Thursday, August 14, 2025
Meanwhile, in Springfield, Ohio
Sunday, June 1, 2025
A New Flag
We're in a whole season of patriotic holidays and recognitions. Memorial Day just passed, both the Monday holiday and the former "proper" observance on May 30th. Flag Day is on June 14th.
(Some Semafor and Signal conversations were leaked in spring 2025. They showed a group of billionaires having private chats, trying to figure out how to "steer" the country. Of course, the ideas were primarily for their benefit.)
Sunday, September 1, 2024
America the Fun
Thursday, August 1, 2024
Who's Paying?
Tuesday, July 16, 2024
From Sea to Dark Dead Sea
The Jordan in but never out,
So knowledge takes in me such route
In brackish waters to brood about
The suppression of true freedom's shout---
The Dead Sea.
At lowest point, then, here I sit.
The deepest depression of deep'ning rift.
The deep'ning gloom---and shall it lift?
Integrity's shroud, hides Holy Writ. . .
Apathy.
As just-hatched bird by Nature bred
Lives just to squawk and so be fed
I now by histr'y do so defend
By justified means I reach this end:
The Bland Me.
I lived through day, I lived through night;
I lived through love, I lived through fright;
I turned inside to put to flight
The hopeless failures from crueler sight:
The Dead Me.
Whether by mindless shallowness
Or endless, stale analysis,
In Sophist and in Hedonist
The fear of Feeling here exists:
The fear "to be."
On me they float but can't dive in:
Cannot drown but cannot swim.
Advance in skills. . .Retreat within. . .
A merry-go-round with fatal spin. . .
Technology?!?!
Oh, to be that other sea,
Parted to let young Israel free,
Closed to drown out cruelty,
Fluid with fresh-faced vitality:
The Red Sea!!!
-----C. Marie Byars, 1987
Monday, July 1, 2024
Monday, April 15, 2024
Pathways
Wednesday, February 7, 2024
Truman's Swans
Saturday, January 13, 2024
Sunday, October 1, 2023
Downfall of Our Forebearers
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Cicero Denounces Cataline --Cesare Maccari, 1889 |
Saturday, July 1, 2023
Saturday, April 1, 2023
More Groucho Marx Quotes
- The secret of life is honesty and fair dealing. If you can fake that, you've got it made.
- I must confess, I was born at a very early age.
- I've had a perfectly wonderful evening, but this wasn't it.
- Those are my principles, and if you don't like them... well, I have others.
- I intend to live forever or die trying.
- A hospital bed is a parked taxi with the meter running.
- All people are born alike-- except Republicans and Democrats.
- Who are you going to believe, me or your own eyes?
- A black cat crossing your path signifies that the animal is going somewhere.
- She got her looks from her father. He's a plastic surgeon.
- Either he's dead, or my watch has stopped.
- Why, a four-year-old child could understand this. Run out and find me a four-year-old child: I can't make head nor tail out of it.
- Before I speak, I have something to say.
- Next time I see you, remind me not to talk to you.
- Humor is reason gone mad. --Groucho Marx
Thursday, December 1, 2022
12 Days of Christmas* Math
Friday, July 1, 2022
Patriot of Another Country
July, of course, celebrates American Independence Day. Demonstrations of patriotism will abound. If you wish to see old July 4th related posts on this blog, please choose the "Fourth of July", "patriotism", or "politics" links on the left sidebar (on the desktop version).
- That which is imposing here on earth has always something of the quality of the fallen angel who is beautiful but without peace, great in his conceptions and exertions but without success, proud and lonely.
- Only a fool learns from his own mistakes. The wise man learns from the mistakes of others.
- A generation that has taken a beating is always followed by a generation that deals one.
Saturday, June 25, 2022
What the Heck?
Tuesday, March 1, 2022
More Political Choices
Wednesday, September 1, 2021
Culture Wars
--Phil Vischer, creator of the Christian cartoon series VeggieTales, on evangelical Eric Metaxas, whom he once employed as a writer.
Tuesday, February 2, 2021
Exceptional?
Sunday, January 3, 2021
Try a New Tool
It's well past time for the "sides" [mostly referring to the culture wars] to think they can use the political system as a sledgehammer to "smash" their opponents into oblivion.
No one's going anywhere, folks. You're wasting a lot of energy, a lot of political capital, and a lot of your ability to try persuasion, instead. --Marie ByarsTuesday, November 3, 2020
Pro-Life Bona Fides
Being pro-life, really being pro-life, means realizing you wanted these lives in the world when you see disagreeable toddlers in the grocery store or are seated near crying children on a plane. Oh, and blaming it on bad parenting (as in "I'm pro-life, and the mother should definitely have had these children, but they're only being awful because she's a bad parent") doesn't count. It also may not be true.
Being pro-life isn't easy for anyone. It's not easy for the mother who bore children at times that weren't convenient for her. But it's also not easy on the rest of society. If you're Christian and pro-life, it doesn't fit the full Biblical ethic to make it solely "that woman's problem." Be pro-life in the best sense of the word, and embrace the messiness that comes from children being in the world!