Ok, I’m an idiot. I left work early today because I still had a pounding headache. At about 12:30, I was backed up in a line of traffic, at a full stop, for a red light across a busy intersection. To my right was a scruffy-looking guy that looked to be the right age to be holding a sign saying “Homeless Vietnam Vet.” (You may start the bleeding-heart liberal jokes at any time.) I rolled down the passenger-side window, and…
Enjoy this night of liminality and carnivale – but be safe! My view of Halloween Our Halloween traditions are just a snapshot image taken from a long history of blended beliefs, rituals and perspectives from diverse sources; some bits competed or converged with one another, while other aspects were forgotten or overwritten. I enjoy the mix of all the folkloric and religious traces as part of an appreciation of a celebratory imagination, one that nourishes the human spirit (soul /…
“The legislation directly conflicts with the Fourth Amendment of the Constitution, requiring the government to obtain a warrant before reading the e-mail messages or listening to the telephone calls of its citizens, and to state with particularity where it intends to search and what it expects to find. Compounding these wrongs, Congress is moving in a haphazard fashion to provide a “get out of jail free card†to the telephone companies that violated the rights of their subscribers. Some in…
A very spiritual, devout and holy priest dies and is immediately swept up to heaven. St. Peter greets him at the Pearly Gates, and says, “Hello, Father, we’ve been waiting for you for a long time. Welcome to Heaven! You are very well known here, and as a special reward, because you are such a spiritual and holy man, we’re going to grant you anything you wish even before we enter Heaven. What can I grant you?” “Well”, the priest…
Nancy A. Nord was nominated by President George W. Bush to be a commissioner of the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) for a term that expires in October of 2012. The CPSC is supposed to protect the public against unreasonable risks of injury and death associated with consumer products. You know, lead. Things like that. Nord is also the president of Executive Women in Government, a nonprofit professional women’s organization. Sorry, women. In two different letters, Nancy Nord has asked…
This question and answer session with Valerie Plame at the Washington Post is really worth a read. Plame Wilson was online Tuesday, Oct. 30, at 1 p.m. ET to discuss her book, Fair Game: My Life as a Spy, My Betrayal by the White House, which details her CIA training, covert status, experiences, responsibilities, the outing and her life now. Portions of “Fair Game” are blacked-out and indicate, say the publishers, places where the CIA has demanded redactions. The extensive…