The Balrog reached the bridge. Gandalf stood in the middle of the span, leaning on the staff in his left hand, but in his other hand Glamdring gleamed, cold and white. His enemy halted again, facing him, and the shadow about it reached out like two vast wings. It raised the whip, and the…
We are on the edge of a storm according to a writer in The Atlantic and another in The Federalist. At the end of today’s edition of the NYT The Daily update of articles, I read a paragraph that stated that we are locked in a cold “civil war” as a nation. The journalist…
As mentioned previously, I did not watch the Republican convention. It was widely known that the Party was intent upon rebranding the brash, petulant, infantile Trump, as a stolid law n’ order leader, — “just the man that we need.” I can’t stomach the lies. A lesson of life, learned by dint of experience,…
We met again, a circle of lawn chairs in the setting sun, and then in the cool of early evening to discuss Reciprocal Altruism as a behavior germane to evolutionary development among living creatures. The author of the essay which formed the basis of our discussion, cited the symbiotic relationship between cleaner fish removing…
What is this? Why it’s a potato cucumber that originates in India! The vines love sun and moist earth. The cucumbers are about the size of a golf ball. They can be eaten without peeling, and have a slight lemony flavor. This is one of the garden “experiments” of this year that proved to…
The protest demonstrations following the May murder of George Floyd in Minneapolis have waned. Demonstrations have waned in other cites, except for Portland, Oregon. There demonstrations have continued for 55 consecutive nights against police brutality and other grievances. Last night, Mayor Ted Wheeler who joined the lawful demonstration was tear gassed. Portland has given…
Did not post anything yesterday. An important appointment early in the day foreclosed the opportunity to give adequate consideration to what I had on my mind. I would have written about the current President of the United States as our *fire-starter; like a troubled child, or disturbed adult who finds an adrenaline rush in…
This morning the news feed conveyed word of rioting in Minneapolis. Police officers in the course of arresting a black man while he was pinned to the ground, forced a knee into his neck long enough to kill him I’ve seen rioting, burning and looting before in the aftermath of the killing of M….
So this is what is meant by freedom.* What happens if they do not get what they want, when they want it, in full measure? Then what? Not that I care if they were to get exactly what they bargain for, — as long as it does not involve anyone else. Unfortunately, what…
The mass movementabsorbs the individual,by stripping the individualof his opinions, tastes, and values.He is thereby reducedto an infantile state.This is what the new birth really means:to become like a child,and children are primitive beings,credulous, followers,members of a pack. — Eric Hoffer What curious, weird creatures, we humans are ! I feel quite old, Yoda-like…
