It now seems likely that Iraqi voters have ratified a new federal Constitution. No doubt things are turning a corner, we can see the light at the end of the tunnel, etc. We can be certain that this carefully crafted compromise will augur well for democracy and human rights in Iraq, and will certainly avert sectional strife and bloody civil war.

… because, hey, that’s worked out so well in the past. Right?

Further reading

• GT 2005-09-17: International Ignore the Constitution Day
• GT 2005-09-02: Definition 2
• GT 2005-07-04: Burn, baby, burn

Postscript, added 2005-10-18

to the barricades 2005-10-18 wonders whether the vote was fraudulent:

It seems apparent that something highly unusual, possibly fraud, has occured with regard to the recent referendum. First off, with regard to the Sunni provinces, who not only showed up in large numbers (153% more than in January) but according to results, the majority voted in favor of the consitution which is against all predictions and indicating factor

For myself, I wonder why an “honest” election would make the imposition of a statist Constitution on those who do not consent to it any more legitimate. Since when did anarchists start believing in government elections?

I first heard about this at work this past Saturday. Then they were saying that over 500 were dead in one village. They didn’t yet have any idea how many were dead or homeless elsewhere.

I’ve been meaning to mention the story here since I heard it on the radio. But it’s hard to know what to put up when there aren’t any words for what’s happened.

MUZAFFARABAD, Pakistan Oct 10, 2005 — Hurt and hungry, families huddled under makeshift tents while waiting for relief supplies Monday after Pakistan’s worst-ever earthquake wiped out entire villages and buried roads in rubble. The death toll stood at 20,000 and was expected to rise.

In this devastated Himalayan city, wounded covered by shawls lay in the street, and villagers used sledgehammers to break through the rubble of flattened schools and homes seeking survivors.

The quake collapsed the city’s Islamabad Public School. Soldiers with white cloth tied around their mouths and noses pulled a small girl’s dust-covered body from the ruins, while the body of a boy remained pinned between heavy slabs of concrete.

The United Nations said more than 2.5 million people need shelter after the magnitude-7.6 earthquake along the Pakistan-India border. The Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Relief said it urgently needed 200,000 winterized tents.

—Associated Press 2005-10-10

Rescuers are struggling to reach remote, mountainous areas, where tens of thousands of people have spent a second night in the cold without shelter.

It is such a horrendous situation that one cannot imagine. Casualties are increasing by the hour, Mr Sherpao said.

Officials said that 11,000 died in the city of Muzaffarabad, the capital of Pakistan-administered Kashmir.

Many of the victims were schoolchildren, who had just begun classes when school buildings collapsed on top of them.

The city’s cricket stadium is being used to house the homeless and offer relief to the survivors. The injured are waiting to be airlifted to hospitals in Islamabad.

Many of the towns and villages in the surrounding areas bore the brunt of the earthquake and have been virtually razed to the ground.

— BBC 2005-10-10

Direct Relief International is on the ground in Pakistan preparing emergency response and medical attention for the survivors. You can contribute online.

Further reading

• Associated Press 2005-10-10: Rescuers Try to Reach Asia Quake Survivors
• BBC 2005-10-10: Quake crisis overwhelms Pakistan

(Thanks, Vanessa at feministing [2005-10-07].)

In Indiana, state Senator Pat Miller has decided to withdraw a bill that would have required government parenting licenses for people who want to conceive through artificial means.

Senator Patricia Miller of Indianapolis says the issue has become more complex than she thought. So she is withdrawing it from consideration.

Actually, the issue is not complex at all. This is complex:

Sec. 5. (a) A petition to establish parentage may be filed by an intended parent.

(b) The intended parents must be married to each other, and both spouses must be parties to the action to establish parentage.

(c) An unmarried person may not be an intended parent.

Sec. 6. (a) A petition to establish parentage must be filed in triplicate.

(b) The original copy of a petition to establish parentage must be verified by the oath or affirmation of each petitioner.

