Writing Good
George Orwell . . . Animal Farm . . . Politics. The Eton-honed author wrote some marvelously good books and essays, and if you enjoy reading but haven’t yet sampled any of his work, shame on you. Granted, his oeuvre (how’s that for a $5.00 word?) walks a rather dark path at times, but much...
Guns, A Continuing Discussion Pt. 9
I just read an April 18th article by Bill Keller of The New York Times. I think the two of us see fairly eye to eye when it comes to guns, and his article got me to thinking about the issue again. He quotes some politicians who have been digging their proverbial heels into...
Bootprints in the Sand
I had a dream. No doubt caused by a glass or two too much wine. Please . . . let that be the well-spring of my dream. I was at the beach. It was a beautiful, sunny day, and I was the only soul around as far as you could see. A gentle breeze...
Bang the Drum Slowly . . .
S’up? Okay, my attempts at sporting raffish airs and graces may come up more than a little short, but I mean well. Therefore, one will find “S’up?” and “Yo'” and “Hail Fellow, Well Met!” sprinkled all about my articles, tempering the moods and demonstrating my hipster swell-ness. That might be sweltering hip-ness, but it...
The Irrelevant in the Room
It’s been half a year since I wrote these few paragraphs. In the intervening months, the GOP has wrung their hands dry attempting to figure out what happened in the November, 2012 election, and how to “fix” things so they can run the government once again. As a result, I’ve updated a few things....
Guns, A Continuing Discussion Pt. 6
Got logic? “The only thing that will stop a bad guy with a gun is a good guy with a gun,” Wayne LaPierre. While I grasp the initial attraction to LaPierre’s bad guy/good guy thing, the underlying logic runs down a twisty, dark rabbit hole. Human nature, unbound and unfettered by national boundaries, will...
Thelma & Louise & the Fiscal Cliff
Remember when T&L whooshed off the cliff? Yes, it was just a movie, but consider a couple of things. They careened off that particular cliff by their own choosing. They didn’t have to. They’d made a number of rather unfortunate choices earlier that boxed them into an emotional corner, but remember, those choices (for...
Guns, A Continuing Discussion Pt. 5
President Obama gave a heart-wrenching speech at the vigil held for the shooting victims. One line from that speech staggers the mind: Are we prepared to say that such violence visited upon our children, year after year after year, is somehow the price of our freedom? The question is, of course, rhetorical, but the...
Guns, A Continuing Discussion Pt. 4
This article makes a number of interesting points, and I want to share them with you. As a preface, I need to correct, or at least modify a term the author (mistakenly?) uses: High caliber. Furthermore, of the weapons that proliferate amongst the armed public, an increasing number are high caliber weapons (the weapon...
Guns, A Continuing Discussion Pt. 3
The following post shares my comments from a correspondence with a dear friend regarding the horror that occurred at Sandy Hook Elementary School. I include it here because I think it’s relevant to our Village. My initial reply: I agree with you on almost everything you’ve written, and the part with which I...
Guns, A Continuing Discussion Pt. 2
We can’t just say, “Everybody does it”. No! Dammit! Everybody doesn’t do it. Sure, Iraq does it. Afghanistan does it. Somalia does it. Great company, those, or they, or them. S’wonderful to be included in any kind of statistic with those countries, right? But it’s especially heartwarming to have an “Access to Military-Style Weapons”...
A Morning Read
A Morning Read. I watched a newscast interview last night. The guy being interviewed owns a small business. He makes over $250K annually. The report didn’t say how much over $250K the guy makes, but regardless, he makes a decent income from his small business. Asked if the tax increase proposed by President Obama...
Please Don’t Let It Break
Please Don’t Let It Break. If, on some sunny, cheerful morn, the bridge I happen to be traversing, (whist silently pleading, “Please don’t let it break, please don’t let it break”), chooses that particular moment to heave a sigh of frustration, and collapse into the swirling maelstrom, I can assure you ONE of my...
Our Mr. Brooks
From The Republican Glasnot, by David Brooks: There are increasing signs that House Republicans are willing to unite behind Speaker John Boehner so he can cut a deal to avert the “fiscal cliff.” There has been an epidemic of open-mindedness as Republicans try to win minority votes and create a version of their party that...
