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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Tuesday, December 21. 2021Tuesday morning linksCovid panic as progressive virtue signaling Mitch Daniels is a voice in the wilderness Fury From The Left After George Will Calls 1619 Project “Historical Illiteracy” and “Not Innocent Ignorance”. And he did it at WaPo, leftists’ safe space. Race card played: “Will should’ve just written Hannah-Jones was ‘uppity'” Abigail Shrier on Freedom in an Age of Fear. A warning—and a rallying cry. Orthodox rabbis call on US universities to suspend diversity programs It's Official: Durham Is Investigating The Clinton Campaign Biden's Appeasement of Moscow Threatens NATO Latest Palestinian Attacks Are Motivated by Incitement Combined with Hamas’ Interest to Increase Terror Monday, December 20. 2021Watching the River FlowMonday morning linksLouis Prang, Father of the American Christmas Card, Santa Claus of American Art Sexual Assault Is Already Happening in Meta’s Virtual Reality World Former Harvard Chemistry Chair Admits to Taking Tens of Thousands of Dollars From China That's peanuts Prof: Outdoor recreation a ‘white-dominated space,’ has ‘roots in systemic racism’ Elon Musk's taxes Which Country Or U.S. State Will Be The First To Hit The Renewable Energy Wall? CJ: Two Statues of Jefferson - The New York city council has evicted Thomas Jefferson from its chamber. Should Paris now follow suit? People who get breakthrough COVID-19 infections after being fully vaccinated have 'super immunity' with antibody levels rising as much as 2,000%, study finds Covid is no excuse to dress like a slob. Time to get rid of the ‘athleisure’ wear and start caring about our appearances again Nick Sandmann reaches settlement with NBC Manchin Exposes Dems' Ignorance of Flyover America Trump’s attacks on McConnell are wildly off-base China and American business Poll: 93 percent of eastern Jerusalem Arabs prefer Israeli rule Sunday, December 19. 2021From Sunday's Lectionary: The MagnificatLuke 1:46b-55 1:46b "My soul magnifies the Lord, 1:47 and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior, 1:48 for he has looked with favor on the lowliness of his servant. Surely, from now on all generations will call me blessed; 1:49 for the Mighty One has done great things for me, and holy is his name. 1:50 His mercy is for those who fear him from generation to generation. 1:51 He has shown strength with his arm; he has scattered the proud in the thoughts of their hearts. 1:52 He has brought down the powerful from their thrones, and lifted up the lowly; 1:53 he has filled the hungry with good things, and sent the rich away empty. 1:54 He has helped his servant Israel, in remembrance of his mercy, 1:55 according to the promise he made to our ancestors, to Abraham and to his descendants forever." Saturday, December 18. 2021Nice Italian lunchSome random norceria, cheese, bread, a glass of wine, and thou
Saturday morning linksWhy jeans have that tiny pocket From Reading Franklin:
Frat house cannot hang its own Christmas wreath, university insists Harvard Won't Require SAT Or ACT For 5 More Years The Strange Career of Paul Krugman The ACLU's Push To 'Cancel' Student Debt Shows How Far It Has Strayed From Defending Civil Liberties Noble lies are a public health hazard The New York Times still hasn’t apologized for its Russia Hoax coverage Bay Area: 6 Black Men Were Responsible for 70 Attacks on Asian Women San Francisco Mayor Declares ‘State of Emergency’ in Tenderloin District On the BLM Crimewave: Has any movement been so throughly discredited more quickly by reality than “Black Lives Matter”? December Sees Antifa Thugs (Finally) Going to Prison! The Washington Post is looking for a hitman Friday, December 17. 2021Friday morning linksChevy Christmas ad:
