![]() |
Maggie's FarmWe 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. |
Our Recent Essays Behind the Front Page
Categories
QuicksearchLinks
Blog Administration |
Wednesday, September 28. 2011The Administrative StateFrom James Buckley's Restoring Federalism:
People have to spend tons of money on lawyers just to know what is in those pages. What a waste. Good for the legal industry, however. Weds. morning links
Are these people still saying that minorities cannot understand White Math? Controversial Bake Sale Highlights Debate on Bill Allowing California Colleges to Consider Race, Gender The Jewish Vote Poll Isn’t, And Is, As Bad As It Looks Obama’s Jobs Bill: Read It and Weep - An infernal mish-mash of taxes, subsidies, and regulations. Fracking: If they are against it that seems a pretty good reason to be for it. From a commenter at a Cafe Hayek post:
Obama: One Sentence, Three Falsehoods. New World’s Record? Obamacare sent health premiums up 9% Nobel-winning economist Robert Lucas on the high cost of the welfare state, why he voted for Barack Obama, and how Milton Friedman changed his life. Saree Makdisi: Eliminating Jewish State More Important than Creating Palestinian One LA Times Remakes Judah Ben-Hur into 'Palestinian Nobleman' In 2007, only 11% of enlisted military recruits came from the poorest U.S. neighborhoods. SANDERS: War on energy at home creates disasters abroad "... staff should be prepared to be economical with the truth when asked by pupils what their favourite colour is and, in the interests of good race relations, answer “black” or “brown”. Tuesday, September 27. 2011Why Doctors Don't Like Electronic Health RecordsThe article leaves out one reason: confidentiality. If I told patients that their records would be electronically accessible, I doubt anyone would speak openly with me. For that same reason, I keep very minimal paper records. My field of medicine is a little different, however.
Posted by Dr. Joy Bliss
in Hot News & Misc. Short Subjects
at
14:13
| Comments (10)
| Trackbacks (0)
I double-dare Vandy to try this with the Moslem groupsLegs for skiing, grouse hunting, and other good things in lifeAlong with ordinary aerobics, this is all anybody needs to keep the lower bones and muscles fit for vigorous living. Feel the burn: Squats and lunges, done properly. I just do them during spare minutes in my day, around 5 sets of each until it hurts too much. It's no big workout, but, like hitting your head with a hammer, it feels good when you stop.
And now for the big debate: Is it acceptable English to begin a sentence with a conjunction?Volokh says yes: The “Rules of English” And he offers this compelling example. With all due respect to the Bible and to Shakespeare, I say that it is obviously acceptable in casual and conversational English, and in poetic English, but not in formal English, and the same goes for run-on sentences. Tuesday morning links
America does run on Dunkin', as does Maggie's HQ. Mediocre coffee but good caffeine - and always a great ambience. "Let's Take a Traditional City Break 4: Many Variations, One Theme." New World Economics likes The Old Urbanist (as do we) - and posted some dynamite urban street scenes Families Wise Up About Paying for College The Escalating Penalty for Asserting Your Right to a Trial Even if you're innocent, it can make more sense to cop a plea Via Insty, the price of sex has dropped to record lows Are American girls hornier than they were when I was young? If so, is it an effect of global warming? Public Schools Eat Too Much At Gov't Trough The growing laundry list of Totalitarian Humanism ‘Every Single One’ Fallout: Justice Dept. in Turmoil From PJMedia Series The Bake Sale:
Europe's Failure Demands Europe Choose A Different Path, And That We Stop Following Their Example In America Billionaires, Jews and Janitors New Low: 17% Say U.S. Government Has Consent of the Governed
Tax Demagogues Are Lying Liars, in One Graph EPA: Regulations would require 230,000 new employees, $21 billion Eurozone crisis: there are no miracles in Greek tragedies - Lending ever greater sums to a mismanaged and corrupt economy won’t make it solvent , says Jeff Randall. Carville: Tea Party a 'Dangerous Political Force That Threatens the Very Future of Our Country' Which is worse, global warming or Tea Parties? Americans Express Historic Negativity Toward U.S. Government Rightly so R2P is the New COIN: Slaughter on Authority and International Law Part II. NGO report: 93,000 Copts left Egypt since March:
