On The Daily Show Jon Stewart and Larry Wilmore have one of their periodic discussions on the state of race relations in America and how black Americans who become successful (and in the US this means rich) are confronted with having to deal with conflicts that set their personal financial interests against taking a stand for what is right. [Read more…]
I am sure that I don’t have to tell readers about the mayor of Toronto Rob Ford’s shenanigans. Each day seems to bring some revelation of outlandish behavior of drug and alcohol abuse and uncontrolled rages, with increased public incredulity at the fact that he seems determined to not only not resign but also plans to run for re-election. He seems to be increasingly detached from reality. [Read more…]
Today is a fall Sunday in the US and this afternoon about a thousand large and muscular men are going to spend three hours pounding the stuffing out of each other to the cheers of the crowd. What is becoming increasingly clear is that with each hit, the players are receiving brain injuries that down the road will lead to many of them suffering from symptoms akin to dementia. I wrote about this before (see here and here) but now more disturbing stories are coming to light. [Read more…]
What has emerged from the story of Richie Incognito of the Miami Dolphins tormenting fellow teammate and rookie Jonathan Martin so much that the latter left the team is that there is a vicious culture of hazing in the NFL (see here and here) that has come to be accepted as normal. [Read more…]
You can listen to a recording of the oral arguments in the case of Greece v. Galloway about the role of prayer at official government functions. Listening to the arguments is a different experience from reading the transcript because you can pick up nuances such as asides, sarcasm, and jokes. [Read more…]
I was sorry to learn that Stanford professor Clifford Nass died unexpectedly this week at the age of just 55. He studied the ways in which technology and human beings interacted. [Read more…]
Since I do not have cable TV, the only times I see the 24/7 cable news shows is when there are TVs in public places that I cannot avoid. Seeing them for such short times only serve to reinforce my desire to never watch them. [Read more…]
The Guardian has a nice feature story that brings us up to date on all the Snowden revelations and what it all means for us, the ordinary person. [Read more…]
The US Senate yesterday easily passed the Employment Non-Discrimination Act (ENDA) by a vote of 64-32, with 10 Republicans voting with 54 Democrats. The bill bars workplace discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity but got the necessary Republican support to break the filibuster only after an amendment was added that “would prevent retaliation against religious organizations that don’t hire someone because of sexual orientation or gender identity”, because of course it is taken for granted that religious groups must be allowed to discriminate against gays. [Read more…]
I do not know of any culture anywhere is which spitting on someone is not seen as a great insult. There is something about the act that is absolutely disgusting and so repulses people that it can arouse the most violent responses. So it comes as a bit of a surprise when very religious people adopt spitting on others as not merely an expression of disapproval but do so in an organized way, as if their religion prescribes it as a recommended course of action. [Read more…]