Cuba has been nominated to receive the Nobel Peace Prize for its work in fighting Ebola in Africa along with its outstanding health care solidarity work around the world. And with good reason! When most countries including our own stood aside as the epidemic raged in West Africa, Cuba without hesitation rushed to the side of…
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It just occurred to me: at the root of all human behavior is the desire to discover and to hold The Real Thing. It can be a god. It can be a can of soda. It can be an author. It can be a house. It can be an article in a magazine. The Real Thing gives us…
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Who ever thought, even a few years ago, that we’d ever have anything as cool as a detailed photograph of Pluto’s surface? Hell, even the Hubble was only able to give a picture that wasn’t more than a whitish smudge! Truly, we live in extraordinary times. This is, quite possibly, the best time in human history to be alive….
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Yes indeed, life is too damn quick. I like this whole “waking up and living” thing. After 56 years, I have gotten very used to it. The prospect of having only 20 or 30 years left doesn’t thrill me, and I realize that many people turn to religion’s easy comfort so they can more easily spend those…
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When I was taking a college course back in the late 80s, the professor asked us to write opinion pieces for publication in “a European newspaper” arguing either for or against the introduction of a common currency before the introduction of a common government. I argued that the expert on monetary, customs, and postal unions…
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What, me vote for a Republican? Maybe, maybe Rand Paul. There are a lot of ‘ifs’ — if he repudiates the anti-environmentalism of the GOP if he makes it clear that there is no role for religion in politics if he supports federal investment in railroads — Well, I guess I won’t be voting for a Republican after all.
The definitive list. 1. After You’ve Gone (Benny Goodman) 2. If I Love Again (Artie Shaw) 3. Somewhere a Voice is Calling (John McCormick) 4. One O’Clock Jump (Harry James) 5. Thick As a Brick (Jethro Tull) 6. Marlene Dietrich Sings Songs of the O.S.S. (Marlene Dietrich) 7. Moanin’ Low (Leo Reisman) 8. On The…
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Year Zero: A History of 1945 by Ian Buruma My rating: 5 of 5 stars This was a tremendously enlightening book. Most of us know that 1945 was a pivotal year in world history; that it marked the end of the biggest human catastrophe the world had ever witnessed; and that it marked the start…
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A recent study by The United Nations Sustainable Development Solutions Network indicates that the happiest countries in the world are: Switzerland Iceland Denmark Norway Canada Finland Netherlands Sweden New Zealand Australia Now, you may ask, what do all these countries have in common — except, perhaps the last one, with which I’ll deal a bit later on —…
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New Horizons is on approach for a dramatic flight past the icy dwarf planet and its moons in July 2015. Source: New Horizons | NASA