Tocqueville wrote this in the early 19th Century, and there is no doubt that he made an excellent point, given the times.
Had he been alive today, however, I doubt he’d be singing the same tune. Technology, while it is making our lives healthier, longer, and more pleasant, represents grave threats as well, in the form of environmental collapse, AI, weaponry, cyber-crime, and employment.
It’s well-known that millions of Americans spend a great deal of time watching football on television, particularly on Sundays, when most of the professional games are played.
Though I was paying only casual attention to yesterday’s contests, I happened to notice the announcers in two different games used the word “hate” to describe the feelings that fan bases of certain rivals have for each other.
Hate? Really? Do the Philadelphia Eagles supporters hate the Dallas Cowboys fans? Maybe this is an accurate term for a small percentage of deranged people, but most people who hail from the Philadelphia vicinity simply feel some sort of natural allegiance to the local team, which by no means requires us to hate people who come from Dallas, or any other city.
Making statements like these serve to promote hatred, a commodity of which there is already a superabundance in the world right now.
Over the years, I’ve commented on attempts to raise investment capital via business plans that are strong on identifying a problem, but are extremely weak on offering a reasonable solution.
Here’s a great example, whose founders claim to have an answer to providing EV charging solutions to renters.
The only information the promotional video provides is that the electricity come from the grid, and charges the car with a 110V (house current, unacceptably slow) circuit.
They write:
The meme here came from a reader/friend who is both a Christian and an extremely senior chemist/physicist.
FWIW, I disagree with his assessment; I see no evidence that our civilization is becoming more scientific in its thinking, or more likely to apply reason in its problem-solving.
And it’s not like we have to strain to find examples of this. After all, we have Israel, followers of Judaism, bombing the bejeepers out of Islamic fundamentalists whose terrorist tendencies are based on the self-evident truth that Allah is superior to the God of Abraham.
Here in the U.S., we have a Speaker of the House who claims that his guiding principles as one of our top lawmakers are found exclusively in the Bible.
At every turn, we are beset by anti-vaxxers, climate deniers, and, of course, Trump supporters.
Those who believe in the actual teachings of Jesus: peace, compassion, mercy, kindness, will not fall weaker from the attacks of rationality.
Apparently, the poor little tyke whose mother drove him across state lines with an AR-15, who shot to death three Black Lives Matter protesters, is having a tough time getting accepted to college.
Yes, he was acquitted of the murder charges, but college admissions personnel don’t seem too impressed with his credentials, perhaps out of fear that his future classmates are likely to get gunned down by this sociopath. Wouldn’t look good on the resume.
Unfortunately, the alternative university (shown here) is no longer operating.
As much as I consider myself a “woke” individual, i.e., one who tries to maintain a sensitive awareness of the needs and well-being of others (aka “courteous” or “well-mannered”), I grant that it’s not for everyone.
If the country music world wants to remain bounded by heterosexuality, white Christians, Republican politics, how God blesses America, alcohol, vigilantism, horses, trucks, our nation’s flag, and so forth, that’s no skin off my nose.
John Rich’s new single is called “I’m Offended.” John, just do your thing for your like-minded fans. I’m not offended.
From the 1989 film “Field of Dreams”:
This should be interesting, since the Republicans’ key witness has testified that there is no evidence of any wrongdoing on Biden’s part. I’m just a casual observer, but I would think that would be an important ingredient in an impeachment.
“Biasly” is a website that rates the biases of various news outlets. Here, they analyze 19FortyFive.com, which describes itself as “a place where experts analyze defense, national security, foreign policy, and politics,” and give them a +24, meaning: “somewhat conservative.”
The interesting part is that they honestly believe, as elaborated in the article, that “Donald Trump Could ‘Destroy America.'” The author begins: What we are experiencing is Donald Trump’s need for self-gratification and enhancement. It will destroy the political order in the country and likely ensure the Republicans never hold office again.
Calling out Trump for his criminal behavior is expected from liberal sources, but when conservatives head in this direction, perhaps it’s worth taking note.
Anyone who thinks it’s a strong idea environmentally to use electricity from the grid to accelerate the composting of garbage hasn’t studied the matter too carefully.
