Ten Gallon Liberal
Flying By
I never know quite what to make of the emails I regularly receive from FlyBy News, a Valley-based site with, let’s say, a fin de siecle aesthetic, which embraces many a conspiratorial notion. It says, “Please consider reading all on this page. Otherwise...Michelangelo: God is love. And, like, a big brain.
Some neurosurgeon art fans say Michelangelo’s image of God in the Sistine Chapel is actually a diagram of the human brain. Can’t say why, exactly, but I think that’s a higher order of cool. If you will. Here’s the image–what do you think?...Maybe he ate the suet?
A birdwatcher in Ontario has claimed he saw a unicorn. I’m not sure what’s better–the video, or this, from the story (which is either itself a hoax or is very well-written by someone with tongue in cheek): In the meantime, the Science Centre is...The One Ring?
Hobbit fans unite: a possible real-life source for Lord of the Rings? I always feel bad for people who didn’t read Tolkien at the right age. Read it too early, it’s too complicated. Read it too late, it’s so full of dwarves and wizards and...Had there been no Colonel John Blashford-Snell, plus a liberal invasion?
Just as Edward Gorey isn’t what he appears to be–an Edwardian Brit–Colonel John Blashford-Snell is a man in the wrong time. In a story from the last few days, the UK’s Telegraph examines Blashford-Snell’s tale of exploration and...Chaos as evolution
New Scientist elaborates on the notion of a far more complex vision of evolution. Fascinating stuff: IN 1856, geologist Charles Lyell wrote to Charles Darwin with a question about fossils. Puzzled by types of mollusc that abruptly disappeared from the British fossil...Seven to Ten Days
We’ve always been plagued by notions that, say, Hitler’s name somehow translates to the number of the beast. Others have “calculated” the date of the apocalypse via a combination of selective wishful thinking and baroque schemes of number to...Rove sweat, Joe Tea
It’s always good to see Karl Rove sweat. Well, sweat in a metaphorical way. Always happy to miss the literal sort. Which reminds me–I once again saw that now-popular mangling of said term over the weekend. I believe it was a bottle of Joe Tea, which said...Hungry Hungry Hippos
I think the only truly useful long-term measure in politics is progress or regression in the fundamental principles we supposedly stand for. For me, that primarily means civil liberties, which Bush decimated and Obama has shown the merest twitch toward protecting. The...On the Down Side of Tuesday
First, please take just a few seconds and have a quick gander at this site. Terribly designed, but geez, what a load of Democratic challengers standing for net neutrality. 95 of them! The site, to its discredit, doesn’t say what net nuetrality is, and it’s...Jihadihoma!
I missed being born in Oklahoma by, give or take, a mile. Thank heavens. Because what would I do now that the turbaned jihadis are a heartbeat from imposing Sharia law on the fair hills of OK? It may seem fairly absurd that Oklahomans have passed a law banning judges...Give my stagecoach right of way, you blackguards
The music industry continues to believe that taking out windmills is the best way for Don Quixote to prevail. Me, I’m not in favor of music piracy either. I just think this is the most unimaginative way possible for the music industry to approach the issue....Tina Fey gets her political content trimmed
Why did PBS edit out the most contentious part of Tina Fey’s acceptance speech for the Mark Twain prize? They say they edited for time. Check it out, via the Washington Post: “And, you know, politics aside, the success of Sarah Palin and women like her is...My New Favorite Nutter!
The religious flock from whence I sprung sometimes produces such a numbskull the rest of us smack our foreheads in dismay that this is the kind of rot people take as representative of Christianity. And this fellow is a high-ranking fundamentalist nutball. I give you...Completely teafuddled
The tea bag contingent has declared war on the corporations that, they say, have backed Obama’s policies. It’s not a bad idea for them, but one wonders when they will notice that nearly all corporations donate money to both parties, and traditionally favor...Facelifts and other diplomatic secrets we're not supposed to know…
The NYT’s decision to publish most of the Wikileaks diplomatic cables and their explanation of it offer an interesting look at some of the thorniest issues in media, regardless of what one thinks of Wikileaks. Perhaps it’s out there already, but what...I'd like a pile of speech, please, and make it unmarked 20s
David Bossie is head of Citizens United, the folks involved in the Supreme Court decision that’s allowing corporations to spend money on elections in an unfettered fashion. In an interview with TPM, Bossie offered a statement that succinctly sums up the state of...Hail the shining Blackbird
So yes, more of your civil liberties have been trundled off to the dead letter office as you slumbered, which is the usual synapse-crushing course of events these days. Enjoy your shopping. But on the positive side, there’s a mighty uptick in the number of...Chutes and Ladders
If you need some terrorism to prove that your anti-terrorism is working, sometimes you can use a little hot glue and some egg cartons and try to create some: The undercover FBI informant—a convicted forger named Craig Monteilh— …says he spied on...Dark Arts
