Good news citizens: the putrid rogue intellects in Washington D.C. have created a brand new shiny Star Chamber. What’s a Star Chamber you ask? It’s basically a secret kangaroo court. The US system of injustice already employs an alphabet soup of Star Chambers. Perhaps you’ve heard of FISA and its outstanding work of rubber stamping … Continue reading American Star Chamber creates Foreign Passport Business Opportunity
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Euphoria: Review
Lily King's excellent new novel Euphoria derives from an incident in Margaret Mead’s life. Margaret Mead achieved fame as a young woman with her 1928 book Coming of Age in Samoa. Usually, scholarly works do not attract mass audiences but the good bits of Mead’s book read like soft-core porn and introduced the radical idea that sexual behavior … Continue reading Euphoria: Review
How Dante Can Save Your Life: Review
Dante's Commedia may save your life, but I wouldn't bet on this book doing the same. How Dante can Save Your Life is both interesting, annoying, and ultimately disappointing. If I had stopped in the middle of this book I would have rated it higher. It certainly started out well but, what can only be described … Continue reading How Dante Can Save Your Life: Review
Turning JOD Dump Script Tricks
Have you ever wondered how extremely prolific bloggers do it? How is it possible to crank out thousands of blog posts per year without creating a giant stinking pile of mediocre doo doo? Like most deep mysteries it's not deep and there are no mysteries. The spewers, people who post like teenage girls tweet, use … Continue reading Turning JOD Dump Script Tricks
For Carl’s Memorial
Carl in his basement apartment surrounded by his drawings and hugging Puff: one of his long-lived cats. Carl was a good friend for most of my adult life. During the many years I lived in Edmonton I spent a lot of time with Carl. It’s rather odd that I have so few pictures of him. … Continue reading For Carl’s Memorial
Copulation, Cooking and Cleaning
A refreshing blogosphere development is something called the “manosphere.” The manosphere is a mangy collection of young male bloggers that have had it with man hating feminism. I’m an old boomer fart, not exactly the manosphere demographic, but I see their point. I remember when rational1 feminists set their sights on “equal pay for equal … Continue reading Copulation, Cooking and Cleaning
Social Security Numbers are Broken beyond Repair
Imagine that you are buying a new set of wheels with cash. Being a cash transaction there is no need to negotiate loans or check credit; you have the money in your wallet. Usually, vendors are delighted when handed a thick wad of bills but we are living in unusual, no depraved, times. Before the … Continue reading Social Security Numbers are Broken beyond Repair
An Honest Resume Personal Statement
While updating an online version of my resume a nagging web page advised me to include a personal statement: apparently the personal statement is my chance to stand out, make that all important first impression, and firmly affix my lips to succulent corporate ass. Being programmer oriented, the web page suggested I write about my … Continue reading An Honest Resume Personal Statement
Mauna Kea Morons on the March
There are two types of stories about major astronomical observatories. There are stories about new discoveries and observation technologies and then there are stories about how batshit crazy people are! Lately a rash of batshit crazy has broken out over the construction of the Thirty Meter Telescope on Mauna Kea. The ignorant press is casting … Continue reading Mauna Kea Morons on the March
What hobbies do you have? Have you learned anything useful from them?
This is my first "cross-posted" entry. I composed this on Quora. I was asked to answer the title question and I did. I probably won't do this very often. Still, a little experimenting is fun. Answer by John Baker: The short answer is many and yes. The longer answer is pretty much everything I do, that … Continue reading What hobbies do you have? Have you learned anything useful from them?
Analyze the Data not the Drivel 