Unless you lived near Broadway most of your life and had a fair amount of disposable income, you’ve probably been introduced to most great American musicals through the form of a movie. Later, if fortunate, you were able to see a live theatrical production to determine how well the movie honored its source. Regardless of how well the movie held to its source material, the … [Read more...] about A Review of Seattle’s 5th Avenue Theatre Production of Into the Woods
What is a UFO? The US shot down three mysterious objects as interest and concern increase over unidentified craft
Is it a bird? A plane? A suspected Chinese spy balloon? Peter Zay/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images Wendy Whitman Cobb, Air University On the heels of the Feb. 4, 2023, shooting down of a Chinese balloon suspected of spying on the U.S., American fighter jets have shot down three additional objects in or near U.S. airspace. When the media asked Glen … [Read more...] about What is a UFO? The US shot down three mysterious objects as interest and concern increase over unidentified craft
UNDERESTIMATE BIDEN AT YOUR OWN POLITICAL PERIL
Let’s face it, when Fox News gives Democrat a B+, you know they really delivered an exceptional performance. That was the grade the rabidly right-wing media network gave President Biden on his State of the Union address. As someone who usually doesn’t watch these annual speeches to the nation, I did buck my previous trend and decided to tune in for this one. Admittedly, I … [Read more...] about UNDERESTIMATE BIDEN AT YOUR OWN POLITICAL PERIL
Rarely seen Book of Mormon movie, ‘Corianton: A Story of Unholy Love, 1931, packs BYU’s Varsity Theater
Review/observations by Doug Gibson For about a couple decades, I had longed to view the early sound film "based" on a segment of The Book of Mormon. It's "Corianton: A Story of Unholy Love," 1931. With artistic license, it tells of Alma's somewhat troublesome son, Corianton, and his involvement with the harlot, Isabel. This is all part of Alma's letters to Corianton in Book … [Read more...] about Rarely seen Book of Mormon movie, ‘Corianton: A Story of Unholy Love, 1931, packs BYU’s Varsity Theater
Five years after Parkland shooting, a school psychologist offers insights on helping students and teachers deal with grief
Simply returning to a school where a shooting took place can be a struggle for many students. fstop123 via Getty Images Philip J. Lazarus, Florida International University Whenever a school shooting takes place, school officials often arrange for grief counseling services to be made available for whoever needs them. But what exactly do those services … [Read more...] about Five years after Parkland shooting, a school psychologist offers insights on helping students and teachers deal with grief
Has Nikki Haley “thrown it all away?”
How far once-rising traditional conservative Republican stars have fallen. From evolution to devolution. A case in point: former South Carolna Gov. Nikki Haley. Once upon a time she seemed to be an independent-thinking conservative Republican up-and coming politician. Now she has become Marco Rubio-ized. She's eemingly one more GOPer who has her finger up in the wind to see … [Read more...] about Has Nikki Haley “thrown it all away?”
How to Have an Intelligent Chat with ChatGPT
By now everyone has heard of the latest AI “tool”: ChatGPT This author has tried it a couple of times with interesting results. The first time, I posed questions to the chatbot about a new U.S. Air Force aircraft. The answers were quite good, and they could have easily been turned into an “original” essay. The second time, in an “interview” with the AI tool, I … [Read more...] about How to Have an Intelligent Chat with ChatGPT
Elon Musk Whips The Hellespont
The statue that inspired Keats' "Ozymandias" Platformer reports ... On Tuesday, Musk gathered a group of engineers and advisors into a room at Twitter’s headquarters looking for answers. Why are his engagement numbers tanking? “This is ridiculous,” he said, according to multiple sources with direct knowledge of the meeting. “I have more than 100 million followers, and I’m … [Read more...] about Elon Musk Whips The Hellespont
Why taxing cow burps isn’t the best climate solution
Cows generate methane as they digest their food. It’s a potent greenhouse gas. Westend61 via Getty Images Kevin Trenberth, University of Auckland New Zealand, where agriculture is one of the largest contributors to climate change, is proposing a tax on cow burps. The reason seems simple enough: Cows release methane, a potent greenhouse gas, and New … [Read more...] about Why taxing cow burps isn’t the best climate solution
SOTU HECKLER (CARTOON, COLUMN AND VIDEO)
This year’s State of the Union speech to Congress was interesting, to say the least. In fact, it may have even been exciting. What? I wasn’t looking forward to watching and considered skipping it and catching the highlights later. In fact, since my TV is on news 90% of the time, I just had it on mute when the speech started. I had already heard all the warmups and I was … [Read more...] about SOTU HECKLER (CARTOON, COLUMN AND VIDEO)
The Day After the State of the Union Address
I was drafting another piece on all the hullaballoo(n) about the Chinese balloon and was planning to write one about the hubbub last night during the State of the Union address, when a post on Facebook caught my attention and put it all into (temporary) perspective. The post is a list of changes an unknown person “who has crossed 70 and is heading towards 80” is feeling … [Read more...] about The Day After the State of the Union Address
ARE YOU REALLY SURPRISED BY JOE BIDEN’S IMPRESSIVE STATE OF THE UNION?
