Baby Pictures

Baby Pictures

The Washington Times is running on the front page of its print edition, above the fold, two pictures of Amillia Taylor, the baby born after a gestation period of 21 weeks. They are striking pictures. The one on the bottom shows the newborn is only slightly longer than a fountain pen. The one on the top shows the baby's two feet between the hands of an adult; the baby's feet are not much longer than the adult's knuckle.

I wonder how many other papers ran pictures of this baby on the front page. The Washington Post didn't, and I would guess that very few others did either. Why not run these fascinating photographs? Because the feminist thought police in the newsrooms would never allow it. Readers might put two and two together: This baby has survived after being born after four months of pregnancy; lots of babies are aborted--killed--after the fourth month of pregnancy; maybe it's not such a good idea to allow those abortions. Well, we can't have people thinking that.

But maybe I'm wrong. I'd be happy to hear from readers about papers that have run such pictures, on the front page or otherwise.

Steve Jobs on Teachers Unions

Bravo to Apple's Steve Jobs for criticizing teachers unions, as recounted in this New York Sun column by the Manhattan Institute's Jay Greene. Among Jobs's comments:

"I believe that what's wrong with our schools in this nation is that they have become unionized in the worst possible way."

"What kind of person could you get to run a small business if you told them that when they came in they couldn't get rid of people that they thought weren't any good? Not really great ones because if you're really smart you go, 'I can't win,'" Mr. Jobs said. He concluded by saying, "This unionization and lifetime employment of K-12 teachers is off-the-charts crazy."

All true enough. And Jobs is knowingly taking a risk that teacher-union-dominated schools will purchase fewer Apple computers. But note that Jobs is a big Democratic contributor. Someone might want to point out to him that the organization with the most members on the floor of the Democratic National Convention is the National Education Association. The American Federation of Teachers is not far behind. His money is empowering the same teachers unions he's rightly criticizing. Maybe he might want to think about that before signing his next check to the Democrats. Perhaps he might want to send a check instead to outfits that seek to change the way the schools are run, like the Manhattan Institute.

By Michael Barone