Welcome to your Monday open thread. The floor is yours, be sure to sweep and mop.
This is such a strange story. The Virology Journal published, then retracted an article that postulated the Bible documented the first case of human influenza.
When such studies appear in peer-reviewed medical journals, they are expected to be grounded in good evidence, science, and valid research methodologies. Yet the Virology Journal recently published a paper, ”Influenza or not influenza: Analysis of a case of high fever that happened 2000 years ago in Biblical time,” which examines a Biblical miracle attributed to Jesus.
It begins with the following abstract: “The Bible describes the case of a woman with high fever cured by our Lord Jesus Christ. Based on the information provided by the gospels of Mark, Matthew and Luke, the diagnosis and the possible etiology of the febrile illness is discussed. If the postulation is indeed correct, the woman with fever in the Bible is among one of the very early description of human influenza disease….”
That is, the study’s authors diagnosed the woman Jesus treated as having had influenza. Had the researchers examined some newly found document, mummified body, or other forensic evidence, that would be one thing. But using the gospels of Mark, Matthew and Luke in the New King James version of the Bible as the entire data set made “Virology Journal” look like “Mad” magazine or “The Onion.”
Just three weeks later, the journal retracted the paper and apologized for publishing it.
It’s a complete breakdown of the peer review system in this case. This type of incident is something that can kill a journal.
Some Republicans are breaking with the Gingrich/Palin wing of the party to denounce the fear-mongering over the Islamic center in New York:
Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich has claimed that the new Islamic center project “would be like putting a Nazi sign next to the Holocaust Museum.” Referencing that quote, Scarborough expressed angry disdain at Gingrich’s intolerance. “I don’t know where to begin,” Scarborough said. “To suggest that someone trying to build a tolerance center for moderate Muslims in New York is the equivalent of killing six million Jews is stunning to me.”
McKinnon then chimed in, arguing that the debate surrounding the Cordoba House project is contrary to his party’s principles. “We may get our membership [by the GOP] revoked,” McKinnon joked. “Screw ‘em,” Scarborough responded. McKinnon then said that the GOP’s stance is “reinforcing al Qaeda’s message”:
McKINNON: Usually Republicans are forthright in defending the Constitution. And here we are, reinforcing al Qaeda’s message that we’re at war with Muslims. So we’ve got this issue; then we’ve got the 14th Amendment issue, where Republicans are saying you’re not welcome here, when we were the architects of the 14th Amendment. So, I see a bad pattern where we’re headed as a Republican Party.
McKinnon said he believed President Obama has “done the right thing in stepping forward at this time on this issue.” He added, “Tolerance means tolerating things you don’t like, especially when you don’t like them. … I respect the President for making this move.”
I wish some Republicans that are actually in office right now would speak up. Shall I continue to hold my breath?