July 2009
1 post
Quote of the Week
The difference between the right word and the almost right word is the difference between lightning and a lightning bug. — Mark Twain
June 2009
4 posts
"Taxes are what we pay for a civilized society" -...
For better or worse, I started reading Perfectly Legal: The Covert Campaign to Rig Our Tax System to Benefit the Super Rich-and Cheat Everybody Else by David Cay Johnston, a pulitzer prize-winning reporter. Being tax illiterate, I thought reading this book would serve two useful purposes: (1) I would learn some of the policy rationales behind tax laws, and (2) I would learn how favorable the tax...
Give me cherries or give me death....
Gaza bonanza By Yotam Feldman and Uri Blau Tags: gaza, israel news Every week, about 10 officers from the Israel Defense Force’s Coordinator of Government Activities in the Territories (COGAT?) unit convene in the white Templer building in the Kirya, the Defense Ministry compound in Tel Aviv, to decide which food products will appear on the tables of the 1.5...
Racism isn't dead →
Man is reduced to a state of infancy when he has...
May 2009
10 posts
Tired of wishes, Empty of dreams. - Carl Sandburg
I couldn’t help but notice how effective the opening sentences of The Working Poor, by David K. Shipler, were:
“The man who washes cars does not own one. The clerk who files cancelled checks at the bank has $202 in her own account. The woman who copy-edits medical textbooks has not been to a dentist in a decade. This is the forgotton America.”
Bizarro →
Sunday Funnies →
Manufacturing Relevancy
Publications like US Weekly corrode the human mind….
I Want to See This →
Thought of the Day
Caribou Coffee has more character than Starbucks. Here’s why:
1) Interior design. I feel like I am in a cabin when I am in Caribou. The lighting is dim. The environment is cozy, quaint, and intimate (e.g., stuffed bear footrest). Starbucks is stale in comparison.
2) Internet is free at Caribou. In order to access the internet, you don’t need to login into a portal, electronically...
May It Please the Court →
All the World's a Stage
By William Shakespeare
(or possibly Edward de Vere: http://online.wsj.com/article/SB123998633934729551.html)
All the world’s a stage, And all the men and women merely players; They have their exits and their entrances, And one man in his time plays many parts, His acts being seven ages. At first, the infant, Mewling and puking in the nurse’s arms. Then the whining schoolboy, with his...
What makes a story newsworthy?
Is this newsworthy?
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,518463,00.html
April 2009
29 posts
Interesting Piece on Humility
From http://www.mindtools.com/pages/article/newLDR_69.htm:
Here are a few suggestions on practicing humility:
There are times when swallowing one’s pride is particularly difficult and any intentions of humility fly out the window, as we get engaged in a contest of perfection, each side seeking to look good. If you find yourself in such no-win ...
An ode to the know-it-alls and their false...
http://www.angry.net/people/k/knowalls.htm
“I've learned that people will forget what you...
Quote of the Day
Ahmed: i quit life.
Double Entendre
Tragic
When Words Can Kill: ‘That’s So Gay’
Anti-Gay Taunts in School Lead to 11-Year-Old’s Suicide and Rising Calls for Change
By SUSAN DONALDSON JAMES
April 14, 2009 —
Carl Joseph Walker-Hoover was 11— hardly old enough to know his sexuality and yet distraught enough to hang himself last week after school bullies repeatedly called him “gay.”
The...
Consumer Right Boiled Down to Defining "a Seat"
United to charge obese for 2nd seat
April 15, 2009 12:09 PM | 210 Comments | UPDATED STORY
Starting today, United Airlines may bump severely overweight passengers from sold-out flights. Passengers who are too large to fit comfortably in single coach seat will be required to buy a second ticket or upgrade to...
A Piece by Frank Wu on Betty Brown's Recent...
