I forget, sometimes, how sensitive I can be. It was a lovely day, and I decided that I wanted to go for a walk for lunch. I wasn’t sure where I was going to end up, but I knew it would be far from the office, and I would probably get lunch whenever I gotContinue reading “On the Moving Story of a Man and His Dog”
Tag Archives: News
On Passages
Yesterday, Howard Zinn passed away. Today, J.D. Salinger. I’ve read both men’s work. I would not characterize myself as a fan of other, though I respected what they both wrote, even liked much of it. Salinger I read, like most people, in high school. I didn’t find his work as revelatory as my classmates did.Continue reading “On Passages”
More on a Biblical Book Burning
Two weeks ago, I wrote about the sad tale of Pastor Marc Grizzard and the Amazing Grace Baptist Church of Canton, North Carolina. Grizzard and his flock planned to spend their Halloween not giving out candy or dressing up for the holiday. Rather, they planned to burn Bibles that were not the King James Version.Continue reading “More on a Biblical Book Burning”
On a Biblical Bonfire
On Halloween, in the western North Carolina town of Canton, parishioners of the Amazing Grace Baptist Church will be having themselves a book burning. But not just any books. Satanic books. Like Bibles. If it’s not the King James Version, it’s Satanic, according to pastor Marc Grizzard: “The New Revised Version Bible, the American StandardContinue reading “On a Biblical Bonfire”
On “A Whiter Shade Of Pale”
Who would have thought this? Procol Harum’s “A Whiter Shade of Pale” is the most-played song of the past 75 years. In the UK, anyway. I quite like that song. Oh, I have not a clue what it means. I love the sound. Ian McDonald slams the song in Revolution in the Head, his lengthyContinue reading “On “A Whiter Shade Of Pale””
On Clothes For Palin
Science fiction author Robin Wayne Bailey has an interesting idea: In Ormond Beach, Florida today, John McCain was asked several times about the $150,000 spent on Sarah Palin’s wardrobe. Each time, McCain answered with basically the same remarks, to wit, that Sarah Palin needed the clothes. I want to start a national movement, andContinue reading “On Clothes For Palin”
On an Honor Too Awesome For Words
In San Francisco, they want to memorialize President George W. Bush. But this would be no ordinary memorial. Not a school, or a federal courthouse, or a stretch of interstate highway. This would be a sewage plant. The George W. Bush Sewage Plant: [A] group going by the regal-sounding name of the Presidential Memorial CommissionContinue reading “On an Honor Too Awesome For Words”
On the Meaning of Sportsmanship
I find myself at a loss for words. A college women’s softball game. A tragic injury. A breathtaking show of sportsmanship. Tissues necessary. Click the link. On a day when I’m feeling cyncial about this country, a story like that will astound you. Read it. I couldn’t have written that article. I’d have melted down.
On Coming Disasters
Is there any good news anymore? Plague will be the next big thing. No, not some super-flu. We’re talking Black Death. What’s wrong with the world? I suddenly envision a guy with a cart — “Bring out your dead! Bring out your dead!” No, that would be a silly thought. Seriously, though. Plague? There isContinue reading “On Coming Disasters”
On Animal Cruelty
In San Juan, Puerto Rico, a private animal control contractor hired to clear a housing project of animals did so. By throwing sedated dogs off a bridge to their deaths. Raids were conducted on Monday and Wednesday, and residents told TV reporters they saw the animal control workers inject the animals. When they asked whatContinue reading “On Animal Cruelty”