Memoirs -- fact and fiction, Rants and raves, San Miguel de Allende, Writings

It is Liberation Day in my head

I’m done with “push” content from newspapers, substacks, pods and podcasters, bloggers, social media platforms, conspiracy boosters, angry MAGAs, fundraisers, revolutionists, ah-has and ma-ha’s, political shamans, alarmists, talking heads, Chicken Littles, grim reapers, Beltway pundits, scribblers, cartoonists, and diatribe specialists.

Or as another noted crank once put it, I’ve had it up to here with “Bagism, Shagism, Dragism, Madism, Ragism, Tagism, This-ism, that-ism, is-m, is-m, is-m.”

All I am saying is don’t give push a chance. 

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Rants and raves, San Miguel de Allende, Writings

Did you hear the one about the cannibals and the breakdown of society …

There is an old joke about two explorers who are captured by cannibals. One is a Californian and the other is a New Yorker.

The explorers sit at the bottom of a large vat filled with water. Natives run around collecting firewood and depositing it at the base. It is going to be a big fire. It is going to be a big feast.

The chief of the cannibals stands over the two explorers and admires their pale skins. 

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Rants and raves, San Miguel de Allende, Writings

The ‘chicken soup’ discovery that has saved 50 million lives

The simplicity of it all is both beautiful and mind-boggling.

Dr. Richard Cash

A little salt, some sugar, and some clean water.

Two American doctors came up with this formula in 1967 in what is today called Bangladesh and – over the objections of other doctors and health officials – began infusing patients suffering from dysentery, cholera, and other diarrhea-related diseases.

At the time, a major outbreak of cholera was plaguing the capital of Dhaka. Worldwide at that time, some five million children a year were dying from cholera and dysentery, according to the New York Times.

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fiction, Rants and raves, San Miguel de Allende, Writings

Trump in exile: To the dacha we go, over wide and drifting snow

He awoke with a sharp grunt. Like someone had kicked him in the balls.

Come to think of it, it hurt down there, too. And he had to pee. Again.

“Driver,” he called to the front of the black town car. “Pull over. I have to piss again.”

“Can you hold it for about 10 minutes, Mr. Trump? This is a pretty bad place to pull over.”

“President. I told you to refer to me as President Trump. I don’t want to say it again.”

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photography, Rants and raves, San Miguel de Allende, Writings

Social media-loving D.C. rioters are finding there is nowhere to run, nowhere to hide

Interesting question raised by a former newspaper colleague and a Poynter institute column: “Should journalists play a role in identifying rioters?”

That’s the headline and based on it alone, the answer is, of course. Media goes after the facts and a big chunk of the facts from last week’s Washington riot answers the question: Who the hell were these people?

The more-specific and thornier question is: “Should the media turn over unpublished documentation, especially photographs, to law enforcement upon request?”

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Memoirs -- fact and fiction, Rants and raves, San Miguel de Allende

‘Hit ’em! Hit ’em! Hit the sons of bitches! Hit ’em!’

I stare at this photograph that I took in — when was it? — 1970? 1971? I stare and I wonder, how many of my fellow Vietnam War protesters were part of the thuggery that took place this week at the Capitol?

Some, for sure. They would be in their very late-60s and mid-70s now. I was 21 when I snapped these photos.

A friend who just saw them asked, “Did you and your fellow hippies storm the Capitol?”

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Rants and raves, San Miguel de Allende, Writings

The Log for May 19: Breath of Fresh Air, Trump’s purge, Moppit’s spa day, Tom Swifties, and Escher-cise

IMG_1729

Sorry about the bleeding ink. Won’t happen again!

GOOD READ:

Lesson learned: The first half of a New York Times headline sounded just great, “Air travel surges by 123 percent!” But read on: “(Beware of misleading data like that)”

Marking the rise and fall of events by using percentages is an old dodge in the misinformation game. Economist Neil Irwin explains why you have to look behind the headlines, at the raw numbers — especially in these unusual times. Continue reading

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Memoirs -- fact and fiction, Rants and raves, San Miguel de Allende, Writings

The Log for May 13: Hey, brother, can you loan me a dime for a ride into the mystic?

IMG_1672Oh, this day has begun all right — an All-Music Morning for Wednesday.

#1  “The Girl In Byakkoya,” Susumu Hirasawa,  from the animated film “Paprika.” This is the music that gets you up and moving. Check out the movie, too — anime magical surrealism at its finest. A mad enormously ballooning parade that absorbs everybody, everything — all energy  — as it progresses. Who can stop it? And how?

#2  Delbert McClinton channels his inner-Tony Bennett and sings about “San Miguel”! (Even mentions San Francisco in the first line … (Thanks for the tip, Robert Cooksey.) Continue reading

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Rants and raves, Uncategorized

Where ignorance is still bliss: MAGArians are the new Abecedarians

Inspiration comes from almost any direction — if you remain open to the process.

For example, around noon today, I was still deeply regretting the day-old creme doughnut that I ate earlier in the morning — about a half-hour before yoga, to be exact. 

I was marveling how at 2 a.m. I awoke with the startling realization that the Panio doughnut was still in my backpack into which I’d slipped it yesterday with plans to eat it on the way home from Centro. Long story short, I got distracted by a haircut and forgot all about it. Until 2 a.m.

Funny how the mind works. Continue reading

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