Conservatives deal with facts and reach conclusions; liberals have conclusions and sell them as facts.
This NPR story addresses the Day of Silence gay kids are holding today at American schools and the Day of Truth that Christian kids are countering with tomorrow at American schools. I think both are proselytizing, and I'd like to see both out of the school. However, to the extent
Continue readingYou know Eliza Doolittle's complaint in "My Fair Lady": "Words words, words, I'm so sick of words." I thought of this when I saw this snippet that Congressman Tom Tancredo posted on his website. (Thanks for the tip, Kevin.) Pythagorean theorem: 24 words The Lord's Prayer: 66 words Archimedes' Principle:
Continue readingI'd finished writing a really beautiful post about al-Zarqawi's latest pronouncements, in a newly released video (you can find it here, at Centcom). I then did the intelligent thing, hitting the "save" button, only to do see my magnum opus vanish entirely. Sadly, I don't have the time to recreate
Continue readingI could — as others already have — devote my blog to portraying the insanity that passes for higher education at so many American Universities and Colleges. I've opted not to, since there are other things I want to maunder on about here. Nevertheless, occasionally something going on at one
Continue readingMy son belongs to a music group that functions in a large urban area, but has suburban satellites. My son trains with one of those satellites. In the days leading up to performances, all of the satellite groups descend on the urban center for final rehearsals. I got to audit
Continue readingTo a hammer, everything is a nail. Currently, I'm hammering away at the idea of manly men. I did so yesterday in a post that alluded to early posts and articles I've written. Today, I'm doing it in connection with a New York Times article about Paul Greengrass's United 93.
Continue readingSince 9/11, we've been hearing a lot about the Crusades. The current version is that Christians were evil in the Middle Ages when they attacked the peace-loving Saracens. The version goes further, which is that the psychic scars inflicted seven hundred years ago were so deep that they go a
Continue readingMaybe it's just objective news; maybe the AP is making a point. Who knows? All I know is that the AP is once again announcing the number of US forces who have died in Iraq: 2,392. This averages out to less than 1,000 deaths per year of war. While I
Continue readingToday is Holocaust Remembrance Day. I'm a little late, but it's really never too late to remember not to forget. In a weirdly hopeful sign, there might be a small corner in Egypt — of all places — that isn't forgetting: A new book which does not deny the Holocaust
Continue readingHere's one of the pictures: Go here for others.
Continue readingI love it when people hostile to the current administration get onto every TV show and garner column inches in every newspaper to voice their complaints about censorship and suppression. Irony doesn't seem to be an operative word in their vocabulary. These same people are always remarkably quiet when the
Continue readingAs the mother of a very masculine little boy, I spend a lot of time thinking about (and some time blogging about) what makes for a good manly man. In the "what not to do" category, I've been reading Kate O'Beirne's Women Who Make the World Worse : and How
Continue readingFascinating. This is one bookI'll be looking for.
Continue readingWhen I was in high school, there was a bouncy pop song called "Cruel to be kind." In it, the male singer complained about how his girl hurt him, and quoted her explanation for the pain she cause: Cruel to be kind, in the right measure Cruel to be kind,
Continue readingShe wasn't a close friend, but she was someone I knew for many years. Her husband is a braver man than I. I doubt I'll see the movie: Despite the horror depicted on the big screen, San Rafael's Jack Grandcolas gives Universal Pictures' newest release, "United 93," a rousing thumbs-up
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