Study: Abortion waiting periods reduce suicides

Well isn't this interesting:

Proponents of laws requiring a waiting period before a woman can receive an abortion argue that these cooling off periods protect against rash decisions on the part of women in the event of unplanned pregnancies. Opponents claim, at best, waiting periods have no effect on decision-making and, at worst, they subject women to additional mental anguish and stress. In this article, I examine these competing claims using adult female suicide rates at the state level as a proxy for mental health. Panel data analyses suggest that the adoption of mandatory waiting periods reduce suicide rates by about 10 percent, and this effect is statistically significant. The result is robust to various attempts to control for unobservable heterogeneity and simultaneity.

[Hat-tip: The Volokh Conspiracy]

Chron editor is too busy for customers

As I've been reporting over the past couple months, Chron editor Jeff Cohen has been dodging questions from his customers. When I asked Chron reader representative James T. Campbell about it, he had this to say:

Well, since agreeing to do it, we've had two hurricanes and a World Series. I know he was close to finishing the questions I submitted to him but he got sidetracked by work.

I've got news for you, James: Keeping up good, honest relations with the people who keep you in business is work. It's certainly part of your job, and Cohen ought to consider it a big part of his job, too. It's not incredibly convincing to say "Gee, news got in the way." It's just bad business to promise something to your customers and fail to deliver. Besides, it's not like the questions were all that hard. Here's a smattering of the readers' inquiries:

• Why doesn't the Chronicle have an on staff convervative columnist to balance liberal Casey?
• why is it that the water level of the main river is never posted? Rio Grande River!!
• Why is it that the majority of business stories are AP/syndicated and not about Houston or written by Chronicle writers?
• Why don't you have someone in Iraq covering the war? Seems like a pretty Big Story.

See, those aren't too tough. Not a single math question in there. CORRECTION: The original headline misidentified Cohen as the Chron's publisher. Cohen is actually the editor and executive vice president. The real big enchilada is publisher Jack Sweeney. Sorry 'bout that, and thanks to Evil D. for setting me straight.

Islamists threaten Omar Sharif with death

Sharif don't like it:

Death threats to the Egyptian-born actor Omar Sharif have appeared in Islamist forums on the Internet, after Sharif's appearance as a Christian, Saint Peter, in an Italian biblical epic for television. A threatening message from user 'bachirma1' on one of the forums used by jihadi groups linked to al-Qaeda, reads:"In my view Omar Sharif is an infidel - enter here". Inside it continues; "He is a crusader who offends Islam and Muslims and is applauded by the Italian people. I give you some advice, my brothers, you should kill him."

I recommend that all appropriate Casbah-rocking action commence immediately.

Happy Halloween from Mattsapundit

Happy Halloween, folks, from all of us at Mattsapundit Central Command. Time to scare the piss out of you. Look at this. Yikes.

Wes D got totally shot

Wes D got totally shot down by a fairy chick. And yet, he 'don't give a damn.' What a weenie.

Speaker of the House starts blog

After being stunned and impressed with the journalistic quality and unimpeachable integrity of Lone Star Times, the Speaker of the House of Representatives decided to take a shot at this whole blogging thing:

This is Denny Hastert and welcome to my blog. This is new to me. I can’t say I’m much of a techie.

You're kidding. Hastert goes on to attack those EEEVIL oil companies who dare to charge us $2.55 for an explosive product that's extracted from a two-mile-deep hole in a politically unstable country, shipped halfway around the world, taxed exorbitantly and run through a heavily regulated billion-dollar refinery:

Speaking of the Hurricane season, renewed attention has been brought to the way we refine gasoline in this country. Today, energy companies started reporting their 3rd quarter earnings, and while Americans paying were record prices at the pump, energy companies were making record profits. This is America. And Republicans don’t believe in punishing success.

You know what's coming next. The "But..." Monkey:

But what are these oil companies doing to bring down the cost of oil and natural gas?

Hastert, you're a Republican. Try rewording that statement with other commodities.

• "But what are these farmers doing to bring down the cost of sugar?"
• "But what are these lumber mills doing to bring down the cost of two-by-fours?"
• "But what are these gold miners doing to bring down the cost of gold?"

The speaker ends by threatening promising to send us more pearls of wisdom:

I’m going to keep updating this from time to time. It’s not that bad.

Trust me, Denny, it was a lot worse from this end.

