February, 2015 archive
Stray Thought 0
Whoever came up with the idea for those little change pockets on the inside of the front pockets of men’s trousers, which serve only to make change inaccessible to the wearer, deserves swift and merciless retribution.
The Galt and the Lamers 0
Froma Harrop considers the intellectual contortions of Rand Paul’s stance(s) on vaccination. A snippet:
A real libertarian wanting his party’s presidential nomination has only two choices:
- Come clean and acknowledge the cost side of your beliefs. If you think parents have the right not to vaccinate their children, agree that more Americans might come down with preventable diseases as a result. Provocative, perhaps, but honest.
- If you don’t want that controversy tied around your neck, say that you have changed your mind on vaccinations and now hold that they should be required. Not totally honest but at least coherent.
Put into practice, libertarianism can make a mess. If parents have the right to endanger others by not getting their children immunized, why can’t individuals decide whether they’re too drunk to drive?
The core belief of Libertarianism is summed up in the phrase, “because I want to, dammit.”
I Get Mail 0
H/T Susan for the pic.
“No One Expects the Roman Inquisition” 0
The Roanoke Times has found it in Richmond. Here’s a bit from their editorial yesterday.
So how is this like the Roman Inquisition?
House Republicans bring to mind the Congregation of the Roman Inquisition, which in 1633 silenced Galileo about his observations that supported Copernicus’s theory of the previous century: Earth, rotating on its axis every 24 hours, was orbiting the sun. Earth was not the center around which all of the universe spun.
“An Armed Society Is a Polite Society” 0
All roads lead to politeness.
Evaristo Castaneda, the driver of the car who was hit, told troopers when he approached the other driver the man pulled a dark, silver-colored handgun. Castaneda says the driver then drove off and headed south on I-75.
Lies and Lying Liars 0
Dick Polman explains that Brian Williams is a piker compared to Scott Walker.
Both of them, though, are amateurs compared to Fox News.
Nutballs 0
Cruelty is no joke. That’s why I don’t like practical jokes; ultimately, cruelty lurks in every practical joke to some degree or other.
This goes way beyond joking.
“Socially Liberal, Fiscally Conservative” 0
Werner Herzog’s Bear tries to figure out what “socially liberal, fiscally conservative” means and thinks he’s hit on something. Here’s a bit:
More at the link.