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. |
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Monday, October 2. 2017Hiking pants
Mrs. BD and I are back in weekend hiking mode. I really do not like vigorous hikes when it's above 75 degrees F. Let's talk about non-winter hiking pants for men and women. Water-repellent, not waterproof. (For waterproof, you can roll up those light-weight REI waterproof overpants in your daypack. With a good long zipper, they are easy to pull over your hiking boots if you are a cat and hate getting wet.) Hiking and trekking pants are for long hikes with serious terrain, not for two-hour walks in the woods in nice weather when cut-off blue jean are perfect if there are no bugs. I've tested out several pairs of hiking pants. To be comfortable on hills, they have to have a little stretch to them. They also have to resist tears from brush and to be rugged enough to hold up to rock scrapes and random falls. Plus it is nice if they are light-weight, not baggy, and comfortable. The baggy ones are not pleasant to wear, and flap like crazy in wind. Most of the ones that are convertible to shorts are baggy. I like my Prana hiking pants, which are also great for weekend chores. Many regular mountain hikers like Montane (example in photo). I guess REI has most of the ordinary things that outdoor active people might need. What sorts of things do you use for rugged hiking? Monday morning linksPhoto: Granny Smiths from a reader's garden this week The Decline and Fall of American Marriage A Massachusetts School District Bans Halloween Celebrations Pushing euthanasia for the depressed Angry Birds Are Ripping $80,000 Drones Out of the Sky California's Latest Bad Idea — Outlaw Gas-Powered Cars NYC offering to pay homeless a year’s worth of rent if they leave town How Do You Tell The Corrupt Politician From The Non-Corrupt? Everything (That's Not Sexism) Is Racism CNN, MSNBC Make Disaster Relief All About “Racism” Puerto Rico Police Officer Calls Into NY Radio Station – Exposes Corrupt San Juan Mayor, Pleas For Help Hayward: "The only surprising thing about the total catastrophe in Puerto Rico is that it took so long for the “Trump-Is-A-Bigot-Who-Hates-Brown-People” refrain to get cranked up to eleven..." The idea that Trump hates brown people is totally nuts. It's meant to scare brown people. Does it work? CNN: 'Trump's Katrina?' No, it's much worse Puerto Rican Female Cop Says Local Government Is Preventing Supplies From Getting to People Schlichter: The Left Hates You. Act Accordingly. HOW THE ASSOCIATED PRESS SPINS THE SUPREME COURT Klavan: Why Trump Is 100 Percent Right About the NFL Europe: What do Islamic Parties Want? LIFE WITH NANNY NORWAY - What it's really like to live in a social-democratic "paradise." The Documentary “The Vietnam War”: Artistic License as History Bret Stephens: I Believe Some of Your Best Friends Are Jewish St. Wolfgang, AustriaAnother photo from my friend's trip
Sunday, October 1. 2017Change the World by Making Your BedReposted, University of Texas at Austin, 2014 Commencement Address, Admiral William H. McRaven
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From today's Lectionary: It is God who is at work in youPhilippians 2:1-13
Wachau ValleyThe Wachau Valley mostly refers to the north bank of the Danube in Austria. It is famous for its Rieslings. Pic from a pal yesterday who is taking a riverboat trip down the Danube to Budapest. Fun trip. Good beer. We did it as a family a few years ago.
