We are a commune of inquiring, skeptical, politically centrist, capitalist, anglophile, traditionalist New England Yankee humans, humanoids, and animals with many interests beyond and above politics. Each of us has had a high-school education (or GED), but all had ADD so didn't pay attention very well, especially the dogs. Each one of us does "try my best to be just like I am," and none of us enjoys working for others, including for Maggie, from whom we receive neither a nickel nor a dime. Freedom from nags, cranks, government, do-gooders, control-freaks and idiots is all that we ask for.
“Reunite what country?” Recall, Indo-China was not one country, or even three countries, under the French. It was administered as six regions (Laos, Cambodia, Tonkin, Annam, Cochin China and the Crown Dominion Lands). Vietnam was not one country before the French. In the previous millennium it was united for perhaps 30 years. Most of this unification refers to unifying the area north of the Red River with that of the area south of the Red River—all of that territory being within what became known as North Vietnam. It does not refer to the area from the border with China in the north to the tip of the Ca Mau peninsula in the south or west to the mountain border areas with Cambodia and Laos. That had never been one country. There was nothing to reunify. This is not analogous to the American Civil War. This was not a nation that was split by colonialism, by war or by agreement.
In a time when many people genuinely believe that government policy has the power to create nice weather, one considers whether god-like power and god-like benevolence is still ascribed to governments in a post-Enlightenment world.
The same fallacy is applied to health - and to economics. Why can't governments keep the economy nice?
The prospect that any feasible political corrective for market failure might also fail when compared against the ideal standard of efficiency was not examined.
It seems to be that political correctives are often critiqued by conservative economists, but the "something must be done or you don't care about ____" often wins the day in politics. This is part of why the only politicians I even half trust are those who did not seek a lifelong political career. I respect most those who do some service and then go back to the farm.
It's human nature, I suppose, to enjoy imagining that somebody or some thing can fix reality to make earthly life more like the paradise of our dreams. Worldwide, the powerful have sought to affiliate with gods, or to become gods in name, to exploit that human yearning.
And if only government had more money and power, it might work. Or not. At the least, it would help fulfill the dreams of those who seek power. Unlike wealth, power is a zero-sum game.
20:1 "For the kingdom of heaven is like a landowner who went out early in the morning to hire laborers for his vineyard.
20:2 After agreeing with the laborers for the usual daily wage, he sent them into his vineyard.
20:3 When he went out about nine o'clock, he saw others standing idle in the marketplace;
20:4 and he said to them, 'You also go into the vineyard, and I will pay you whatever is right.' So they went.
20:5 When he went out again about noon and about three o'clock, he did the same.
20:6 And about five o'clock he went out and found others standing around; and he said to them, 'Why are you standing here idle all day?'
20:7 They said to him, 'Because no one has hired us.' He said to them, 'You also go into the vineyard.'
20:8 When evening came, the owner of the vineyard said to his manager, 'Call the laborers and give them their pay, beginning with the last and then going to the first.'
20:9 When those hired about five o'clock came, each of them received the usual daily wage.
20:10 Now when the first came, they thought they would receive more; but each of them also received the usual daily wage.
20:11 And when they received it, they grumbled against the landowner,
20:12 saying, 'These last worked only one hour, and you have made them equal to us who have borne the burden of the day and the scorching heat.'
20:13 But he replied to one of them, 'Friend, I am doing you no wrong; did you not agree with me for the usual daily wage?
20:14 Take what belongs to you and go; I choose to give to this last the same as I give to you.
20:15 Am I not allowed to do what I choose with what belongs to me? Or are you envious because I am generous?'
20:16 So the last will be first, and the first will be last."
The Nurburgring race track can be treacherous. They have some days when, for a fee and an insurance waiver, it's open to the public to test drive their own cars. Also, you have to pay for any repair to the walls.
A good thing about it is, if anybody crashes, the followers stop to check up on them.
In response to several warnings, I responded to my browser and mail provider. It's been a 12 hour on and off conversation with some guys in Delhi. They seem to know exactly what they are doing, and are polite with perfectly-grammatical if accented English. I am fairly sure one of the guys learned English from a Scottish teacher.
