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Jimmy Carter
This new year will be the first in a full century without a living Jimmy Carter in it. Of course, the first several years of his existence were not especially consequential to world history. He had to first be brought up, educated, and established into life before his actions could begin to matter more than… Continue reading
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A pronouncement on an informal fallacy
Whereas the weekend has sneaked up on me entirely unexpected, and whereas I have but precious few minutes before my friends arrive and I can type no more this day, I feel compelled to swiftly pronounce upon some state of affairs in this world, with the cool eye of a dispassionate observer and the authority… Continue reading
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The Two of Them
Having set the scene for them,removed the obstacles that stymie fleshand freed them from constraints of time,having laid my pen aside, I wonder, did they find what they were seeking,what I set them after?Come the morning, will I find themstill together,will the hours that passed have been relief,as beautiful in retrospect, in day as night?Will… Continue reading
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A Christmas Playlist for the Ages
The following posts contains spoilers for the Christmas Party I will be hosting on December 25th of this year. If you will be attending this party, consider whether you wish to know what music you will hear ahead of time, or whether you would like to be surprised. In recent weeks, and thanks to the… Continue reading
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The Philosopher’s Skull
Plato said it once, or might have saidwe wake in darkness, born as if some wholebone were brusquely dropped on an old floor,with empty holes for eyes to watch the lightsgavotting on the wall — he may have meantit otherwise, I can’t be sure, I haven’tread the scrolls he scribbled epsilonsand sigmas on, but under… Continue reading
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The Small Season
Consider the following Christmas lines (emphasis added): When what to my wondering eyes did appear,But a miniature sleigh and eight tiny rein-deer, With a little old driver so lively and quick,I knew in a moment he must be St. Nick. I cannot be the only person who was ever struck by these lines in the… Continue reading
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The friendly freeways
It’s important to be alert while driving, and the reasons are so obvious that it would be silly to list them here. A wise driver (and we all aspire to wisdom behind the wheel) maintains an awareness of the doings of people who are likewise traveling in multi-ton aluminum monsters, an awareness which should only… Continue reading
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The secret to Democrats’ future political success does not lie in selling out transgender people
One of my more self-destructive behaviors is plugging myself in to a social media stream for part of a day and exposing myself to other people’s “takes.” These “takes” are what we call the bite-sized pronouncements of opinion in reaction to the news of the day, as posted by people hoping their particular phraseology will… Continue reading
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History’s Plague
I speak of the plague, the pale, terrible plague,and surely you know the one of which I speak – the one you remember, the one from the history booksand the old tale of the dreadful red masquerade,the one with the frogs, the frightful angel of deathwho came on the backs of creeping rats and the… Continue reading
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Now that that has happened
There isn’t a whole lot more that I have to say about what happened on November 5th this year, except that I meant every word I said two weeks ago, and that while I remain loath to predict anything, I will predict that it won’t be a month after Inauguration Day before Donald Trump gives… Continue reading
Ink Tea Stone Leaf 