Wesley J. Smith

A radical environmental group called the Community Environmental Legal Defense Fund is the brainchild behind a constitutional proposal, to be voted on Sunday, that would grant rights to “nature.” From the proposal:Persons and people have the fundamental rights guaranteed in this . . . . Continue Reading »

The SF Chronicle’s editorial page hews distinctly left—with Secondhand Smokette providing an alternate view on the op/ed page. That is why I was struck by the paper coming out against Proposition 2, the HSUS sponsored initiative to ban caging egg chickens. And the editorial board seems . . . . Continue Reading »

I can’t tell you all how often I ignore PETA’s ridiculous antics. They are addicted to publicity—any publicity—to promote their zealotry and I am loath to lend any hand in that enterprise. But sometimes a story comes along that so succinctly illustrates the group’s . . . . Continue Reading »

I reported a little while ago about Joanne Hill, who murdered her daughter with cerebral palsy. Now, she has been found guilty. From the story: A mother who drowned her disabled daughter in a bath after drinking wine was convicted of murder yesterday and sentenced to life in prison.Joanne Hill, 32, . . . . Continue Reading »

In a recent previous post, we discussed the reasons why many patients no longer trust the medical system. A disturbing study that found too little empathy from doctors toward their cancer patients could also be a contributing cause. From the story: U.S. researchers who assessed interactions between . . . . Continue Reading »

With the national financial artery severed due to moronic mortgage mismanagers—even I knew these no interest, no down payment mortgages would result in foreclosures, so why didn’t the big salaried?—it seems to me that any chance for a fully funded national health insurance is . . . . Continue Reading »

The Times of London reports that scientists hope to be able to reduce the 40% misdiagnosis of PVS. From the story:Ten years ago, Kate went into a deep coma and was on a ventilator for several weeks. She had suffered severe brain inflammation after contracting a viral infection. When she came out of . . . . Continue Reading »

Sometimes I am just amazed. Hwang Woo suk is a charlatan. Readers of SHS and others will recall that, a few years ago, he created an international media sensation by claiming to have created the first cloned embryos from which he obtained patient specific, tailor made, embryonic stem cells. He was . . . . Continue Reading »

I can’t think of any more vivid example of the dramatic change in the scientific and political paradigms regarding stem cell research than James Thomson, the discoverer of human ESCs—moving away from embryonic stem cell field and into IPSCs. From the story: With their field riding a wave . . . . Continue Reading »

I was honored to appear on Friday the 19th of September before the Connecticut Council on Developmental Disabilities, as part of its series on “Life Threatening Public Policy.” My presentation is a bit lengthy—more than an hour—during which I focus on human exceptionalism, . . . . Continue Reading »