Banned chemistry book: I had this book as a boy. Never did any of the experiments, though. Good thing: I might have grown up to be a terrorist!

They're not prudes; they're letches: I've often wondered about the apparent affinity between the left and radical Islam -- which, you'd otherwise think, would probably be categorized on "the right". Utopian thinking and the urge regulate everything in sight spring to mind as possible similarities.

The Telegraph recounts that al Qaeda is losing supporting in Iraq partially because they see prurient sexual imagery in as many mundane objects as Sigmund Freud did. Or more, if that were possible. (Goats? Ick!)

Besides the terrible killings inflicted by the fanatics on those who refuse to pledge allegiance to them, Al-Qa'eda has lost credibility for enforcing a series of rules imposing their way of thought on the most mundane aspects of everyday life.

They include a ban on women buying suggestively-shaped vegetables, according to one tribal leader in the western province of Anbar.

Sheikh Hameed al-Hayyes, a Sunni elder, told Reuters: "They even killed female goats because their private parts were not covered and their tails were pointed upward, which they said was haram.

"They regarded the cucumber as male and tomato as female. Women were not allowed to buy cucumbers, only men."

If the goal is to restrain human desire and channel it into productive behavior, banning vegetables and goats is probably a poor move. A better strategy might be to encourage stronger, more loving bonds in a faithful, monogamous context. But al Qaeda demands political revolution, a complete overthrow of the status quo -- not increased marriage counseling.

Maestro Edwards: The New York Post:

Sources have also told the weekly paper Edwards and Hunter orchestrated her public rebuffing of his offer of a paternity test. [Tim: No, really?]

"She's still protecting John because she loves him and thinks they may eventually have a future together," an Enquirer source said.

Edwards lied to ABC when he said he did not know his former national finance chairman was funneling a reported $15,000 per month to Hunter, the newspaper said.

Former chairman Fred Baron reportedly also is paying $20,000 per month to Andrew Young, the married Edwards campaign official who claims he fathered Frances.

Who would have expected this kind of behavior from a successful personal injury lawyer?

When an idea fails, do it more: From Canada: "Some of our parliamentarians have been getting a bit too much sun during their summer holidays. That's the only explanation for the discussion by some opposition MPs about the possible introduction of a knife registry, following the gruesome, fatal attack on a Greyhound bus passenger late last month."

I might point out, worryingly, that there are a lot of dangerous pointed sticks and bits of pipe out there too.

Obama is apparently not aware that Russia is a member of the UN security council, or isn't aware that council members have veto power. "The international community must push Russia to pull its military forces out of Georgia, Democratic U.S. presidential hopeful Barack Obama said Monday.... He said he would continue to push for a United Nation resolution regarding a cease-fire in Georgia."

Brilliant.

Something many decent people knew already: Don't treat the elderly like children:

Researchers from Kansas are offering a rare glimpse into the interior world of Alzheimer's patients with a new study set to be presented at a major international conference in Chicago this week.

The study, while small, is highly suggestive. Key findings indicate that patients—even those who may seem deeply disoriented or cognitively impaired—dislike being patronized or treated as if they are children....

"They were very angry when they felt they were treated as if they were incompetent," said Morhardt, now education director at Northwestern's Cognitive Neurology and Alzheimer's Disease Center. "They wanted to be treated with respect."

Among my friends who work with the elderly, it's a constant gripe that most of the staff speak to them as if they were infants. I'm sure those same "caregivers" (quotes required in many cases) would hate it if they were treated in the same way. I view it as a sign we've forgotten the adage that we should endeavor to treat others as we'd wish to be treated.