Randy | December 23, 2011
If you’ve ever met anyone who watched even one episode of Seinfeld, you’ve heard of Festivus, AKA “A festivus for the rest of us”. If you’ve dug a little further, you’ll also know that today is the day. The origins of Festivus are not lost in antiquity. They lie in the writings and family practices […]
Randy | December 22, 2011
“We plunged into the cornucopia quivering with desire and the ecstasy of unbridled avarice.” ~ Adult Ralphie narrating about diving with his brother into the gifts under the Christmas tree, A Christmas Story (1983) Today is the very day I talked about yesterday – the Winter Solstice is upon us and tomorrow the sun begins […]
Randy | October 2, 2011
In the world of Man we have seen grocery stores expand their services to incorporate pharmacies while pharmacies have opened extensively stocked grocery departments so that, store name notwithstanding, the distinction between the two is becoming blurred. Most so called “department stores” have gone that way too in the inexorable quest to be all things […]
Randy | September 22, 2011
In my 2 June 2010 article titled Contemplations on a Really Bad Idea, I talked about the abysmally stupid practice of “trail running” and its singular ability to enhance a practitioner’s likelihood of being assaulted by wildlife. If you haven’t read it, please do before going further. This morning, thanks to my friend Jim Keating, […]
Randy | March 29, 2011
My first article in this three part series, titled Bullshit Alert – Since 11 March 2011, If You’ve Ever Even Heard of Japan, You’ve Been Exposed dealt with my observations on the ass covering passed off as public information releases that have been streaming out of Japan since the 11 March earthquake and subsequent tsunami […]
Randy | March 20, 2011
Yesterday’s article, Bullshit Alert – Since 11 March 2011, If You’ve Ever Even Heard of Japan, You’ve Been Exposed, introduced this and the article that follows, and explained my motivation for writing both. If you haven’t yet read my intro, please go and do so now before coming back here and moving forward. Media coverage […]
Randy | March 19, 2011
As the late unpleasantness in and around Japan continues to unfold, I’m seeing more and more media coverage that has a net information content of zero. On at least two cases, rather than informed, I actually felt stupider after listening to it. The constant soothing wordage and disclaimers like “slightly radioactive material” and “a small […]
Randy | December 27, 2010
Nature demands balance. She is neither wasteful nor inefficient, and She isn’t interested in the how of things so much as She is in finding the most efficient path to a necessary outcome. Life is an exercise in energy management, and there can often be more than one right answer to the same problem. This […]
Randy | November 20, 2010
“An armed society is a polite society. Manners are good when one may have to back up his acts with his life.” ~ Robert A. Heinlein, Beyond This Horizon, 1942 ~ If you follow me here, then you know I regularly encounter subject matter that’s too big for one article to hold. Well, I’m at […]
Randy | November 11, 2010
Peace, n. In international affairs, a period of cheating between two periods of fighting. ~ Ambrose Bierce, The Devil’s Dictionary As a student of military history I have long been aware of the German shenanigans with respect to Poland that finally dragged British Prime Minister Nevil Chamberlain kicking and screaming into a declaration of war […]