2024-09-06: You maybe could have seen this day coming fourteen years ago when his son was born and he named him "Colt."
cbsnews.com/news/georgia-scho...
2024-09-06: You maybe could have seen this day coming fourteen years ago when his son was born and he named him "Colt."
cbsnews.com/news/georgia-scho...
2024-08-01: "Any Westerners who set foot in Russia should always understand that they could be the next bargaining chips for some future deal." - The Atlantic
Why we won't be booking any tour of Russia any time soon.
theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/...
2024-08-02: On even days, Trumpers are scaring up votes by warning, "She's BLACK!!!" On odd days, they claim, "She's really not Black at all." I remember when campaigns would strive for consisent messaging.
2024-08-02: Headline: "Kamala Harris ‘honored’ after earning enough votes to become Democratic nominee."
Kudos to her...for saying 'honored' instead of 'humbled.'
2024-07-01: "Supreme Court says Trump has absolute immunity for official acts only." -- Texas Standard
Remember when Trump said, "I could stand in the middle of Fifth Avenue and shoot somebody, and I wouldn't lose any voters, OK?" I guess the part about not losing MAGA voters is still true. The only thing left in question is whether this Court would side with Trump that any shootings on Fifth Avenue are "official acts." But with this MAGA Court, is even that in question?
texasstandard.org/stories/supr...
2024-07-13: Headline: "Joe Biden avoids further gaffes at Detroit rally."
It's a low bar.
2024-06-01: Today's example of irony: A news story about elections in India from a news source that uses a fountain pen for a logo and a motto of "Dare to Write" ends with this disclaimer: "This is AI generated news with no Human interference."
greatandhra.com/politics/india...
2024-06-01: MaryAnne Doty's comment: "Maybe it's time for Tree the Town to help replace all the mature trees we lost in Richardson this week."
2024-05-02: Taking down the protestors' encampment at UT-Dallas involved officers from UT-D, Richardson, Allen (SWAT), Collin County Sheriff, and Texas Rangers. That shows impressive coordination...and maybe needless risk, as coordination on that scale doesn't come easily.
2024-05-02: Maybe they all have experience taking down homeless encampments. If so, you'd think any one of them was probably up to the task at hand. From reports, everything was peaceful before (and during and after) the police move.
2024-04-06: I don't recall any conspiracy theories about the eclipse circulating on social media. Am I missing them?
2024-04-09: Great view of the eclipse in McKinney. Diamond ring, 3 minutes of totality, then another diamond ring. Awesome.
2024-04-09: I always tell people that partial eclipses are interesting, but just can't compare to a total eclipse. A 99% partial eclipse sounds good, but totality is something else entirely. We would have been chasing the 2017 eclipse if we didn't know that the 2024 eclipse was coming right to us.
2024-03-03: Column: "As measles spreads, 'herd stupidity' grips Florida's government."
Pretty much. Conservative government is harmful to public health. Add that warning to others: Conservative government is harmful to democracy. Conservative government is harmful to the climate. How about just the catch-all warning: "Conservative government is harmful."
sg.finance.yahoo.com/news/colu...
2024-02-08: Rep. Mike Gallagher (R-Wis.) deserves a place in a "Profiles in Courage" for the 21st century. "A Princeton and Georgetown-educated PhD, a Marine veteran and a committee chairman, he had warned his GOP colleagues not to “pry open the Pandora’s box of perpetual impeachment.”" For that he was encircled and screamed at by his Republican colleagues.
2024-01-01: "At age 20, we worry about what others think of us.
At age 40, we don't care what they think of us.
At age 60, we discover they haven't been thinking of us at all."
-- Ann Landers (1918-2002).
At age 20, we thought Ann Landers was embarrassing.
At age 40, we conceded that she sometimes knew what she was talking about.
At age 60, we missed her dearly.
2023-12-03: Five schools have a strong argument. Only four can make the playoffs. I can't wait for the 12 team format that we should've had two decades ago.
2023-11-02: What's the over/under for how much Texas Rangers' ticket prices will jump next season?
2023-11-10: I just received an email from Dallas Mayor Eric Johnson that begins, "Thank you for supporting the Republican Mayors Association (RMA), an organization I launched less than three weeks ago." The mayor of Dallas is officially a non-partisan office. Recently, Mayor Johnson announced he was switching political parties. Now he's turning the office partisan. I have no idea where he got the impression that I support the Republican Mayors Association. I definitely don't.
