China the next America?
David Brooks (NT Times) files this perceptive column in the wake of President Obama’s visit in China.
When European settlers first came to North America, they saw flocks of geese so big that it took them 30 minutes to all take flight and forests that seemed to stretch to infinity. They came to two conclusions: that God’s plans for humanity could be completed here, and that they could get really rich in the process. This moral materialism fomented a certain sort of manic energy. Americans became famous for their energy and workaholism: for moving around, switching jobs, marrying and divorcing, creating new products and going off on righteous crusades.
How singing up for the military can save your life
Now here comes an incredible story. Did you ever know about these fringe benefits of ROTC programs?
Thieves in Milwaukee Show a Patriotic Side, Declining to Rob Army Reservist. By SUSAN SAULNY (NY Times)
Kyle Windorski, a 21-year-old college student in the Army Reserve, was walking home Tuesday morning on the east side of Milwaukee when four men with stocking caps over their faces forced him into an alley at gunpoint and demanded cash. In an account confirmed by the Milwaukee police, Mr. Windorski said the men ordered him to the ground on his stomach, and he was helpless as they fished his wallet out of a pocket. They counted his $16 and by their raging tone, he could tell they were not happy.
A New Interpretation of Dreams
The NY Times published today a facinating article on how scientists have developed a new interpretatin what dreams are for.
A Dream Interpretation: Tuneups for the Brain (By BENEDICT CAREY)
It’s snowing heavily, and everyone in the backyard is in a swimsuit, at some kind of party: Mom, Dad, the high school principal, there’s even an ex-girlfriend. And is that Elvis, over by the pinata?
Uh-oh. Dreams are so rich and have such an authentic feeling that scientists have long assumed they must have a crucial psychological purpose. To Freud, dreaming provided a playground for the unconscious mind; to Jung, it was a stage where the psyche’s archetypes acted out primal themes. Newer theories hold that dreams help the brain to consolidate emotional memories or to work though current problems, like divorce and work frustrations. Yet what if the primary purpose of dreaming isn’t psychological at all?
Poem by Peter Schneider: The Thumb
In a nanosecond David lost his thumb,
the one his mother painted
with pine pitch when he was four
to keep him from forever sucking it.
Unable to distinguish human flesh
the McCormick silo filler
sliced it off—
nail, bone, knuckle—
and blew it skyward
an ounce of humanity
in a thousand tons of silage.
Good Comedy Lines by Roseanne Barr
Today is Roseanne Barr’s birthday. Courtesy of the Writer’s Almanac, here are some of her good lines.
Because [Roseanne] and her husband were short on money, she took a job outside the house, as a cocktail waitress. She began trying out her jokes, largely about the incompetence of the male species, and the people frequenting her bar loved it. To men who did not wash dishes, she said, “What’s the matter—is Lemon Joy kryptonite to your species?” and about husbands who couldn’t find their own socks, she said, “They think the uterus is a tracking device.” A lot of her comedy came from her observations and experiences as a housewife and stay-at-home mom.
“As a housewife, I feel that if the kids are still alive when my husband gets home from work, then hey, I’ve done my job.”
“Experts say you should never hit your children in anger. When is a good time? When you’re feeling festive?”
“Women complain about PMS, but I think of it as the only time of the month when I can be myself.”
Continue ReadingFrank Rich: In Defense of the ‘Balloon Boy’ Dad
This is one of the best columns Frank Rich (NY Times) has written in a long time. I am not sure, however, if he does not exaggerate the decline of the media’s critical abilities. At the turn of the 20th century, America’s journalist were clearly not anywhere close to the role model that Rich is painting for us. Maybe 30 years ago things were better but clearly not 100 years ago.
FOR a country desperate for good news, the now-deflated “balloon boy” spectacle would seem to be the perfect tonic. As Wolf Blitzer of CNN summed up the nation’s unrestrained joy upon learning that the imperiled boy had never been in any peril whatsoever: “All of us are so excited that little Falcon is fine.” Then came even better news. After little Falcon revealed to Blitzer that his family “did this for the show,” we could all luxuriate in a warm bath of moral superiority. No matter what our own faults as parents, we could never top Richard Heene, who mercilessly exploited his child for fame and profit. Nor could we ever be as craven as the news media, especially cable television, which dumped a live broadcast of President Obama in New Orleans to track the supersized Jiffy Pop bag floating over Colorado.
Continue Reading
© 2026 Peter Murmann. Powered by ExpressionEngine.
