Saturday I learned that one of my dearest friends has inoperable pancreatic cancer. Even in this day of improving cancer treatments, the odds on that particular type are … well, better than the odds of winning MegaMillions, but worse than almost every other type of cancer. On the good side, she’s got a partner who loves her and is capable of taking care of her. She’s also got one of the world’s great daughters, who flew thousands of miles to be here as soon as she heard. But all things considered, that’s not much of a good side. It occurs…
Category: Health and Science
… that now that the Supremes appear to be negative on Obamacare left-types oppose an “activist judiciary” and “legislating from the bench”? Haven’t they been cheerleaders for exactly that for lo these many decades? Aren’t they the folks who’ve always said the Constitution is a “living document” that means whatever it’s interpreted to mean at the moment? Oh. Wait. I forgot. That’s only because the decisions have nearly always gone in their favor. Chutzpah.
In China: rescuing dogs from the butcher. Survival Singles or doomsday dating. (Tip o’ hat to C^2) Memo to the fedgov: How not to attract tourists. The tale of Weela the lifesaving pit bull. Found this after a discussion of pit bulls came up in yesterday’s comments. It’s from quite a while back, but a wonderful story. Well. That about defines desperation. Ick. When clark mentioned in a recent comment section that a state government was about to raid small farms and slaughter their hogs, I wasn’t sure what he was talking about. But it’s pretty awful. He’s the nice,…
Here’s an aspect of the dreadful FATCA that hasn’t gotten much coverage. From jed in comments: homeless by choice (and on principle). “How to Be Creative.” I don’t buy the claim that there’s no such thing as “creative types” (OMG, there are indeed creative types). But the rest is surely true. Creativity isn’t just for artists, writers, and inventors. Neat idea: an urban food forest. Not quite sure, though, how “free” it can be. A U.S. government soldier decides to freelance. (ADDED: The story that it was one “lone nut” “going rogue” probably isn’t going to hold up.) “Gaining Respect…
Average cost of living $150,000/year? I freaking don’t believe it. Not sure I believe this, either. But it makes me all the more grateful for that freezer full of grass-fed beef. (H/T PT.) Now, this I definitely believe: Having power makes you stupid. Something actually good about Rick Santorum. I try not to lift too much from Radley Balko, since I figure a lot of the same people read his blog and mine, but this was too good: Why you can’t smoke pot. (Because there’s sooooooo much money and lobbying for the drug warriors.) “10 Rules for a Literary Feud.”…
Remember those strange underwater dog photos that went viral last month? Turns out the photographer is getting the success he deserves (which often doesn’t happen with ‘Net phenomena) and sharing his goodness with shelter dogs. (Tip o’ hat to F.) Unlike, for instance, killer PETA. The most over-crowded and hectically run big-city pound is better for animals than those creeps. The true prices of things. This came from S. with a one-word comment: Eeeewwwwwww. Elegant solution: post-earthquake container housing. (H/T MSJ.) One of those small, strange stories that comes along every once in a while (and makes writers want to…
Deadlining, so nothing Deep and Profound at the moment (not even anything deep and profound without the capital letters). But lotsa, lotsa links …. Here’s some insider dope on the weird stuff you may have heard is going on at Cato. Mobile phone privacy tips. And when it comes to privacy, you just gotta love Mozilla. You know that stupid TSA rule against more than three ounces of liquid? Well see if you can figure this one. And speaking of milk, turns out you can get a bigger “price on your head” for selling the raw stuff than for oh…
Real world disaster preparedness. The other day in comments, clark posted this link to a Katrina survivor’s experience and observations. Very much worth a read. I particularly liked this page that sums it all up. Simple, clever experiment reveals why we need to keep moving for health’s sake. One of the reasons, anyhow. Murphy’s Law. Your chances of a screw-up can now be calculated. Except … er … doesn’t Murphy’s Law ensure that the calculations are likely to be screwed up? “Hijacking the General Welfare Clause.” Historical research from wonderful new blogger AgoristDon. Better than a cop? Deer saves woman…
We may need eight hours of sleep, but maybe not in the way we’ve been told. Two related from NPR: The “right to be forgotten” threatens free speech and how much does the cloud know? (Tip o’ hat to PT.) An open letter to the MPAA’s Chris Dodd from Eric S. Raymond. You might save this one for when you’ve got plenty of time, but here’s a special report from ShadowStats on our prospects for hyperinflation. Yoga. And sex. About those FEMA camps … (Can anybody tell me why we’re going to need camps for “displaced citizens” now when we’ve…
In the last week, instead of posting miscellany here at the blog, I’ve been taking it to Twitter. Matt suggested that in a comment and it’s definitely a good way to go. Contrary to some folks’ fears, you don’t have to join Twitter to read those tweets (100 and counting, including re-tweets). Just click the link in the stickied post up above. I don’t think that gives you the full picture, as following me (gods forbid, they really need a better term — flocking; flying; singing; migrating) on Twitter would do. But it’s a good way to get your miscellany…