Saturday, September 30. 2017Two QQQs“I was never molested by any person but those who represented the State.” “If I knew for a certainty that a man was coming to my house with the conscious design of doing me good, I should run for my life.” - Henry David Thoreau via Henry David Thoreau Knew that Freedom Is Love - there are many passages in Walden that reveal that his essential anarchism Saturday morning links
Ikea’s stuff is tough to assemble, so it bought a startup to do it for you What traits tend to turn on women? Dr. Seuss: Racist "Hard work" is "whiteness" That is racist DR SEUSS IS RACIST, THOMAS THE TANK ENGINE IS SEXIST Related, MOORE’S LAW OF LIBERALISM IN ACTION Chuck Todd blows it, Ventura is a dope, Antifa racism in action, Cornell student demands and the woman who just won’t go away Facing poverty, academics turn to sex work and sleeping in cars Packers’ Attempt to Involve Fans In Anthem Demonstration Falls Flat, Most Chant ‘USA!’ Instead Reputation Management CEO: NFL Anthem Protests “The Worst Branding Move in Modern History” Beyond the daily drama and Twitter battles, Trump begins to alter American life HILLARY CLINTON IS CAMPAIGNING AGAIN. THAT DOESN'T SEEM LIKE A GOOD IDEA Jeh Johnson: The 2016 election wasn't hacked "Yet Another Major Russia Story Falls Apart. Is Skepticism Permissible Yet?" Steven Crowder’s ‘Undercover in Antifa’ Depicts Premeditated Violence, Disruption, and More U.S. Cuts Embassy Staff in Cuba, Halts Travel After Attacks Cuban Doctors: We’re Tired Of Being “Slaves” For Castro’s Communist Regime A MESSY DIVORCE - The UK’s Brexit Hand Gets Weaker The racial caste system in Latin America Five myths about the Vietnam War. No, Viet Cong guerrillas weren’t scrappy underdogs battling inept South Vietnamese forces. Western contempt for China turns to panic. Economic boom continues with electronics industry domination and infrastructure growth through trillion-dollar Belt and Road Initiative Armed Soldiers To Replace Cops On Danish Streets Friday, September 29. 2017How is your 100-Push-up Challenge going?On my fifth day, I find that they are getting harder to do, not easier. I think that is the necessary stress. My first set of 15 is difficult, second set of 15 easier, and the remaining sets of ten become more challenging. I am only up to 80/day, will get to 100 on Monday. My sets are spread out over hours. If over age 20, I wonder whether it might make more sense to put in a day of push-up rest every few days for recovery. My goal of course is 100/day, but more specifically 50 in a row. I don't need to do 100 in a row. What are you finding? Friday morning links
Toon via Theo On the Collective Football Plantation Dear NFL: I’m not “boycotting” you. I just don’t care anymore, about you. Civil Rights Group Launches Effort To Stop Colin Kaepernick From Being “Silenced” Oldest Evidence of Life Found in 3.95-Billion-Year-Old Rocks A fourth gravitational wave has been detected — and we've pinpointed its location better than ever before The brief video is good Tom Cruise's 'American Made' just latest case of film recasting history Skeptical of Burns’ ‘Vietnam,’ Part 2 Alarm as study reveals world’s tropical forests are huge carbon emission source Progressive Students ‘Freaked Out’ By Beach Ball At Southern Illinois University Valerie Plame update: Ex-CIA officer quits job after posting anti-Semitic tweet Why Tax American Companies Twice? The GOP plan would end the 35% ‘repatriation tax’ that makes it harder to compete—and create jobs. Trump Offers Plan To Lower Taxes For All, Obviously Leads To Screeching About Tax Cuts For Rich
Coyote: The conservatism of progressives