Sec. 7. (a) A petition to establish parentage must be made under oath and specify the following:

(1) The:

(A) name, age, and place of residence of each petitioner; and

(B) place and date of marriage of the petitioners.

(2) The name and place or residence, if known, of the donor or donors.

(3) The name and address of the agency that performed the assessment under section 12 of this chapter.

(4) The name and address of the physician who performed the medical procedure that resulted in the pregnancy of the child who is subject to the parentage action.

(5) The type of assisted reproduction procedure that was used.

(6) Whether a petitioner has been convicted of:

(A) a felony; or

(B) a misdemeanor relating to the health and safety of children;

and, if so, the date and description of the conviction.

(7) Additional information consistent with the purpose and provisions of this chapter that is considered relevant to the proceedings.

(b) The following documents must be attached to the petition to establish parentage:

(1) The consent of the petitioners required under section 13 of this chapter to the medical procedure that resulted in the pregnancy for the child who is the subject to the parentage action.

(2) The consent of each donor, if known, to the use of the donation for the assisted reproduction medical procedure.

(3) The certificate of satisfactory completion of the assessment required under section 12 of this chapter.

(4) The certificate of the physician required under section 14 of this chapter. …

Sec. 11. … (b) A physician may not commence an assisted reproduction technology procedure that may result in a child being born until the intended parents of the child have received a certificate of satisfactory completion of the assessment required under section 12 of this chapter. …

Sec. 12. (a) Before intended parents may commence assisted reproduction, the intended parents shall obtain an assessment from a licensed child placing agency in the intended parents’ state of residence.

(b) The assessment must follow the normal practice for assessments in a domestic infant adoption procedure and must include the following information:

(1) The intended parents’ purpose for the assisted reproduction.

(2) The fertility history of the intended parents, including the pregnancy history and response to pregnancy losses of the woman.

(3) An acknowledgment by the intended parents that the child may not be the biological child of at least one (1) of the intended parents depending on the type of artificial reproduction procedure used.

(4) A list of the intended parents’ family and friend support system.

(5) A plan for sharing any known genetic information with the child.

(6) Personal information about each intended parent, including the following:

(A) Family of origin.

(B) Values.

(C) Relationships.

(D) Education.

(E) Employment and income.

(F) Hobbies and talents.

(G) Physical description, including the general health of the individual.

(H) Birth verification.

(I) Personality description, including the strengths and weaknesses of each intended parent.

(7) Description of any children residing in the intended parents’ home.

(8) A verification and evaluation of the intended parents’ marital relationship, including:

(A) the shared values and interests between the individuals;

(B) the manner in which conflict between the individuals is resolved; and

(C) a history of the intended parents’ relationship.

(9) Documentation of the dissolution of any prior marriage and an assessment of the impact of the prior marriage on the intended parents’ relationship.

(10) A description of the family lifestyle of the intended parents, include a description of individual participation in faith-based or church activities, hobbies, and other interests.

(11) The intended parents’ child rearing expectations and values.

(12) A description of the home and community, including verification of the safety and security of the home.

(13) Child care plans.

(14) Statement of the assets, liabilities, investments, and ability of the intended parents to manage finances, including the most recently filed tax forms.

(15) A review of the local police records, the state and violent offender directory, and a criminal history check as set forth in subsection (c).

(16) A letter of reference by a friend or family member.

(17) A written consent from each donor, if known, to use of the donation in the assisted reproduction medical procedure.

(18) The recommendation for participation in assisted reproduction.

… (f) After completing the assessment described in this section, and if the child placing agency approves the intended parents to commence the assisted reproduction procedure, the agency shall issue a certificate that the intended parents have satisfactorily completed the assessment and are ready to commence assisted reproduction.

(g) A certificate issued under subsection (f) is valid for two (2) years.

(h) A physician may rely upon a certificate issued under this section to commence assisted reproduction with an intended parent.

(i) A certificate issued under subsection (f) must be filed with the petition to establish parentage.

