What kind of world is this.
Children slaughtered in Mariupol. Children slaughtered in Gaza, in Israel.
What kind of world is this?
Firing Line with Margaret Hoover with guests Cornel West & Robert George
I love these two.
Bobby Fingers ‘The Boat’ Trailer
A new Bobby Fingers video feels a little like Christmas.
Frontline: From Jesus to Christ
I’ve long been interested in beginnings of things, be it a river, a time period, or a belief system. The Middle East has all three in spades. I’m drawn to that region not as a believer, but as someone compelled to understand the beginnings of a moral framework of my culture.
Why did Judaism and Christianity spring from this part of the world? What was/is so compelling about these stories?
Once we understand the source, it becomes infinitely more compelling to look at the current manifestations of these beliefs in my own time, culture, and country. Having lived in the Middle East, it becomes apparent that American Christianity is a bastardization — a cheap facsimile — of the religion as it was. Yet here I am, living in a culture full of people that believe in the watered-down version of those stories. How on earth Christians can be such rabid capitalists, I’ll never understand, but watching people twist their beliefs into knots to justify their actions and desires — a behavior not exclusive to Christians…or the religious — is a favorite pastime.
Lest I sound judgmental (because I am, to be clear), I’m guilty of these moral contortions, too. It’s human nature to do so, but the least we could do is own up to our moral hypocrisies. But that is not a hallmark of religion.
Human nature is endlessly fascinating, at least from a distance. Get too close and you risk your life, as evidenced by this documentary.
Feist and Hundreds of Choir Members Sing ‘Nothing Compares 2 U’ in Tribute to Sinéad O’Connor
Feist. Prince. Sinéad. Three of my favorite artists.
In death, I hope Sinéad found peace, and in that way, it doesn’t hurt.
But the loss of Prince still moves me to tears, almost eight years later.
Eight years.
A live stream seems a little macabre, a little distasteful, a little too ‘normal’ for the circumstances, but I’ve been holding my breath for a week. I have friends in Gaza.
Three things I’ve been enjoying:
- The Larry Sanders Show
- The music of Florence Price
- The reference desk at my local library. Ask a question about, say, local history…then stand back. Phone books, plat maps, soil surveys, yearbooks, geographic studies…you name it, they know where to find it. You know you’re on to something special when you get a reference librarian to say, “Well now I’m curious.”
Prince, Tom Petty, Steve Winwood, Jeff Lynne and others — “While My Guitar Gently Weeps”
Imagine a world in which Steve Winwood is an afterthought.
This man taught me more about myself than anyone besides my parents.
Damn it. There’s not a day that goes by when I don’t miss him.
Horrendous acting by some wonderful actors.
I’d been watching this on a loop when it hit me: she dances just like me when I’m home alone. I give it 10/10.
11/10 if you include marks for confidence. I mean just look at how much fun she’s having.
12/10 if we include that jumper. 😍
Arrested Development + Succession = perfection
50% of AI researchers think there’s a 10% or greater chance that AI will cause the extinction of the human race.