A Wandering Mind

Tuesday, July 14, 2009

A Matter of Confession

Roger Ebert has an interesting essay on confessions, using the the late Secretary of Defense during Viet Nam Robert S. McNamara's comments as a starting point. I thought this paragraph was particularly astute.

Roger Ebert's Journal: Archives

He agreed to submit himself to Morris's questions for an hour. He ended by speaking for ten. He went to subjects Morris might not have thought to take him, discussed things that were, at 85, much on his mind. He was a key aide to Gen. Curtis LeMay, who directed the fire-bombing of Tokyo when more than 100,000, mostly civilians, were burned alive. After the war, he says, in one of the film's most astonishing moments, LeMay observed to him that if America had lost, they would have been tried as war criminals. What does he, McNamara, think about the bombing? By quoting LeMay's statement that might have forever gone unrecorded, I think he lets us know.

Monday, July 13, 2009

Democratizing Human Fallacy?

An interesting speculation about the ease of access to personal, even intimate information about ourselves and how that might change social mores.

Personal Transformations in the Internet Age - Boing Boing

I wonder if as a result of pervasiveness of such information we may actually see greater social forgiveness and tolerance. After all, the more people see that even those they admire do stupid things once in a while, particularly when they are young, wouldn't our tolerance level go up also? And hasn't it happened already? The more we find out about personal indiscretions of various politicians and celebrities, the more inured the public has become, it seems. We are finding out that many of our heroes are fallible. Maybe, along with everything else, the Internet is democratizing human fallacy.

Saturday, July 11, 2009

Batshit Crazy in 140 Characters

My favorite Colorado GOPosaurus, state Senator Dave Schultheis, (R) Focus on the Family, is wracked, WRACKED I tell you, with guilt over vacationing while the economic and moral structure of the country is ruined by evil Obamatrons. I know this because he took time away from his Minnesota junket to tweet his emotional conflict.

John Ensign, Mark Sanford, Mark Foley, Larry Craig, Scooter Libby, Mark Foley and Duke Cunningham nod in agreement.

Dogs Help with Wounds of War

A great story - truly a man's best friend.

'Sit! Stay! Snuggle!': An Iraq Vet Finds His Dog Tuesday - WSJ.com

Tuesday is a so-called psychiatric-service dog, a new generation of animals trained to help people whose suffering is not physical, but emotional. They are, effectively, Seeing Eye dogs for the mind.

Well, I Guess She'd Know

Maybe Sarah should quit Twitter instead of her job.

Sunday, July 5, 2009

Sign of Economic Recovery or Start of Cirrhosis Epidemic?

Wine prices driven lower than water | Todays News Highlights | News.com.au

Wine prices driven lower than water

By Bronwen Gora

Sunday Mail (SA)

July 05, 2009 12:01am

A WINE glut has driven prices lower than bottled water as the industry faces an unprecedented meltdown and a fire-sale of unprofitable vineyards.

The price collapse and overplanting has forced Australia's biggest winemaker, Foster's, owner of prestigious labels such as Lindemans and Penfolds, to sell 31 vineyards across the country, including 16 in South Australia and nine in New South Wales.

Major wine retailer Dan Murphy's is currently selling cleanskins for $1.99 a bottle - cheaper than some bottled water - due to the oversupply crisis that has led to some vineyard owners leaving grapes to wither on the vine.