Category: Everything Else

Watch for Big Stuff Coming Soon

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Be on the Lookout for Major Outcomes

What’s Up?

As always, a lot is on the horizon, much of it important. What follows is not the definitive list by any means, but the hairs on the back of my neck stand up when I think about the following issues and potential outcomes. I would be major outcomes on the following items in the next 4-6 months, for better or worse.

International

Ukraine: The war is, unfortunately, not likely to end in this short time frame, but my sensing is that the expected Russian Spring offensive is not going to amount to much.

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January 21,2023

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Presidents, Trains, Insurrection,  and Talking to the Animals

President Carter

As this is being written, it has been announced that President Jimmy Carter is going home for hospice care. It appears we will lose him in the near term. Always sad to note a death, even for a long life of contributing and living values, but at 98 all indications are that he has decided it is time leave this realm.

Carter is a most interesting person. I voted for him, and glad that I did, but his administration had a good dose of errors,

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Say You are Not Interested in Sports?

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Same for Me, Pretty Much. But Here are a Couple of Stories for Us All

The Fall of Sports

There was a time when I was pretty interested in sports. That is true for a lot of people, especially guys. But the last couple of decades have left me cold. It seems that professional sports consist mostly of millionaires (players) arguing constantly with billionaires (owners) and neither group cares much about the fans or the communities that host teams.

It’s all about money, power, and fame. Far too many players reject their roles (and obligations) as role models.

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February 7, 2023

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Politics, Drones, and Sports – Competition Abounds

The New Democratic Primary Calendar and the Old Republican One

The Democrats made the expected change and rearranged their primary calendar in a big way. Some thoughts about all that:

  • It is way past time to make such a change. Setting the pace with Iowa and New Hampshire has made no sense for a very long time. I personally like the Iowa caucus model, and New Hampshire’s tradition of just about everyone personally meeting the candidates has appeal. But neither state is representative of the country at large,

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Thoughts on 3 Countries, 1 Forest – and a Jar

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January 31, 2013 – The New Year is Already a Month Old and Full of News

New Zealand

Like many people around the world, I was disappointed and saddened to learn of the resignation of NZ Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern. She had justifiably caught the world’s attention as a bright, bold leader, a young female just starting a family and while she was at it, dealt with a deadly plague and terrible gun violence effectively.

Her departure could be a complicated set of rationales – hard to tell what was most important. She no doubt felt that as a female leader and a young leader,

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Down the Rabbit Hole, Through the Briar Patch, We Have Crossed the Rubicon into the Brave New World

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Enough Metaphors in One Title? Trust me – They All Fit This Discussion

What in the World are We Talking About?

Artificial Intelligence – AI. This thing has been with us for some time now but on several fronts, new ground is being broken at very important levels. I have no intention to try discussing all of the aspects in this topic – I probably would need some AI help to do that. Today we are going to briefly look at two AI phenomena that are hot topics in many quarters today. This is AI that can write creatively and AI that can create art.

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Six Views for Your Consideration

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Security, Books, Pizza, and More

Securing Classified Documents

We have heard in recent days, and will hear a lot more, about classified papers on the loose at the presidential level. There are elements yet to be resolved on the Biden end; we know the story on Trump. Still, we know enough overall to call out the following essential elements.

  • Both cases involve mishandling of classified data. That is serious and has to be treated as such. As noted below, there are important differences in these two cases, but appointing a Special Prosecutor for both has its merits.

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Turning the Page

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No, This is Not About Politics or Philosophy; It’s About Music (Mostly…)

What May Seem Small Can Count a Great Deal

I have attended two classical music concerts in recent days and watched one on Youtube. All three reminded me that seemingly small contributions can have great value and are worthy of our attention.

In this case, I speak of the humble Page-Turner (that is the actual title of such an individual), the individual who stands next to a performer playing an instrument, turning the page on the sheet music at the right moment.

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Let’s Start the New Year With Good News in Medicine

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A Lot of Really Good News – Some Here Now, Some Almost Here – is at Our Door

Progress in Many Areas

2022 was one of those years in which it seemed medical advances, even breakthroughs, were happening regularly. Most such advances, of course, are based on years of work – the particular breakthrough just came through in the last calendar year. As promising as all these are, most still have a ways to go to become mainstream, but the potential, and the hope for people who need the help, can be breathtaking.

Let’s look briefly at 10 such advances.

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December 20, 2022

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Farewell to the January 6 Committee

 

The January 6 Committee closes out its work this week, with one last public session and vote on referrals to DOJ, release of their Executive Summary and shortly, their full report. We owe this group a lot. This was, in my view, a model of how an investigative Congressional committee should operate. They were focused, professional, and productive. They did an even better job than did the Watergate Committee. Over time, I expect we will recognize they informed the public and shaped public understanding of the threats faced, and they did so to a greater degree than many expected (or still recognize).

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