World ended yesterday. Hm. Didja notice? I didn’t. Well then. Since we still appear to be here: ten everyday acts of resistance that changed the world. Ten incredibly cool homemade toys you could really hurt yourself with. The feds are moving Bradley Manning to Leavenworth. Where he might get slightly better conditions. We can hope. But notice the use of that word “detained.” Is it just me, or are the uses of “detained” getting creepier by the day? Didn’t there used to be a connotation of “slightly inconvenienced, momentarily delayed”? Now it’s getting closer to meaning “disappeared without a trace…
Category: Books and Movies
It was a time uncannily like this time. A time of rising poverty and unemployment, of a disappearing middle class, and a growing government class. Things were breaking down. The government always had a new “solution” — never mind that solution followed solution and matters got steadily worse. It was a time when the best finally quit pushing against the barriers erected against them and withdrew their talents, a time when the worst prospered through their connections to government. The man on the street, not understanding why life was falling apart around him, shrugged and uttered that ultimate expression of…
I promised a longer review of Atlas Shrugged for this weekend. This isn’t it. Sorry. I was going to write it today. Really I was. Then I woke up at an ungodly hour brimming with energy. Nearly ran up the stairs to the garret, where I mudded, sanded, primed, painted, and painted some more. Midday, I noticed — OMG! — the sun is shining. Actually shining! So I grabbed a cup of tea intending to sit on the back deck throwing a ball for Ava and petting the big dogs. After 10 minutes of sitting, an irresistible urge came on…
Just dragged my butt home from Civilization and said hello to the dogs. I’ll have more over the weekend, but here’s my quick take on Atlas Shrugged, Part I: It’s better than anybody had any reason to expect given its low budget and rushed production. Way better. Yeah, the writing is sometimes clunky and speechifying (though less so than in the novel). Nobody’s going to win any acting Oscars. If you hadn’t read the book, the movie would be hard to follow. That said, though, Atlas does a lot with a little. There’s gorgeous cinematography of trains and the Rearden…
I’m off to see Atlas Shrugged, Part I today! Turns out the nearest theater showing it isn’t quite as far as I first thought. Still, it’s In Civilization several hours from here, so the trek will keep me gone all day. Hope a bunch more of you are able to catch the film today or this weekend. Hope it’s as good as the trailer. In the meantime, on this day that Would Be Tax Day (but isn’t this year because Our Public Servants in DC are taking the day off, exhausted from their Ceaseless Labors Behalf of the Little People),…
Unexpected work struck today. Oh no! And it’s not even the kind that pays. Still, it’s the kind that has to be done during today’s five-second bursts of sunshine. So just some quick stuff for you: Manhattan-sized manmade floating island. Um … okay. Wonder how far that $50,000 will take the project? Wonder what that whiz-kid actually plans to do with it? Old-timers have seen this script before, but one of these days somebody’s going to succeed with the notion. “The prosecution rests, but I can’t.” Eloquent statement by a victim of “justice.” (Why do people always say they don’t…
The other day I mentioned in passing that “official” maps of the danger zones around Mt. St. Helens were so misleading that they probably got people killed. Indeed, I’ve learned since that they did. In fact, almost everybody killed in the 1980 eruption was in an area that government agencies had officially designated as “safe” — despite evidence to the contrary. My comment came in a post about tsunami preparedness and “official” maps that I’ve chosen not to trust. First off, I want to say that I think “official” map makers usually do their honest best. But at best there’s…
Stuff I’ve been saving up … Thomas Jefferson’s bible. I used to have a copy of that. Might still be in the bookcase of my ex-Significant Sweetie. Mmmmm. Pickled carrots. Another of my favorite things, but usually too expensive to buy at a store. Must try that recipe. A so-far neglected discussion thread started by Rarick over at The Mental Militia forums has some definitely odd links “for the bored prepper.” Or non prepper. Definitely for gearheads. This one is supposed to repel dogs. But I think at least one of mine would think it was a dandy playtoy. And…
The trouble with advice … is that when you ask for it, people give it! I mean, that’s the good thing about advice, too. But it goes both ways. On Tuesday when I asked for tips on what to add to my reconstituted grab-and-go kit (which sounds so much more respectable than a bug-out bag), you were your usual generous and informative selves. You helped me and potentially helped hundreds or thousands of strangers who might google upon that blog entry one day. Of course, you also twisted my brain into a pretzel and will probably scare the heck out…
Is it possible? Could two exicting, freedom-oriented movies be about to strike? From C^2 comes word of Silver Circle. This could be interesting.