Arab Spring Countries Pay the Price for the World’s Palestinian Obsession Obama strategy could spawn future Vietnams Boot: Breaking Faith with our Heroes and Allies "The average American does not appear to give government at all levels much credit for being careful in spending tax dollars," Gallup concluded. Definitive proof of global warming: Good spot for Ruffed GrouseRoad to the lodge in Manitoba where Gwynnie and I would like to be this week, but are not. Monday, September 26. 2011In my email today
I don't know how they got my email, but I think I'll pass on their friendly request. F# MajorAttended a wonderful Chopin recital last night, perfomed by Benjamin Hochman. Among other pieces, he performed Chopin's Barcarolle, Op 60. It's a mind-blowingly charming piece, and there is something about the relatively-rare key of F# Major that works for me. Here's Rubinstein's version, 1928:
"Love is all there is...": Love slavesIt is? What kind of "love"? What did Lennon/McCarthy mean, and who made them experts? Our link yesterday morning from F- Feelings was excellent: Love Slaves. "The bad news is that most love won’t work, and you’ve got to leave it alone when you know it won’t." If we let emotion control our lives, we are animals. If we let reason control our lives, we are robots. There are more kinds of love than the Eskimos have (proverbially) kinds of snow. I once tried to make a list, and gave up. People vary enormously in their needs or wants for all of those sorts of need, desire, addiction, and attachment.
Posted by Dr. Joy Bliss
in Our Essays, Psychology, and Dr. Bliss
at
15:22
| Comments (4)
| Trackbacks (0)
All your labor is belong to usCandidate Elizabeth Warren spells it out: There is no private property, and society is equivalent to government. It's not an American way of thinking, but it worked great in the French Revolution, Soviet Russia, and North Korea. Sultan discusses: Serfs in Warrenville. A quote:
Right on, Sultan! Power to the People! Monday morning links
Do Animals Have Rights? It's complicated. Unitarian Church Finally Decides To Believe In Something, Nails Al Gore To Their Recycled Cross IPCC error of the day Joe Lieberman on the Sabbath Eco-fun: Swim with the Piranhas A California students' group has sparked a racism and sexism row over plans for a bake sale in which people are charged according to their ethnic background and gender. VDH: Somewhere around 1985 in California I noticed that my students were hoping for a state job first, a federal job second, a municipal job third — and a private one last. A quote from his post:
Ga. Middle School: Muslim Polygamy Is Normal, Burkas Good For Women Michael Moore: "Patriotic Americans" Will Wait Longer For Healthcare Racist Tea Party loves Herman Cain It doesn't fit The Narrative The return of net neutrality UK update: Bible Banned From Christian Café It'll be churches next Obama Puts on His Best Dialect & Tells Black Audience “Stop Complaining & Fight” Fight for what? TNR: Left Behind: How Democrats Are Losing the Political Center Village Voice’s Michael Feingold: “Kill the Billionaires!” And then who do you tax? You just know what Eliz Warren is like Historic: Failed President Craters to 36% in New Poll Turkey's foreign policy hits a dead end Inspector general: Bush-era Pentagon officials cleared of wrongdoing Who said this? Not every human problem deserves a law. WaPo: Power shift in Asia Greek Jews and the Holocaust: Recovering the Multiple Stories of Death, Rescue, and Resistance IMF may need billions in extra funding "The problem with socialism is that you eventually run out of other peoples' money" Samuelson: Repeating Mistakes of the 1930s? Netanyahu to Clinton: I’m not the one moving the goalposts Let's face it: there will be no peace until Israel is erased. Thus permanent conflict for the forseeable future. Some problems are insoluble. Where were we?Time to begin getting those legs in shape for skiing season. It's all about sturdy legs.
