Category Archives: Culture

Why You Should Read Books

Posted on 20 September 2022 by Mark R. Kelly

Busy day today, including dialogue about the future of Locus Magazine, so here it is 5:23pm and I have time only for a very brief post. Jerry Coyne: Why you should read books

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Themes that Go Together; Nonexistent Gods

Posted on 13 September 2022 by Mark R. Kelly

NYT, Paul Krugman, 12 Sept 2022: Ukraine Deflates MAGA Macho Myths

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Conservatives Against Change, Even as the Planet Burns

Posted on 19 August 2022 by Mark R. Kelly

NYT, Paul Krugman, 15 Aug 2022: Why Republicans Turned Against the Environment In 1990 Congress passed an amendment to the Clean Air Act of 1970, among other things taking action against acid rain, urban smog and ozone. The legislation was … Continue reading →

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Today’s Headlines and Backlogged Links

Posted on 12 August 2022 by Mark R. Kelly

The Atlantic, Tom McTague, 12 Aug 2022: What America’s Great Unwinding Would Mean for the World, subtitled, “The conundrum facing America’s allies is how to cope with a great imperial power in decline that is still a great imperial power.” … Continue reading →

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Facebook Memes: Conspiracy Theories; Ignorant People

Posted on 5 August 2022 by Mark R. Kelly

Quick post for this afternoon; I’m working a long post about the next story my Facebook reading group will address on Sunday, concerning a novella by Walter Jon Williams, and I’m taking the opportunity while revisiting these older stories by … Continue reading →

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Demographic Studies: Red v Blue, Abortions, Social Services, and Mortality Gaps

Posted on 30 July 2022 by Mark R. Kelly

Two items today that fit neatly together. They are illustrations of demographic trends that seem always to align. Red states, religion, support for authoritarian politicians, disapproval of abortion, disapproval of certain books, distrust of science, and lack of social services. … Continue reading →

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Polarization and the Pace of Change

Posted on 17 July 2022 by Mark R. Kelly

The New Yorker, Elizabeth Kolbert, January 3 & 10, 2022 issue: How Politics Got So Polarized Subtitled: “In a new era of hyperpartisan identities, can anything bring ‘us’ and ‘them’ together?”

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Links, Quotes, and Comments, Today 14 July 2022

Posted on 14 July 2022 by Mark R. Kelly

Red States and Abortion Bans; Religious Nuttery; How Fox News fakes it; Conservatives attempts to turn back the cultural clock; What Proud Boys and their wives want

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Galaxies Like Grains of Sand

Posted on 13 July 2022 by Mark R. Kelly

Two topics today. About the James Webb Telescope photos; and about why people feel the world is broken. I chimed in on Facebook on Monday with a link to this image, as many of my Fb friends were doing, only … Continue reading →

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Orwellian “Freedoms”

Posted on 12 July 2022 by Mark R. Kelly

The Atlantic, Ronald Brownstein, 8 July 2022: The Glaring Contradiction of Republicans’ Rhetoric of Freedom, subtitled, “Democratic governors are showing the national party how to challenge the red states’ rollback of rights.” Republicans say freedoms for me, prohibitions for thee.

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