Border Apprehensions Surge as Crossers Rush to Beat Trump's Wall Lawmakers Turn Up the Heat on Obama Unmasking Scandal – Allege Larger Obama Spy Op on Trump Trump Waives Jones Act for Puerto Rico for 10 Days. That’s Good, but It’s Not Enough. Congress needs to vote to stop protecting shipping cartel from market competition. "I was alarmed at first but you come to expect things like that, it's become common place in east London." The Nationalist Aspirations in Kurdistan and Catalonia The Incredible Work of UN Watch Palestinian Leaders Stunned as Hamas Founder’s Son Defends Israel 'We don't want that!' German MEP attacks Jean-Claude Juncker plans for EU SUPERSTATE Thursday, September 28. 2017Thursday morning linksToon via Never Yet Melted “I’m a Marxist-Feminist Slut — How Do I Find an Open Relationship?” I hope her Mom never sees her article Is Gender Dysphoria a Fad? Camille Paglia recently suggested that the rise of gender dysphoria is simply the new face of the counter-culture. Rewarding Rigor - U.S. News tweaks its college-ranking formula. Yet More Evidence the SAT is Being Dumbed Down Chuck Todd: Roy Moore Doesn’t Seem To Believe In The Constitution, He Believes Rights Come From God Why is the FBI trying to enforce NCAA rules? One-Third Of British 16-22-Year-Olds Say They’re Gay Or Bisexual That is news? Why Government's Push For A Cashless Society Won't Go Away Alabama tide portends another angry voter wave Blue State Blues: Hartford Downgraded Further Into Junk Status, Moves by S&P and Moody’s cites increased likelihood of default as early as November Will Fed's Reliance On Archaic Economic Models Doom The Economy? Obama Hauls In Millions From Wall Street, Not A Peep From The Media
MacDonald: Hard Data, Hollow Protests - FBI crime figures paint a very different picture of crime and policing than this weekend’s demonstrations suggest. Obamacare: Republicans’ Self-Inflicted Wounds Trump's Unintended Consequences: The Turn of the Culture Wars
Via Sailer's Tackling Race:
Trump preparing executive order to let Americans purchase health insurance across state lines Navy Returns to Compasses and Pencils to Help Avoid Collisions at Sea I thought all blue-water sailors compared electronics with paper and pencil France to Have Muslim Majority in 40 Years A good reason to tour France now A brief history of Palestine Wednesday, September 27. 2017Wednesday morning linksProf Peterson is raising $ for an online university. His new series is Significance of the Biblical Stories Millennials Are Super Excited To Let Someone Else Deal With Hotcoldwetdry L'amour? French consider fines for men who talk to women they haven't met Sick! Lots of women out there dying to meet guys Faculty position open: Only leftists need apply 'The New York Times' Is Working Overtime to Rehab Communism and Socialism in 2017 A commenter said "NYT opinion next week: for all its flaws, Hitler's Nazi movement bought healthy vegetarian meal planning to the Reich." Conservative, Inc., Is Being Replaced By Us Militant Normals Feminist group admits 'pay gap' is caused by women's choices USA Today: NFL commits suicide by Trump with politically correct protests I still don't know what they are protesting Limbaugh Didn’t Watch ‘Sunday Night Football’ For First Time In 45 Years NBA Coach Popovich Pops Off: ‘White People Especially’ Need to be Made ‘Uncomfortable’ Walter Williams: The Black Family Is Struggling, and It’s Not Because of Slavery
Tuesday, September 26. 2017Tuesday morning linksPhoto: You probably like to eat those How Did Marriage Become a Mark of Privilege? Why are Americans Obsessed with Buying Organic? Not me. If it says "organic," I won't buy it. Marooned among Polar Bears (h/t Am. Digest) Guns, Germs, and Steel revisited Oktoberfest Was Invented by Jews The help Puerto Rico needs now — and what it doesn’t PR needs independence. They are a third world country The Deranged Origin of Multiculturalism Fixing flood insurance -- now's the time I don't fault Matt for putting his own children before mine. What I do fault him for is his efforts to keep me from putting my kids first. Sunday Sermonette: “If I were the Devil” Paul Harvey’s Prophecy from 1965 CIVIL WAR ON THE LEFT, PART 48: ASIAN SUPREMACY?
Oberlin College newspaper: Don’t accuse us of “social justice warfare” THE NATIONAL FELONS LEAGUE IS SPITTING ON AMERICA, NOT THE FANS
STaR SPaNGLED BLuNDeR...
