I have always been sickened by the people who are always talking about the greatness of America. I believe they are airheads who know nothing about American history. Personally I don’t think a nation can be called great while its citizens condone the branding of human beings. So while America […]
We’re going to see a lot in the news about executive privilege as the Bush administration seeks to protect those who are guilty of torture and other repugnant offenses. And as my hero, Rachel Maddow, has pointed out, we have a government that is not only based on laws, but […]
At one point during the US campaign in Italy during WWII, Don Whitehead of the Associated Press dropped in on Ernie Pyle of Scripps-Howard. He knew Ernie had been feeling depressed. The campaign was far slower and more costly than anyone had anticipated, Whitehead writes, “and the strain began to […]
My parents and I met Michelle and Barack Obama in Conway, New Hampshire, last summer at a rally at Kennett High School. I remember I told a bunch of Lyndon Larouche zombies, “Lyndon Larouche is a nutcase who thinks the queen of England runs a worldwide drug ring. You should […]
I was very surprised to learn that the two most accomplished scientists I know don’t know about the Mandelbrot Set. I have known about it for a long time, and recently saw a great show about it on PBS while I was pedaling on the stationary bike at the health […]
I’ve been looking for escapist reading lately and greatly enjoyed Thank You Mr. Moto by J.P. Marquand. That whole series is very entertaining and well researched. Mr. Moto represents the peace faction in Japan, which is trying to keep the war faction from taking power. Didn’t work, but entertaining nonetheless. […]
I applaud all those who are dedicated to teaching children, but I don’t think anyone can teach children unless they are able also to learn from them. When you learn something from a child — and kids in school today learn, if they want to, ten times as much as […]
My Google ranking recently dropped to zero, I’m sad to say, but it illustrates a fundamental principle of search engines: the absolute ranking only gives you a comparison to other websites in a very general way. It cannot predict how your web address will fare on specific keyword searches.For example, […]
This blog is dedicated to second hand books, but I confess I went to a bookstore and ordered The Limits to Power by Andrew Bacevich. You may know him. He was the guy being interviewed on Bill Moyers on PBS saying our country was nearing a day of reckoning because […]
I buy lots of old editions of American Heritage. It’s always interesting, and you often find really terrific stories. I picked up June 1966 and found the letters home from Barna Upton, a young man from Charlemont who enlisted in the army in 1845 out of a “spirit of adventure […]