‘The Prophet’: On Children

On children and important lessons everyone needs to understand…

They come through you but not from you,
And though they are with you yet they belong not to you.

You may give them your love but not your thoughts,
For they have their own thoughts.

You may strive to be like them, but seek not to make them like you.
For life goes not backward nor tarries with yesterday.

While you weren’t watching

Pluto birthed two more moons, an interesting tidbit of celestial news, especially for a planet which so many refuse to call a planet.  So, essentially, the non-planet in the far reaches of our solar system has three moons.  (Charon is the known satellite.)

Another noteworthy morsel is that credit for this discovery goes to the Hubble Space Telescope.  The government intends to cut funding for and decommission that telescope in the near future, although a significant recovery effort has been undertaken to change its fate.  Until Hubble's current or future successor presents superior results, I enthusiastically support efforts to extend the telescope's lifespan and continue its use.

No, you can’t have the cervical cancer vaccine!

This is disgusting.    Remember this cool ongoing study which had already demonstrated that the vaccine in question was 97% successful in preventing cervical cancer in women, and after only the first dose?  There are those fundamentalists on the far right who believe it should be withheld because it promotes sex among teens.  Horrifically sad.

I considered writing a scathing diatribe of this aberrant, abhorrent behavior, but instead I will recommend that you see PZ Myers' response over at Pharyngula.  It accurately summarizes a significant part of my own feelings.

Update: Atrios very simply infers another good question.