and of course since I was his son, I and my brothers were in.

What I found from hanging out with these people is that they are a community and a family, in the truest sense of each word. They are a community because they provide for one another's needs, and they are a family because they choose to see past the imperfections of individual people and love in practice...by being interested and active in the well being of the other person. I'm quite sure they have their internal issues, but the fact that they continue to stay in contact with my dad after all these years, and can pick-up their friendship after a decade as if they'd seen one another a month ago is a testament to the genuine bond they share. To hear these guys talk about their friends is refreshing and warming because one knows they are talking of their comrades and siblings. Hence the name, "Brother Speed", I suppose.

One member explained how being a part of the community provided for them. She said that whenever they go to a town, as long as that town has a club, "all their needs are met". Even if they do not know those people directly, they are given a place to sleep, meals, a shower, directions, whatever. They are given all of this simply because they are a part of the family, and that's what family does. This is incredible to me because there are so few real examples of community anymore. Many places claim to have community, but I've never really seen in actually lived.

The whole thing sort of reminds me of stories about the early church. It occurs to me that the church maybe has some lessons to learn from these motorcycle clubs. Maybe I should write a book. "Love like a biker. Growing your church by completely forgetting about growth." The motorcycle clubs have once again shown us what people really want; genuine, unconditional, humble love of the person they are right now.

Good news

I'm pleased to annouce that from now until the end of August you'll be able to take advantage of the Scott You Pay What Our Family Pays Plus Plan. If you choose to take advantage of this super special, and unique offer, you'll be able to pay what the Scott family pays for gas, bread, and milk, plus you'll have the chance to wash our dishes and mow our lawn, at no extra cost. Act now, and don't miss your chance!

When I look back

On June 16th of this year, upon receiving his honorary title of Doctor in Laws, Dr. Henry Morgentaler gave an address to the University of Western Ontario. In this address, Dr. Morgentaler outlines his life philosophy, and how this humanist philosophy has led him to pursue his life work of fighting for the legalization of abortion in Canada and creating and maintaining abortion facilities which seek to insure that all women in Canada have safe and easy access to an abortion clinic, should this be their choice. He has been largely successful in his pursuit, having received a Supreme Court ruling in favor of legalized abortion, and having opened clinics in a number of major Canadian cities. Dr. Morgantaler says that as he looks back on his life, he has a sense of pride in his achievements.

I really don't want to get into a discussion as to whether or not Dr. Morgantaler should indeed feel pride for the things he's accomplished. What he's done is certainly impressive, and I would imagine many would envy him his single-mindedness, his determination, and his obvious abilities. I'll leave it for he and Jesus to look back and decide whether or not the doctor should be proud of what he's done.

I do however want to talk about his answer to the apparently frequent question of "Why did you decide to expose yourself to so much stress and danger in a controversial cause, and why do you persist in doing so?" His response is as follows.

I am a survivor of the Nazi Holocaust, that orgy of cruelty and inhumanity of man to man. I have personally experienced suffering, oppression and injustice inflicted by men beholden to a racist, dogmatic and irrational ideology. To have had the opportunity to diminish suffering and injustice has been very important to me. Reproductive freedom and good access to medical abortion means that women will be able to give life to wanted babies at a time when they can provide love, care and nurturing. Well-loved children grow into adults who do not build concentration camps; do not rape and do not murder. They are more likely to enjoy life, to love and care for each other and the larger society.

I find it absolutely ridiculous to suppose that abortion can be given even a minute amount of credit for removing any evil from this world. It is truly nonsense to soberly state that because a child is unwanted by its mother, it will become the next Hitler, or Pol Pot, much less an "everyday" murderer, rapist, or domestic abuser. This is without a doubt a classic example of reducing an argument to the absurd, not to mention coming dangerously close to assuming the title of the "God" humanists live without acknowledging. No, we simply cannot accept an argument such as this from the pro-choice camp, if not for moral reasons, for simple reasons of logic.

There are other arguments for the practice of abortion (some of which Dr. Morgantaler touches upon), so let us hear and discuss those. But let's not pretend as if abortion is doing humanity a service by somehow removing people who are destined for evil and destruction. As Dr. Morgantaler himself points out, every person has the potential for a fulfilled, happy, and joyful life; to which I would add that everyone created has the capacity for endless beauty and love.

But must they also insult us?

A little west of Boise lies a small (for the time being) town by the name of Star. I think the population on the sign is something like 1700, though I suspect it might be a bit more now than it was at the time of the census. As one comes into town from the east, there is a large ranch running along the left side of the road, its fields stretching several hundred yards down to the tall cottonwoods of the river. Of course it's quite beautiful. I haven't been out there for several months now, but I drove by the other day on my way to somewhere...or maybe it was on my way to Nampa. Either way, near the road now, just inside the fence that marks the boundary of the ranch is a series of signs. "Get ready...", "for better...", "living." "Naturally.", in yellow letters against a blue background.

I know they are going to completely destroy that lovely ranch and replace it with yet another ghastly subdivision. I know the subdivision won't have any creativity, or style, or substance, or personality, that it will simply attempt to allow for the building of as many homes as possible. I don't necessarily want this to happen, but I don't have a whole lot of room to complain about it. The owner of the ranch sold his or her land to the person or persons who wants to build the repulsive subdivision, they'll call it Rolling Rapids Cotton Heron Grove, and there are hundreds of people in the world (I blame you for this, California) who are willing to trade style and personality of the neighborhood for money. So capitalism marches on, which is fine. It's the best we've got.

But please, please don't insult us by imposing additional inane and misleading messages upon us. We all know that living in your over sized cubicle farm isn't going to make our lives better. In fact, we fairly strongly believe that you'll make them worse. We know there isn't much we can or should do about this, but it would be awfully kind of you if you would just quietly ruin beauty, or maybe put some messages up that indicated your acknowledgement of what you're doing. "Enjoy this now...", "because it's almost...", "gone." "Money."

There was a lot of this on the two day ride from Petersburg to Bellingham.

Petersburg, AM.

We had a lot of time to kill before the ferry left at 3 AM from Petersburg, so we shot some stick in the Harbor Bar.

Checking out the Petersburg fishing derby. The leader at time of departure weighed in at 44 lbs. (King Salmon)

Some artistry along the way...

Hitchhiking back to town to catch the ferry.

We spent an entire day at the Blind River Rapids just watching wildlife. Very beautiful and interesting slough.

The faces sum it up.

This is the "trailhead" for the Upper Twin Creek ski trail. Again, note the absence of any trail, and the sign in the upper right hand corner indicating the hope for a trail in the distance. It's a lie.

This is the view from the top of the Upper Twin Creek ski trail. Notice the distinct lack of a trail. That's the Coastal Range in the background. For you "Into the Wild" fans, The Devil's Thumb is just to the left of the visible peaks.

The cabin at the top of Raven's Roost was very welcoming (and the only dry spot in all of the muskeg).

The Raven's Roost trail in Petersburg. Very pretty, but the same deal with steps going right up a "hill" - this time with the packs on.

...there IS a horse in the background.

Only available tent sites in Petersburg. Not to worry...

Arrival in Petersburg at about 2:15 AM (thank you Alaska ferry system).