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.
O’Neill rose to the rank of senior chief petty officer in the United States Navy and served as a team leader at DEVGRU, positions not come by easily. O’Neill has a laundry list of certifications, including instructor, physical trainer, master training specialist, special warfare sniper and breacher, diving supervisor, and survival expert. He was also an officer in charge of small arms, demolition, close quarters combat, explosives breaching, fire and maneuvers, and laser systems safety. His military air operations qualifications include high-altitude and high-opening free fall jump master, tandem and bundle master, parachute rigger, master naval parachutist, drop zone safety officer, and air operations trainer/examiner and quality assurance inspector. He has completed more than 1000 jumps.
O’Neill has been decorated more than 52 times with honors, including two Silver Stars, four Bronze Stars with Valor, a Joint Service Commendation Medal with Valor, three Presidential Unit citations, and two Navy/Marine Corps Commendations with Valor.
Political Correctness Might Be Redpilling America. Pinker is a lefty Harvard prof, and utters his share of half-truths and flat out untruths, but still interesting. He has gotten a good deal of lefty flak for supporting free speech in academia.
Smart guy, but he could never get a real job with that absurd hair-do.
Living near sea-level or on flood plains have forever been risky propositions, calculated (or uncalculated) risks. All the same, people do it. This is interesting:
On the morning of February 29, 1704, a French and Indian force invaded Deerfield, MA, the northwesternmost outpost of the colonial frontier. During the raid, 47 residents of Deerfield were killed and 112 were taken captive by Indian raiders who forced their captives to March north in grueling conditions to Canada...
Thanks to a reader for forwarding the link to this brilliant 1995 article from the Wisconsin Law Review by John Hasnas.
It's not just about "how to think like a lawyer." It's about how political law is, and about how much doublethink is required to understand American law. He makes the case that good laws must be squishy. He offers excellent examples too.
Specifically, I intend to establish three points: 1) there is no such thing as a government of law and not people, 2) the belief that there is serves to maintain public support for society's power structure, and 3) the establishment of a truly free society requires the abandonment of the myth of the rule of law...
In a recent article for American Thinker, “Why I Quit Teaching,” I listed three reasons that prompted me to abandon the teaching profession: unscrupulous administrators, degenerate teachers, and incompetent students. Of these, the latter was the most determinant...
I am looking for some good pithy quotes related to the topic of how a world ruled by logic and pure reason would be a terrible nightmare of a world for humanity.
It's a cool term. It refers to the ability to master all aspects of living so as to have the chance for a fulfilling and successful life: Bunky Mortimer’s Guide to Lifemanship
Sad to say, many people do not get As in that course. I'd give myself a B if I compare myself with others I know for whom mastery of most of life's challenges appears to come effortlessly.
Mostly lazy glib people who want to feel important in jobs with no heavy lifting. The real non-career pols (Trump is an example) are the ones I admire. Give a few years of public service and go back to the farm.
In general, the kinds of men and women attracted to politics are precisely the kinds of men and women who disdain the reciprocities required for success in the market. Market relationships are inherently co-equal: Because I can buy my car from Toyota or Ford, General Motors has no power over me. When I walk into an automobile dealership (or a supermarket, or a department store, or a restaurant, or a bank, or a brokerage firm, or a hardware store, or any private firm that enjoys no government privileges) I walk into an establishment that has no power to coerce me. The consequence is that the owners of that establishment treat me with respect, for if they don’t, I spend my money elsewhere...
It’s been 30 years since then-Education Secretary William J. Bennett took to the pages of The New York Times to chide colleges for their “greedy” behavior. He decried the negative effect federal student aid seemed to have on tuition, namely, that it allowed universities to raise prices without feeling the consequences of reduced demand or lower-quality students...
“Shame on feminist advocates who whine about a tampon tax in the United States, while remaining silent as a fellow woman in Iran fights for her right to speak at all.”
I was randomly thinking this weekend about how many current-day American hobbies, pastimes, and avocations have their origins in necessities, or near-necessities, of the past. We are all aristocrats now.
Consider these. You might think of more examples:
Hunting, fishing, weaponry, and gardening used to be necessary for survival.
Dog-raising and training used to be very helpful for survival
Weaving, knitting and sewing used to be the only ways to be clothed.
Music-making used to be for story-telling (still is, to some extent)
We used to have to create our own amusements: make plays, have sing-alongs, invent or play games. Now it's the TV and the computer.
We used to write elegant letters to communicate or to stay in contact. Very few do that any more. Fine writing is now a hobby (mostly)
Painting and sculpting (image-making) used to be special ways to worship God or gods
Golf used to be necessary to prevent deadly boredom for shepherds
Most sports are refined variants of physical combat
Cooking of all sorts used to be the only way to have food. Now it's become a hobby.
Hiking, running, horse-riding, boating, etc used to be the only ways to go places. Now hobbies.
Physical fitness used to be what you got from your daily labor. Now it's the gym in your spare time.
Not a bad interview, but even McWhorter can be naive sometimes. These people are not earnest: they are engaged in a power play and if you give them an inch they will go for the next mile.
We have friends who take these trips regularly. They are inexpensive compared to regular cruises (generally 1/2 the price), the ships tend not to be full, and the ports of call can be interesting.
If you like oceans (and missed service in the Navy), the transatlantic trips are wonderful and relaxing. Lots to see on the Atlantic ocean, and amazing food.
I think this means the academy either doubts the ability of the students to absorb knowledge or the unwillingness of faculty to convey it. What good is "process" without deep knowledge? This is pure laziness all around, but I do understand that colleges compete and many paying students do not want to strain their little brains.
The Boy Captive of Old Deerfield