Republicans And Damn Republicans
There’s an old saying: “There are lies, and there are damn lies”. Well, I suggest there are Republicans, (Old School), and there are damn Republicans (Model 2.0). WWII Disabled veteran and former Senator, Bob Dole, is from the Old School. Sadly, his kind are rapidly disappearing, and being replaced by the (cold and stingy) Mod...
The Men Are Getting Hungry
This morning’s quiz: What’s white, conservative, middle-aged, (or older), and has a dongle? Go ahead, I can wait while you ponder. Hum-tee-hum-tee-hum. Give up? The answer, of course, is simple. After the nation just handed the GOP a note saying, “Change your party you bunch of stupid *&#^!”, the House leadership (that would be...
Millennials And The GOP
The first note in this stream puts things in a bit of perspective. My kids were born between 1976 and 1990. Clearly, when it comes to politics and government leadership, (leadership, in this case, should probably be Bold, “in quotes” and italicized, just to make my sarcastic point), the preponderance of my kids’ experience has...
Politicians & Jellyfish
Sorry. I don’t mean to disparage jellyfish, but aside from certain politicians and more than a few talk-radio or television hosts, they’re the only spineless creatures I’m aware of. And I know I’m tilting at windmills every time I write about the juvenile behavior of some members of Congress, but jeez. I guess I just can’t help...
It’s Clobberin’ Time!
About three years ago I was (somewhat constantly) groaning and moaning to any and all who would listen to me regarding Obama’s lack of fire when dealing with congressional Republicans. He bent over backwards to find a middle ground where something good for the country might be done. Unfortunately, the Republican leadership made it clear from...
Conservative And Cool
I apologize from the top. I’ve long said, (and no doubt been oft quoted), Conservatives (Big C) cannot, cannot, CANNOT do cool. No matter how they try, they just don’t get the notion. And we’re not even going to start talking about humor. You thought Clint Eastwood’s schtick was funny? You . . . what?...
Double, Double Toil And Trouble
I want to highlight something from this recent New York Times article: “Thirty years ago, when Forbes published its first Forbes 400, a net worth of $75 million would get you on the list. Today it takes $1.1 billion. In the last year alone, the cumulative net worth of the wealthiest 400 people, by Forbes’s...
The Federal Teat
Mr. Romney (and his minions) like to portray all the non-tax-payers as moochers and sponges, sucking on the Federal Teat? Thank you, Ayn Rand, for showing us the Way. Interesting. Let’s have a quick look, shall we, at where all those teat-sucking moochers live? A test: The vast majority of tax modifications that resulted...
GOP Politics . . . The Spectator Sport
This has been a really tough week for Mitt Romney. And it’s only Tuesday. Oh well. I have to agree with Shrum, in this article, about the GOP coming off their political rails. Think about this for a moment. The people currently in charge, (i.e. Tea Party), are rabidly conservative. They actually don’t disagree with...
Function 920
Welcome to the Congressional Budget. No, I’m not a government policy wonk. Truth be told, crunching through congressional budget numbers is one of my definitions of hell. That being said, it’s worth noting that there are folks in and about Congress who anticipate citizen apathy toward all things budgetary, and they plan accordingly. Actually, when...
Rugged Individualism
Rugged individualism. Way back long ago when I listened to Rush Limbaugh … yes, I was a Conservative (Big C) once, damn my eyes … I would hear that phrase quite regularly. Rush likes to think of himself that way. Rugged, and an individual. Doing things his way. Ruggedly. It’s funny, but I tend...
Why It Matters
— I occasionally choose to exhume older posts, simply as a reminder. This one is from April 18, 2011 — Most of you reading this post … I’m assuming a few of you actually do read this … are too young to be personally concerned with things like Medicare, Medicaid, Social Security. But you...
Take the Fork in the Road
For those of you with a philosophical turn, I’m passing along an interesting read about two veils: Opulence and Ignorance. One could substitute veils with a fork in the road, I suppose; the point being, having to choose between two, different but unknowable outcomes. Imagine . . . Road #1: A mighty wizard whisks...
