Reading
All the movies, podcasts, books, albums, and TV that made us feel a little more human this year.
December 20, 1924, the NY Times published this: That didn’t work out any better than letting Trump off the hook for staging a coup and sending him into exile at Mar-a-Lago. I guess the fascist heart wants what the fascist heart wants. I thought of that when I read this today: Elon Musk, the world’s richest man and a close adviser to President-elect Donald J. Trump, on Friday endorsed Germany’s far-right party, a group with ties to neo-Nazis whose youth wing has been classified as “confirmed extremist” by German domestic intelligence. “Only the AfD can save Germany,” Mr. Musk posted to X, referring to the anti-immigrant party, the Alternative for Germany, by its German initials. In doing so, he is wading into German politics at a moment of turmoil, and at the very same time that he has wielded his influence in Washington to help blow up a bipartisan spending deal that was meant to avoid a government shutdown over Christmas. The German government recently collapsed, resulting in early elections, which are planned for next year. Mr.
Well, it’s been one heck of a year. ::shaking head:: Although I love getting those end-of-year postcards from folks, I’ve never managed to make them. Instead of recounting my familial adventures and emotional trials and tribulations, I thought I could at least step back and reflect on some professional endeavors over the last year, many […]
For a decade and a half, Dr. Jeffrey J. Kripal has been advocating for the...
The year behind; the year ahead.
Superstition reigns: A group of high-level managers at the Louisiana Department of Health walked into a Nov. 14 meeting in Baton Rouge expecting to talk about outreach and community events. Instead, they were told by an assistant secretary in the department and another official that department leadership had a new policy: Advertising or otherwise promoting the COVID, influenza or mpox vaccines, an established practice there — and at most other public health entities in the U.S. — must stop. NPR has confirmed the policy was discussed at this meeting, and at two other meetings held within the department’s Office of Public Health, on Oct. 3 and Nov. 21, through interviews with four employees at the Department of Health, which employs more than 6,500 people and is the state’s largest agency. According to the employees, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because they fear losing their jobs or other forms of retaliation, the policy would be implemented quietly and would not be put in writing.
Why are we here? Is there life on other planets? The renowned scientists who share a name share their answers to life’s big questions.
The post The Sean Carrolls Explain the Universe appeared first on Nautilus.
Rose Ayling-Ellis MBE has joined the cast of Showrunner Russell T. Davies' Doctor Who Season 2. Here's a look at what Davies had to share...
A conversation with artist Deena So'Oteh.
The post Finding Beauty in the Struggle Between Light and Darkness appeared first on Nautilus.
“I have a fundamental right to be protected by my government, especially in times of war. My children and I deserve to return to the safety of the U.S.”
The post Americans Stuck in Gaza Sue the U.S. for Leaving Them “Trapped in a War Zone” appeared first on The Intercept.
While rising anti-Muslim violence and sentiment in India has been making global news since Hindu...
And yet he’ll probably die being hated because he was old Those numbers are the envy of the world. The US under Joe Biden and the Democrats engineered a soft landing from a global economic catastrophe. I wonder if anyone will ever take the chance again. Doing the right thing turned out to be politically suicidal. Just as he did last time and he’ll seize credit for it. If you ever thought life was fair, think again. By the way, Democrats are gloomy about the economy, and Republicans are optimistic. I don’t think it’s just pure partisanship on the Dems part. They’re worried about the tariffs, tax cuts and deportation which isn’t irrational. If Trump carries out his plan the risk of killing this economy is very, very high. Of course, he’ll just blame the Democrats so… Here’s his latest: Biden is a ghost and the Democrats are nowhere to be found. Everyone knows it’s a GOP shitshow show. Let’s hope most people see the truth.
(With thanks to Dr. Henry Gorman)
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Aristotle: Be good for goodness’ sake.
Plato: To be “good” or “nice” is to cultivate one’s knowledge of Santa and to choose actions that make him happy. For these purposes, “Santa” can be defined as a bearded featherless biped in a red suit.
Diogenes: Pluck the fattest chicken you can find, paint it red, glue cotton balls to its chin, and say, “Behold: Santa!”
Epicurus: As long as you savor it, you can eat exactly one cookie off the plate you left out for Santa.
Marcus Aurelius: Worrying about whether Santa perceives you as “Naughty” or “Nice” is an impediment to your flourishing. Cultivate a state of indifference as to whether you receive presents or coal.
Thomas Aquinas: Sometimes, Santa brings you items with the accidents of presents, but the essence of coal (e.g., wool socks).
The battle is on to see which side of politics can boast of siphoning the most profits to the weapons industry – at the expense of health, education, climate and environmental action, and everything else we need – and of bowing more obsequiously before the US and its war machine. Serious examination of AUKUS and Continue reading »
I know what antisemitism looks like and it is to desecrate the memory of my parents and the victims of real antisemitism when it is weaponised to silence justified criticism of Israel’s crimes. Rally Speech in Hyde Park, Saturday December 15, 2024 I’m proud to stand with you again today together with many Jews around Continue reading »
Australia and Germany are quite literally a world apart, and expecting to find many parallels between the two countries might appear counter-intuitive. But as secondary powers in the Anglo-American sphere of influence, many of the resulting challenges the two nations face are indeed identical. Most significantly, the severe curtailment of national sovereignty by a foreign Continue reading »
Defence Industry Minister Pat Conroy turns a blind eye to “unethical conduct” between Thales and the Defence Department despite national audit office warning of “capture” by weapons giants. Part 3 of 3 (read part 1 and part 2) The number of corruption investigations into the Thales Group continues to mount internationally with another announced two weeks ago. The UK’s Serious Continue reading »