Trump Is Reinventing What It Means to Be a Politician As The Kurds Vote For Independence, Turkey Paves The Way To Invade Studying the Vietnam War - How the scholarship has changed. The Case for Preemptive Defense and Offense in the North Korean Chess Match NoKo is at war with the world, with reality. They are no threat to the US. Just bluster. Same as Venezuela, needing a scapegoat. Monday, September 25. 2017The Maggie's Farm 100 Push-up Challenge for all ages, sexes, and gender identifications
The idea is to do 100 daily, whether it's 1 or 5 or 10 or 20+ at a time. Just do 100 total with proper form (down low, back and legs like a plank and no dropping your butt). Obviously this is not for those fitter folks who can just get down and do 100 in a row without breaking a sweat. I'll begin with ten sets of ten and try to up the reps in each set each day with a goal of two sets of 50. Women can either do Pushups for women, or the basic version. Supposedly it can tighten gals' boobs, but don't ask me. I just do not want to develop Man-Boobs. Men can not do Pushups for Women, of course. That would be shameful (although I confess I was forced to, recently. I can't do 50 man pushups in a row - yet). 100 is not a lot for 24 hours, and over time it gets more efficient, more at a time. Probably not a bad idea for those who never do pushups to begin with 30 for the first day, then 50 the next day, then 70, then 100. Warning: The next Maggie's 30-day challenge in November will be similar, but for Burpees. We want to keep our readers alive. We need every one of our readers to keep getting the big bucks from Dunkin Donuts and Bob Dylan. This is fun:
Monday morning links4 Ancient prayers from the earliest Christians Compassion, Empathy, Flapdoodle Why are good men so hard to find? John DelVecchio wants to Peak at 70 That's a good way to think, but why not 75? Time flies. Chicago’s Awesome New Soda Tax Produces Predicted Results\ The Ridiculous Expulsion Of Uber From London What do Leftists want? UC Berkeley’s ‘Free Speech Week’ officially canceled, appeared to be set-up from the start - Email suggests organizers didn’t intend for the event to happen Betsy DeVos Strikes Down Title IX 'Dear Colleague' Letter Behind Obama Campus Rape Tribunals African-Americans need school choice So does everybody else The left hated the NFL, until yesterday Patriots Fans Rain Down Boo’s Upon 20 Hate-filled Players It is strange, but nobody pays money to watch athletes display their politics - whatever they are. I still don't know what all this is about other than another Trumpian circus. Pres. Trump is a hit new TV reality show with a crazy new theme each week for people to talk about. Meanwhile, behind the stage, his admin is doing lots of things. Oppressed Multi-Millionaire Stevie Wonder Takes a Knee Austin Police SLAM Violent Masked Antifa Terrorists to the Ground, Make Multiple Arrests Vladimir Putin did not hack the election. Barack Obama did. . . . NY Times Uses Earthquakes To Bash Trump Fighting Fire with Fire: A Republican Finally Co-opts Alinsky's Rules for Radicals Warren: Trump, it has been noted, can be “politically incorrect.” To my mind this is his signal virtue. Sunday, September 24. 2017VietnamRe Burns' Vietnam series, from DelVecchio's Burning History: Deceptions and A Teaspoon of Sand:
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'Plain old untrendy troubles and emotions'
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From today's Lectionary: So the last will be first, and the first shall be last.Matthew 20:1-16 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." Saturday, September 23. 2017Mocha DickI learned about Mocha Dick from Vanderleun's The Parable of the White Whale and the Good Ship “America” The Great American Novel can be re-read regularly with no loss of power. Read it.