… Sec. 14.(a) After a viable pregnancy has been achieved by artificial reproduction, the physician who performed the artificial reproduction procedure shall issue a certificate to the intended parents stating:

(1) the child was conceived under the care of the physician;

(2) the type of artificial reproduction procedure that was used;

(3) whether the donor is known or anonymous; and

(4) whether the physician is aware of any compensation being paid to the donor.

(b) The certificate must be:

(1) on the physician’s letterhead stationary; and

(2) notarized.

(c) The certificate required under this section shall be filed with the petition to establish parentage.

(d) form by x agency?

Sec. 15. (a) If the court finds that:

(1) the petition to establish parentage satisfies the requirements of this chapter;

(2) the certificate from a licensed child placing agency required under section 12 of this chapter has been filed and meets the requirements of this chapter;

(3) the certificate by the physician required under section 14 of this chapter has been filed and meets the requirements of this chapter; and

(4) the consent required under section 13 of this chapter has been obtained; the court shall grant the petition to establish parentage and enter a decree establishing parentage without a hearing or further court action unless the court finds by clear and convincing evidence that granting the petition is not in the best interests of the child.

(b) The court may deny the petition to establish parentage if a petitioner has been convicted of a crime described in section 7(a)(5). …

Sec. 17. (a) If the court dismisses a petition to establish parentage, the court shall determine the person who should have custody of the child. …

Sec. 20. (a) An intended parent who knowingly or intentionally participates in an artificial reproduction procedure without establishing parentage under section 15 of this chapter commits unauthorized artificial reproduction, a Class B misdemeanor.

… but the issue is simple. Our bodies are not public property; reproductive totalitarianism is wrong; the State has no business imposing a ridiculous set of requirements like that on anybody. And movement conservatives’ idea of limited government and ordered freedom is a government that limits and your freedom to take orders from it.

Good thing they lost this one.

The outstanding problem of the Progressive-dominated American Left is that they do not believe that the State exists. I don’t mean that they think it is a nullity; rather, they do not think that it exists in the same concrete plane of reality as the rest of us, or operates with the constraints in knowledge, wisdom, and virtue that the rest of us have. One Leftist who did see things clearly was Randolph Bourne; as he put it in The State (a bitter reaction to the eager embrace of World War I by most of his former colleagues in the American liberal press):

Government … is synonymous with neither State nor Nation. It is the machinery by which the nation, organized as a State, carries out its State functions. Government is a framework of the administration of laws, and the carrying out of the public force. Government is the idea of the State put into practical operation in the hands of definite, concrete, fallible men. It is the visible sign of the invisible grace. It is the word made flesh. And it has necessarily the limitations inherent in all practicality. Government is the only form in which we can envisage the State, but it is by no means identical with it. That the State is a mystical conception is something that must never be forgotten. Its glamor and its significance linger behind the framework of Government and direct its activities.

— Randolph Bourne (1918): The State § 1 ¶ 9

I mention this because I know so many people who are otherwise perfectly sane, who understand human limitation and the dangers of concentrated power, who suddenly blank out as soon as the humans in question have government business cards and the power in question is the most systematic and reliable form of power available — access to enforcement powers of the State. Here’s an example that I noticed just today, which I picked out precisely because it’s so mundane: it turns out that there’s been something of a scuffle between Level 3 Communications and Cogent over networking contracts; hardball business dealing has led to a disconnection that left people unable to communicate with web hosts and other Internet services on the wrong side of the break. Well, that sucks, to be sure, but what’s the first thing that consumer groups shoot for on hearing about it?

However, as the Net has evolved from an academic and research curiosity into a vital part of the world’s commercial and communications infrastructure, some have called for a basic set of rules that would keep traffic flowing.

Mark Cooper, director of research for the Consumer Federation of America, compares the state of today’s Internet to the development of roads, or the creation of national telephone networks 100 years ago. Government acted in both cases to ensure the free flow of economically important traffic, he said.

