In case you didn’t know, today is not a day for barbecues, for fun, for baseball or bargain hunting. Today is the day you give thanks for the men and women who gave their lives so you could live yours as fully or as foolishly as you choose. Do not forsake them. Do not forget…
Month: May 2016
I Was Wrong About Trump
I have written several posts during this interminable primary season, mostly critical of Donald Trump. While my opinion of his politics and policies and temperament has not changed, I must admit that I was completely wrong about many things, foremost of which was his dedication to the race and his ability to slough off attacks…
Dear @HillaryClinton I Benefited From The Housing Slide
And I’m not afraid to say it. I’ve made it quite clear here that I’m beyond “not a fan of Trump” Really beyond not a fan. Publically, I won’t vote for him. (Whether that breaks down in the privacy of the voting booth because #NeverHillary I can’t and won’t say.) I’m largely to the point now…
Tenure and the Illusion of Freedom
I’ve had an on again, off again back and forth with Chad Pecknold on twitter about the value of tenure. Twitter is a hard medium to engage in any rigorous discussion, so I figured I’d put down a longer form version of my thoughts on the topic of tenure and it’s relevance today. Just to…
Caveat (Donor) Emptor
CNN ran a story last night about scam PACs siphoning money off people. This isn’t exactly new with Politico reporting more of less the same thing over a year ago. And this is all aside from the normal SuperPACs that just burn through money to pay fancy consultants with little actual results. Politics is the opposite of…
Won’t Someone Think Of The Children?
No, really. First off, sorry for the absence, end of semester wrap up. But there’s something I have to say. The NC bathroom law has dredged up a broader discussion, nay a push for acceptance of transgenderism. I’ve written before that it may be a postmodern bridge too far for many people. As I noted…
College Athletics: They All Cheat, But Some Are Just Better At It Than Others
There has always been a romantic and unsubstantiated assumption of high moral character and strict adherence to the rules made for a select group of college coaches and programs. Joe Paterno and Penn State football, Mike Krzyzewski and the Duke basketball program, possibly Notre Dame football and a few other elite programs. In reality of…
A Tale of Two Quotes and a Path Forward
Democracy is the theory that the common people know what they want and deserve to get it good and hard –H.L. Mencken A crucial turning point in that earlier history (of the late Roman Empire) occurred when men and women of good will turned aside from the task of shoring up the Roman imperium and ceased…
6 Years Ago and applicability today
@adamsbaldwin Why the big deal about "party division" for the R's. Primaries (re)shape parties, it's what their supposed to do. — tsrblke (@tsrblke) September 15, 2010 I said this nearly 6 years ago. And for all that’s happened I’d still believe it. Primaries do shape parties, and this primary has shaped the GOP in ways…
What, Exactly, is so “Extreme” About Ted Cruz?
That’s not a rhetorical question. Could someone please tell me? Cruz wasn’t my first choice, he wasn’t my second choice. Hell, I was firmly against first term senators, making him so far down the list I didn’t even rank him. (Still, amazingly he ranked above Pataki.) Nevertheless, I see him as a fine alternative to…