Busy Sunday Open Thread
Bookworm on Mar 03 2013 at 11:05 am | Filed under: Open Threads
I have lots to share with you guys — but I can’t right now, because I am a body in motion. Every single member of my family has legitimate demands on my time today (except the dog, who makes no demands at all). If you see a figure whipping by you today at something approaching warp speed, it’s probably me.
I’ll be back at my computer around 3:30 or 4 (my time). Until then, here’s an Open Thread. I learn so much from what you all say here.
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Here’s a guy who is so direct about the college bubble I find it amusing. Listen through till 2 minutes to hear his plan for those who might want success without the traditional university “experience”. But don’t fear, he does include all those college grads in the larger plan
So with all the stories about what passes as American history in the universities, as well, increasingly in our K-12 education, it occurred to me that perhaps what we need are American History Reading rooms. Storefronts, perhaps in university districts, where clear, objective, original-source American history is presented. These lounges would be manned by informed, politically unbiased individuals. The students of all ages would have a place to go to learn, let us say, traditional American history. They could then, dare we dream, apply critical thinking skills to reconcile the swill they pay thousands of dollars to be fed with the “old fashioned” history.
Such a reading room in the shadow of Berkley or Harvard would be an open rebuke to the poor quality of scholarship they indoctrinate their paying customers in. Imagine, the joy of seeing such places picketed and protested. The delightful editorials against them in the campus propaganda papers.
Put another shrimp to the barbie. It is basically university professors providing courses for free.
https://www.coursera.org/
Oh, dear. This is not good.
You’re going into warp speed, and plan to be back around 3:30 or 4:00 (your time). But at relativistic speeds, 3:30 or 4:00 (your time) might be several thousand years from now (our time). We’ll all be waiting for the next post, which will appear never to come.
Luddite that I am, I say godspeed, but not warp speed.
Apropos of nothing, this has just always been of interest to me. When there are royal occasions in Britain – weddings, etc. – the American audience for them is huge, very nearly as big or bigger (as a percentage) than the British audience. When there are scandals, etc., Americans have – and freely express – thoughts and opinions in numbers that are somewhat surprising. And I notice, right now as I write, that Drudge’s main headline is: “Queen Hospitalized,” with a picture, and that’s been the headline all day.
She isn’t identified. Just a picture over the banner. And it occurs to me: “isn’t it odd? Our ancestors fought a war to get away from these people, and we venerate them so highly that any alien visiting Earth would suppose we must have a queen.” She isn’t identified – she doesn’t need to be. Is there anyone in this republic who doesn’t know to whom “Queen Hospitalized” refers? Is there anyone in this republic – even the idiots Leno finds for “Jaywalking” segments who can’t identify a picture of Joe Biden or their own senator – over the age of 6 who can’t readily identify her picture? (I don’t know – but I bet not.)
If the king of Sweden were run over by a truck, or of Spain, or of Belgium – could fifty Americans recognize his picture? i doubt it. Would Drudge run a photo without identifying it? Doubt that, too. If his headline was: “King Squashed Like A Bug” would we immediately know to whom he referred – which king? No – we would not. And yet, Elizabeth, second of that name, by the Grace of God Queen blah-blah-blah is somehow meaningful to us rebels. Somehow, in fact, very meaningful to many, if not most, of us.
Am I the only one who finds that interesting?
I don’t know if you folks have seen this. It is not new but it is listed as one of the greatest plays in baseball…even if you don’t like sports you’ll probably like this.
http://agencypages.net/AgencyPages/11-52/
It does help, jj, that as far as most Americans are concerned, she’s been around since the Year One. Sheer repetition of images has made her a familiar face. I think, too, that her status as Princess Diana’s mother-in-law helped cement her image in the American mind.
But I do agree. Our fascination with British royals is a bit bizarre given historical context. Or maybe not so much. Consider that, starting in the late 19th century, America was sending it’s wealthy girls to Britain to wed as fast as possible. We may have hated the parent nation, but we always admired its upper classes — in the abstract, of course, not as people we’d like to have in charge here.
In any event, I am grateful that Jenny Jerome went to England, fell in love with Randolph Churchill, and gave birth to Winston. I like Winston.
I like Winston too, though he was very wrong about a fair amount, but that came from being a Victorian in a world that had changed and was Victorian no longer. There was a lot to which he didn’t/couldn’t/chose not to adjust. My father kind of liked him, too, though he did call him a horse’s ass once. (Well, once that I know of.) I thought he was a quite kindly, though not particularly nice (they are two different things) man. Rather gruff, sort of kind, very old. (I didn’t encounter him until the 1950s, by which time he was pretty old.) My father once also remarked – to me, not to him – that Winston was one of only two men he could think of offhand he’d never once seen completely sober, even at breakfast. (The other was Ernest Hemingway.)
But I think America’s mostly in agreement: Her Majesty’s a pretty nice girl. We seem to wish her well.
open thread time. Book, no blog post on AIPAC? Especially, nothing yet on the Joe Biden appearance at AIPAC?
I especially enjoyed this Biden quote: “no administration, no President has done as much to physically secure the State of Israel as Barack Obama,” Biden said.”
In an apparently unrelated story: Jaclynn Legarda, 27, and Nicholas Grijalva, 30, the couple charged with child abuse in connection with the beating death of Legarda’s 3-year-old daughter at Grijalva’s hands, have both been charged with an additional count of child abuse resulting in death, a first-degree felony.
that is from:
http://www.lcsun-news.com/las_cruces-news/ci_22650200/mimbres-couple-face-increased-charges-child-beating-death
I am sure the two stories appear unrelated. To the casual observer. But if Joe Biden had been speaking at the graveside of the three-year old, I am sure he would have said, “No parents, no mother or father, have ever shown as much pure commitment to the physical discipline required for the raising of their children.”
Good ol’ Joe Biden. If he says Obama is the greatest of friends to israel, why, gosh, it *must* be true!
The cult leader must be obeyed, no matter the sacrifice. Or else.