There comes a point where some of these functionalities, such as the seamless interoperation of the Internet, are too important to leave to the private interest of businesses, Cooper said. We like to think that people won’t do antisocial things, but when push comes to shove they will defend their economic interests even at the expense of the public.

My problem is not with the negative things that Cooper says about busineses; many libertarians might dig in and object at that point, but I think he’s right to point out how businesses often do things that are foolish or destructive in pursuit of narrowly private gain. My problem is with the inference he draws from this: he goes from businesses sometimes make bad decisions about how to use this resource, to government ought to make the decisions about how to use this resource. But the premises only support the conclusion if you have shown that government control would not make things worse. And that brings us to important questions that Cooper has left unanswered, because — not believing in the mundane existence of the State — he left them unasked. We have to ask, If these things are too important to leave to the private interests of business, then why the hell aren’t they too important to leave to the political interests of the government? And if the typical run of people have enough of a capacity for antisocial behavior that they’ll defend their economic interests even at the expense of the public, why the hell don’t you think that, when push comes to shove, they’ll defend their political interests even at the expense of the public? No answer is forthcoming, because government is being thought of as an anonymous and benign force to be harnessed, rather than the real actions of real people blundering their way through.

If there’s anything of real value in Leftist economic analysis, it’s the way that the Left insistently points out that businesses are not large automata; that they are run by people, that people are limited in knowledge and are also easily corrupted when they have a great deal of power to gain at the expense of others. As a result, large corporations with critical resources often act in ways that are foolish, selfish, exploitative or destructive. If you’re trying to understand the economic world while ignoring the fact that it is made of people you will always go seriously astray. But if there’s one thing that’s been going wrong with the Left’s economic analysis during the past several decades (basically, since the 1930s, when Marxism and Progressivism each rose to the top of the heap in the radical and reformist wings of the Left), it’s the way in which they have refused to apply exactly the same analysis to the agents of the State. If it’s vital to remember that people run businesses, it is even more vital to remember that people run the government. And that is exactly what is being forgotten, because it is covered over by the shimmering mystical glow of the State. If Leftists are willing to call out cheerleaders for business when they fetishize the anonymous, undirected forces of the market and their supposedly reliable and benign march towards equilibrium, then they had better stop being cheerleaders for the State, and stop fetishizing the anonymous, undirected rules of the government and their supposedly reliable and benign pursuit of the public interest. That ain’t how it works now (just pick up any newspaper) and — this is the important part — it ain’t how it would work under any government. Bureaucracies are run by fallible human beings blundering their way through no matter what the party in power is; in the government they face the same knowledge problems and incentive problems that corporate bureaucrats face. In fact, they face even more severe knowledge problems and incentive problems — beacause, as agents of the government they hold a monopoly on whatever resources they control, and that monopoly is backed with handcuffs, guns, and bombs.

If critical resources are too important to leave in the hands of private businesses, then yes, they are damn well too important to put under the monopolistic control of government bureaucrats.

Now, pro-State Leftists might object at this point that I’m being unfair; the position is not that government is run by people any more perfect than business is, but rather that people in a democratic society, the people in government have restraints put on them that tends to direct them towards the public interest, whereas the environment in which business decisions are made is one that rewards the irresponsible pursuit of private advantage. But this, again, relies on a mystical conception of the State; here the mysticism comes in not with the conception of government intervention, but rather with the conception of control by the people. The idea that government officials — and appointed government bureaucrats especially, who are after all the people who run all the regulatory bodies — are responsive to what people like you and me want under most circumstances is so obviously refuted by a quick look at the daily operations of government that I must conclude that people who make these kind of arguments are being stopped from looking, because democratic mysticism is used as a substitute for observation.

If, to put it another way, the pro-State Left’s is making their argument for government control over some resource or another by claiming that you can always vote the jerks out of office if you don’t like how they are running things … well, then, how’s that been working out for y’all lately?

Everything old is new again.

