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Richard Rorty – Another One Bites the Dust

Richard Rorty – Another One Bites the Dust

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Richard Rorty has died. Rorty had an uncanny ability to stare into the post-modern abyss, in which nothing is grounded in the divine or universal, and yet somehow, some way, find a kind of practical empathy that could serve as a beacon in the face of nihilism, authoritarianism and cruelty. Yes. Richard Rorty helped me to understand that an ethics based on universals might be neither kind nor accurate to human experience. He offered some possible alternative methods. I had…

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Video Friday

Video Friday

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Today’s playlist – Yeah, I’m in that kind of mood. The Meaning of Life, Monty Python [youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=66OEZ3KFRII[/youtube] Precious Things, Tori Amos [youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l7NW6-2_v1k[/youtube] John the Revelator, Depeche Mode [youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VaB1psXTjS4[/youtube] Holiday, Green Day [youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=neHcGwCfpzo[/youtube] Sat in Your Lap, Kate Bush [youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xEVMfG8z490[/youtube] Muhammed My Friend, Tori Amos [youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tmS6Ywzzjtw[/youtube] Army Dreamers, Kate Bush [youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tWdHOm256N4[/youtube] Yo George, Tori Amos [youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3TEVCz3KKN4[/youtube] If You Tell A Lie, Blame Sally [youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KEqmnB4wenU[/youtube] Masters of War, Bob Dylan [youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g0ELgFGd2fs[/youtube] Goodbye Blue Sky, Pink Floyd (The Wall) [youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_0v07InoFiU[/youtube] Hello Earth, Kate…

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DeLay Listening to Someone?

DeLay Listening to Someone?

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Which is the more absurd claim, that God speaks to Tom DeLay, or that Tom DeLay listens? “God has spoken to me. I listen to God, and what I’ve heard is that I’m supposed to devote myself to rebuilding the conservative base of the Republican Party, and I think we shouldn’t be underestimated.” – Tom Delay (Jeffrey Goldberg, “Party Unfaithful: The Republican implosion,” The New Yorker, May 4 Preemptive Karma doesn’t think it’s God that Tom is hearing, but her…

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Morford Does it Better, Much Better

Morford Does it Better, Much Better

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I read Mark Morford‘s column every week. I have it emailed, and I’ve added the feed to my Bloglines. So it’s not surprising to me to me at all that he has written the sort of article on the Presidential Directive (my version) that I would have liked to have been able to write. Bush Declares Self ‘Mega Decider’ New documents ensure Dubya will rule America, should calamity strike. Free balloons! A snippet (but go read the whole thing): Such…

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Presidential Directives

Presidential Directives

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I was rereading a bit about Emerson and self-reliance earlier. It affected me, as it always does. Before I wade into current political statements of opinion on the recent Presidential Directives (I’ve seen blog headlines), I’ve decided to treat it like I would treat any document I wanted to interpret. What follows is my initial set of impressions and thoughts. This will change, it always does. It might be interesting to do part 2 sometime later, when these thoughts bounce…

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Sunday Bloody Sunday

Sunday Bloody Sunday

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Memorial Day is the day to remember those who died in defense of this country. The American dead in Iraq were not defending our country. Their deaths represent an even more significant tragedy. (Broken bottles under children’s feetBodies strewn across the dead end streetBut I won’t heed the battle callIt puts my back upPuts my back up against the wall) They died for causes that no-one has been able to articulate faithfully or honorably. (There’s many lost, but tell me…

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