Here in the future, artists conspire underground: “Stepping into the station was like stepping into a space outside of time. Utterly devoid of light, there was no way to mark the passage of time except for the occasional dull roar of a train in the distance. I...An ancient computer; Mona Lisa gets cryptic
And I thought it was pretty cool to build a Lego rocket. Someone has replicated the Antikythera mechanism with Legos. Said mechanism is an ancient artifact found on a sunken Greek ship that appears to have been a machine to calculate planetary motion. Here it is in...Land of the Free (TM)
The Washington Post explores the map of domestic spying in the U.S. with a remarkable gathering of information (two years in the making). It’s enough to make you say, “Well, if you haven’t done anything wrong…” Here’s the opening:...On the Horms of a dilemna
We inhabit one of those “many worlds” Hugh Everett talked about. I know this because, when I was a kid, “dilemma” was spelled “dilemna.” I swear it’s true. A surprising percentage of people who attended school between the...The Future, Where We Will All Spend the Rest of Our Lives
What did the great minds of 1931 predict for the far future year of 2011? An interesting find from a blog called Abnormal Use via a 1931 New York Times story. Nothing about flying cars or jetpacks–those obsessions seem to have arrived later. I know they were...From the Annals of Recapturing Lost Testosterone
The merits/demerits of aerial surveillance (which, I’m sure, is entirely non-representative of the kind of capabilities turned upon American citizens within our own borders) notwithstanding, you have to wonder who names this military stuff. The new system by...The Sublime, The Decider-in-Chief
Ever heard of Barbara Follett? Her story, first of remarkable literary prowess at a very young age, then of a disconsolate adulthood with a tragic and mysterious end, is the sort of thing that sounds like a myth. Just read a fascinating story about her here. From her...What now?
David Stockman is a former Reagan administration official who had a road-to-Damascus experience in which he realized supply-side and “trickle down” economics are in fact a massive cart of porcine effluvium (not to mention impossible to implement...Feelings, Nothing More Than
The little girl shot at Gabrielle Giffords’ event was in a book about children born on Sept. 11, 2001. Which makes her life one begun and ended in acts of political violence. Horrific. Now the fine folks of the Westboro Baptist Church plan to protest her...So were the birds gay?
America, we’re told, is “great.” That extraordinary piece of vagueness seems mostly to serve as a palliative. Still, from time to time, I think it’s possible to get glimpses of what people may mean by that. Today’s entrant, especially in...Not in the Club; A Sweet Disaster
92 years ago yesterday, molasses invaded Boston when a holding tank exploded: To this day on hot summer days in an old Boston neighborhood, residents swear that they can smell a vague odor of molasses. It’s a sweet-smelling reminder of a day when some 150 people...DIY CIA
It’s hard to say what’s the most terrifying thing about this NYT story on a private contractor sort of mini-CIA. Could be that it stands to foul up more-official efforts in foreign policy. Could be that private contractors shouldn’t be paid to do...Things Not to Do
Number 1: Urinate on Jorge Luis Borges’ grave. It may be necessary to read that brilliant, blind librarian’s works without considering his rather wholehearted embrace of Augusto Pinochet (and what he knew initially of the Operation Condor fascists’...The unreal Danger Zone
I don’t know who has the time to catch stuff like this (well, in this case, it may be a particularly zealous fan of certain cheesy movies), but today’s comedy award goes to whoever dug up this silly bit of dirt on the Chinese government. It seems that the...More Faux Patriotism; Death by Dairy
The stench of the Bush years is hard to wash out. Especially when the new man, the one you’d hoped might at least provide a pause in the destruction of civil liberties, isn’t precisely getting out the detergent to help you. Granted, this latest bit of...Non-Violence Still Works
Back when the largest protest marches in history failed to stop the Iraq War, it seemed like the power of non-violent protest had perhaps seen its sunset, giving way to the era of media and perception trumping direct action. How marvelous to witness a grand refutation...Public Broadcasting: the Right's Moby Dick?
Why, when all else fails, do the right wingers always return to this?: NPR chief executive Vivian Schiller spoke out on Saturday against a proposal by House Republicans to eliminate the Corporation for Public Broadcasting. The plan to get rid of federal money for the...Jim the Robot
One-upsmanship in “improving” Huckleberry Finn:War, Unremembered
There’s something remarkable about World War I. It seems to mark the end of innocence for Europe, the last throes of “glorious” war. American geographical distance may well have meant it dimmed our own notions of martial glory to a lesser extent....Yosemite Sam just wants to be heard
A case of the world of toonery breaking into our reality? A distress call from the pixellated? A skin of skins. And truly a case of the runs.Didn't we once call this “the banality of evil”?