My American Name
Ed. Note: Our friend Frank Wu, the former Dean of Wayne State University Law School, is a visiting professor at The George Washington University Law School. He is also the author of Yellow: Race in America Beyond Black and White. His piece was originally posted at Concurring Opinions.
When I was a kid growing up, I wished I were named Smith instead of Wu. I wished I were...
The Case for Pot
The Cannabis Closet
A reader writes:
Since I was a teenager I’ve struggled with bipolar disorder. In the worst craters of depression I’ve driven myself to starvation and self-mutilation. I’ve attempted suicide twice. Traditional therapy never worked because I never gave it a chance. I’m an arrogant and defensive son of a bitch, and self-indulgently preferred my private...
Royksopp - Remind Me (Ernest St. Laurent Moonfish...
Quotable People
There are some people in this world who have an incredible ability to regularly say things that are quotable. Here’s a short, non-exhaustive list of those people:
Vidal Gore
Voltaire
Gandhi
Ahmed Baset
Thought of the Day
One of the greatest indicators of the evolution of a person is the ability to combat and eliminate contempt for others.
Kanye is Humbled by South Park →
Human evolution right before your eyes.
Nujabe — F.I.L.O. (feat. Shing02)
Racelessness in America Piece
Before the flames start flying, I want to say my answer to this question is a definite “No!” The reason I posed this question is because so many white Americans act as if they are “raceless” or “cultureless”. This question first arose in my mind when I was reading the book Why Are All the Black Kids Sitting Together in the Cafeteria?, which described an...
Why do people have blogs?
Songs that make you feel better →
emperorsnewclothes:
Full credit to upal….
Badass mix
Religion or Ethics?
emperorsnewclothes:
This line of thought was sparked by a rabid debate among two friends. The question began as follows: At what point does being a “progressive Muslim” disconnect you from the traditional and fundamental tenets of Islam? Sure. I’m a progressive Christian. I believe in God and Jesus, but I don’t agree with some of the more controversial aspects of Christianity because it’s not...
March 2009
28 posts
Civil Disobedience: Man pays traffic ticket with...
PORTLAND, Ore. — A Washington man tried to pay a more than $200 traffic ticket by sending a plastic bag filled with coins and urine to a county billing office, deputies said.
“That’s something I can’t wrap my mind around,” said Sgt. Phil Anderchuk, of the Multnomah County Sheriff’s Office. “The thought process of acting consciously — consummating...
Absurdity.
This is an outrageous story out of Iowa… Lori Phanachone is a Laotian American high school senior at Storm Lake High School. She’s a member of the National Honor Society, has a 3.9 grade point average, ranks seventh in the her class of 119 and has been offered a number of college scholarships.
But to school officials, she is considered illiterate and has been serving three days of in-school...
Fattest States
GChat Wisdom: Daniel (a frequent gchatter)
Daniel: Did you know that infants don’t develop a sense of self till they are around 6 months Daniel: Arguably they believe themselves to be the universe Daniel: They don’t have a sense of separate self and world Daniel: They ARE reality Daniel: Just like me Daniel: Win
Student Gets Suspended from Riding Bus for...
PUNISHED FOR ‘STINK,’ DISRUPTION
Student Kicked Off Bus Over Passed Gas
By John Chambliss THE LEDGER Published: Wednesday, March 18, 2009 at 10:30 p.m.
LAKELAND | This whole situation stinks for Jonathan Locke Jr.
An eighth-grader at the Bill Duncan Excel Center in South Lakeland, Locke, 15, has been suspended from riding the school bus for three days after being accused of...
Fun Sausage Article
A Good Appetite
An Easy Route to Savory Sausages
By MELISSA CLARK
YEARS ago, I made spicy pork sausages from scratch.
I borrowed the food grinder and sausage stuffer attachments for my KitchenAid mixer from my dad. I ordered salted sheep intestines online and soaked them while I stuffed cold cubes of pork and fat through the grinder. After seasoning the meat, I extruded it into the casings,...