The State of the Union is usually a useless stale slog that turns healthy brain cells to mush. Charlie Cook, the veteran Washington pundit, got it right some years ago when he said of the State of the Union, “On my deathbed, watching it will be on the long list of hours that I will wish I could retrieve and spend doing almost anything else.” But this week’s State of the … [Read more...] about ARE YOU REALLY SURPRISED BY JOE BIDEN’S IMPRESSIVE STATE OF THE UNION?
Biden urges US blue-collar resurgence in feisty Congress speech
Published by AFPWashington (AFP) - President Joe Biden urged unity and touted a blue-collar economic resurgence Tuesday in a rousing State of the Union speech before a raucous Congress that doubled as a bid to persuade voters he still has what it takes to seek reelection at age 80. The Democrat, who has been written off even by some supporters as too old, gave as good as he got … [Read more...] about Biden urges US blue-collar resurgence in feisty Congress speech
MATERIAL BOY TUCKER (CARTOON AND COLUMN)
Republicans, conservatives, right-wing talking heads, MAGAts, goons, and morons are still screaming and howling at President Joe Biden for “allowing” the Chinese Spy Balloon to fly across our nation from Alaska to South Carolina. But by all accounts, President Biden handled the situation in a very presidential manner. The balloon was not a physical danger to anyone by flying … [Read more...] about MATERIAL BOY TUCKER (CARTOON AND COLUMN)
TERRIFYING VIDEOS CHRONICLE MASSIVE TURKEY-SYRIA EARTHQUAKE (VIDEOS)
To really understand the horrofic, 7.6 earthquake that struck Turkey and Syria that took more than 2600 lives go to You Tube or TikTok. TV and cable news is only getting across a portion of the catastrophe. TikTok's short videos are popping up as you read this and longer videos are now all over You Tube. Here are some YouTube videos and reports: The second … [Read more...] about TERRIFYING VIDEOS CHRONICLE MASSIVE TURKEY-SYRIA EARTHQUAKE (VIDEOS)
HOT AIR ESPIONAGE (CARTOON)
The Case for Three Year Congressional Terms
For years, there has been considerable discussion about Congressional term limits to reduce corruption, the power of incumbency, and the influence of lobbyists on members of Congress. Term limits would also introduce new and younger members into Congress, where the average age now is close to sixty. However, another way to reform the House of Representatives, with or without … [Read more...] about The Case for Three Year Congressional Terms
Death of GOP talking point: Chinese spy balloons flew over U.S. three times unimpeded under Trump
When the Chinese spy balloon was shot down by the U.S. military it seemingly deep-sixed a Republican attack narrative used by some members of Congress, conservatives on social media andonservative political entertainment media talk show hosts. It turns out that Joe Biden wasn't not acting earlier in the week: he gave the Pentagon the order to shoot it down when it would be … [Read more...] about Death of GOP talking point: Chinese spy balloons flew over U.S. three times unimpeded under Trump
F-22 Raptor Shoots Down Chinese Balloon with a Single AIM-9X Missile
At 2:39 p.m. February 4, An F-22 Raptor Fighter flying at 58,000 feet shot down the Chinese spy balloon with a single AIM-9X supersonic, heat-seeking, air-to-air missile. The following is a U.S. Department of Defense news release: President Joe Biden ordered the action on Wednesday, but it was delayed until the balloon was over water off the coast of South Carolina to … [Read more...] about F-22 Raptor Shoots Down Chinese Balloon with a Single AIM-9X Missile
Chinese spy balloon over the US: An aerospace expert explains how the balloons work and what they can see
U.S. Air Force Brig. Gen. Patrick Ryder briefed the media about the Chinese spy balloon over the U.S. AP Photo/Alex Brandon Iain Boyd, University of Colorado Boulder Officials of the U.S. Department of Defense confirmed on Feb. 2, 2023, that the military was tracking what it called a “spy balloon” that was drifting over the continental United States … [Read more...] about Chinese spy balloon over the US: An aerospace expert explains how the balloons work and what they can see