Archive for the ‘All’ Category
Welcome the Sun!
This is the day of the year, 7 December, when I celebrate my own festival of light to welcome the return of the sun. No, it is not the shortest day of the year, the day with the least amount of sunlight where I am (about 39 degrees north, 76 degrees, 46 minutes west — […]
In: All, It's Only Rocket Science, The Art of Conversation
Iraq War or Lesbians?
The Pavlovian right-wing reaction to the news that Mary Cheney and Heather Poe are having a child — that Ms. Cheney is pregnant — is predictable, but I thought this was a dangerously slippery slope to head down: "They're deliberately bringing a child into the world without a father, leaving a great gaping hole. Father […]
The Xmas Quagmire
As a dedicated secular humanist, I must regretfully acknowledge that the War on Christmas has not been going well. Some would use the word "quagmire," and urge a phased redeployment to other fronts, like Easter and Mardi Gras. Others argue that we simply need more boots on the ground, and that our allies, such as […]
A Feast of Footnotes
I am reading a delightful book by Nichola Fletcher, called Charlemagne's Tablecloth: A Piquant History of Feasting (New York : St. Martin's Press, 2004). Fortunately for my taste, since I always enjoy a good footnote, she has a number of amusing examples that have attracted my attention. Herewith a few choice morsels. First, the one […]
In: All, Food Stuff, The Art of Conversation
Just Sing Along
Frank Schaeffer reflects on his childhood as an evangelical: By the early 1970s the evangelicals had come up with a whole alternate America—"Christian" education, radio, rock, makeup, publishing, schools, weight loss, sex manuals, and politics. It wasn't about being something but about not being "secular," about not having nudity, sex, or four letter words. What […]
Presidential Destiny: The Sequel
Nearly two years ago, while wondering why in the world any electorate would actually elect the second president Bush to a second term (all the while wondering whether we'd ever know whether he was actually elected by a majority of votes cast) I wrote* I suspect that the current president's [i.e., G.W.Bush's] destiny is to […]
Beard of the Week XXII: Artistic Celebrities
Recently I read a very nice essay by Bryan Appleyard* about literary biographies, which he describes as "one of the dominant forms of our time". He establishes his theme right at the beginning: Jane Austen had a lesbian affair with her older sister, Cassandra. It’s obvious, really. There was “the passionate nature of the sibling […]
World Aids Day
I am reading blog articles about World AIDS Day, people taking the occasion to put forward facts and figures (nearly 50% of AIDS cases worldwide are women, >950 people a day die from AIDS complications in Africa each day) and talk about hope for the future. Here are some of the things I'm thinking about. […]
Straw-Farms & The Estate Tax
Avedon Carol offers up* this quotation which she says is from Dean Baker's The Conservative Nanny State. I haven't looked at the source, but I liked the quotation. Of course, in reality the battle over the estate tax is an issue that is almost exclusively about wealthy people who don't want wealthy children to be […]
Procupines & Ear Accidents
Mark Liberman, in a piece* at Language Log, wrote with the title "Ear Accidents" about a visit to England and a discussion with one Jock McNaught, who kept talking about "Ear Accidents". Liberman wondered whether McNaught might be referring to something like ear piercings gone bad or some such, when he discovered that it was […]
In: All, Reflections, Such Language!
In the Public Interest
Our story thus far: Ars Hermeneutica, Limited is the nonprofit company that Isaac and I formed on 15 November, 2004 (the official date when the Articles of Incorporation were filed and stamped by the Maryland Department of Assessments and Taxation, at 11:11 AM to be precise). We formed the company for the purposes of pursing […]
In: All, Reflections, Speaking of Science
The SAT Mega-Think-Tank
I was reading today, and probably over tired while doing it (I had to get up at 7am to sing Schütz this morning — twice!), so my mind was wandering and I tend to have odd ideas when that happens. Anyway, I was reading blog articles about great, seemingly intractable problems like global warming, what […]
Worse than Illegal
Geoffrey Pullum was discussing* the possibility that soon-to-be former-Senator George Allen, a Republican of Virginia, may well have lost his re-election bid on the strength of his use of a racist slur during the campaign (the infamous "macaca" episode) — or perhaps on the strength of what the electorate saw through the curtain drawn over […]
A Tiny, Partisan Moment
A few days back, maybe last week, I was at my favorite luncheon spot: Taco Bell. Like most fast-food places these days, they have a wee labyrinth on the approach to their cash register (oops! I mean point-of-sale terminal, of course) to guide the single queue that forms in order to order. The labyrinthine area, […]
Israel to Recognize Same-Gender Marriage
n a precedent-setting ruling, the High Court of Justice on Tuesday ruled that five gay couples wedded outside of Israel can be registered as married couples. A sweeping majority of six justices to one ruled that the civil marriages of five gay couples obtained in Toronto, Canada, can appear as married on the population registry. […]
I'll Be President When Pigs Fly
Newt Gingrich:* I am not 'running' for president. I am seeking to create a movement to win the future by offering a series of solutions so compelling that if the American people say I have to be president, it will happen. I'm thinking that this should best be read accompanied by "Torch Song #1 (Newt)" […]
In: All, Raised Eyebrows Dept.
No Xmas Sales — We're Christian
With the sounds of the cannons of the War on Xmas# booming in the background, Pat Boone had this bit of praise* for Wal*Mart: This year, instead of bowing and kowtowing to militant atheist and super liberal "political correctness," so-called, I'm thrilled to see that Wal-Mart has banished "the Grinch" that threatened to steal Christmas, […]
In: All, Raised Eyebrows Dept.
Gore on 9/11 & Bush
The following bit of exchange is between one Lisa DePaulo, for GQ Magazine, and Al Gore, from an interview ("Al Gore: Movie Star") published online. I will admit that I was not overwhelmed by the depth of the questions asked by Ms. DePaulo, but I found this exchange illuminating: Okay, on to 9-11. What were […]
South Africa Leads US on Marriage Equality
Not so long ago — within my living memory at least — it would have been the height of absurdity to suggest that South Africa, the home of apartheid, might take a more progressive position on human rights than the US. But, times change, and South Africa takes its progressive stance on human rights quite […]
Beard of the Week XXI: Renaissance Polyphony
This time I'm in the mood for some Renaissance polyphony, brought to us tonight by one of its masters, Heinrich Schütz, whose rather stylish and stylized beard is featured in the two portraits at right. In fact, if it helps you get in the mood, we are listening to a recording of choral music by […]
In: All, Beard of the Week, Music & Art