British politics is another of the many topics on which my expertise is virtually non-existent. But I just wanted to say that, about a year ago, on the eve of the Australian elections, I was pretty pessimistic. The three major … Continue reading →
The weather report for this weekend–Mother’s Day weekend–for virtually all of New England: in the 40’s (that’s the daytime figure, by the way), heavy rain and wind. This isn’t funny. This is extreme, even for this part of the country. … Continue reading →
Well, here we go again. Excuses, excuses–I’m full of them! I thought I’d be publishing Part 4C of the “Mind is a difficult thing to change” series this week, but it’s not nearly ready, although I’ve been working on it. … Continue reading →
Sometimes when an ordinary, garden-variety murderer is caught (or even a more-than-garden variety serial killer, such as Ted Bundy), I am struck by how normal he looks. Normal, as in “you would pass him on the street and not suspect … Continue reading →
Dr. Sanity has some interesting commentary on a post by Wretchard about the influence of the new media–blogs and other alternative news sources–on our perceptions of truth. I recommend both articles, but I wanted to add a few comments of … Continue reading →
One’s an anomaly, two may be a trend. First there were those elephants in the Seoul restaurant, now we have a herd of buffalo on a suburban Baltimore tennis court. Apparently, like girls (and the rest of us), large mammals … Continue reading →
Amtrak report: Well, by the end of the trip, 80% of the toilets were dysfunctional. And the train was virtually full (methinks there is some sort of correlation between the two). On the other hand, the seats were comfortable, my … Continue reading →
An update for those awaiting Part 4C of the “A mind is a difficult thing to change” series: it’s in the process of being written. But I always seem to underestimate the amount of work these things take (hmmm, I … Continue reading →
I’m going home today. According to the Amtrak website, my train is sold out. That should be…interesting. And, as luck would have it, this appears in today’s NY Times, entitled “Acela, built to be rail’s savior, bedevils Amtrak at every … Continue reading →
The MSN headline did what it’s supposed to do–it certainly caught my eye: “Escapee elephants visit Seoul restaurant.” The article has a few wonderful details. There were six elephants in all; one elephant bolted during their daily parade outside a … Continue reading →
Viewed at Roger Simon’s–the following headstone seems to have inspired me to poetry. Please forgive me; I must obey my muse. Technology gallops apace, Computers, hybrids, men in space. So, now there’s a headstone That’s shaped like a cellphone To … Continue reading →
What’s wrong with this picture (anti-Japan protests in China, via the NY Times)? It still seems strange to see mass protests in China at all, post-Tiananmen–even ones such as this, apparently organized by the government for its own murky purposes. … Continue reading →