Not sure I like this

I'm glad that the Saints won the Super Bowl. It's interesting how different types of events effect people differently. I was very effected by 9/11, my friend was deeply effected by the tsunami. I just read an article about a man in New Orleans that cried for the first time in 14 years when the Saints won the Super Bowl. Some people on the blogs were very critical and judgemental about someone crying over the Super Bowl, but not over Katrina. Is it more important what we get effected by, or is it more important that something can still effect us?

I read an article about how newborns in the US are routinely checked for different things without the parents knowledge. The following is from an article written by Ronnie Koening that I found thru AOL:

"According to Brad Therrell, director of the National Newborn Screening & Genetics Resource Center, “Blood specimens are taken at birth to screen for certain inherited congenital conditions that may cause severe consequences, including death, if not detected and treated early. The conditions are usually asymptomatic early and may go undetected without these tests.”

Most parents are unaware of the fact that newborns in the United States are routinely checked for a slew of genetic diseases. Because the testing is mandated by the government, that means parents get no say-so in the matter. What’s more, in states such as Florida, where Isabel was born, the DNA is stored indefinitely.

“The specimen cards are stored after screening so that reconfirmation of screening results is possible if questions arise and to help develop better screening methods. Different states have different laws and policies regarding specimen storage and use,” says Therrell.

Genetic screening has been used to detect conditions such as mental retardation and the technology has saved the lives of countless newborns. But why are so many states saving this information, in essence, keeping an indisputable biological file on your child? The state of Minnesota says that they store DNA for identification purposes in case a child goes missing."


I can see the advantages, but I also have some reservations about the process. How else will or could the samples be used? Law enforcement in the future? Cloning? There's a lot of gray area here.

So the other morning Pip must have heard my alarm go off, so she came in and said good morning to me. Then she tried to get comfortable and settle in on my feet. As I was trying to get out of bed. Sometimes she makes my life so hard! Silly Pip!