January 2023
64 articles published this month.
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Notes From My Journal
On Saturday, We Hosted a Wedding at Paradise Palms…
It was for CF, a nephew, and his bride. There were about 150 people in attendance. It was held in a section of the gardens designed to be a venue for outdoor events like this. This was the second wedding held…
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News & Views
Five Quick Bits From “YouTube Shorts
Warren Buffett on Gold Years ago, when gold was trading in the $400s, I bought a fair amount. Enough to get my family through a complete economic collapse. I don’t regret that. But I can’t refute what Warren…
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Worth Considering
The COVID Response. What We Got Wrong — January 31, 2023
Part X: Black Africa’s Great Numbers On Friday, I said I’d write about something that has puzzled me since I began tracking the COVID case and mortality data in the middle of 2020. If you believed what the WHO…
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Worth Reading
Picasso’s War: How Modern Art Came to America
Picasso’s War: How Modern Art Came to America By Hugh Eakin 480 pages 1st edition published July 12, 2022 Picasso’s War was recommended to me by DL, a fellow DM publisher and art collector that I’ve mentioned…
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Fun and/or Interesting
I Fell in Love with This Tune
I Thought It Was New – I Was Mistaken I’m accustomed to the digital media sites that I frequent feeding me news that appeals to my social interests and political prejudices. Likewise, with book recommendations…
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Fun and/or Interesting
Test Your Knowledge of America’s First Ladies
I did poorly on this online history test (16 out of 25). But I learned a lot. And some of the facts are surprising. Click here to try it.
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Postscript
YouTube Impressionists Who Sound Exactly Like The Originals
I went down another YouTube rabbit hole recently and found this gem: impressionists that sound exactly like the originals. Click here.
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Notes From My Journal
Let’s Talk About Guns and Politics and Zombies
SC and I were talking about guns. He wanted me to accompany him to a shooting range here in Delray Beach so I could try my hand at various handguns and rifles. I gave him my spiel… Many years ago, I saw a list…
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Worth Watching
Day of the Dead
Day of the Dead Written and directed by George A. Romero Released in theaters July 3, 1985 Streaming Sept. 17, 2013 Currently available from various streaming services, including Netflix and Amazon Prime The…
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Worth Considering
The COVID Response. What We Got Wrong — January 27, 2023
Part IX: China’s Bogus Claims In my last two blog posts, I wrote about how the WHO and the CDC rigged the records to exaggerate the number of COVID hospitalizations and deaths by 70% to 90% – and how the…
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Fun and/or Interesting
Alone
I’ve mentioned before that Edgar Allan Poe is one of my favorite poets. This is one of my favorite poems of his: Alone By Edgar Allan Poe From childhood’s hour I have not been As others were – I have not seen…
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Fun and/or Interesting
What the Heck Is Time?
The Ezra Klein Show is a podcast that I’ve been hearing a lot about, so I listened to it the other day. Klein has a smart, confident voice. He speaks with the intonation of a PBS host. I’ve never heard Malcolm…
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Inside Paradise Palms Botanical & Sculpture Gardens
Inside Paradise Palms' Rare Mangrove Fan Palm
The conservancy that I’m developing in West Delray Beach, FL, has one of the largest and best-curated palm tree collections in the world, as well as a growing collection of outdoor sculptures, a traditionally…
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Postscript
Charles Barkley points out another hypocrisy in Woke thinking…
Click here.
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Notes From My Journal
My First “Paycheck” Job
PP and I were reminiscing about some of the jobs we had in high school. This somehow led to a discussion of “How come kids don’t work hard today?” It got me thinking about my first job. Not the paper route I…
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A Word to the Wise
coup de grâce
A coup de grâce (koo duh GRAHS) – from the French – literally means “finishing blow.” It originally referred to a merciful action: putting a fatally wounded person out of their misery. But it has come to refer…
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Worth Considering
Is Biden Being Betrayed by His Own Party?
