Melting! It's All Melting!

Certain phenomena occur in nature. Simply study earth history. Most climactic changes appear to be cyclical, and they are. The ice caps are melting, and whether your particular scientist or your particular region recognizes a temperature rise has nothing to do with the facts. Whether we humans have contributed to this trend and how much is purely speculative. If we are, largely, the culprits, we cast a far darker shadow over the future of this planet than I thought. More likely, we contribute in a more minor role- one which we can reduce- than some think. Others believe, as I do, that the planet adjusts continually, regardless of our welfare, through natural progression. (sounds a lot like natural selection, and that would be on purpose). The earth has survived many a cataclysmic event, and I'm sure it can survive man.
So........... in our convoluted world we play politics with it all. Conservatives play it down and liberals play it up. Ultimately, we'll have little or no influence when nature plays it out.

Look For Me to Weigh In On This Global Warming Thing

I don't have time now to go into my take, but do consider this a post alert for a soon to be completed bleet on melting ice. FYI, it is what it is and I won't take s*** from anybody on this subject.

Absinthe Makes the Heart Grow Fonder

Try and gets some- banned for decades in the U.S. and most of Europe, Absinthe (Absynthe) tastes something like Jaegermeister on steroids (without the sugar), contains wormwood, (Google this stuff), the often maligned hallucinogenic (sure) agent (can you say, in the spirit of the season, Bah! Humbug!?) and is loaded with alcohol (as much as 74%, or 148 proof, oh yes). Absinthe is coming back, and why not? Wormwood is fascinating, Absinthe is a low fat product that contains therapeutic agents that may (or may not) remedy digestion issues and other maladies while offering a short quick road to intoxication without the horrors of a sugar influenced hangover.

Book Review: "The Road"

I just finished The Road by McCarthy, wanting to catch the book before the movie, and I must say that I scorched this scorched earth novel in 3 days. The writing is as scaled down as the characters, stripped to the minimal- survival writing- and I loved it. I wish I could prose up like McCarthy. No paragraphing, no apostrophes, no concern for proper sentence structure, no hyperbole, no explanation, no expansions on concepts, no bullshit. It amazes me how such bare bones writing can grab so hard. I felt the pain, anguish, doubt, fear............................. the love, concern, hope (minimal), joy (brief), the anger, all well placed and recognizable. Reading this book made me feel like reading this book. If you can understand that, you'll feel the way I did these last few days. If you don't, you won't. As simple as that. No way the movie keeps up.

Winston Churchill and Winston Churchill

I recently finished a novel, written in 1904 by Winston Churchill, called The Crossing. The book (if I may pose an opinion) started off great, became long in the second third, and partially redeemed itself at the end. Briefly, the story follows a kid from early teens through fifteen or so years as his experiences are narrated by himself. The action takes place in Kentucky around the 1780's and his travels spin him from Michigan to New Orleans, fighting Indians, land grabbers............
I was surprised that Churchill, in his early thirties when the book was written, should have such a grasp of American History. Well, ----- he probably didn't. The Brit you are assuming I'm writing about didn't write the book (however, he did earn a Nobel in Literature). Another Winston Churchill, an American version, a contemporary to the other, (they actually communicated over the name confusion, where the Brit offered to inject a middle initial to his work, which he did) wrote The Crossing and several other books during his career. His natural style of writing, (if you're into writing techniques you might be interested) relatively rare at the time, made him very successful and wealthy. I posit, though early on he was better known than his counterpart, that his success later in life might have been better linked to name association than to quality writing. I suppose, though, that I should read more than one of his books before I label the guy. To be fair, I'll shoehorn in McCarthy's The Road so as to give me a fresh perspective on another Churchill book.

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I Say Try Them in New York City

Cal Thomas, an editorialist I used to like, needs to retire. Lately, (unless my viewpoint has changed recently), Cal has failed to proof his column before sending it to press. I know his political conservatism supports a military tribunal for the Gitmo guys who were involved in the 9/11 attack, but keep in mind- read his own words (11/16/09) that a tribunal would not take place until the end of the war. Huh? Which war? Iraq? Afghanistan? On terror? These detainees are from places like Saudi Arabia, South Yemen........ Are we at war with ALL of these countries? Are we at war with an organization or two? I suggest the war on terror isn't going to end any time soon. These terrorists will never be tried by the military if we wait for the end to an arbitrary declaration of war against any and all threats forever. We need to try these men now- more likely in a couple of years- in a civilian court (they were involved in the killing of civilians), in New York (near their crime) by New Yorkers (a large, pissed off jury pool). Any concern Cal Thomas has in the ineptitude of our judicial system (again, read his editorial) should not affect the decision to try these guys lest we mock the system of justice we offer for ALL criminals. Try them now in civilian court or wait until they are dead and try them in a military court once the war on terrorism is declared won (or lost).