The eve of the first day of autumn at the mountain retreat began with a stroll to the road and our mailbox under a sunlit canopy of leaves just beginning to turn to the sublime reds, oranges, yellows and browns of the season. The mailbox disgorged a phone bill, the new issue of Vanity Fair ("Hell in the Ebola Hot Zone!"), several advertising circulars and some dragon smoke. … [Read more...] about Pondering The Obamalypse, What Hummingbirds Tells Us & Other Musings On The Autumnal Equinox
Cartoon: White House Break In
See great cartoons by all the top political cartoonists at http://cagle.com. To license this cartoon for your own site, visit http://politicalcartoons.com … [Read more...] about Cartoon: White House Break In
Study finds people attracted to the smell of those with the same politics
Politics stink? Maybe. A new study reveals that people are attracted to the smell of others with similar political opinions - an idea that also helps explain why so many couples share political views. This is no random conclusion. Researchers from three major universities persuaded 125 participants to evaluate the body odor of 21 "strong" liberal… … [Read more...] about Study finds people attracted to the smell of those with the same politics
Chief Justice Roberts: Scalia, Ginsburg wouldn’t be confirmed today
Chief Justice John Roberts has now pretty much confirmed what many American independent, centrist and moderate voters have more than suspected: if Justice Anton Scalia or Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg had been nominated today, they wouldn't get confirmed: United States Chief Justice John Roberts told a Nebraska audience he worries the partisanship that grips Washington … [Read more...] about Chief Justice Roberts: Scalia, Ginsburg wouldn’t be confirmed today
Christie Not Off The Hook Yet On Bridgegate
I had previously predicted that Chris Christie has a better chance of winding up in a federal penitentiary than the White House. I thought my prediction had fallen apart yesterday when reports, stemming from an NBC News story, claimed that federal prosecutors had given up on connecting him to the closing of the bridges. This didn’t seem implausible. It is certainly possible … [Read more...] about Christie Not Off The Hook Yet On Bridgegate
SciFi Weekend: Doctor Who; Outlander; Extant and You’re The Worst Finales; Pineapple Mystery From How I Met Your Mother Solved; Gillian Jacobs Gets New Show; Supergirl; Suicide Squad; Star Trek
Saturday night featured The Wedding on Outlander while Doctor Who combined at least two old plot ideas. On the surface, Time Heist is a classic Ocean's Eleven bank robbery, plus throw in a little of The Bourne Identity. It was obvious something big would happen after the Doctor said, "It's just a phone Clara, nothing happens when you answer the phone." Suddenly there were four … [Read more...] about SciFi Weekend: Doctor Who; Outlander; Extant and You’re The Worst Finales; Pineapple Mystery From How I Met Your Mother Solved; Gillian Jacobs Gets New Show; Supergirl; Suicide Squad; Star Trek
On the Internet There’s No Such Thing as a True Science Denier
On the Internet There's No Such Thing as a True Science Denier By Tina Dupuy Science isn't like religion in that you can't just pick and choose the science you don't concur with. You can't, say, believe in evolution, but not for species you think are gross. Or think gravity is a sound theory but it only pertains to left-handed Oregonians. Or accept atomic theory but only … [Read more...] about On the Internet There’s No Such Thing as a True Science Denier
Packing Your Nose With Pork Strips Stops Nosebleeds: ‘Improbable Research’
Believe it or not, there are legitimate Nobel prizes out there for scientists who make bizarre and seemingly silly — but important — discoveries. They’re called Ig Nobel Prizes, and this year’s winners studied a wide array of fun topics from reindeers to the slippery-ness of banana peels. The Ig Nobel Prizes are also known for… … [Read more...] about Packing Your Nose With Pork Strips Stops Nosebleeds: ‘Improbable Research’
L. E. Modesitt, Jr. and Science Fiction Morality Plays
The morality play is as old as literature itself. One of my favorite Science Fiction authors is L. E. Modesitt, Jr. In his Parafaith Novels he asks the question when is OK to destroy a planet and kill billions of people to save billions of people in the rest of the universe. In his novel Gravity Dreams he asks how much freedom are we willing to give up for social stability. … [Read more...] about L. E. Modesitt, Jr. and Science Fiction Morality Plays
Kansas Supreme Court Keeps Kansas In Play For Control Of Senate
It continues to look like Kansas might have a bearing on which party controls the Senate. As I previously discussed, with the Democratic candidate dropping out of the Kansas Senate race, independent Greg Orman has a real chance of defeating Republican Pat Roberts. Multiple polls have showed Orman defeating Roberts in a head to head race, but Roberts led in a three way race. … [Read more...] about Kansas Supreme Court Keeps Kansas In Play For Control Of Senate
U.S. Military Mission to Fight Ebola: What Does Victory Look Like?