Are you ready for a new conspiracy theory? Something topical and wild? Something completely unbelievable? Something I’m sticking my neck way out to predict? Yes? Okay. Here goes... When Biden announced that he…
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Worth Considering
The COVID Response. What We Got Wrong — January 24, 2023
Part VIII: More on the Accuracy of the Count In this series, I’m trying to cover the many ways the WHO, the CDC, our government, and the mainstream media responded badly – in some cases, almost hysterically –…
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Worth Reading
Is Mass Murder a Thing of the Past?
Bryan Kohberger, the man who murdered four University of Idaho students in the early morning of Nov. 13, 2022, has been charged. The police found lots of circumstantial evidence, including two eyewitness…
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Worth Watching
Two Classic Milton Friedman Video Clips
Two Classic Milton Friedman Video Clips Click here to watch the Nobel Prize-winning economist crush three questions from a member of the audience. And click here for his famous “greed is good” interview with…
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Postscript
Mindless Entertainment As The Perfect Work Stress Relief
I was tangled up in seemingly insoluble work problems, and feeling the stress of them, when I decided to take a distraction break. These stupid AGT acts were just the sort of mindless amusement that I needed…
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Worth Considering
The COVID Response. What We Got Wrong — January 20, 2023
Part VII: The Accuracy of the Count The topic for today is about accuracy. The accuracy of the count for the number of people that have been hospitalized and died from COVID since the pandemic began. This is…
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Worth Watching
Madoff: The Monster of Wall Street
Madoff: The Monster of Wall Street A four-part Netflix docuseries Released Jan. 4, 2023 Directed by Joe Berlinger Starring Joseph Scotto and Ginger O’Toole According to some financial historians, Bernie Madoff…
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Worth Reading
George Saunders on How and Why to “Freakify” Your Work
George Saunders is among my favorite short story writers. I’ve mentioned him and his books several times in past blog posts. Recently, strolling through the Literary Hub website, I found a conversation between…
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Notes From My Journal
Is This Crazy? Or Am I?
Language Police “Wokerize” Another Phrase! In January, following the lead of the University of Southern California’s School of Social Work, Michigan’s Dept. of Health and Human Services banned the use of the…
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A Word to the Wise
Bowdlerize
(BOHD-ler-ize) describes the early 19th century policy of some publishers to modify or delete passages of books that they considered to be objectionable, particularly for children. The term comes from Thomas…
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Worth Quoting
Michael Masterson On Language Control And Human Freedom
“When you police words, you regulate language. When you regulate language, you control thought. When you control thought, you rule behavior. When you rule behavior, you destroy freedom. When you destroy…
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Fun and/or Interesting
A Surprise Discovery!
Paleontologists Paul Sereno and Dan Vidal were walking between dig sites in the Sahara when they stumbled upon something in the sand. After a closer look, they realized it was a fossil: a femur from a dinosaur…
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Readers Write
Re my comments in last Friday’s issue about the correlation between wealth and happiness
“I attended a religious retreat years ago, given by a priest who had spent more than 30 years in the jungles of Brazil. Among the poorest people on Earth, he claimed. Yet, he told us, they were the happiest…
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Postscript
Australian Man Halts Traffic To Rescue Stranded Koala
From Australia: Here’s something you don’t see every day – a man stopping traffic to help a koala cross a busy highway. Watch the video here.