The point is that I had a few hundred attacks on my computer over 48 hours, some foiled and some not. Some of these evil programs penetrated my email and my laptop. Of course, nobody cares about my info, but I do not like roaming intruder programs, worms and all that, messing with my machine. Russians?
So the guys in Delhi sold me on a fancy new firewall and got rid of a lot of stuff that CCleaner could not. My old firewall was obsolete, about 4 years old. As readers know, it is a bit creepy the way the techies can take over your machine and do whatever they need to do. I guess you just have to trust them.
To say our constitutional system is undergoing a crisis is an understatement. The states have been crushed by the federal government, and the national legislature — the predominant branch of the federal government — has allowed itself to be neutered by the executive and judicial branches, abdicating its responsibility to protect the people and the states from such usurpations.
... rabbis, this year, please don’t pander to your congregants, spoon-feeding them bromides straight from cable news. Use your words to raise us up, together, and enlighten us with wisdom that transcends the contemporary scene.
My Leftist friends (as well as many ardent #NeverTrumpers) constantly ask me if I’m not bothered by Donald Trump’s lack of decorum. They ask if I don’t think his tweets are “beneath the dignity of the office.”
Here’s my answer:
We Right-thinking people have tried dignity. There could not have been a man of more quiet dignity than George W. Bush as he suffered the outrageous lies and politically motivated hatreds that undermined his presidency.
We tried statesmanship. Could there be another human being on this earth who so desperately prized “collegiality” as John McCain?
We tried propriety – has there been a nicer human being ever than Mitt Romney?
And the results were always the same. This is because, while we were playing by the rules of dignity, collegiality and propriety, the Left has been, for the past 60 years, engaged in a knife fight where the only rules are those of Saul Alinsky and the Chicago mob.
Last week we mentioned the classic upper body calis; today the lower. As always, I mention that the distinction between cardio and calis can sometimes be arbitrary because of the overlap. Also, a reminder that calis don't really make you much stronger, just fitter and more athletic.
The essential two are:
Body-weight Squats
Walking Lunges
They seem simple, but must be done with correct form and enough reps to matter. Youtube videos are good for that instruction. Both of the above can be made more cardio- and plyometrically-demanding with squat-jumps and jumping lunges, or more strength-building by adding hand weights.
The other mostly-lower body calis I do weekly are Jumping Burpees, Low Box Jumps, Mountain Climbers, High Step and Press, and Kettlebell Swings. All of the latter are also, at least for me, intense cardio exercises that I count as HIIT Cardio. I do calis in rotations of 3 or 4 of them and do my best to minimize breathing breaks. I mix in some planks, jump rope, etc.
Exercise Tip: Do your calis the days after weights, not the days before weights. That is, if you are over age 40. Calis do not technically require any recovery time, but at some point I think best to put in a cardio day between calis and weights.
One of the most refreshing things about Trump’s address—it is characteristic of his speeches—was his frankness. At the U.N., this had a positive as well as a critical side. On the positive side, I found it a breath of fresh air to hear an American president celebrate the achievements of America.
“The United States of America,” Trump said, “has been among the greatest forces for good in the history of the world, and the greatest defenders of sovereignty, security, and prosperity for all.” This is the simple truth, but I do not recall hearing such sentiments from the White House in recent years.
The "Days Of Awe" begin with Rosh Hashanah and end 10 days later with Yom Kippur. These High Holy Days are a period of intense soul and behavior searching, and repentance only comes from abject admission of sins, earnest apologies and restitution to those harmed or needlessly offended, and a strict course of reform. It is appropriate that the Torah portion of this week is Deuteronomy 32.1-35.52. Moses is denied entry into Israel due to his prior sins and he is instructed by G-d to recite a poem to the Hebrews to remind them that if they stray from G-d they may lose G-d's favor.
This period and warning are not applicable just for a day, or a week, or even a year. The warning is applicable throughout our lives. This isn't to say that any of us will not fail from time to time but that the course of getting back on track is clear, is within out own power and responsibility, and does not come from or depend on absolution by G-d.
Why Onions 
Did Fashion Week Just