new Bill Maher blog posts - Democratic Underground

Bombtrack

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Thu Jan-15-04 02:01 PM
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new Bill Maher blog posts

Edited on Thu Jan-15-04 02:03 PM by Bombtrack

http://www.safesearching.com/billmaher/blog/

BillMaher
January 13, 2004
My New "Study"
A new study finds that the longer a teen couple waits to have their first sexual experience, the more likely it is that they'll use birth control. Hmm. So let me get this straight: the cautious, rational, delayed-gratification teens are more likely to act responsibly than the spontaneous, horny, immediate-gratification teens. Who'd a thunk? I hate studies that imply a twisted logic, like, if you can just convince your kids to delay sex, when they finally do get around to it, they'll use protection. No! All this study tells us is that kids who make rash, impetuous decisions (like having sex here and now because her parents aren't home) are more likely to make other rash, impetuous decisions (like not using a condom). They make this same twisted leap in the "gateway drug" argument: pot users are more likely to use heroin than non-pot users, ergo pot leads to heroin use. No! It only means people who like to get high... like to get high! Pot doesn't "lead" to heroin anymore than motorcycling and skydiving lead to bungee jumping. People innately predisposed to one activity or behavior are likely to display that predisposition in other activities and behaviors. So, kids who delay sex are likely to show the same mature responsibility when it comes time to decide whether to use birth control. That doesn't make delay some sort of "gateway rubber."

http://www.usatoday.com/news/health/2004-01-12-birth-control-usat_x.htm

Posted by billmaher at 07:04 PM
Bladder Wracked
Now that the government has banned ephedra, do you suppose the millions of Americans who were taking the stuff have all just quit cold-turkey, vowing never again to take any kind of dietary supplement without the prior approval of the Surgeon General? No, of course not; they're doing what all drug users do when their drug of choice is unavailable - they take some other drug. In the case of ephedra users, they're turning to even more obscure substances that the government knows even less about, like bitter orange, guarcinia, and an herb called bladderwrack. Hey, if you want to take something called bladderwrack, more power to you, but I think I'd rather have a bottle of good old-fashioned Metabolife.

http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=541&ncid=751&e=1&u=/ap/20040112/ap_on_he_me/ephedra_alternatives

Posted by billmaher at 12:24 PM
January 12, 2004
Doodles of Mass Destruction
According to the Washington Post, this is what our WMD hunt has turned up so far. They describe it as "secret sketches for two illegal long-range missiles, one using two engines and one using five boosters." I describe it as what third-graders draw in their notebooks during history class. I mean, come on - I've made better drawings with lipstick on a bar napkin at 3 a.m. But hey, when a smart guy like Dick Cheney looks at these doodles and sees a "mortal threat," who am I to judge?

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A60340-2004Jan6.html

Posted by billmaher at 02:31 PM