Via Insty, Uncovered: Key to how exercise protects against consequences of ageing Elite Winsor Girls School In Boston Moving Away From Calling Girls “Girls” Elizabeth Warren Is Really Cranking Up the Commie Stupidity This Week Democrat Senator Under Fire After Speaking at Communist Group’s Gala The Sanctimonious, Insufferable and Clownish Liz Cheney Seeks Revenge for Republican Ridicule How George Soros funded progressive ‘legal arsonist’ DAs behind US crime surge The Salvation Army pays a big price for its foray into wokedom Airline CEOs Testified Before The Senate On Taxpayer Bailouts – But You’re The One Getting Fleeced Now that Build Back Better looks dead in the water, weird things are coming out of the mouths of Delusional Dems Senate parliamentarian deals Democrats blow on immigration New IRS Disclosures Confirm Flood of Private Money to Elections Offices from Zuckerberg Grantee Biden administration scraps $450,000 payments to migrant families separated under Trump 93% of Polled Arab Residents of Jerusalem Prefer Israeli Rule to Palestinian Authority Thursday, December 16. 2021Thursday morning linksIn the cream cheese fiasco of 2021, a new suspect emerges — is it the water? Ex-MIT board member says her concerns about Chinese spying were deemed ‘racist’ New Study Indicates Omicron Spreads 70 Times Faster Than the Delta Variant Flying Restrictions Tight for Us, Loose for Illegal Aliens Dr. Scott Atlas wants you to know Remarkably, Corporations Have Suddenly Become "Greedy" Since Biden Became President Down with Feelings; Up with Facts Joe Biden Gets Touchy-Feely with Young Girls as He Surveys Tornado Damage in Kentucky It's lucky for him that he's not a teacher During January 6 Hearing, Schiff Doctored Text Messages Between Mark Meadows And Rep. Jim Jordan Is that legal? Wednesday, December 15. 2021Bird BehaviorA good Christmas present for people who are interested in what birds are up to: The Bird Academy It's from the Cornell Lab of Ornithology, so it is serious.
Long read about Sam PeckinpahI have never seen his movies, but most people have. Call me what you will, I just do not want those images in my brain. This is good: Brutal and Unreformed—Sam Peckinpah’s ‘Straw Dogs’ at 50
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Mini Gorgonzola PopoversWednesday morning linksNASA craft ‘touches’ sun for 1st time, dives into atmosphere Good News: Showing Boobs On The Beach Could Go To The Supreme Court Norway Bans Booze To 'Slow The Spread' Of Omicron The Latest Absurdity: Optional Mandates The Looking Glass World Of "Climate Injustice" -- Part III ELON MUSK FOR THE WIN Democrats Push ‘Racial Equity Audits’ To Cement Control of Tech Companies ADL report: Anti-Israel student groups top drivers of anti-Semitism on campus President Biden's job approval sinking on inflation, crime and COVID: POLL Facebook Quietly Admits Its Third-Party ‘Fact-Checks’ Are ‘Opinions’ Tuesday, December 14. 2021Italian cooking vs. Italian-American
In recent weeks, I have posted lots of Italian food in Italy. Without wanting to be a food snob (I am not a "foodie" - I like burgers and pulled pork), I need to explain again that Italian-American food is not to be found in Italy. The latter is an invention mostly by immigrants from southern Italy who were trying to make do. They used lots of pasta to fill people up, same as they did at home. Not a bad invention. But, for example, try a pizza in Italy. Inedible. A pizza in NYC can be amazing. Depending on where you live in the US, "Italian" can mean entirely different things. Generally-speaking, the fancier the restaurant the better unless you love red sauce. I have made the effort to post some real Italian food here on Maggie's over recent weeks. Northern Italian I suppose. I avoid any tomato sauce. I can make southern Italian killer "pasta fazool." Even Mrs. BD says it's better than her Neapolitano grandmother used to make for her grandfather. This does not really explain it: Italian-American cuisine Since we are approaching Christmas, check out our old post about Italian Christmas Eve food. Fried baccala - great. The feast of the seven fishes. I can't find my own old link right now.
