A memento mori is a work of art that reminds the viewer that we all die. Over the past few weeks I’ve been thinking a lot about death, most likely because of the threats I get. The level of physical danger I face isn’t clear, but I live as though every second could be my…
Withdraw, but don’t be upset
April 22, 2015
Over the past several weeks, I’ve received many messages from people who are closing their Twitter and Facebook accounts due to the unending hate they face. I think that’s a reasonable reaction. What bothers me is that they think that they’re weak for opting out. I want to tell everyone who’s considering self-banishment from social…
The concept of racism has lost all meaning
March 28, 2015
Words are supposed to have definitions. One way in which those with nefarious agendas control the steaming masses is by flinging accusations in all directions, hoping to cow dissenters into silence. For years now, there’s been racism behind every tree and under every rock. It took a Twitter user to drive home the point that…
Flamethrowers! For Ellie
March 22, 2015
A post about flamethrowers dedicated to Ellie Kesselman, who brought my attention to this. It uses gasoline (petrol), and has a range of 26 feet (8 meters.) The flamethrower was first used by the Greeks in AD 673 to burn Muslim warships besieging Constantinople. This weapon consisted of a metal tube that sprayed what was…
The main difference between us and animals
March 21, 2015
There are lots of differences between us and animals. We humans wear clothes, even if it’s just a penis sheath. Almost every group of us has a written language. We manufacture conveyances that defy the laws of nature, just so we can hurry from Point A to Point B. Last night it hit me that…
Had to temporarily retract the post. Sorry
March 10, 2015
I’ve had to temporarily retract the post I wrote last night. We’re all operating under too much stress, so there was a miscommunication. Keep in mind that I’m a former music journalist and failed novelist. I’m not cut out for this kind of work. The post will go up again in a few days. I…
My calculated risk
February 27, 2015
Every now and then I’m reminded that what I do is dangerous. However, for me it’s a calculated risk, as I’ll explain in a moment. Today the American writer and blogger Avijit Roy was murdered in Bangladesh. He was killed by Islamists with machetes as he left a book fair. His wife Rafida Ahmed Bonya…
To tread the air above the din
February 20, 2015
I’m not much connected to the world anymore. Maybe I should say I’m not much connected to worldly concerns. What I long for is the ability to tread the air above the din. That’s a lyric from one of the best Led Zepplin songs, “Achilles Last Stand.” It was an April morning when they told…