You’d think, since I work in politics that I a) would not be shocked by anything anymore, and b) would feel like I’m already doing plenty to right the ship. Apparently, you’d be wrong. a) I am aghast at the blink-blink reaction of much of the country to the blatant, naked racism on display from […]
Category: Thoughtful
Multi-Party Local Elections?
I had an idea, reading an article on why nobody votes in local elections, and how some of it is that those elections are non-partisan, and therefore vague, difficult, or unimportant to voters. What if, when or if local elections became partisan, the system was set up to accommodate more than two parties? What if […]
If you like The Clash…
If you like some songs by The Clash, listen to some today. Why not? Get reacquainted with their broken Spanish, deep lyrics, and ska-styled youth-outrage. Start with Something About England, for its horrific relevance to today. If you like The Clash, you can’t go wrong with “one of the five weirdest albums of all time,” […]
2020 Draft!
I’m admittedly a bit of a political junkie (and it’s my day job!) but I found this much very amusing. Like a sports show, but about politics! Also, I’m not against an Al Franken presidency. Source: Our Way-Too-Early 2020 Democratic Primary Draft | FiveThirtyEight
Time lapse at sea is really beautiful

I could do with both less captioned commentary and more actual commentary. The captions take away from the experience, but the commentary really enhances it. First world problems. Hat tip: Kottke
My wife
My wife, Tiffany, is having a birthday today. It’s been a hell of a year, for a lot of reasons, mostly good, but you know how reasons are, lots of gray in with the black and white. So on the occasion of her birthday, I wanted to remind her that I love her. She is […]

I’ve got a new piece of jewelry. On my bedside table, next to the earring I wear every day, I now keep a safety pin. In the morning, when I get dressed, I pin it on where it can be seen. I do this to let people who see it know that if they feel […]
September 11
Today is my birthday. I share it with a national tragedy. I like to acknowledge both. For the birthday, I share it with my friends and family. For the other, I share it here. On the day I turned thirty-one, terrorists killed 3,000 people in the United States. It was a horrific moment of awakening […]
The unintended red herring
File under, “Lessons learned while writing.” I have a tendency to throw details into a story that explain a problem in my head, but are not meant to go further than that. But a reader, who is not in my head, reads that detail as crucial, and chases it down the rabbit hole until they […]
Blistering barnacles!
I’m not much one for New Year’s resolutions. After all, I am resolving to do things differently better all the time, not just once a year. Last month I resolved to write more, and a few days before that, I resolved to stop beating myself up about not writing more. But I know it’s a […]