Tom DeLay sends letter to constituents

Embattled former House Majority Leader Tom DeLay (R-Sugar Land) has sent a letter to thousands of his constituents and supporters in Fort Bend County. Here it is:

To the voters of District 22: It has been over a month since Travis County District Attorney Ronnie Earle acted out his political revenge and indicted me for crimes that don't exist. And over the last month, we have seen such a litany of prosecutorial misconduct that even the national media is questioning his motives. Look at who is studying this circus-like investigation and you'll see that journalists and legal experts are acknowledging these charges are baseless, partisan, and nothing more than revenge for my work to provide the people of Texas with a fair and constitutional congressional representation. I am being attacked not for doing anything wrong - I'm being attacked for being effective and standing up for what's right. I have had the honor of representing Fort Bend for over 20 years, and in that time I have always been truthful and forthright in everything from my positions on immigration and tax reform to my involvement in local politics. Not everyone agrees with my conservative brand of politics. My plainspoken style might ruffle feathers from time to time. But you always know where I stand, and I always stand up for what I believe. It's no secret that on top of the deep sense of responsibility I have for advancing the interests of this congressional district, I have also worked to help elect fellow Republicans. Without a unified team of conservative leaders, many of the remarkable changes we've seen in government would never have occurred. Without Republican majorities, we would never have ended a generational welfare system, reduced overbearing tax rates, or created an economic environment for small businesses to flourish. Because of their decade of defeat, Democrats have now dropped to the least common denominator - the politics of personal destruction. They held power in state and federal politics for so long, they can't fathom Republican control of elected offices. They simply don't understand that we win election after election because our ideas, our agenda, and our values are more representative of the voters and the American dream than theirs. And instead of re-evaluating their position on key issues like immigration, taxes, national security, and government spending, they have chosen a path of personal destruction. Look at the attacks thrown at our strong Republican leaders - Karl Rove, Senator Bill Frist, and especially President Bush - and it becomes quite apparent that liberals are trying to divert attention from their own political problems, so they try to turn the tables on us. They call us criminals. They demand investigations, file lawsuits, and mock-up mugshots. They say we should be serving time in jail, not in public office. But they still won't win. What we're fighting is so much larger than a single court case or a single District Attorney in Travis County. We are witnessing the criminalization of conservative politics. Here in Texas, we take our ideas and our ideals very seriously, and we fight for what we believe in. You have that right. I have that right. Ronnie Earle has that right. But these fights are meant to take place at the ballot box, not the jury box. Just because a rogue Democratic prosecutor doesn't agree with some political tactics doesn't make them illegal or even wrong. He has an opinion, but he doesn't make the law. Ronnie Earle is wrong on the facts. He's wrong on the law. And he has abused his position, the taxpayer dollars, and our justice system throughout this process. I've listed below just a few instances of Mr. Earle's misconduct (you can go to my website www.tomdelay.com for a more complete rundown and to sign up for e-mail updates): * Earle's indictments are based on non-existent laws, and non-existent documents. * Earle went to three grand juries in four business days in a desperate attempt to salvage his deteriorating case. * For two years, Ronnie Earle assisted in the filming of a documentary movie about Mr. Earle's planned prosecutorial efforts targeting me. * In May 2005, Earle used his investigation to raise $102,000 for a Democrats' PAC that was formed to take back the Texas State Legislature. * Past is prologue - In 1993, Ronnie Earle used his office to attack newly-elected Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison on baseless charges of misconduct. We have fought and won many battles together, united and determined in the justice of our cause - and we will fight and win many more. While they may have made me step aside for now, they can never make us stand down. That's why I am asking you to stand with me, fight these unjust attacks, and remember that while our victories may come at a price, they're always worth the fight. Sincerely, Tom DeLay Member of Congress

[Hat-tip: Chris Elam]

Official Mattsapundit Voting Guide

Okay folks, I know you've been waiting for me to issue marching orders voting recommendations on the proposed amendments to the Texas Constitution. Here they are:

• Proposition 1: Against. We don't need another government agency with the power to borrow money and give it to private companies.
• Proposition 2: For. Texas must not become a laboratory for gay-rights activists eager to change social mores for the nation.
• Proposition 3: Against. We must rein in "economic development grants" which can become little more than unpoliced giveaways to the politically connected.
• Proposition 4: For. If you violate bail once, you shouldn't get it again.
• Proposition 5: For. Commercial borrowers are big boys; they don't need the Legislature to protect them from themselves.
• Proposition 6: For. Increased public oversight of the judiciary is just fine with me.
• Proposition 7: For. If Grandma wants to borrow money, why should the state get in her way?
• Proposition 8: Abstain. I don't even know, off the top of my head, where in the hell Smith or Upshur Counties are.
• Proposition 9: Against. Longer terms for mobility board members would only make them even less accountable to the public than they currently are.

Feel free to print out your own copy of the Official Mattsapundit Voting Guide, make a few thousand copies, and hand them out to everyone in your precinct.

Mattsapundit: Guiding Our Democracy, So You Don't Have To.®

Why Houston is better than Dallas: Part 4,623

We don't have poop-encrusted baked goods.

A Dallas cab driver is in big trouble for getting caught on tape sprinkling dried feces on pastries. 49-year-old Behrouz Nahidmobarekeh is on trial for allegedly throwing fecal matter on pastries at a Fiesta grocery store. Police said they found a pile of human feces by his bed. He would dry it, either by microwave or just letting it sit out and grate it up with a cheese grater and then sprinkle it at the store, officials said.

What would Pepe the Parrot think?

HUGELY SHOCKING BREAKING NEWS FLASH

A WNBA player is a lesbian.

[Hat-tip: The lovely, talented and straight Anne Linehan]