Category Archives: Personal history

How Rugged Individualists Cannot Solve Global Problems

A note about my trip tomorrow to Austin; How Mike Johnson characterizes Republicans as “rugged individualists,” yet who can still not get along to solve actual problems; How Trump’s policies would increase inflation, and his fans haven’t noticed; More about … Continue reading

Posted in Morality, Personal history, Politics, Psychology | Comments Off on How Rugged Individualists Cannot Solve Global Problems

Somber News

I don’t want to make this too personal, or reveal too much personal information. Just to convey a lesson. Six months ago now, I announced that an old friend of mine, Larry Kramer, who’d moved to Texas in 2006 and … Continue reading

Posted in Personal history | Comments Off on Somber News

The poorly educated and the “cognishly umpired”

A Tom Gauld cartoon illustrating tribalism — “Our Blessed Homeland” vs. “Their Barbarous Wastes”; Anti-woke teachers in public schools; Abrahm Lustgarten on the American climate migration (which applies to the wider world, of course); More from John Gartner about Trump’s … Continue reading

Posted in Personal history, Science, Tribalism | Comments Off on The poorly educated and the “cognishly umpired”

Slouching

Fascinating piece about a new book Slouch, about the curious preoccupation with posture, at least in America; Short items about Trump’s dumb attorneys; Christian rallies against the LGBTQs; why Trump’s “Christian Visibility Day” illustrates Christians’ persecution complex; and that traffic … Continue reading

Posted in Culture, Personal history | Comments Off on Slouching

Healthy, Yet Furrowing My Eyebrows

Today, another trip into the city, to CMPC, to see one of the cardiologists and status my health, two years and eight months after my heart transplant. Had bloodwork done last Friday, and chest X-ray, and echo-cardiogram done today just … Continue reading

Posted in Personal history, Politics, Religion | Leave a comment

At the Edge of the Continent

Today my partner and I finished setting up my chic new curved widescreen monitor (a Christmas present), replacing the two standard-sized monitors I was using before. This new monitor (technically a “gaming” monitor) shows roughly the equivalent of three of … Continue reading

Posted in Conservative Resistance, Music, Personal history, Politics | Leave a comment

Backing Into Philosophy: Stipulations

I do have another batch of links about current events, but I’ll save them for this weekend and instead spend tonight’s blog post jotting down thoughts about philosophy. I mentioned back on Jan 6th that one of my resolutions for … Continue reading

Posted in Personal history, Philosophy | Leave a comment

Now is Greater Than the Whole of the Past

Three items about how conservatives resist solving problems if those solutions would benefit the Democrats; A survey of readers, books they’ve read, books they own, and some of my own statistics; And R.E.M.’s song “She Just Wants to Be” which … Continue reading

Posted in Conservative Resistance, conservatives, Music, Personal history | Leave a comment

Addendum to Yesterday; Daily Dressing

Two items today. First, I added a few paragraphs to my philosophical speculations at the end of yesterday’s post. Second, another life hack post (following the one yesterday about phone call etiquette). Slate, Fortesa Latifi, 7 Jan 2024: Wear the … Continue reading

Posted in Personal history, Philosophy | Leave a comment

Phone Calls, Denials, and Reading Philosophy

Phone call etiquette; Denial of the Jan. 6 Insurrection, despite receipts; How denial of evolution resembles current efforts to deny democracy; And some thoughts about reading philosophy. Still under the weather; perhaps by Monday I’ll have the energy to get … Continue reading

Posted in Culture, Personal history, Philosophy, Politics, The Book | Leave a comment