Tuesday morning linksAtlantic: Is Dentistry a Science? Read the article. The new dental technology is a blessing in my view. Expensive, though. Confused About COVID? Who Isn’t? Rules are rules! Police enforce 1.5-metre social distancing with giant rulers during Covid protest in Frankfurt What a Progressive Utopia Does to Outdoor Dining. In San Francisco and elsewhere in California, the red tape that prevented dining alfresco before the pandemic is starting to grow back. People are upset with JK Rowling again ‘The Penised Individual Who Raped You Is A Woman’: J.K. Rowling Slams Scotland Police For Move To Record Male Rapists As Women Based On Self-Identity The Second Great Age of Political Correctness. The P.C. culture of the '80s and '90s didn't decline and fall. It just went underground. Now it's back. Ghislaine Maxwell, Elizabeth Holmes and Me - Amanda Knox on why we can't look away from female villains. Abigail Shrier: What I told the students of Princeton - Show some self-respect and reclaim your freedom Call 'Latinx' What It Is: Lexical Imperialism The media will never apologize for going all in on Jussie Smollett. The people who were skeptical all along of the actor’s lies are not at fault "We Can Never Believe Police": Cal State Prof Denounces Smollett Verdict As A "White Supremacist Charade" Kamala Harris tries to fake it just as Peggy Noonan told her to Biden's spending bill could double child care costs for middle-class Americans. Families could pay up to $27,000 more for child care each year under Biden's spending bill 'Conflicted Congress': Key findings from Insider's five-month investigation into federal lawmakers' personal finances Abraham Accords herald a new normal for Israel, Arab allies - opinion. Sometimes things that suddenly seem normal tell you how the world has changed. “APARTHEID” AND THE MEDIA’S COMPLICITY IN A MODERN-DAY LIBEL Monday, December 13. 2021Wellfleet Oysters for Christmas
The Atlantic Oyster (Crassostrea virginica) lives from the Northeast US down all the way through the Texas coast. They grow faster and larger in the south, and, in my view, are tasteless. In fact, they need to be cooked with something to be any good at all. Our Wellfleet Oysters are the best in the world, raw on the shell. Some afficionadoes call it "merroir," like terroir with grapes: These oysters grow slowly in mostly cold water, are splashed twice daily with fresh water from the Herring River, and spend low tide in the air. A rare combination of things. They are generally not too large. Due to demand, they are farmed now in commercial oyster beds, although my father-in-law and I have had some fun snagging a bag of them at low tide because there are still some wild ones. (Wear sneakers.) Don't go near the commercial beds or they might kill ya. Blue Points are second best, but not perfect. The history of the Wellfleet Oyster
QQQFrom a reader: John Steinbeck, from Travels with Charley Monday morning linksWorld's largest pot brownie When the Puritans Banned Mincemeat Pie The Absolute Best Way to Cook Shrimp, According to So Many Tests. Never eat an overcooked, rubbery shrimp again. Never! Camels enhanced with Botox barred from Saudi beauty contest Vermont school commits to kiddie porn as enlightening for children Turley: Send Lawyers, Guns, and Money: Newsom Calls For Gun Ban Modeled on Texas Abortion Law Education’s enduring love affair with “luxury beliefs” Latino civil rights organization drops 'Latinx' from official communication Steven Pinker book: Rationality: What It Is, Why It Seems Scarce, Why It Matters Teachers Don't Want to Come In to Work Because of Class Privilege Male and Female Athletic Performance: Worlds Apart Actual Female Swimmer at UPenn Says Team’s Support for Transgender Swimmer Is ‘Fake’ IT’S OFFICIAL: YALE IS THE WORST COVID-19 A Pandemic Of Fear "Manufactured" By Authorities: Yale Epidemiologist Chris Wallace Leaving Fox News NYC Gives Right to Vote to Foreigners, Illegal Aliens California Is The Only State To Hide Its Spending — Nearly $300 Billion A Year Sunday, December 12. 2021Hunting glovesOne of my pals uses this sort of thing. You can leave your trigger finger out. Yes, they make them for lefties and righties at Orvis. I'd get them as skin-tight as possible. I really do not like gloves for hunting, even for duck and goose in winter. If ducks are coming in, I throw off my gloves. I need the feel of the gun and, even with that, I am not a good shot. Mediocre. I just do not do enough shooting. I would not mind doing more, but it's a whole day thing like golf and I usually have other things to do too. I am grateful that I never took up golf. Gower WassailFrom today's LectionaryLuke 3:7-18 3:7 John said to the crowds that came out to be baptized by him, "You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the wrath to come? 3:8 Bear fruits worthy of repentance. Do not begin to say to yourselves, 'We have Abraham as our ancestor'; for I tell you, God is able from these stones to raise up children to Abraham. 