We have the harvest moon
Last night was a rare “super harvest moon” (see also this), and I went outside to gaze at the lovely sight. And since I’m one of those people with a lot of poetry rattling around in my head, up popped … Continue reading →
Category Archives: Poetry
Wondering about the book in the masthead photo?
A number of people have told me they’re stumped by the title of one of the books in my masthead photo. They can see that the red one on the bottom is The Last Lion, the Churchill biography by William … Continue reading →
Favorite movies about courts and lawyers
Glenn Reynolds gives out a call: I’m interested in movies and TV about law and lawyers ”” not just stuff with a legal setting, but stuff that revolves around lawyers and what people think of them. Any suggestions? Movies about … Continue reading →
Father’s Day musings and poetry
[NOTE: This a slightly edited version of a previous post of mine.] Father’s Day. A sort of poor stepchild to Mother’s Day, although fathers themselves are hardly that. They are central to a family. Just ask the people who never … Continue reading →
Tipper and Al are splitsville…
…and there’s sorrow and consternation in the land. Seriously, there is. And in order to feel sad about it, it’s not even necessary to be a Democrat, or to like Tipper and Al Gore. It’s almost always upsetting and even … Continue reading →
Babies care
You think babies are just selfish slugs? Think again. According to researcher Paul Bloom (the article is long, but worth reading in its entirety), they have a capacity for empathy, however rudimentary: Human babies, notably, cry more to the cries … Continue reading →
It’s Patriots’ Day
It’s Patriots’ Day—the anniversary of the Battles of Lexington and Concord, regarded as the official start of the American Revolution, although Massachusetts and Maine (once part of Massachusetts) are the only states that officially celebrate the occasion. Boston does so … Continue reading →
‘Twas the Blogger’s Night Before Christmas
‘TWAS THE BLOGGER’S NIGHT BEFORE CHRISTMAS ‘Twas the night before Christmas, and all through the ”˜sphere Bloggers were glad to see Christmas draw near. Their laptops were turned off and all put away The bloggers were swearing to take off … Continue reading →
In the interests of fairness…
…I’d like to show you another ad featuring children. Yesterday I criticized this one about man-made global warming. It features a child actress, and is designed to appeal to children especially, and to frighten them into pressuring their parents to … Continue reading →
To surge or not to surge: Obamlet II
In a recent Charles Krauthammer piece, he compares Obama’s dithering on Afghanistan to the wavering of Shakespeare’s Hamlet: …[Obama in his role as] commander in chief, young Hamlet, frets, demurs, agonizes. His domestic advisers, led by Rahm Emanuel, tell him … Continue reading →
Polanski as Byronic hero
Studying the Polanski brouhaha, and most especially reading the columns and comments of his defenders and champions, puts me in mind of certain Romantic heroes and artists of old. I refer to the poet whose exploits—sexual and otherwise—were famous in … Continue reading →
Halloween comes early: the Obama mask
Watch this; it’s spooky-scary. Obama’s fixed smile is described thusly (the nearly-fixed head position, which in my opinon is even more revealing, is not specifically mentioned): Ladies and gentlemen, your President is a robot. Or a wax sculpture. Maybe a … Continue reading →