Among everything else that's gone wrong in the current election season, seems to me the untold casualty will be a lot of friendships. The amount of stark naked fear people are flinging about - on both sides - is staggering. It's like the self-destructive panic of animals who maul their own littermates because that's all they can do when they're ( Read more... )

• Wed, 09:36: RT @ qikipedia: Word of the day: ONOMATOMANIA - frustration at being unable to think of the appropriate word.
• Wed, 09:40: RT @ Vision365: You Heard About The Lootings In Ferguson. Here Are The People Cleaning Up The Mess. http://t.co/ON1c7NEwxL http://t.co/A0hN0…
• Wed, 10:58: RT @ spulliam: Helpful history and context for white ( Read more... )

The weather has finally cooled.  Yesterday and today I've had the windows open.  We spent a small fortune keeping our place livable this last month, so this is an enormous relief.  Also just nice.  I can go outside and not melt ( Read more... )

I didn't know Osama bin Laden had been killed until this morning, when I saw the local newspaper sitting on a table in the office.  The headline said "JUSTICE" in three-inch print.

My little brother posted as his Facebook status Matthew 5:43-46a.

"You have heard that it was said, 'You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.' But I say to ( Read more... )

So I wasn't really following the whole "Ground Zero Mosque" thing until today.  But I've been reading so much vitriol and hot air and divisiveness about the thing that I decided to take a look.  It wasn't easy.  Opinions far, far outstrip facts, and the controversy has skewed the evidence in every direction imaginable.  In fact, calling it a " ( Read more... )

You know that stereotype that Americans know nothing about soccer/are bored by it/couldn't care less about the World Cup?

Doesn't apply to my office.

I mean, okay, things aren't as crazy as March Madness, and nothing beats the college football season, but yesterday one of the supervisors had to break up the overenthusiastic (and very loud) group ( Read more... )

Was reading a news article today about how Haitians are being discouraged from trying to enter the U.S.  And, y'know, given all that's happened, I'm just sittin' here thinking, "Why's that?"  I mean, all precedents and politics and the rest of it aside, Haiti is small and the U.S. is big, and even in a recession, there's got to be more jobs here ( Read more... )

Well, now, the election is finally over.

I'm hoping that Obama at least does somewhat well, what with all the enormously high hopes people are pinning on him.  I thought the Second Coming attitude was bad before.  You guys, he just inherited a recession and a messy war.  Neither of them is going to end quickly.  Also, the President doesn't ( Read more... )

Y'know, I have never cried at fiction before.  The closest I've ever been were Schindler's List and Return of the King, just to give you all some context.  But next year, I just might.  ( HUGE DOCTOR WHO SPOILERS )

For those of you who weren't paying attention (and I both envy and applaud you), the Dow fell over 600 points today, which, given the level it was at this morning, is about 7%.  And while I can calmly call up a hundred-year history of the Dow and wonder vaguely what it was doing above 10,000 to begin with, most of my coworkers are more concerned ( Read more... )