Category Archives: Culture

Fixes for Elections Are Available, and SF Fans Have Been Using Them for Decades

Posted on Saturday 6 June 2026 by Mark R. Kelly

Voting patterns and conservative conspiracy theories; Trump pardons a GOP Rep, because as a conservative he must have been “unfairly treated”; Elections fixes, which sf fans have adopted, and which Republicans would resist, since they currently have an advantage; How … Continue reading →

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More about Conservatives, Tear-Downs, and Greed; plus Tax Breaks

Posted on Thursday 4 June 2026 by Mark R. Kelly

Conservatives: A Christian snowflake says the mere sight of a Pride flag violates his religious beliefs; the demonic UFOs guy has been removed; how fascists think everyone in history much be portrayed as white Europeans (this is about the new … Continue reading →

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How Americans Don’t Realize How the World Views the US

Posted on Sunday 31 May 2026 by Mark R. Kelly

Andrew O’Hehir: Do Americans realize how much the world hates us? Ross Douthat: The best news in America — rapidly falling crime rates; Short items about the murder of 60 Minutes; Trump’s extreme intelligence, rally on the mall, and mental … Continue reading →

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Today’s Words of Wisdom

Posted on Friday 29 May 2026 by Mark R. Kelly

Richard Dawkins defends being a “cultural Christian” and suggests being a cultural scientist, appreciating the grandeur of our “increasingly understood universe”; Bertrand Russell suggested that intelligent people are those who see the world as it is, not as they would … Continue reading →

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Dealing with Inevitable Change

Posted on Tuesday 5 May 2026 by Mark R. Kelly

How to deal with long-term population decline; Astrology, sigh; A Christian phone network to block reality; Long essay about how Paul, not Jesus, founded Christianity, as many of us already understand; Short items about Republican censorship, lies, the tests for … Continue reading →

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Anthropology as another perspective on the world

Posted on Saturday 2 May 2026 by Mark R. Kelly

How anthropology informs an understanding of the world; Short items on Trump’s latest science purge, defenses of white supremacy, Trump’s lie about the some YMCA, and Trump’s sons getting rich off government contracts – – – Well, to the degree … Continue reading →

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Is Islam the Best Alternative to Modernity?

Posted on Friday 1 May 2026 by Mark R. Kelly

What Trump’s latest attempted assassin reveals about modern American life; How right-wing influencers are now praising Islam, as an alternative to liberal modernity; – – – Trying to get a handle on the latest would-be presidential assassin. Slate, Luke Winkie, … Continue reading →

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Twilight of the Gods?

Posted on Tuesday 28 April 2026 by Mark R. Kelly

Pondering how to live in a era without religious assumptions; A related theme in Arthur C. Clarke’s The Songs of Distant Earth; Timothy Snyder on superpower suicide; distrust of the current administration; confused thoughts about racism from the right; And … Continue reading →

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Change For the Better, vs. Sunk Cost

Posted on Friday 24 April 2026 by Mark R. Kelly

John McWhorter: Don’t pronounce the T in ‘often’; How an American living abroad realizes the problems with America; Why we’re stuck with a religious calendar. – – – My favorite pet peeve. NY Times, John McWhorter, yesterday: What’s Better Left … Continue reading →

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What Western Civilization is Actually About

Posted on Saturday 14 March 2026 by Mark R. Kelly

Francis Fukuyama, responding to Marco Rubio, on how Western Civilization is more about the Enlightenment than religious faith; And Boston Globe via Steven Pinker on that Tennessee congressman’s anti-Muslim screed; Briefly noted items about Trump’s shoe tests and their Soviet … Continue reading →

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