Grammatical Standards Change Over Time
Until recently, “nauseous” meant “causing nausea,” and the correct form of the word at left was “nauseated.” Now, because it was so often misused, it’s acceptable to use “nauseous” in the sense shown at left.
Tagged with: Grammatical Standards Change Over Time
It’s OK to be Ignorant, Just Keep it to Yourself
Just saw this on Facebook. What I would say:
1) If you agree, you’re ignorant when it comes to biology.
2) If you agree and you post this to social medial, you’re both ignorant and mean.
#1 and #2 are both bad, but #1 is better.
Tagged with: ignorant and mean
Should This Fellow Join the Catholic Church?
We Americans live our lives surrounded by constant reminders of the hypocrisy of the far right wing “Christians,” and incidents like a change in papal leadership serve to heighten our awareness of all this.
Tagged with: Catholic Church
What Attracts Trump Voters?
I like U.S. representative Jasmine Crockett, but I’m afraid I have some bad news for her: voters had the opportunity to deny Trump and congressional Republicans their positions of power in the election that was held just a few months ago.
Unfortunately, it’s the wanton cruelty and stupidity that is most attractive to the MAGA folks.
Tagged with: What Attracts Trump Voters
Must say, the guy looks the part.
Tagged with: red MAGA hat
Pope Leo XIV: Environmentalist
It appears that the new pope has the same humanitarian ambitions as the one we just lost, and environmental stewardship is a significant part of that. Good news, to be sure.
Of course, how this will translate into action is anyone’s guess.
Tagged with: environmental stewardship
We’re Such a Sad Culture
The reader who sent me this writes: All states should be doing this! Only Americans should vote!!!! She has 800+ likes on her social media post so far.
The problem? As every schoolchild learns, only U.S. citizens can vote in our elections.
How deeply pathetic we’ve become.
Tagged with: only U.S. citizens can vote
Building-Integrated Photovoltaics (BIPV)
I happened to run into a rep for a large manufacturer of roofing materials earlier today, which gave me the opportunity to ask him about building-integrated photovoltaics. (“It isn’t on the roof; it is the roof.”)
I told him that I have been researching environmentally sustainable materials for 15 years, and that I was disappointed that BIPV never took off.
He explained that the early technology had defects in it, and that even today, it’s more expensive per Watt than the solar panels that are mounted on our rooftops. That said, the price of BIPV is falling, and he considers it far more aesthetic than roof-mounted PV. He’s hopeful, and thus so am I.
Tagged with: building-integrated photovoltaics (BIPV)
Towards a Progressive Agenda
Yes, at left is the progressive agenda that America needs, but it hardly fits in with the nation’s zeitgeist one-quarter of the way through the 21st Century, does it?
We’re hoping that all the garbage magically disappears, and we can re-establish a demand for quality education, our traditional democratic norms, environmental responsibility, and a concern for the well-being of others.
Yet today all these things seem to be slipping ever further from our grasp.
Tagged with: Progressive Agenda
Our Next Surgeon General Could Be a Lobster Fisherman
Re: the meme here, former Marine fighter pilot and political candidate from Kentucky Amy McGrath says, “You can’t make this s*** up.”
The truth is that it’s perfectly predictable. Real qualifications for the position of Surgeon General (or any other top post) are irrelevant, as long as the appointee is 100% loyal to Trump. He or she could be a grocery store butcher or a sales clerk at Macy’s; it really doesn’t matter.
Tagged with: the appointee is 100% loyal to Trump
