Loosely Speaking

By Ciel - About Me - E-mail this page - Add to My Favorites - Add to Blog List - See other blogs in Everything Else

Wednesday, April 22, 2015

Answering a question on Earth Day

There was a question asked and a challenge offered today, Earth Day 2015, for a reply to a post from a hunter who says, basically, there's more of us than of you animal-rights anti-hunters, so, first, we must be right, and second, get over it. He defends the hunters with words like scientific and sustainability, but he himself is a trophy hunter. An animal rights advocate asked for someone to reply to that post, so I did. There is a place between trophy hunters and anti-hunters, a place of... Sign in to see full entry.

Thursday, April 16, 2015

wow

http://deepseanews.com/2015/04/video-rare-sperm-whale-encounter-with-deep-sea-rov-3/ This got me thinking about that high cognitive function, curiosity. By 'high' I mean it goes beyond basic curiosities of: Will it try to eat me? Can I eat it? Can I mate with it? Sign in to see full entry.

Monday, March 30, 2015

Total Fail

https://www.youtube.com/watch?t=461&v=yBXOUCP518g If you watch from the beginning, you could damage your mind or discover a need to buy a shirt. The debate begins at 7:25. This is one of those "What is Goofy, really?" discussions that can last the length of a 12-yr olds' pajama party, but this supposedly educated adults discussing "What is the Moon, really?" I look forward to your comments. Sign in to see full entry.

Thursday, March 19, 2015

Clicker Bait

"What I Saw Made Me Cry!" "When she got up, I SCREAMED!" "You've never seen anything like this!" You'll be shocked... you will laugh your head off... You won't believe your eyes... It's all designed to get your attention and get you to click on links. "Why The Coming Solar Eclipse Has The World Worried" Well, when you read the article, you discover, actually, no one who knows what's going on is actually worried about anything. Interested, to see how the 75 minutes of eclipse affects the... Sign in to see full entry.

Monday, March 16, 2015

Kabu, for you...

Get out the tissues... https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=471-ucVd7o0 Sign in to see full entry.

Wednesday, March 4, 2015

Where the real power is

I posted this on Facebook today: A NOTE TO THE CANDIDATES: When your flyers arrive, they will go straight into the recycle bin conveniently by the mailbox. When your ads come on TV, I will change channels, mute, or walk out of the room. When your ads show up in newspapers or magazines, I will turn the page. Every dime you spend on attempting to influence my vote will be wasted. __________________ Instead, I will be watching what you do, what you say, and what the fact-checkers take note of. I... Sign in to see full entry.

Saturday, February 28, 2015

Not every death is tragic...

Yesterday on Facebook, I read a complaint from someone who was fed up with the nation making a tragedy of an old man's death. Fellow Americans: Can we not make a tragedy of an old man dying when it is natural for a man to grow old and die? Similarly, can we not in all the unimaginable expanse of the universe find a more viral-worthy topic than a (in my opinion) HIDEOUS dress? New lows today, guys. New lows. I know her, in fact, at least well enough to know that she has not the excuse of youthful... Sign in to see full entry.

Tuesday, February 24, 2015

Have you heard of...?

Annicita's comment in one of my recent blogs has roused me to one of my current complaints about the bankruptcy of our culture. I was shocked a few years ago that a young man of 28 had never heard of Isaac Asimov. She suggests that many people outside of sci fi or who haven't been college-educated wouldn't know the name. Isaac Asimov wrote authoritatively in many fields and is known widely far outside the boundaries of science fiction. But we live in a time when what was once common knowledge or... Sign in to see full entry.

Sunday, February 22, 2015

An issue of trust

Here is a very fair and useful article that it may disturb but cannot hurt anyone to read: http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2015/03/science-doubters/achenbach-text This is my addendum to Achenbach's excellent explanation of why we choose to believe, or not. A point Achenbach touches over lightly is the issue of who and why we trust, or don't. In our society, perhaps practically all of human society, the guys who want more pie lie to others, to get those people to support giving them more pie.... Sign in to see full entry.

Tuesday, February 10, 2015

Such a fuss!

So, Brian Williams 'embellished' a story. Possibly more than one. Who died because of it? Whose life was wrecked, who paid a price for this exaggeration of detail to tell a more colorful, more affecting story? We put up with the 'embellishments' of advertisers, and learn to toss a grain of salt into our acceptance of what's told us in commercials. We 'embellish' our own stories, making it more fun, more exciting, more moving. If some slight alteration in the facts occurs, deliberately or... Sign in to see full entry.

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