Just next door in New Hampshire, Republican state rep. Martin Harty, who was about 25 years old in 1945, offers an idea whose time has come (and gone). The Concord Monitor (owned by Newspapers of New England, which also owns the Advocate), got the right no-nonsense...Another War
How remarkable to suddenly discover that we are involved in another Middle Eastern conflict. This one is billed as mere no-fly zone and protection, though that’s a tune we’ve heard before. This action in Libya comes with the imprimatur of the U.N., and...A small but important victory
For once, there’s major progress in impeding the incessant destruction of civil liberties for “security” purposes. If you’ve followed the fight to do away with clearly unconstitutional, abuse-prone spying powers that Bush gave himself and Obama...The Extraordinary Story of a Platoon Gone Wrong
As part of a large-scale project, I’ve been up to my eyeballs lately in stories from veterans. Hearing such stories firsthand, I’ve come to believe, demands leaving politics at the door. Understanding the personal and human experience of war is an endeavor...Go Badgers
In Wisconsin, Stephan Thompson, deputy executive director of the state Republican Party, filed a Freedom of Information Act request with the Univ. of Wisconsin-Madison to get the emails of Professor Bill Cronon. What had Cronon done to deserve such a thing? Well, he...The 12-Tone Republican Chorale
If you’ve perused the specifics of the Paul Ryan budget proposal, you’ll no doubt–whether you find it admirable or loathsome–have realized its purpose is aparently to force the debate much further to the right. An anonymous commenter...A Barber Shop Conversation
Recently, I sat in the barber shop waiting for my turn in the chair. A gentleman who sat next to me said to the several of us in the room that he’d had it with this Wikileaks guy, Bradley Manning. He said, “They ought to execute him.” Some mumbling...Alisa Rosenbaum, (wannabe) curse of the modern era
Jon Stewart hits a homerun re: the crossing of conservative values with the just plain a$$hole values of Ayn Rand (Alisa Rosenbaum). He also calls Obama on a bit of crypto-political speak: The Daily ShowTags: Daily Show Full Episodes,Political Humor & Satire...A Taxing Question
Why is the current taxation debate framed in such silly fashion–i.e., want corporations to come nearer their supposed obligations? You hate profit! Favor a more progressive income tax rate? You’re a socialist who wants my money! Entertaining, but not...A Visit to the Techno-temple
Technology is often a matter of faith, oh ye of wetware synapses. This ought to be enough to occasion a few new apostates. A small camera fitted to the glasses can capture 400 facial images per second and send them to a central computer database storing up to 13...A roundup: Jesus hates Net Neutrality and more
Et tu, GOP? Two polls show majorities supporting tax increases on those who make more than $250,000 per year. One of the polls even shows a majority of Republicans supporting that. I guess a lot of Republicans understand that progressive tax does not equal socialism,...The Real Battle?
There can’t be many people who will miss Osama bin Laden. It’s nonetheless dismaying to see people reacting in pretty much exactly the same way they do to winning sports events. Chest-thumping makes most anyone look thick. This was a sobering, violent...The Arab Spring plus bin Laden's death equals?
Now is a particularly good time to check in with Middle East expert Juan Cole. He’s offering a rundown of how bin Laden’s death has gone down in the Arab world. His blog is always an extraordinarily interesting read, but his views and info are especially...Conspiracy central: Osama-Obama?
Here’s a good rundown of supposed Osama bin Laden conspiracies. It’s too good to pass up if you enjoy the fringes. The top 2 are particularly good, and the first is an award-winner: 1. President Obama is actually bin Laden in disguise 2. The U.S. had bin...Osama Conspiracy Central continued; some cool techno news
The best part of conspiracy theories–though that’s certainly a slippery, subjective term–is that they can’t be proven or disproved, so their life span is often extremely long, their claims a feedback loop of outlandishness. In the wake of bin...Bad bin Laden songs
The trend continues: first, a stinker of a tune arrived within 24 hours of bin Laden’s death, written that fast. It was a real face-palmer and a total attempt to get the gentleman’s name in headlines (so no link). But today comes news of an already...John McCain: credit where credit's due
Interesting, given that John McCain has been tortured, that he remains consistently opposed to America’s employing of torture. He’s not been swayed by the dubious narrative about torture yielding bin Laden: Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) took to the Senate floor...What light in yonder crater breaks?
Some cool stuff from other realms. some hairy: The biennial beard championships just sprouted in Norway. I love that this guy needed help– I don’t know what to say about this unsavory mystery except that when someone knocks at the door, perhaps it’s...Coffee is for Closers: Mamet Gets the Leads
David Mamet has written some brilliant plays and films. He’s inconsistent, but when he’s good–House of Games, Glengarry Glen Ross, Oleanna, American Buffalo–he’s all but peerless. Much is being made at present of Mamet’s very public...At a taco bar somewhere in Texas, Bush is chuckling
How comfortable is it to live in a country where the government can do what it wants, no matter how reprehensible or illegal, then cover its tracks by uttering a phrase that magically makes court cases disappear? Oh, I know–if you haven’t done anything...E-Edition
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