Atlanta, GA January 7, 2022 We know a lot of people who took vaccines for Covid. I guess it worked…because many of them now have it. After two years of neurotic germaphobia, authoritarian lockdowns, economic destruction, unhinged hypochondria, useless mask mandates, irrational fear, catastrophic school closures, never-ending nasal swabs, idiotic floor stickers, unwarranted travel restrictions, […]
Atlanta, GA January 1, 2022 We awoke today to another in a series of damp, unseasonably warm mornings. A layer of fog hugs the ground, like mist engulfing Baskerville Hall. That’s appropriate. The path ahead is rarely clear. But on this New Year’s Day, where we’ve been seems as enigmatic as what’s to come. For […]
Tampa, FL December 25, 2021 The search for universal essence began…as so many things did…in ancient Greece, on the shores of Ionia. The first philosophers sought the primary substance that sustains the world…what St. John later called The Word, which was “in the beginning with God”, without which “nothing was made that was made.” Thales thought […]
Atlanta, GA December 20, 2021 Recent years have resurrected a rhetorical cudgel that despots have historically used to silence dissent. Throughout history, but particularly since the “Progressive” Era, sanctimonious busybodies wishing to capture rhetorical high-ground have claimed the mantle of “science” to shield them from opposing perspectives in the arena of debate. It’s self-righteous sophistry, […]
Atlanta, GA December 16, 2021 Nobody knows how to make a pencil. But many people probably think they could. Just wrap some wood around some lead, add a rubber eraser, a touch of metal, and a coat of lacquer…and voila!…you’re ready to take a standardized test or tackle The New York Times crossword puzzle. But building a pencil […]
Atlanta, GA December 13, 2021 Much as there’s a nonsensical perception that “unvaccinated” equals “infected” (and vice versa)…as if one can spread Covid even if he doesn’t have it…many people seem to think that if someone opposes vaccine mandates, that person must be unvaccinated – or is, at the very least, “anti-vaxx”. People have been […]
Atlanta, GA December 8, 2021 The Lord possessed me in the beginning of His ways, before He made anything, from the beginning. I was set up from eternity, and of old, before the earth was made. The depths were not as yet, and I was already conceived….He that shall find me shall find life, and […]
Atlanta, GA December 3, 2021 The most improper job of any man, even saints, who at any rate were at least unwilling to take it on, is bossing other men. Not one in a million is fit for it, and least of all those who seek the opportunity. – JRR Tolkien Despite all we should’ve […]
Bar Harbor, ME September 9, 1998 After overcoming torrential rains north of Portland, we arrived this evening to this idyllic place. Were scenery music, with Northern California the perfection of Mozart, and Alaska the grandeur of Beethoven, this island would be the symphonic elegance of Haydn. Land and sea blend to form a melody for […]
During the Thanksgiving weekend, while re-organizing our basement after its recent flood, I came again across boxes of essays I’ve written over the years. Some prompted pleasant memories, others made me cringe, and a few did both. Below I reproduce one of the latter, about a place where worked long ago. San Francisco, CA September […]