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Notes From My Journal
Making a Stranger’s Day
Click here for a video clip about a passenger helping out an Uber driver in trouble. When I watched it, it reminded me of a similar experience I had several years ago. Here’s my story… I was getting a haircut…
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The Economy & Investing
Sean’s 100% Guaranteed Market Predictions for 2023
I’ve told you about Sean MacIntyre. He and his partner, Lindsey Hough, are running a personal finance business called DIY Wealth. It used to be called Creating Wealth, and I used to be its guru. Sean is the…
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News & Views
One Way to Thin Down an Overcrowded Population
Tokyo is crowded. Really, really crowded. But with a declining reproduction rate, that shouldn’t be a long-term problem. That’s how I see it. The Japanese government, though – which is comprised of dozens of…
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Worth Reading
Overdeliver
Overdeliver By Brian Kurtz 312 pages Originally published April 2, 2019 Overdeliver is a book about direct response marketing that every entrepreneur and marketing director should read. It was written by Brian…
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Health & Wellness
If You Don’t Have Time to Exercise, Read This
I’ve been making the argument that high-intensity workouts are the secret to gaining substantial health and wellness benefits. And according to new studies, they are also the secret to healthy aging and even…
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A Word to the Wise
Sciolism Versus Ultracrepidarian: A Neighborly Correction
A neighbor and book club friend called me on my use of the word sciolism at the bottom of each of my blog posts: “Were it not for hypocrisy, I’d have no advice to give.” “Were it not for sciolism, I’d have no…
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Readers Write
About My Books — January 17, 2023
From JV: “I have been reading The Pledge, which has been incredibly helpful for me in planning my future. I know it’s not going to be easy, but, for sure, will be worth it. “My problem: There are so some many…
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Postscript
Watch This Prize-Winning Dance Routine
This is pretty great... Watch this prize-winning dance routine here.
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Notes From My Journal
Nicaragua? Yes, Nicaragua!
On Tuesday, I told you about the results of a Gallup poll that listed Nicaragua as the “No. 1 country where people say they are ‘always’ or ‘almost always’ at peace.” Nicaragua? Surprising? At first, yes. I…
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Fun and/or Interesting
Finding Happiness – Even if You Are a Rich American
In his podcast this week, Peter Attia interviewed Bill Perkins, who explained what he learned about happiness and fulfillment when writing his bestseller Die With Zero. Much of Perkins’ thinking is compatible…
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The Economy & Investing
Inflation and the Rise of Monopolies
Bill Bonner predicted the inflation we are experiencing now many times over the past year or two. His prognostication was based on basic economics: He watched how the Fed was trying to engineer the supply and…
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Fun and/or Interesting
Speaking of Inflation…
Last month, Argentina reported year-over-year inflation of 92.4%. As the value of its peso has been decreasing, Sergio Guillermo Diaz, an artist in the city of Salta, has been painting on the banknotes…
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News & Views
The Harsh Truth About Going Vegan
I once read a great book on the vegan/paleo debate called The Vegetarian Myth . It was written by Lierre Keith, a self-described radical feminist and former vegetarian. The Vegetarian Myth covers four aspects…
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A Word to the Wise
soporific
A soporific (suh-puh-RIF-ik) is something – especially a drug – that induces sleep. As an adjective, it refers something that is boring or dull. I used it this way, above: “I subscribe to Grande’s website out…
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Fun and/or Interesting
Vespers for a New Dark Age
Vespers for a New Dark Age K had this on Sonos this morning when I came into the kitchen. I didn’t notice it at first, but then I did. I think it is hauntingly beautiful. It was composed by Missy Mazzoli for…
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Worth Watching
The Pale Blue Eye
The Pale Blue Eye A Netflix original, released Dec. 23, 2022 Based on the novel by Louis Bayard Directed by Scott Cooper Starring Christian Bale and Harry Melling Somebody recommended it. And it was listed as…
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Inside Paradise Palms Botanical & Sculpture Gardens
Nicobar Palm
Binomial name: Bentinckia nicobarica The Nicobar Palm is native to the Nicobar Islands in the Andaman Sea (near Malaysia). With its elegant arching leaves and distinctive pale green crownshaft, it is one of…
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Readers Write
Could I Have Had PTSD?
A friend wrote to say: After my heart surgery, the cardiologist talked to me about PTSD. I didn't think much of it at the time. Last week, I read an article about PTSD in stroke patients. 25% of them get PTSD…
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Postscript
Deaf Child Hears Parents' Voices After Surgery
Watch this deaf kid’s reaction when, after surgery, he hears the voices of his parents for the first time.
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Notes From My Journal
What Is the Country Whose Citizens Are the Most Content?
A friend sent a report on a Gallup poll about the countries that have the happiest people. Well, that’s not precisely right. It wasn’t about happiness. It was about contentment. Many such surveys are based on…
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