[icopyright one button toolbar] In an August 22 column on the Ebola crisis, we noted that the current outbreak of Ebola in West Africa — “the worst in recorded history” — had claimed 1,350 lives. Less than a month later the World Health Organization reports that the number of people in West Africa who have contracted and died from Ebola has doubled to 2,622. On … [Read more...] about U.S. Military Mission to Fight Ebola: What Does Victory Look Like?
What Will U.S. Forces Do With ISIS Prisoners?
Washington’s ramped up war on the Islamic State looks like an airliner lifting off the runway with mechanics still working on the wings. Among the many unresolved issues in the campaign to “degrade and destroy” ISIS, as it’s generally known, is what to do with prisoners in Iraq or Syria, should American special operators or U.S.-backed… … [Read more...] about What Will U.S. Forces Do With ISIS Prisoners?
Why is a total dunderhead the Speaker of the House?
Why is a total dunderhead the Speaker of the House? Because we're dunderheads, too? Okay, here's what happens when a Boehner meets economist: John Boehner says that unemployed Americans are pretty clearly malingerers, bums on welfare who have decided that they don’t feel like working: “This idea that has been born, maybe out of the economy over the last couple … [Read more...] about Why is a total dunderhead the Speaker of the House?
Cartoons: World cartoonists look at Scotland vote
World cartoonists are weighing in on Scotland's decision to stay in the U.K. Here's a cross section of the many cartoons: \ "Find the Difference" See great cartoons by all the top political cartoonists at http://cagle.com. To license these cartoons and others for your own site, visit http://politicalcartoons.com … [Read more...] about Cartoons: World cartoonists look at Scotland vote
Cartoon: NFL Hits of the Week
See great cartoons by all the top political cartoonists at http://cagle.com. To license this cartoon for your own site, visit http://politicalcartoons.com … [Read more...] about Cartoon: NFL Hits of the Week
PROOF Right-Wingers Hate EVERYTHING Obama Does: Now Criticizing Plan to Eradicate Ebola! (Guest Voice with Video)
Just how bad is the politicization of everything these days? In their stampede to criticize Obama for daring to exist, the right-wing is now attacking his policy to help handle the Ebola pandemic in West Africa. In response to the pandemic in West Africa, President Obama traveled to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in… … [Read more...] about PROOF Right-Wingers Hate EVERYTHING Obama Does: Now Criticizing Plan to Eradicate Ebola! (Guest Voice with Video)
Russians Must Prepare for Lengthy Stand-Off with the United States (Izvestia, Russia)
Is there a solution to the Ukraine crisis short of all-out war in the heart of Europe? For Russia's Izvestia, Sergei Karaganov, chairman of Russia's Council for Foreign and Defense Policy, lays out the challenges for Moscow as it seeks to navigate difficult sanctions imposed by the United States and its allies, endure long enough to weaken the basis of U.S. power, and overcome … [Read more...] about Russians Must Prepare for Lengthy Stand-Off with the United States (Izvestia, Russia)
Arsenic-Laced Coffee Good for You
by Walter Brasch You’re sitting in your favorite restaurant one balmy September morning. Your waitress brings a pot of coffee and a standard 5-ounce cup. “Would you like cream and sugar with it?” she asks. You drink your coffee black. And hot. You decline her offer. “Would you like arsenic with it?” she asks. Arsenic? You’re baffled. And more than a little … [Read more...] about Arsenic-Laced Coffee Good for You
Isaac Asimov
When I was in high school all so many decades ago I received this huge volume of Isaac Asimov's Foundation Trilogy. I devoured it like a hungry lion and read it many times. A couple of decades later when I was in my my mid thirties Asimov wrote three sequels and a prequel which proved to be more rewarding than the the original trilogy. I have just finished reading all … [Read more...] about Isaac Asimov
The Military and the NFL Scandal
[icopyright one button toolbar] I am neither a big fan of the National Football League (NFL) nor a big follower of professional football. I watch and follow mostly college football. However, unless one lives under a rock and in Timbuktu, the recent domestic violence incidents in the NFL are bound to have captured everyone’s attention, including this non-NFL fan and the … [Read more...] about The Military and the NFL Scandal