2023-10-04: Headline: "THE EVANGELICAL CHURCH IS BREAKING APART." In fact, the church has been breaking apart since Martin Luther. Or since 1054. Take your pick. It's like Jesus said, "For where two or three are gathered in my name, there will be a schism." (Matthew 18:20).
"Every religion is crazy, by definition, to a nonbeliever." — Jeffrey Weiss
I miss Jeffrey Weiss. He wore multiple hats at The Dallas Morning News. For a while, he covered the Richardson ISD. Remember the days when The Dallas Morning News assigned reporters to Richardson? I do. For a while, he wrote for the Religion section of the newspaper. Remember when The Dallas Morning News even had a Religion section? I do. Writing for "Politics Daily" way back in 2010 (see, I told you Weiss wore many hats), Weiss called for a movement against “political nastiness,” coining the term "civilogue" for more civil speech in the public square. I do miss Jeffrey Weiss.
2023-09-01: "Dan Patrick says he won't accept donations during impeachment trial." He wants to remove the appearance of "the trial being wide open to outside political influence."
Logically, doesn't this mean he should quit accepting campaign contributions during regular sessions, too, to remove the appearance of legislation being wide open to outside political influence? Which it is, of course.
2023-08-02: Today's NextDoor top post:
"I am trying to understand why people say climate change isn't real.
It's 107 degrees."
The post was promptly deleted.
Because, of course it was.
2023-08-03: She asked, "I need WOWZA headshots. Who do you recommend?"
Without thinking, I answered, "Charlize Theron. No contest."
And that's how I got canceled.
2023-08-10: A person I was with, seeing a car's license plate bracket: "Dickinson State University. Where is that?"
Me, shrugging: "Dunno. But my guess would be it's now in the Big Ten."
2023-08-22: I ate in a fast-food restaurant today. At the POS machine the woman who waited on me told me to press "No tip" when it asked. I hesitated. She explained, "We don't get the tips. The manager does, and he's not here."
More random thoughts can be found on Mastodon.
Are you in the camp of people who think celebrities (singers, actors, athletes) are overpaid? If so, I understand where you are coming from. But Paul Krugman, economics columnist for the New York Times, isn't so sure. He provides some facts that caused me to change my mind. Try changing your mind now and then. I highly recommend the feeling it gives you. Now Paul Krugman has me asking, is Taylor Swift perhaps underpaid?
2023-07-01: In the "Black Mirror" episode "Beyond the Sea" (S6, E3), astronauts on a deep space mission get R&R by periodically transferring their consciousness to replicas on Earth. If this technology exists, why wouldn't NASA use it the other way around, sending replicas into space and keeping the humans safe on Earth, except when needed in space?
2023-07-03: Life would be easier to figure out if it were accompanied by melodramatic music like in bad movies.
2023-07-03: I'm reminded of when I taught high school in Australia in 1976. I told my students that in honor of the upcoming American bicentennial, there would be no school on July 4. An initial burst of excitement was quicky followed by irritation when they realized July 4, 1976, fell on a Sunday.
2023-06-01: Mike Pence is the 2024 presidential campaign's Connor Roy.
Headline: "Mike Pence is a man without a constituency."
2023-06-01: Ted Lasso series finale (with spoilers): True to the end, Ted Lasso stays nice win or lose. Laughs were never the main goal here (warm fuzzies were), and became less a goal as the series wore on. Series could continue without Ted, with a sharper edge (I'd watch that), but won't. B-
2023-06-04: TIL: "In a typical year, the country builds more three-car garages than one-bedroom apartments."
How Parking Ruined Everything - The Atlantic
2023-05-02: Headline: "2023 NFL Draft team-by-team grades: Eagles, Steelers and Lions clean up; Cowboys, Patriots among worst marks."
Time for a new general manager. Amiright???
2023-05-03: UT-Dallas is an asset for Richardson that the City should leverage.
"Allegro officials cited the number of other technology companies in the area and the talent pipeline created by The University of Texas at Dallas as reasons for expanding to the city."
2023-05-03: The cost of Brexit to Great Britain:
"By 2024, the average British household will likely have a lower living standard than the average household in Slovenia. On present trends, the average British household will be poorer than the average in Poland by 2030."
The Costs of Brexit Are Undeniable Now - The Atlantic
2023-05-08: You know, back in my day, someone who seemed to be obsessed with guns was looked at suspiciously and often reported to police. Today, such a person is considered by many to be just another patriotic American.