It’s not news that there are life-long Republicans who refuse to vote for Trump. In June of 2016, ultra-conservative columnist George Will exited the Republican party, and he’s been joined by many other public intellectuals on the right-wing since then. (more…)
I’m trying to lead a healthier life, getting more exercise, eliminating dairy, and cutting back on drinking. I put a shot of Lysol in my coffee just now as a replacement for milk, and this evening it will be a martini with a new recipe I found online: (more…)
Walking the dog with my wife this morning, I confessed to her that I’m a bit sad–“just sad for the world, I guess.”
Indian author Suzanna Arundhati Roy sure doesn’t see it that way, and what a bold voice of inspiration she is. (more…)
Here’s Carolyn Goodman, the mayor of Las Vegas, population 645,000, and temporary home to 42 million visitors annually, explaining to U.S. television journalist Anderson Cooper why she favors reopening the city’s hotels, casinos, restaurants, and other retail establishments to tourists. (more…)
Sorry, Dr. Cotlar, but I wouldn’t call it “nuts.” We live in a country in which more than 40% of our electorate is either overtly racist or tolerant of blatant racism. These are people who believe what the president said about the protest/counter-protest in Charlottesville, Virginia, i.e., “There were fine people on both sides.” (See photo below.) (more…)
This shot from the surface of Mars may serve as a reminder that we are a speck of dust in an icy-cold universe, indifferent to our well-being. If we are to survive crises like the current one, it is up to us to put forward our best thinking and greatest levels of compassion.
Plant-based meats have made incredible advancements over recent years, largely as a result of biochemists having isolated the protein “heme” (rhymes with “beam”), which, though found in plants, plays several important roles in animal tissue. Heme lies at the core of what makes products like Beyond Meat and the Impossible Burger virtually indistinguishable from beef. (more…)
I’d be lying if I said this man doesn’t evoke my contempt. But I have other emotions here that are actually positive.
One is pity. As the meme begins, “How sad it must be.” We don’t know how he was raised, but it probably didn’t involve private education, genteel parents, lots of reading, golf lessons, smart friends, and a four-year stay at a liberal arts college. This is what happens when a country commits itself to underfunding education for decades on end, and because of that, he’s not entirely to blame for how he turned out.
Another emotion, strangely, is hope. The United States has come close, both in 2016 and 2020, to having Bernie Sanders in the White House. What would this country be like under those circumstances? Well, for one, a great deal of resources would be placed on improving the quality of public education, minimizing the number of poor slobs like this guy in the red hat.
Isn’t Pope Francis a wonderful counterbalancing force to the hatred and ignorance we find all around us?
Makes one wonder what life on Earth would be like if we had national leaders such as this giant of the spirit.
Only 22 percent of Americans say they support those protesting the stay-at-home orders. Despite Trump’s messaging, even Republicans oppose the protests 47 percent to 36 percent. Asked whether they agree or disagree with Trump’s “LIBERATE” tweets, only a quarter of Americans say they agree. (more…)
