December 2022
70 articles published this month.
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The Economy & Investing
Slight Uptick in GDP, but Pink Slips Are Up, Too!
Slight Uptick in GDP, but Pink Slips Are Up, Too! There has been a bit of positive news on the economy recently. GDP is up slightly. And inflation is slightly down. Neither is significant. It feels temporary…
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Worth Watching
The Hunger
The Hunger Directed by Tony Scott Starring Catherine Deneuve, David Bowie, and Susan Sarandon Released in theaters Apr. 29, 1983 Available on various streaming services, including The Criterion Channel and…
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Worth Considering
The COVID Response. What We Got Wrong — December 9, 2022
Part IV: Shutting Down Outside Activities Do you remember that, beginning in March of 2020, on the advice of the WHO and the CDC, the US began issuing mandatory stay-at-home orders? California was first, on…
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Fun and/or Interesting
The Future Looks… Connected
According to Peter Diamandis, by 2032, “every person on earth will have access to the web with speeds and capabilities far beyond what heads of nations and Fortune 500 CEOs had just a few decades ago. This…
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Fun and/or Interesting
How To Cook Kale Without Ruining It
In the Nov. 4 issue, I told you what I think of kale… the latest trend in Hollywood style eating. BJ, a golf buddy, agrees. He sent this handy tip for the next time you have kale for dinner.
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A Word to the Wise
paraprosdokian
A paraprosdokian – from the Greek para (“beyond”) and prosdokia (“expectation”) – is a figure of speech in which the latter part of sentence or statement has an unexpected twist. The twist is often humorous…
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Postscript
More Dumb Students
As I pointed out on Tuesday, college students today know lots about white male privilege. How do they do when asked some basic academic questions, like the kind you’d expect a 6th grader to know?
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Notes From My Journal
Last Saturday Was a Special Day at Rancho Santana…
It was my last day at Rancho Santana after a three-week stay. And I participated in two events that made it extra special. In the afternoon, I attended a sixth-grade graduation ceremony at a local grammar…
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From My Work-in-Progress Basket
The Rule of One vs. Listicles: What’s the Deal?
The Rule of One vs. Listicles: What’s the Deal? One of the ideas I’ve written about over the years is something I called the “Rule of One.” It wasn’t an original idea. It was a compilation of similar ideas…
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Worth Reading
Building a Story Brand
Building a Story Brand By Donald Miller 240 pages Published Oct. 10, 2017 Donald Miller has a blog called “Story Brand” about advertising. He also has an advertising business. His USP (Unique Selling…
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Worth Considering
The COVID Response. What We Got Wrong
Part III: The Pandemic of the Unvaccinated Remember the “pandemic of the unvaccinated”? That was the phrase Biden used on Sept. 9 of last year in a speech at the White House. He said: “This is a pandemic of…
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Arts & Letters
From the Smithsonian: The artwork that took 30 years and 200 acres to create
Read about it here.
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Postscript
College Students Struggle To Define Systemic Racism
Every college kid understands that America is systemically racist, and that White people have privilege – especially White Men. The problem arrives when you ask them for an example…
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Notes From My Journal
The Ventilator Shortage That Never Materialized
Tuesday’s essay on how the US dealt with Covid provoked a great deal of response (see below). The opinions were mixed, but reading through them this morning, I could see that some people thought I was making…
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Notes From My Journal
What I Believe: About Entitlement
It’s unfortunate, but it seems to be a universal trait. I’m talking about Homo sapiens’ ability to feel entitled to anything we become accustomed to. Whether we deserve it or not. I noticed this in business…
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Worth Watching
Pepsi, Where’s My Jet?
Pepsi, Where’s My Jet? A 4-part Netflix miniseries Directed by Andrew Renz With John Leonard, Todd Hoffman, Michael Avenatti, and Cindy Crawford Premiered Nov. 17, 2020 A golfing friend recommended it. He…
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Fun and/or Interesting
About Medical Tourism…
Some say that the US has the best health care system in the world. And there’s no doubt that in terms of medical technology, we are among the most sophisticated. But most of our needs are not the kind that…
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Inside Paradise Palms Botanical & Sculpture Gardens
Blue Jacaranda
Binomial name: Jacaranda mimosifolia We have several Jacarandas at Paradise Palms. They are among my favorites of what I think of as our exotic trees. Jacarandas are native to sub-tropical South America. But…
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Readers Write
Re “We Were Not Just Wrong” in Tuesday’s issue
“That issue on COVID was a really good one. Also really scary.” – TG “They have not learned. They are not abashed. They are lying to themselves even more than they lie to us precisely to prevent such things…
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Postscript
Eighth Grader Without Legs Dominates Basketball Court
I clicked on the headline (“8th Grader Without Legs Makes Basketball Team”) with trepidation. Sometimes bits like this are exploitive and depressing. This one is not. Check out this kid’s moves!
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