Sara Robinson brings out some old-school research, from 1962, regarding the nature of revolution. Caltech sociologist James Davies published an article that year in American Sociological Review that identified the key elements that sparked revolutions in the 17th and 18th centuries. The seven points Davies identified from the French, American, and Russian revolutions, as Robinson [...]
There have been a number of unexplained, rage killings over the last month. While I may have my reasons to expect this, I have had little to say about it. Everything about each situation is disturbing and upsetting in its own way: taken as a group, it’s truly overwhelming.
An interesting essay on Alternet explores the [...]
The Democratic circus is coming to town! Who wants to come with me?
The county Democratic convention is a lot of fun. This year is going to be an absolute madhouse, with the presidential race the way it is, Texas is a must-win state for both remaining candidates. Hype (and participation) will rarely be so great. [...]
William Astore is a retired Air Force Lt. Colonel who now teaches at the Pennsylvania College of Technology. Unsurprisingly, he has noticed a number of differences between the military and academic cultures. He warns the progressive community in this essay at Alternet that they must understand and engage with the military in order to have [...]
Even with the understanding that the point of this cartoon is to ask, “isn’t it funny to imagine that someone really had these opinions?”, this latest Kelly made me immediately nauseous. Even after thinking it through and deciding that the joke really is funny, I still couldn’t bring myself to grimace about it. Ugh.
I’ve taken [...]
This latest press release from the Nature Conservatory blew my mind.
“The replacement of vigorous outdoor activities by sedentary, indoor videophilia has far-reaching consequences for physical and mental health, especially in children,” Pergams said in a statement. “Videophilia has been shown to be a cause of obesity, lack of socialization, attention disorders and poor academic [...]
I don’t get it. I can understand how it might be news if a famous performer might be performing nearby, or perhaps has some sort of freak accident during their performance. But how are the marital and mental health problems of a popular singer the subject of daily, above the fold “news”? Are there really [...]
Okay, I’m sheep. But it was a politics meme…
93% Dennis Kucinich92% Mike Gravel85% John Edwards83% Chris Dodd81% Barack Obama79% Hillary Clinton74% Joe Biden74% Bill Richardson38% Rudy Giuliani29% Ron Paul27% John McCain24% Mike Huckabee23% Mitt Romney22% Tom Tancredo12% Fred Thompson2008 Presidential Candidate Matching Quiz
I particularly like the 36 point gap between red and blue.
Was this [...]
So it’s not just my perception that tuff on crime crowd aren’t usually the sharpest knives in the drawer. A couple of high-profile exonerations have left some overly-agressive prosecuters red-faced. One man in Dallas had 27 years of his life stolen away by a single victim’s mis-identification. Another man in New York state was freed [...]
It is said that when Ben Franklin was sent to France as America’s first ambassador, he once played chess with the King of France. He began by removing the kings from the board, saying, “In America, we have no need for kings.”
I was personally raised in an environment so strongly anti-monarchial that it didn’t occur to me [...]