This lunch break I celebrate reaching Gold rank in MtG:Arena :-) The ranks are Bronze, Silver, Gold, Platinum, Diamond, and Mythic. During a month, once you achieve a rank you cannot fall back down from it, but at the end of the month the ranks reset ( Read more... )

Awake 6:30am, should stretch at 7:00am, eat breakfast 7:30am, and either start telework early at 8:30am or take a walk break first. Undecided about weight lifting because my shoulders are bugging me, and with the 10K approaching on Saturday perhaps I shouldn't risk an injury, but we'll see how I feel this afternoon during class ( Read more... )

I'd seen after 10/7 that few Israelis support a two-state solution, but few Palestinians do either. The world cannot impose a two-state solution that the people living there do not want -- we've been trying that for 80 years. The people living there, each side, wants their own state to win. So they keep fighting ( Read more... )

I emailed my Congressman to tell him I don't support sending $18 billion in aid to Israel, there's to be a vote in the House on a standalone bill next week ( Read more... )

Humans are violent toward each other. Not everyone all the time. But I doubt there's been one day without a murder somewhere on the planet, or a year without a war somewhere on the planet ( Read more... )

I was looking at Cornel West's presidential platform -- reportedly he's seeking the Green Party nomination -- and the only item I would disagree with is "ban nuclear weapons globally"First, I don't think any other current nuclear power would go along with this proposal. But I propose lots of things that other people/countries wouldn't go along ( Read more... )

It took nearly 7 months after I wrote the following:

Pipelines are too easy to blow up, they're too long to guard effectively during wartime.for somebody to actually blow up some of the pipelines that would carry Russian fuel into Europe.  Countries are blaming each other, nobody has claimed responsibility, but if this war continues there will be ( Read more... )

It turns out the steady non-carbon energy sources from hydro and nuclear are vulnerable to climate change --> previously unexpected drought patterns can dry up the water flows required for hydroelectric turbines and nuclear cooling towers.  Then you're suddenly without your steady sources of non-carbon electricity.  Oops.

It is easy to forget that ( Read more... )

I never bought the spin that Russia was losing its war with Ukraine. Yeah, the initial knockout blow failed to achieve a knockout, but in the south and east it was more clear that Russia was slowly and steadily gaining territory via superior numbers and attrition. The sanctions were never going to stop Russia, and NATO can throw as many weapons ( Read more... )

Feeling calmer than I had felt overnight and this morning. Crossed a couple things off my To Do List, went on a short walk. My butt pain outbreak may keep me from running 6 miles this week but I can still do walks and stretches and yoga, maybe even lift weights. I'm on track to complete all my work demands by their respective deadlines, although ( Read more... )