The Double-Dipper 0
Aside:
I’ve said many times in these electrons that I choose not to waste two hours watching something on television when I can read about it in ten minutes the next morning. After my ten minutes of reading this morning, it appears that our decision to forego the you-can-hardly-call-it-a debate in favor of Star Trek: TNG on Netflix last night was quite correct.
(I’ve long considered TNG to be the best-written of the Star Trek series, but, when it first aired, I had too much real life to watch it regularly.)
Tables Turned 0
At The Charlotte Observer, Justin Perry wonders, “What if Breonna Taylor was a white woman?”
Follow the link for his answer.
Taxed beyond Endurance 0
I paid more in federal income tax last year than Donald Trump paid in the last decade.
Hell, I paid more in state income tax last year–oh, never mind.
Of course, the cultists will be in no way discombobulated, because Dear Leader is always right and never wrong.
“An Armed Society Is a Polite Society” 0
When placing your vehicle in a designated spot as you are planning to leave it so as to take care of business, do so politely.
The Abandonment 0
A few moments ago I was musing to myself that the Republican Party has decided to abandon the founding ideals of the country, to sacrifice democracy on the altar of power (and, regardless of sins and flaws from the time of the founding, the founding ideals, well, ideals).
Then I stumbled over this:
Follow the link for the full article.
QOTD 0
Kerry Greenwood, who makes words dance:
The newly promoted Peace’s youthful enthusiasm occasionally filled (Detective Inspector Minton) with a sense of how old and cynical he had become. Without noticing. One day he just woke up and there he was, old and cynical and getting short of hair.
Greenwood, Kerry, Death by Water (Scpttsdale, AZ: Poisoned Pen Press, 2010), p. 199.
Human Beings: Simultaneously the Salt and the Scum of the Earth 0
Scientific Blogging carries psychologist Simon McCarthy-Jones’s exploration how and why some persons find cruelty gratifying.
It’s fascinating and timely read; here’s a bit:
Humans typically do things to get pleasure or avoid pain. For most of us, hurting others causes us to feel their pain. And we don’t like this feeling. This suggests two reasons people may harm the harmless – either they don’t feel the others’ pain or they enjoy feeling the others’ pain.
Another reason people harm the harmless is because they nonetheless see a threat. Someone who doesn’t imperil your body or wallet can still threaten your social status. This helps explain otherwise puzzling actions, such as when people harm others who help them financially.
Defensive Driving on the Disinformation Superhighway 0
At Psychology Today Blogs, Camille Johnson demonstrates that lies can affect our judgement, even when we recognize them as lies. At the end of the article, she suggests some steps we can take to reduce our chances of drowning in the sea of lies. A snippet: