Oh, agreed! I didn't reply directly to your comment above because I thought that you have a good point and I'm not sure that I can build on it.

I agree that a poorly contextualized popularization of this story could totally provide fodder for racists to continue on promoting their ideas (haha! promiscuous First Nations people!). But at the same time, there is a lot of fairly compelling evidence that the disease exploded in large parts of the world immediately…

I thought that there had been some argument that that damage may have been a result of tuberculosis instead?

Syphilis/it's ancestors were only present in a few centres in the Americas. It seems to have appeared and to have spread through large swaths of North America only after contact with Europeans -basically, it was brought from the Americas to Europe, became endemic there, and was carried back across the Atlantic and…

This!

Most intelligent people don't go on to conduct fundamental science research.

I think that intellect is as shallow as beauty, and I feel pretty disconcerted to see it so glorified, as a necessary and "deep" quality, in contrast to beauty (which is painted as shallow). Beauty and wit are both delightful qualities that can, directly or indirectly, make the world more enjoyable. They are both…

I totally agree, on all counts.

Although I completely share your common hatred of any expression that portrays a person as "being" OCD, someone "being a bit OCD" seems like the equivalent of someone "having mild OCD", which does happen.

Utter disagreement.

You are probably right; I'm lucky in that most parents around me (both elders and friends) have not been in that school, and have been open to having discussions with their kids.

I'm not a parent and I love arguing, so this opinion might be based on ignorance more than anything else... but that kind of arguing (in which the teenager uses actual, you know, arguments, instead of whining or blanket disagreement) isn't annoying at all.

Yes! I always assumed that this was what the "don't do drugs" public service announcements and school programs were all about.

Good (and infuriating!) point.

Unless you are quite wealthy, are already working in Canada (and have a guarantee of continued employment) or have close Canadian relatives who can sponsor you, it's a very difficult process (sorry). Our current government has imposed new limits on immigration, and has fanned anti-immigrant sentiment. It's depressing.

It is already illegal to self-induce an abortion in many parts of the United States (it's considered an "unlawful abortion"), so in theory women who buys these substances for that purpose could already be charged for using them.

It's been out for a few years, but some spots seem out of stock until the second edition comes out. If you want it before June, you can import it from Canada ([www.amazon.ca]) or, probably, find it in used book-stores.

Although the idea of self-inducing an abortion terrifies me (thank you, Revolutionary Road) there are also safe(?) mechanical options out there. I heard an interesting interview with someone who taught workshops on the topic, and argued that it should be part of the basic knowledge and skills that every woman has…

Exactly!

I think that both options are pretty common. Since models often have to undergo extensive grooming, including shaving their legs, I assume that the ones who did have thigh-pubes shaved them off, along with every other major patch of body hair.