3:9 Even now the ax is lying at the root of the trees; every tree therefore that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire." 3:10 And the crowds asked him, "What then should we do?" 3:11 In reply he said to them, "Whoever has two coats must share with anyone who has none; and whoever has food must do likewise." 3:12 Even tax collectors came to be baptized, and they asked him, "Teacher, what should we do?" 3:13 He said to them, "Collect no more than the amount prescribed for you." 3:14 Soldiers also asked him, "And we, what should we do?" He said to them, "Do not extort money from anyone by threats or false accusation, and be satisfied with your wages." 3:15 As the people were filled with expectation, and all were questioning in their hearts concerning John, whether he might be the Messiah, 3:16 John answered all of them by saying, "I baptize you with water; but one who is more powerful than I is coming; I am not worthy to untie the thong of his sandals. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire. 3:17 His winnowing fork is in his hand, to clear his threshing floor and to gather the wheat into his granary; but the chaff he will burn with unquenchable fire." 3:18 So, with many other exhortations, he proclaimed the good news to the people Saturday, December 11. 2021Excellent outingOur Lab did not perform perfectly, but we three guys had a wonderful day in the field anyway, chasing pheasants. Funny thing is, I didn't really care that the Lab flushed birds out of range. I just love to get out all day in a fine drizzle with pals hiking over hill and dale, far from civilization with the wind blowing through the trees and fields with dog and firearm (I used my s/s 20 ga today - just lighter to carry. Made in Italy for Abercrombie and Fitch, no idea how long ago. A pretty firearm with 2 triggers. 2 triggers just come automatically for me. I don't know why. !2 or 16 ga are better for pheasant, but what the heck. I like to use that gun. Cool idea from our friend: Load the first barrel with lighter bird shot, like 7 1/2, the second with #6. That gives you a better chance if you miss the first. Next October I'd like to get back to Maine for grouse and woodcock, but I wonder whether, now, I'd just rather see 'em than kill them. (Yes, my T level is at the max limit - it's not that.)
Saturday morning links
Remembering The Monkees Man attacked by 20 otters, bitten 26 times WHO: No Deaths Reported as a Result of Omicron Variant to Date Manhattan Rents Jump Most On Record Despite Dismal Back-To-Office Return Surprise: Push For Electric Vehicles Causing Massive Deforestation And Environmental Damage WaPo warns: Come and see the systemic racism of electric vehicles Mockery Ensues After USA Today Publishes Ludicrous Article Asking ‘Is Math Racist?’ Overwhelming Number of Diversity Officers at US Colleges Hold Anti-Israel Views, Study Says Jussie Smollett and the coveting of victimhood. Everyone wants to be oppressed these days. Friday, December 10. 2021Not bad advice
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Real Italian: One final Italian dinner
We observed that when guys go out for a fun supper together, they have Tuscan steak, cooked rare. They dig into it with gusto, sloshed down with Tuscan wines. Then gnaw the bone. I've had it twice over the years, and it does not compare with a Costco ribeye. Our Primo: Poached egg on a cheese fondue with crispy leeks - and a fried pumpkin blossom:
A second primo: Chickpea puree with a chunk of cod, and pancetta. Pancetta is good with cod. Secondo: Roast Pigeon with foie gras. A little bed of potato puree in the middle. Wow - pigeon is good. It is red meat, like goose.
Friday morning linksYellowstone appeals to a nation of soft hands. The show reminds us of a time when men knew how to do more Two all-purpose pieces of advice: small groups and mentors Oregon school forcing kindergarteners to eat lunch outside in the cold due to COVID The Anti-Israel Movement on U.S. Campuses, 2020-2021 CAIR’s Antisemitism Fails to Draw Media Scrutiny Well, it turns out that Americans are getting wise to fake hate crimes. ABIGAIL SHRIER: What I told the students of Princeton: Show some self-respect and reclaim your freedom. Kamala Harris Blasts America at Biden's "Democracy Summit" The 'Woke' Got What They Wanted -- And Then What? The Conventional Wisdom on Hispanic Voters Was Completely Wrong America’s Seventies Show—the Sequel. The stage is set for an economic replay.
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