I bought some comics recently. Aetheric Mechanics Avatar Press Written by Warren Ellis Art by Gianluca Pagliarani In the year 1907, England is at war with Ruritania on the Continent. France is besieged,and Grand Fenwick has been overrun by Ruritanian forces. England’s spacefleet is keeping London safe, while Ruritanian ships are sighted off Mars, andContinue reading “On Things I’ve Been Reading”
Author Archives: Allyn
On Ruining Halloween
Halloween. It’s a day when children (and some adults) dress up, go around, and get candy and other treats. (I had gummies and comic books to give away. I had no kids come by, however. Means more gummies and comics for me!) It’s a fun holiday. It’s certainly not an occasion for political grandstanding. UnlessContinue reading “On Ruining Halloween”
On Sarah Palin Getting Punk’d
Two Canadian radio personalities, the Justiciers Masques (“Masked Avengers” for us English-speaking types), got Sarah Palin on the phone recently. How? They claimed they had French President Nicolas Sarkozy on the line. They talked to her for about six minutes. What’s striking about this is that it never dawned on her that this phone callContinue reading “On Sarah Palin Getting Punk’d”
On Liddy Dole’s Bigotry
A week and a half ago I wrote about anti-atheist bigotry in the North Carolina Senate race. A group had cut an attack ad tying Democratic challenger Kay Hagan to a political action committe, the Godless Americans PAC. Senator Elizabeth Dole cut her own ad, “Promises.” It’s harsh. The closing moments, of Kay Hagan’s faceContinue reading “On Liddy Dole’s Bigotry”
On Writing Macros At Work
For a variety of reasons, I needed to talk to a colleague of mine at work today. He’d needed a document from me yesterday, and I wanted to check and see if that was something that he was going to need on a monthly basis going forward. Never hurts to check, right? Well, in theContinue reading “On Writing Macros At Work”
On the End of an Era
David Tennant announced today that he will be stepping down from his role as the Doctor in Doctor Who at the end of 2009 Specials. I’d been hoping that Tennant would have stayed through the 2010 season, the first with Steven Moffat as the series’ head writer. But he’s not. And the inevitable speculation hasContinue reading “On the End of an Era”
On World Series Speculations
Weather in Philadelphia was miserable last night. Watching game five of the World Series, I can’t imagine why they even tried to play it. I see now that game five, which was to resume tonight, has been put off until Wednesday. As a consequence, if there is a game six, it will be played inContinue reading “On World Series Speculations”
On Teddy Roosevelt’s Birthday
As long time readers know, there’s probably no President I admire more than T.R. himself, Teddy Roosevelt. From his military career to his historical writings, from his tireless dedication as the Police Commissioner of New York to his unceasing championing of progressive ideals, Teddy Roosevelt was truly one of America’s greatest presidents, and I oftenContinue reading “On Teddy Roosevelt’s Birthday”
On Conversations About Politics
I ride the Baltimore subway to work, and at times I think I’m the only white person who rides the rails in the evening. Friday evening, there was a man on the subway platform there at State Center. I’d have judged him to be about forty. He had muscle tremors of some kind. He approachedContinue reading “On Conversations About Politics”
On Rainy Saturdays
I hate the rain. I hate driving sheets of rain. I hate rain that gets everywhere. I hate rain that makes everything muddy. I hate the rain. That is all.