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Saturday morning linksWhy Onions Make You Cry Dogs’ Love of Man Is Real Do You Want To Be a Wife? Why Can't My Famous Gender Nonconforming Friends Get Laid? Sheesh. My apologies for linking that. Latest News from the Insane Asylum in New Haven Climate Deniers Just Want To Protect The Status Quo That Gave Them Great Lives Or Something When can we expect the next ice age? " Large numbers of my friends and acquaintances are climate skeptics, and many of them spend a good deal of their time feeling down in the dumps about the subject...." Tom Price’s Entitlement Spending The Puerto Rican Prophecy of Leonard Bernstein "Always a hurricane blowing..." St. Louis Aldermen Pass Resolution to Honor Heroin Dealer who Tried to Run Over Cops "California’s Sexual Assault Law Will Hurt Black Kids." Battle Over Confederate Monuments Moves to the Cemeteries It's never enough Academics Denounce Responsible Lifestyle as White Supremacist Protesters Interrupt Comey’s Speech At Howard University Democrats Are Gifting the Median Voter to Republicans Jimmy Kimmel Got a Hand From Chuck Schumer in His Fight Against Obamacare Repeal Lying RINO John McCain Says He Cannot Support Latest Obamacare Repeal Bill – But Ran on Repealing Obamacare Democrats will use any excuse not to give power back to the states or the people The US Navy – It’s Not a Job, It’s a Total Cluster Friday, September 22. 2017A tune for climate changeFriday morning linksI'm a brain scientist and I let my son play football New Cotinga Tree Of Life Sheds Light On Evolution Of Brilliant Colors Study: Dinosaur-killing asteroid accelerated bird evolution Hubble discovers a unique type of object in the Solar System Where did Syphilis come from? Missing from Ken Burns’ ‘Vietnam’: The patriotism and pride of those who fought Ken Burns' Vietnam: Episode 1. Very Good, But 2 Omissions THE CAUSES OF INCOME INEQUALITY, REVEALED Duh: Unemployment, single parenthood, youth Debt-Serdom and Our Neofuedal Status Quo Indeed, governments are Tax Farmers Related, With Popular Single-Payer Plan, Bernie Sanders Enters New Territory: A Wealth Tax An annual tax on your life savings should be popular. That is, in addition to any income it generates. How about an annual 10% tax on your net assets? Clapper Claims FISA Wiretap Of Paul Manafort Conducted Without His Knowledge Why CNN told you Trump's campaign was wiretapped Trump’s ‘sovereignty’ talk was what the UN needed to hear Merkel’s Great Transformation North Korean leader on Trump: ‘I will surely and definitely tame the mentally deranged U.S. dotard with fire’ China and the art of the deal Thursday, September 21. 2017Thursday morning linksDid Fashion Week Just Signal a Return to Classic Femininity? For the 100th time, What is Art? “The directors of the new movie don’t seem to realize that Bobby Riggs is the one viewers want to hang out with:” Why Do We Encourage Gender Specific Clothes for Transgender Kids, but Gender Neutral Clothes for Straight Kids? Why This Mom Can’t Go to the Playground With Her Kids Quackademic Medicine at UC Irvine - UC Irvine Medicine School opens a center for integrative medicine, selling out to promote quackery in medicine. Judge Reopens Market to Christian Farmers Banned Over Same-Sex Marriage Stance; City 'Disappointed' Really? A disappointed city? Monumental Ignorance — Dumbing Down America - At UVA, moronic identity politics takes precedent over knowledge and truth. Mohammed Top Baby Name In UK For Fifth Straight Year…. School Choice: Matt Damon Elevates Hypocrisy to an Art Form Scientist Smacks Down Al Gore’s Claim That Harvey Brought ‘500,000 year rains’ The Myth That Climate Change Created Harvey, Irma From the “The Stupid, It Burns” Department: “Science denial not limited to political right” "Extraordinary & Worrisome" - WSJ Demands To Know How FBI 'Meddled' In 2016 Elections Sharyl Attkisson Rages "Looks Like Obama Spied On Trump, Just Like He Did To Me" What if the Republican candidate for president was put under surveillance by a Democratic administration that was trying to elect another Democrat? "This is much worse than Watergate, folks. That was a third-rate burglary that went awry." 'Rocket Man' aside, Trump's UN speech marks another kind of shift Look who else threatened North Korea Nikki Haley: The world now calls Kim Jong Un 'Rocket Man' All in all, Trump has had a pretty good eight months Slowly learning the job The True Enemies of the Palestinians Egypt's Sisi Urges Palestinians to Unite, Co-Exist With Israelis And lose their scapegoat? Not gonna happen Austin Bay: Russia's War in Ukraine and War Games in Belarus Wednesday, September 20. 2017Best lower body calisthenics for guys and gals of all ages
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.
The IDF Wishes You a Shana Tova
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