By Steve D. Stones Flash Gordon – The Brain Machine – Season One – episode 21. Aired March 11th, 1955. The Mad Witch of Neptune, also known as the Mighty Zidarene, forces Dr. Hans Zarkov and Commander Paul Richards to release a deadly methane gas on the planet Neptune. Zarkov and Richards are then placed under Zidarene's Brain Machine on Saturn to empty their minds of … [Read more...] about Cult TV includes Flash Gordon, Land of the Lost, Star Trek …
Our president wants to put up a “No Vacancies” sign for non-white immigrants
WASHINGTON -- The Trump administration has manufactured and exacerbated an immigration "crisis" to further the president's most consistent goal: to Make America White Again. Tens of thousands of Central American asylum-seekers, even hundreds of thousands, do not constitute a serious crisis -- not for a continent-spanning nation of 330 million, a nation built through … [Read more...] about Our president wants to put up a “No Vacancies” sign for non-white immigrants
Tired Workers Cost America Billions Annually. Why Are We So Tired?
America is a place where people strive. Our founding fathers, catastrophically flawed as they were, strove to build a nation that was better than the one they'd left behind. Every subsequent generation has solidified this country as a place where we earn our keep and contribute to the whole. There was an inflection point, though, which is far behind us now in the rearview … [Read more...] about Tired Workers Cost America Billions Annually. Why Are We So Tired?
Notre Dame Fire (Cartoon)
Cartoon: Holy Moly – Notre Dame
Our parties need to learn the opposite lessons
WASHINGTON -- It would save pixels, ink and talking time if we all agreed on the obvious: Democrats are more divided than Republicans and will remain so for the foreseeable future. What matters is everything else you say once this reality is acknowledged. First, the facts: Democrats are more diverse than Republicans in almost every imaginable way: racially, ethnically, … [Read more...] about Our parties need to learn the opposite lessons
Department of Conspiracies (Cartoon and Column)
Russia helped Donald Trump win the presidency. They created troll farms and bombed social media with fake stories to promote Trump. They bought ads to help Trump. They hacked the servers of the Democratic National Committee and the Clinton Campaign. They contacted the Trump campaign. They sent representatives to Trump Tower to meet with Trump’s son, son-in-law and campaign … [Read more...] about Department of Conspiracies (Cartoon and Column)
How the alt-right corrupts the Constitution
The Constitution is interpreted differently by the alt-right. Shutterstock/Joseph Sohm John E. Finn, Wesleyan University About 10 years ago, I spent a sabbatical on the Maine coast writing a book about the Constitution. One afternoon, an eager reference librarian who knew about my interests invited me to a talk at the library. The featured speaker … [Read more...] about How the alt-right corrupts the Constitution
The danger of viewing politics as a team sport
By MICHAEL GERSON Washington Post Writers Group WASHINGTON -- There not being nearly enough discussion of chariot racing in American politics, it is worth recalling the story of the Greens and the Blues. These were the two main racing teams of the Byzantine Empire, and they generated considerable sporting enthusiasm. A clash of their fans in the riots of the year 501 took … [Read more...] about The danger of viewing politics as a team sport
It’s the season for treason, according to Trump
This must be the season for treason. In the Oval Office on Thursday afternoon, President Trump gave a lesson on American justice to the visiting South Korean president. Speaking about the Mueller investigation and its origins, Trump said: "This is actually treason." This wasn't offhand. On Wednesday, Trump tweeted that the probe was a "Treasonous Hoax" and that "what the … [Read more...] about It’s the season for treason, according to Trump
DEATH BY A THOUSAND CUTS
It is troubling to think that one half of the American electorate might be playing by a different set of rules than the other half. We all have the same needs: we all need better paying jobs as Kamala Harris says; we all need better and more affordable healthcare as Bernie Sanders says; and we all need more income equality as Elizabeth Warren says. Then why aren’t these … [Read more...] about DEATH BY A THOUSAND CUTS
A snapshot of science’s power to amaze
WASHINGTON -- Forget everything else for a moment and behold infinity. On Wednesday, scientists unveiled a fuzzy image that should blow every mind on the planet: the first-ever picture of a black hole, which is a region of space so dense that nothing can escape its gravitational pull, not even light. Black holes were predicted by Albert Einstein's theory of general … [Read more...] about A snapshot of science’s power to amaze
Is 75 the new 65? Wealthy countries need to rethink what it means to be old
Living longer and loving it. oneinchpunch/shutterstock.com Warren Sanderson, Stony Brook University (The State University of New York) and Sergei Scherbov, Russian Presidential Academy of National Economy and Public Administration In 1950, men and women at age 65 could expect to live about 11 years more on average. Today, that number has gone up … [Read more...] about Is 75 the new 65? Wealthy countries need to rethink what it means to be old
(UPDATE) Whatever Happened to ‘Embassy Cat’?
UPDATE: Embassy Cat appears to be safe and well and purr-fectly well informed of Assange’s “comings and goings.” In a video posted today by WikiLeaks, Embassy Cat can be seen purr-ched in front of a TV screen showing footage of Assange being carried out of the Ecuadorean Embassy in London. Embassy Cat, however, seems more interested in perhaps catching a fly than … [Read more...] about (UPDATE) Whatever Happened to ‘Embassy Cat’?
Trump and the Smallpox Blankets
UPDATED BELOW Trump wants to drop off southern border detainees in "Sanctuary Cities." And no one even blinks. Just another crazy news story in another crazy news cycle. beg to differ. This is one of the most horrific and consequential acts of an already horrific and consequential presi-dfunce-y thus far. And we would do well to cultivate our outrage. Trump's plan to send … [Read more...] about Trump and the Smallpox Blankets
Cartoon: Old Barr Game
Candace Owens’ presence turned a serious inquiry into a farce
WASHINGTON -- The new Democratic House majority held a hearing Tuesday on the rise of white nationalism, following the mosques massacre in New Zealand, the Pittsburgh synagogue killings and the deadly neo-Nazi march in Charlottesville. Republicans invited Candace Owens to testify. That would be the Candace Owens whom the alleged perpetrator of the New Zealand atrocity … [Read more...] about Candace Owens’ presence turned a serious inquiry into a farce
Does moral leadership lost under Trump matter?
Donald Trump has (seemingly easily) discarded many longtime norms and one of them is the Oval Office and America seen by many as symbols of moral leadership. Does this matter? Martin Longman gives this take: As things have taken a darker and darker turn in our country, and really throughout the world, in the last two decades, I’ve come to see moral leadership as more and … [Read more...] about Does moral leadership lost under Trump matter?
There is more to the Church than it’s Roman Catholic branch.
In an article about Roman Catholicism, Charles F. McElwee writes the following. "Catholicism has entered a dark period in America. The Church’s disgraceful handling of sexual-abuse scandals—with shocking new reports routinely emerging—plays a direct role in shrinking congregations and closed churches, especially in the Rust Belt. These revelations have shown an institution … [Read more...] about There is more to the Church than it’s Roman Catholic branch.
Putin Summary (Cartoon, Column and Video)
I’m a cartoonist which means I don’t do math well, but I do know two plus two equals four. Here’s another equation that’s not difficult to decipher: When Donald Trump goes from “release the Mueller Report” to “don’t release it,” and his toady Attorney General William Barr won’t confirm if the White House has seen it yet, that means Trump has seen it. At the very least, someone … [Read more...] about Putin Summary (Cartoon, Column and Video)