Ed points out tribalism within the church: When you get mainstream any Christian leader to read this same passage and he starts talking about how we need to end sectarianism. But what he really mean is that everyone should dissolve their clubs and join his. “Well, isn’t it obvious? Our way is the right one!” … There Will Always Be Divisions
I caught bits and pieces of Bloodsport the other night. I don’t know much about martial arts movies but it seems to be the quintessential 80’s Western “kung fu” movie—its ubiquity is inescapable, and we have very, very basic cable. Browsing the reviews of the movie on imdb.com revealed this wonderful gem. I want to … A Wonderful Movie Review
Gillian Anderson is cool with being a James Bond incarnation, because the Internet brought it up: Anderson is on Tumblr under the name Chewie’s Girlfriend (a reference to Chewbacca from Star Wars). She recently answered a series of questions on the platform, one of which was “What’s the best rumour you’ve ever heard about yourself?” … Everything Has to Really Be Something Else
The Fall of Venezuela. Prepare Yourself Accordingly. – Surprise! A socialist nation turns into a sick, broke, starving, boiling-hot dystopia. What Are the Dreams of Blind People Like? FDA Claims the Power to Define Words What the Hell? – “The language you speak is the language you think, and the language can seriously hold you … Links of Possible Relevance, Part 14
“Say, I really like Thing X,” said the private, who was Jewish or from a southern state. “That’s dumb. You’re dumb,” said the other private, who was the opposite ethnicity of the first private. “You’re such a racial epithet.” Later, after tossing around more ethnic slurs, they searched for food or booze, fooled around with … Every 20th Century War Novel
The Goodreads giveaway for Pale Blue Scratch is now a go. Look to the right, or down below if you’re on mobile, so read about it and enter, or just click here to enter. Go for it! Giveaway is over, and the winners have been selected. Thanks for checking it out.
I posted the full movie a few years ago, but YouTube had taken it down, most likely because it was an upload from a random user without the copywright. However, the Paramount Vault channel recently uploaded it in full, so it looks like it’s here to say. Enjoy. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nqq0nVu29g8
The Running Man is on Netflix. I re-watched it. It’s the Arnold Schwarzenegger movie that missed the mark commercially, but it was the perfect blend of all of the more popular Reagan-era dystopian movies: Robocop, Tron, They Live, with a little bit of Total Recall foreshadowing. It wasn’t a bad movie, aside from Arnold’s lame … How to Make “The Running Man” a Better Movie
The 2015 Nebula Awards were announced today. Glaring inequality abounds* inside the sci-fi and fantasy world, and it’s not okay: Earlier tonight, the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America handed out the Nebula Award in Chicago, and this year women have swept one of science fiction’s biggest awards. This year’s Nebula Award Banquet toastmaster … The SFWA Has a Gender Problem
I was getting a pinch flat fixed over the weekend, and I saw this beauty. I don’t know if this a “commuter bike” proper, but I’d think a cup holder of this kind is a prerequisite.
Thought I’d share my (mostly) video game music playlist. It’s good for background music for reading or quiet working, though if you really like some of the songs the experience can be interrupting. Youtube has a 200 video limit for embeded playlists, looks like, so go here to the actual playlist page for all the … A Playlist of Possible Interest
Or possibly the new “triggered,” but not quite yet. It needs to grow. There was a time in the not too distant Internet past, where discussions and arguments devolved quickly when someone invoked the “ad hominem” fallacy accusation. Or the exchange’s devolution had already happened and the accusation was just a signpost. Whether or not … “Gaslighting” is the New “Ad Hominem”
Don’t mind me here. It’s part of my mortgage-paying job to notice and fix the things I’m gassing on about below, so none of this post is necessary. It’s all sidebar observations. Is anything on here that necessary to begin with? It’s not that Pittsburgh’s David L. Lawrence Convention Center website is bad, per se, … How Not to Do a Convention Center Website
I came across a lot of alt-physics theories when writing Pale Blue Scratch, since technology played a large role in the plot, and the Tesla/Edison period was a good fit for the time period and history. I recently rediscovered one of the first sites I had explored to get a feel for all of this: … The Electric Universe
You don’t understand, but perhaps you do. This song kills me. Kills me. There’s an all-string version, which seems more popular, by the Kronos Quartet that was in the movie La Grande Bellezza. That one is also good, but there’s something special about it being performed a capella.
Jill asked me in a comment to describe my ideal state. I obliged: You know, I don’t think anyone has asked me that directly. I don’t know what the ideal state is, but it probably isn’t a state. I can’t really decide for other people under what rulership they should be living–deciding for other people … The Ideal State
I received this review of Pale Blue Scratch via email (beware…partial spoilers ahoy): So far enjoying this mysterious, exotic journey and love the relationship between the two main characters. REALLY appreciate the fact that you chose to make the main protagonist a strong, smart, independent woman… the equivalent of an undercover female ninja warrior/secret agent, … A Partial Review of Pale Blue Scratch
Another good one from Cafe Hayek: “No. Just No.” Second and even more importantly here: “national productivity strategies” are, practically speaking, strategies or plans imposed by the state. They are schemes pressed down from on high by politicians and bureaucrats each of whom not only is motivated chiefly by political goals (and, thus, likely to … Planned Economies
I’ve been listening to Deadlock a lot lately, since they had released a double-CD album of re-recorded or unreleased, etc., songs—an album that passed my attention on its release date. One of the songs, “Earthlings,” is from a past Japanese market release of Bizarro World. If the Japanese isn’t apparent to you during the verses … When an English-Speaking German Band Does a Song in Japanese
“A Protocol for Dying”: Time for my last article. I could probably write more, yet there are times for everything and after this, my attention will be focused on the most comfortable position for my bed, the schedule for pain killers, and the people around me. …. And so I’m proud of my real work, … A Computer Programmer Prepares For Death