Conservatives deal with facts and reach conclusions; liberals have conclusions and sell them as facts.
We finally got around to watching something TV captured for us last week: a PBS program profiling the Marines. What was amazing about the show, considering the source, was how laudatory both Mr. Bookworm and I thought it was. It could not emphasize enough the rigors of training, the camaraderie,
Continue readingWhat’s in a name? That which we call a rose by any other name would smell as sweet. –William Shakespeare Have you ever noticed that, while conservative publications refer to the “Left” and the “Right,” and to “Liberals” and “Conservatives,” liberal publications never do? They refer to the “Right,” but
Continue readingWhen you’re dealing with people in an alternate universe, they’ll often try to convince you that the evidence of your own eyes is wrong and that black is actually white or vice versa. This is happening on the far Left side of the blogosphere where the new meme, apparently, is
Continue readingTwo personal anecdotes and then I’ll get to my point. 1. When my first Little Bookworm was born, I went into a fairly deep funk. She was a lousy sleeper, and I’m generally not very good at handling change in my life. Between fatigue and my own personal inflexibility, all
Continue readingMy long-ago post about the Marin County NIMBYs who were upset that Habitat for Humanity was coming to their neck of the woods, sparked quite a debate. The very first comment, which I understand was tongue in cheek, struck me strongly, though. Because I agreed with the NIMBYs, who feel
Continue readingMy Jewish readers may enjoy this one, which I got from a friend: In keeping up with the Levy’s and the Zimmerman’s, It is with great stress, emotional and physical fatigue and incredible financial sacrifice beyond comprehension, that we invite you to join us as our wonderful son Jonathan Samuel
Continue readingLight blogging continues as I re-immerse myself into the news world. Last night, thanks to the miracle that is TiVo, we caught up on all the Jay Leno shows that we missed. It was a weak week’s worth of shows, but I enjoyed a moment when Mitch Fatel, one of
Continue readingI’m back — and have been so busy unpacking and tidying, that I haven’t even read the headlines. I did, however, want to tell you that, if you find yourself near Goleta, California (north of Santa Barbara) in winter, you absolutely must visit the Coronado Butterfly Preserve. Tens of thousands
Continue readingI’m off for a few days (ski week, although we’re not skiing) and I’ll be without computer access. I’m therefore keeping my fingers crossed that DQ will have the time and the inclination to blog here. I always love coming back to my blog after he’s taken over, because his
Continue readingAs you know, I agree with Ann Coulter, who considers Obama a singularly uninspiring orator. She thinks he’s given a pass because he’s black. I think he’s given a pass because, in our inarticulate age, he’s able to string sentences together (something, sadly, that President Bush can’t do). Take, for
Continue readingJohn Edwards is clearly attempting to attract the European vote. It was Europeans after all, who opined in large numbers that Israel is the most dangerous nation in the world. In a clear effort to attract Europeans to the polls in 2008, Peter Bart’s column reports on this gem: “Perhaps
Continue readingSwimsuit, circa 1900: Swimsuit, circa 2007: Plus ça change, plus c’est la même chose. del.icio.us | digg it
Continue readingThe West has developed a sophisticated capacity to destroy but, unlike any culture I can think of, it’s also developed a staggering ability to create, save and nurture: A premature baby that doctors say spent less time in the womb than any other surviving infant is to be released from
Continue readingOne of the best ways to mask a bad argument is to conflate similar, yet entirely separate ideas, one of which is valid, one of which isn’t. Juggle these ideas around often enough and your reader will lose track of their separate identity and eventually give to both a status
Continue readingThere’s much consternation in Denmark today after a jury found four men guilty under the country’s new anti-terrorism laws, and a reviewing panel of judges promptly overruled the verdict as to three of the men, based on insufficient evidence: The panel of judges hearing Denmark’s first trial involving suspects charged
Continue reading