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Category: Arts and Aesthetics

All things creative. All things beautiful, profound, and moving.

Tuesday links

Most media outlets aren’t mentioning that those four people who found and reported that killer-kidnapper in Idaho were all armed, men and women both. (They didn’t confront the creep because even though they felt something was wrong about the man and the nervous young girl they didn’t realize until they got home who the two were.) First dog Bo is so privileged he may soon have to be named Incitatus. But even Caligula probably didn’t make Roman taxpayers fork over bux for his critter’s private progresses through the streets or a $100k per year handler. How Nixon ushered in an…

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Wednesday links

Quick! More than half the tickets are already gone. But if you’ve ever wanted a Serbu BFG-50A (just like the one the good folks of Serbu refused on principle to sell to the NYPD), you can buy a chance and benefit JPFO at the same time. This is a beautiful [expensive!]* gun. If “BFG” stands for what you’d expect “BFG” to stand for, the name really, seriously tells the truth. “David Brooks: The Last Stalinist.” Unfortunately, he’s probably not even remotely the last. But I “enjoy” listening to him on NPR, where they pair him with E.J. Dionne as if…

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“Silent Running” by Mike and the Mechanics

Just because Shel brought it up in comments and it’s always been a great song. Source for those who can’t see the embed. Yeah, the video’s a little “1980s” now. But still … —– ADDED: I suppose it’s a plus (although a pretty weird one) that this song has been banned on the BBC for many years “…due to its address of war, nationalism and religion, as well as a direct reference to weaponry in the line, ‘There’s a gun and ammunition just inside the doorway.’” Geez, I knew the Brits had gotten lily-livered in the last few decades (no…

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Weekend freedom question: walking away

This was a week for getting reminded of unconventional freedoms — and unconventional Outlawry (though some might call it just plain criminality). First, we got fascinated with Christopher Knight (aka the Maine Hermit), whose solitary life some found irresistible. Imagine speaking only one word to another human in 27 years and sleeping outdoors through 27 northern winters. Imagine doing that, yet remaining so un-resourceful that you think stealing from a camp for handicapped kids is a legitimate way to survive. Then yesterday afternoon, NPR interviewed Mike Brodie — not their usual sort of book author. At 27, Brodie is a…

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Monday links

Victor Davis Hanson: Why once-successful societies decline and die. (H/T S) Ewwwwwwwww! Ewwwwww in a beautiful sorta way, but still ewwwwwww. (H/T S — a different S) For the serious dog walker. (H/T MJR) Ending the police loophole. Great site for keeping track of the great companies who refuse to sell to governments that don’t allow their citizens to own the same equipment. (H/T to J and not sure who else.) This dog can fetch. You might not think that’s newsworthy. But … The Department of Homeland (Achtung!) Security steals Michael Arrington’s boat. And gives it back, but only with…

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Weekend links and pix

With even “safe” states contemplating monstrous anti-gun crap like this, it’s heartening to see firearms and equipment makers (who in the past, with rare exceptions like Barrett, have tended to be compromising weenies), responding like this. (H/T JB) More creepiness. (H/T JG) We need some better news. Dalmatian adopts a spotted lamb that was rejected by its mother. And more good news. A senior pit bull saves her family — human and four-footed from a fire. And here’s a wonderful short-short story from the wonderful Maggie McNeill to brighten your weekend. (Good find, S!) To be published in March, but…

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Monday links and musings

Thanks for continuing to put up with the “lite” posting. Posting will probably be on-and-off all this week but should be back to normal by next Monday. —– Mark/Greylocke, the guy who brought us the Knoppix Thumb Drive preparedness document project, is now putting together a YouTube channel for survival/preparedness info. He’s inviting your contributions. If you have a knowledge or skill you want to share but don’t have the ability to edit your own video, he’ll even do that for you from your raw footage. —– I received my own KTD the other day via Scott’s ready-made drive business.…

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This Land is Whose?

I usually avoid writing about the Israeli-Arab quagmire. But since I stuck a verbal toe in via today’s earlier post, I might as well bring this stunning — and too true — Nina Paley video forward from where I dropped it in a recent comment section. (H/T. LewRockwell.com blog) For you young things, the song is the theme from Exodus, a Very Big Movie about the resettlement of Israel after WWII. And here’s Paley’s “Who’s Killing Who” guide.

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Little Brother, big nanny

That’s what governments are for… get in a man’s way. — Capt. Mal Reynolds So I did some illustrations for Backwoods Home that used money as part of the image. One was built around a $20. Got a public domain .jpg of an Andrew Jackson off Wikipedia (serial number already carefully obscured), then manipulated, altered, edited, truncated, artified it. AND I covered it with little drawn figures. Totally legal under every possible rule of use. All was fine until editor Annie Tuttle attempted to import the illustration into Photoshop to do the final prep to make the art print ready.…

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