You’ve got to be kidding …
Published on Sep 8, 2006 at 10:46 am.
5 Comments.
Filed under planets, politics.
OK, now I know that politicians aren’t really altogether with it sometimes. This morning, as I was getting dressed to come to campus, I had the TV on and the new gubernatorial ads are now playing. Up until now, they have run something like, “Hi, I am X, and I am running for governor. I want to educate our kids, lock up our criminals, fix the roads, and bring jobs to the state. Please vote for me.” The new ads, though, with eventually all the candidates will have, say something to the effect of “Hi, I am X, and I am running for governor. My opponent, Y, is the spawn of Satan, and if you vote or Y you’ll be condemning the state to four years of hardship, underfunded programs, fewer services, poor education, lack of law enforcement, and higher taxes.” OK, so those aren’t the exact words, but they get the gist of it. By the time the election comes, I will be totally sick of ALL of the candidates. When I think of a candidate, instead of wanting to vote for them, I’ll want to vomit. Yeah, I’ll vote for the one that I think will do the least damage, like I always do. But, this is Texas politics, and this is how it has been for some years.
Anyway, I got to campus, and then I found something that really got me. The California legislature, with all the important things that they have to do, has time to debate the planetary status of Pluto. Yes, you heard me right. You can go here to see the text of the bill. If you want to see other bills that they are working on, or if you want to see that this is real and not a joke on my part, then go to their web page, http://www.leginfo.ca.gov/ , and click on “Bill Information”, and then enter “36″. It gives a list of bills with that number, so click on “HR 36″.
So, the California legislature (or at least the bill’s authors and supporters) want Pluto back on the list of planets. Why? Is it for some good scientific reason? Do they debate the size function, the composition, the formation, the location, the orbit, or any other factor? Of course not, they are politicians. No, instead they give several reasons for their resolution, including:
1. Millions of Californians have been taught that Pluto is a planet. According to the bill, downgrading Pluto will cause psychological harm to some Californians and cause them to question their place in the universe and the stability of universal constants. Huh? If the definition of a planet can cause them to question their place in the universe, then they have some serious issues. They need some big time therapy. As for universal constants …, since when has a definition been a universal constant? Gosh, might it not upset them if they found out that the Big Bang were not a giant atom that blew into bits and scattered stuff all over the universe. Oh, wait. The still do teach that around here, even though no cosmologist has thought that for over half a century.Â
2. Pluto shares a name with Mickey Mouse’s dog, which has a special connection to California history and culture. So???? How does that have anything to do with a scientific definition?
3. Deleting Pluto from the list of planets creates an unfunded mandate for the schools to change millions of textbooks and for museum displays to be changed. Yep. And so would adding planets.
4. Removing Pluto from the list of planets is a scientific heresy similar to denying a round world or that the planets go aorund the Sun. No. It is simply clarifying an error. Besides, Californian politicians don’t have a leg to stand on when it comes to scientific thought. This is the same body that years ago promoted more electric cars, but not more power plants to power them. At one point, a Californian city council banned the use of CFCs in public buildings because it could harm the ozone layer, only to rescind the ban when it got hot in city hall with no freon in the air conditioning. Yep, they sure think these things out.
5. Without Pluto, there will be fewer planets for legislative leaders to hide redistricting legislation. Cute, but sadly true.
There are others. You might want to read the bill. I don’t know how serious they really are, or if this is an attempt at humor, but really, the state legislature has better things to do than to debate the status of a planet. The fact is that this bill is real in that it has been submitted, published in the legislative record, and everything else that happens when a legislator submits a bill.
Anyway, this just goes to fit with what I tend to thing of legislators in general.
-Astroprof
Louise on September 8, 2006 at 12:22 pm: 1
Prof, don’t forget what anniversary is September 8. I didn’t.
Astroprof on September 8, 2006 at 4:18 pm: 2
Oh, gosh, yes. I was just a shade young at the time to enjoy the first season of the show, but by the time they canceled it, I was a loyal viewer. I really should blog something about it, I guess.
Kelly on September 8, 2006 at 4:57 pm: 3
Hey, let us in on it, too, please! What anniversary is it?
Flygirl on September 9, 2006 at 6:04 pm: 4
Texas Politics (shaking head and rolling eyes)
Astroprof on September 9, 2006 at 10:29 pm: 5
In Texas, a legislator can act like he’s in kindergarten and seem to be behaving so much more maturely than the other legislators.