Sunday, September 25. 2011Pure geniusJudge claims no freedom to eat your own foodInsty found this one: Is Your Choice Of Food A Fundamental Right? The author rightly comments "Sometimes I think I’ve woken up in a surreal alternate reality." Indeed, our government's views increasingly resemble self-satire. Who are these a-holes? Here's another one: Let the inhaler hoarding begin I guess you can store them right next to your secret stash of incandescent bulbs, your stash of salt, your guns, your Bibles, your tobacco, your home-grown medical pot, and your gold coins.
Posted by The Barrister
in Hot News & Misc. Short Subjects, Our Essays
at
13:08
| Comments (9)
| Trackbacks (0)
Boom. HeadshotPay attention around thirty seconds in. I want that guy to buy lottery tickets for me.
Posted by Roger de Hauteville
in Hunting, Fishing, Dogs, Guns, etc.
at
11:59
| Comments (7)
| Trackback (1)
A new wedding season?Each of my pupettes (the female pups) are attending weekend-long weddings this weekend, one off in LA and one big one in NYC. And the media tells us that marriage is going out of fashion... Is September the new, hip wedding month? Or does June just get too crowded?
Posted by Bird Dog
in The Culture, "Culture," Pop Culture and Recreation
at
11:28
| Comments (4)
| Trackbacks (0)
"Deep church"Pastor was preaching today about our congregation being, or becoming, a "deep church" and not a "nice church." Since our service ran 1 1/2 hours (as it often does), and the second morning service was coming up, I didn't have time to ask him exactly what was meant. Thank God for these intertunnels. Here's one essay on the topic: Deep Church: A Third Way? If that essay is any indication, I think our church is pretty much there. I don't know about "nice," but we are darn friendly and welcoming. Growing quickly too, for better or worse. 2 linksView from the Wkly Std: The Reactionary in the White House - Barack Obama, throwback.
View at the WaPo: It's time to begin the class war:
Down in the river, Alison KraussFrom today's Lectionary" "By whose authority?"Matthew 21:23-32
Saturday, September 24. 2011Elizabeth Warren: Parasite on societyThe big man begins:
He wonders who has been producing the money to pay her salary all these years in non-profits, government, and academia. Read the whole thing - with half his brain tied behind his back, just to keep it fair. There is a parasitic mind-set out there, and lots of people want to get on board. As I like to say, "Ask first what your country can do for you..." No heavy lifting, no accountability. In Warren's world, who does the real work? Slaves? I have been a de facto slave to government (taxes) and academia (tuitions) most of my adult life. I give more than I can afford to non-profits and my church too, but at least that is voluntary.
Posted by The Barrister
in Hot News & Misc. Short Subjects, Our Essays
at
16:32
| Comments (31)
| Trackbacks (0)
Nathan Glazer and the limits of social policyGlazer is one of those people whose thinking we have always admired, whether we agreed with his conclusions or not. I say this while quite aware that he is somebody who has never really done anything other than think and study things, and has probably never lifted an engine from a Chevy, built a stone wall, or shot a deer, and really probably knows little about life. A nice piece at City Journal: Nathan Glazer’s Warning - Social policy often does more harm than good, says one of the last of the original neocons. One quote:
It took Glazer a while to realize that liberty and freedom might be a better social policy than anything that the DC and Ivy brainiacs can design "for us." I could have told him that 40 years ago when I first realized that there are sick people in the world who enjoy power and control, and who have the delusion that they deserve those things because they imagine that they are smarter than I am. They are not. I want to be the master of my life. Cortlands: It is getting to be apple seasonThis is one of our dwarf Cortlands today, ready to be picked but the fruit will remain good on the tree for a few weeks, at least. If we had bothered to fertilize, it would probably have doubled the fruit. I will fertilize them next year. There is still so much good green forage in the woods and fields, and there are so many healthy wild apple trees out there, that the deer haven't bothered our domesticated apple trees a bit. Want an apple?
« previous page
(Page 865 of 1516, totaling 37885 entries)
» next page
|