Protesters with a Stake in the Outcome

Stolen from Dave's Facebook post:

Are You Hungry for the Answer?

Leonard Cohen has found the answer, and wants to share it with you. Cohen has studied the major philosophies and religions, – but alas, he says, "Cheerfulness keeps breaking through."

All that study was not for nothing, though. In this concert, he shares THE ANSWER. If you don't want to watch the whole video, start at about the three minute mark.



P.S.  You must watch this in full screen.

Merry Christmas, all.

Could You Care Less?

A happy video about American "English." Thanks to one of my two English friends named Angela – the one called "Angie."

Is the Social Security Trust Fund Real?

I've promised posts on Ross Douthat's Social Security trojan horses, and intend to keep that promise, but the holidays and life are keeping me from spending time on it right now.

In the meantime, for interested persons, may I HIGHLY recommend Kevin Drum's brief article on the Social Security trust fund. Drum is one best writers on the subject of Social Security you can find.

Another Shooting

It's hard to imagine the terror and anguish being felt in Newtown, Connecticut, right now. Certainly, to some degree, it is felt by all of us.

Certainly by Gregory Gibson, who writes:

Our son Galen, who was 18, and a teacher were killed on Dec. 14, 1992, by a deranged student who went on a shooting rampage at Simon’s Rock College in western Massachusetts.

In the wake of Galen’s murder, I wrote a book about the shooting. In it I suggested that we view gun crime as a public health issue, much the same as smoking or pesticides. I spent a number of years attending rallies, signing petitions, writing letters and making speeches, but eventually I gave up. Gun control, such a live issue in the “early” days of school shootings, inexplicably became a third-rail issue for politicians.

I came to realize that, in essence, this is the way we in America want things to be. We want our freedom, and we want our firearms, and if we have to endure the occasional school shooting, so be it. A terrible shame, but hey — didn’t some guy in China just do the same thing with a knife?

 I think that's an accurate analysis.