Here’s how principled conservatives in the Indiana state legislature propose to follow through on the Republican promise of making the government accountable to the people, not the people to the government: a suggested law to require government parenting licenses for people who want to conceive through artificial insemination. Queahs and single hussies need not apply:

Sec. 5. (a) A petition to establish parentage may be filed by an intended parent.

(b) The intended parents must be married to each other, and both spouses must be parties to the action to establish parentage.

(c) An unmarried person may not be an intended parent.

And nothing says small government like government-controlled reproduction and piles of bureaucratic paperwork to manage it all!

Sec. 6. (a) A petition to establish parentage must be filed in triplicate.

(b) The original copy of a petition to establish parentage must be verified by the oath or affirmation of each petitioner.

Sec. 7. (a) A petition to establish parentage must be made under oath and specify the following:

(1) The:

(A) name, age, and place of residence of each petitioner; and

(B) place and date of marriage of the petitioners.

(2) The name and place or residence, if known, of the donor or donors.

(3) The name and address of the agency that performed the assessment under section 12 of this chapter.

(4) The name and address of the physician who performed the medical procedure that resulted in the pregnancy of the child who is subject to the parentage action.

(5) The type of assisted reproduction procedure that was used.

(6) Whether a petitioner has been convicted of:

(A) a felony; or

(B) a misdemeanor relating to the health and safety of children;

and, if so, the date and description of the conviction.

(7) Additional information consistent with the purpose and provisions of this chapter that is considered relevant to the proceedings.

(b) The following documents must be attached to the petition to establish parentage:

(1) The consent of the petitioners required under section 13 of this chapter to the medical procedure that resulted in the pregnancy for the child who is the subject to the parentage action.

(2) The consent of each donor, if known, to the use of the donation for the assisted reproduction medical procedure.

(3) The certificate of satisfactory completion of the assessment required under section 12 of this chapter.

(4) The certificate of the physician required under section 14 of this chapter. …

Sec. 11. … (b) A physician may not commence an assisted reproduction technology procedure that may result in a child being born until the intended parents of the child have received a certificate of satisfactory completion of the assessment required under section 12 of this chapter. …

Sec. 12. (a) Before intended parents may commence assisted reproduction, the intended parents shall obtain an assessment from a licensed child placing agency in the intended parents’ state of residence.

(b) The assessment must follow the normal practice for assessments in a domestic infant adoption procedure and must include the following information:

(1) The intended parents’ purpose for the assisted reproduction.

(2) The fertility history of the intended parents, including the pregnancy history and response to pregnancy losses of the woman.

(3) An acknowledgment by the intended parents that the child may not be the biological child of at least one (1) of the intended parents depending on the type of artificial reproduction procedure used.

(4) A list of the intended parents’ family and friend support system.

(5) A plan for sharing any known genetic information with the child.

(6) Personal information about each intended parent, including the following:

(A) Family of origin.

(B) Values.

(C) Relationships.

(D) Education.

(E) Employment and income.

(F) Hobbies and talents.

(G) Physical description, including the general health of the individual.

(H) Birth verification.

(I) Personality description, including the strengths and weaknesses of each intended parent.

(7) Description of any children residing in the intended parents’ home.

(8) A verification and evaluation of the intended parents’ marital relationship, including:

(A) the shared values and interests between the individuals;

(B) the manner in which conflict between the individuals is resolved; and

(C) a history of the intended parents’ relationship.

(9) Documentation of the dissolution of any prior marriage and an assessment of the impact of the prior marriage on the intended parents’ relationship.

(10) A description of the family lifestyle of the intended parents, include a description of individual participation in faith-based or church activities, hobbies, and other interests.

(11) The intended parents’ child rearing expectations and values.

(12) A description of the home and community, including verification of the safety and security of the home.

(13) Child care plans.

(14) Statement of the assets, liabilities, investments, and ability of the intended parents to manage finances, including the most recently filed tax forms.

