Monthly Archives: September 2019

Retro Quote – Theodore Roosevelt and Patriotism

“Patriotism means to stand by the country.  It does not mean to stand by the President or any other public official save exactly to the degree in which he himself stands by the country.  It is patriotic to support him in so far as he efficiently serves the country.  It is unpatriotic not to oppose him to the exact extent that by inefficiency or otherwise he fails in his duty to stand by the country.  In either event it is unpatriotic not to tell the truth – whether about the President or about anyone else – save in the rare cases where this would make known to the enemy information of military value which would otherwise be unknown to him.”

Theodore Roosevelt, “The Great Adventure”, November 1918

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Worst Quote of the Week – September 27, 2019

“I want to know who’s the person that gave the whistle-blower the information, because that’s close to a spy.  You know what we used to do in the old days when we were smart?  Right?  With spies and treason, right?  We used to handle them a little differently than we do now.”

– Donald Trump, in a speech to a select audience while at the United Nations on September 26, referring to the still-unidentified person who revealed details about his call with the president of the Ukraine

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Best Quote of the Week – September 27, 2019

“The actions of the Trump presidency have revealed the dishonorable fact of the president’s betrayal of his oath of office, betrayal of our national security and betrayal of the integrity of our elections.  Therefore, today, I am announcing the House of Representatives is moving forward with an official impeachment inquiry.”

– Nancy Pelosi, Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives, initiating impeachment proceedings against President Donald Trump

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Lunar Souls

Artist, writer, photographer and fellow blogger Art Browne has a unique – and sometimes twisted – view of our universe.  Which is why I know, without a doubt, that he is my long-lost twin brother!  When not tormenting spiders or ridiculing helpless cats on his blog, “Pouring My Art Out”, Brother Art captures some truly fascinating visions of the natural world.  In a recent series of simple cell phone shots, he photographed the moon in various stages and from various angles over San Diego, California.  A few of them are presented below.

I have to concede these lunar photos make me feel incredibly sentimental.  Every time I look up at the sky and see that glorious moon, I – sniff – always get homesick.

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Banned Books Week – September 22-28, 2019

Once again, it’s time for “Banned Books Week” – the annual event where we free speech advocates and other enlightened souls are forced to counter the anger of the holier-than-thou crowd who somehow feel imbued with the power to tell everyone else what they can read and see. Help support literacy and education. It’s they’re the best tools against ignorance and arrogance. This is a battle we’ll never win.  But it’s always worth fighting!

Here’s a list of the most frequently challenged books, categorized by year and by decade.

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Worst Quote of the Week – September 20, 2019

Trump signing his name to a portion of the “virtually impenetrable” border wall.

“As one of the folks just said, it really is virtually impenetrable.”

– Faux President Donald Trump commenting on a stretch of the border wall in San Diego, California.

So, in short, the “virtually impenetrable” wall is penetrable.  I can see it now: illegal immigrants taking selfies of themselves in front of the wall, before finding a way around or over it.

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Best Quote of the Week – September 20, 2019

“Words can come and go in a language, but those that show staying power and increasing use need to be recorded and described.”

– A post on the Merriam-Webster website announcing the nonbinary pronoun “they” as an entry in its dictionary.

Merriam-Webster acknowledges that “they” has been used a singular pronoun consistently since the late 1300s.  The organization also notes it has evidence of the nonbinary “they” dating back to 1950, and that it’s likely there are earlier uses of the nonbinary pronoun.  Merriam-Webster’s latest batch of updates includes 533 new words and meanings.

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In Memoriam – Eddie Money, 1949-2019

“To me, the glass is always half full – never half empty.”

Eddie Money (Edward Joseph Mahoney)

“Baby, Hold On”

“Shakin’”

“Think I’m in Love”

“Two Tickets to Paradise”

“Walk on Water”

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In Memoriam – Francisco López Toledo, 1940-2019

“We add our voice … to those who struggle for the recognition and protection for their rights and cultures, because to the extent that we respect our differences, we shall build a life with more justice.”

Francisco López Toledo

Cocodrilo Rojo (Red Crocodile), 2009
El Perro de Olga (Olga’s Dog), 1976
La Madre de los Alacranes (Mother of the Scorpions), 1976
Libertad-a-Victor-Yodo, (Freedom to Victor)
Mujer Toro (Bull Woman), 1987
Rabbit Goes to War, 1993
Vaca Mala (Bad Cow), undated
Venado con Zapatos (Deer with Shoes), 1970
Kites with images of 43 murdered students at Mexico City’s Memory and Tolerance Museum in 2015

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In Memoriam – Robert Frank, 1924-2019

“The eye should learn to listen before it looks.”

Robert Frank

Charleston, South Carolina, 1955
14th Street White Tower – New York City, 1948
Mary with Pablo and Andrea, 1950s
Mr. and Mrs. Feiertag, Late Afternoon, 1951
Couple – Paris, 1952
Welsh miners, 1953
Fourth of July – Jay, New York, 1954
Chattanooga, Tennessee, 1955
Funeral – St. Helena, South Carolina, 1955
Movie premiere – Los Angeles, 1955
Trolley – New Orleans, 1955
Drug store – Detroit, 1955
Rodeo – New York City, 1955
Indianapolis, 1956
San Francisco, 1956
Daytona Beach, Florida, 1958

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