There once was an old man in a family who loved to tell the same hunting story over and over again. At family gatherings, the man would try to find some cue that would enable him to insert the story into the flow of talk. On one occasion, he became increasingly frustrated at the lack of an opening in the conversation so he finally took his walking stick and rapped the ground sharply. In the startled silence that followed, he said, “What was that? A gunshot? Talking of gunshots, that reminds of the time …” [Read more…]

Internet gremlins got into the blog servers and disabled my blog for much of the day. For those who were frustrated trying gain access or post comments, I hope it is some consolation that I too was shut out. We are very democratic here!

Normal blogging is back.

When I was younger, the thought that a person might change their gender never crossed my mind. But now I personally know five people who have done so and they remain the same in most respects before and after the gender change. You realize that while gender is an important aspect of a person’s self-identity, it matters relatively little in the everyday interactions between people. Being transgender now seems like just another slice of the diversity of the human condition. [Read more…]

Cartoonist Jen Sorenson anticipates the future if, as feared, cell phones are soon allowed on airplanes. [Read more…]

We have lived on the same street for nearly 25 years. When we moved in our children were in pre-school and kindergarten. As time went by, they and the other children on the street grew up and moved on as we became the old-timers, and new younger families moved in with their own little children. [Read more…]

By now it should be clear to practically anyone who follows news with even the mildest critical gaze that the leaders of governments lie. In order to serve their purposes, they are willing to lie routinely, unscrupulously, shamelessly, and indiscriminately. The only thing that stops them from lying is the fear of getting caught and even then, in the case of James Clapper who still has his job even after lying under oath, it is sometimes not enough to stop them. [Read more…]

The US media acts like a herd, moving as a group from one narrative to another, painting each situation in the most extreme colors, as if they are trying to stampede policymakers into taking rash actions, because nothing is more exciting to the media than rapid changes in policy and actions [Read more…]

There is a report that the five surviving members of the Monty Python are going to have a reunion stage show. [Read more…]

Matt Taibbi writes that coverage of the 2016 presidential election has already begun. He says that this is inevitable but what depresses him is the way it is covered. He explains how there has now evolved a standard lens through which all politicians are viewed and that results in a particular narrative form. He looks in particular at the way the senator Elizabeth Warren’s potential candidacy (which is not at all clear will happen but he favors if it does) is described. [Read more…]