(15) A review of the local police records, the state and violent offender directory, and a criminal history check as set forth in subsection (c).

(16) A letter of reference by a friend or family member.

(17) A written consent from each donor, if known, to use of the donation in the assisted reproduction medical procedure.

(18) The recommendation for participation in assisted reproduction.

… (f) After completing the assessment described in this section, and if the child placing agency approves the intended parents to commence the assisted reproduction procedure, the agency shall issue a certificate that the intended parents have satisfactorily completed the assessment and are ready to commence assisted reproduction.

(g) A certificate issued under subsection (f) is valid for two (2) years.

(h) A physician may rely upon a certificate issued under this section to commence assisted reproduction with an intended parent.

(i) A certificate issued under subsection (f) must be filed with the petition to establish parentage.

… Sec. 14.(a) After a viable pregnancy has been achieved by artificial reproduction, the physician who performed the artificial reproduction procedure shall issue a certificate to the intended parents stating:

(1) the child was conceived under the care of the physician;

(2) the type of artificial reproduction procedure that was used;

(3) whether the donor is known or anonymous; and

(4) whether the physician is aware of any compensation being paid to the donor.

(b) The certificate must be:

(1) on the physician’s letterhead stationary; and

(2) notarized.

(c) The certificate required under this section shall be filed with the petition to establish parentage.

(d) form by x agency?

Sec. 15. (a) If the court finds that:

(1) the petition to establish parentage satisfies the requirements of this chapter;

(2) the certificate from a licensed child placing agency required under section 12 of this chapter has been filed and meets the requirements of this chapter;

(3) the certificate by the physician required under section 14 of this chapter has been filed and meets the requirements of this chapter; and

(4) the consent required under section 13 of this chapter has been obtained; the court shall grant the petition to establish parentage and enter a decree establishing parentage without a hearing or further court action unless the court finds by clear and convincing evidence that granting the petition is not in the best interests of the child.

(b) The court may deny the petition to establish parentage if a petitioner has been convicted of a crime described in section 7(a)(5). …

Of course, covenants without the sword are but breath:

Sec. 17. (a) If the court dismisses a petition to establish parentage, the court shall determine the person who should have custody of the child. …

Sec. 20. (a) An intended parent who knowingly or intentionally participates in an artificial reproduction procedure without establishing parentage under section 15 of this chapter commits unauthorized artificial reproduction, a Class B misdemeanor.

You can read the whole damn thing, if you’re into that sort of thing.

The proposed bill is the work of State Senator Pat Miller (R-Indianapolis). Here’s what she had to say on its behalf:

Miller said the state often reacts to problems and she instead wants to be proactive on this issue.

We’re not trying to stop people from having kids; we’re just trying to find some guidelines, she said.

She did concede it would stop single people from using methods other than sexual intercourse but said all the studies indicate the best environment for a child is to have a two-parent family — a mother and a father.

Meanwhile, her Republican colleagues recoil in horror at the existence of an unregulated industry:

Sen. Gary Dillon, R-Pierceton, is a member on the commission and said parts of the legislation have valid points. He does have some reservations about limiting the reproductive rights of single people [that’s awful big of him -RG] but quoted the same studies as Miller about the health of a child in two-parent homes.

There’s a concern that there’s no regulation over this whole industry, he said.

You can let Senator Miller know what you think at:

Senator Patricia Miller
(317) 232-9400
(800) 382-9467

Let’s kill this thing dead.

Meanwhile, I’m just waiting with baited breath for some federalist libertarian to come along and tell me how the real evil would be for the federal courts to strike this down on the obvious privacy grounds. Because, you know, it’s not so bad, as long as a state is doing it.

Further reading

• Dr. B.’s Blog 2005-10-05: I Went to Sleep in IN and Woke Up in The Handmaid’s Tale
• Pandagon 2005-10-04: Put down that turkey baster and put your hands in the air so I can see your wedding ring
• feministe 2005-10-04: Holy shit, Indiana