Important Note:
Opinions are fun. My friends tell me I am someone with lots of opinions and that's fine since I don't get mad at others when they disagree with me. In this same spirit I am interested in hearing yours views as long as you are able to share your views without boiling over. I look forward to hearing from you. I tend to write in the form of short essays most of the time, but contributions do not need to be in this same format or size. Some of the content here will date itself pretty quickly, other content may be virtually timeless, this is for the reader to judge.
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The not so United States
Posted at: Jun/07/2017 : Posted by: melmann
Related Category: Perspectives, Society, Watching America,
Sometimes the best understanding of something is from the outside looking in. While recently in London I had a number of conversations with the hotel concierge. As is expected with his title, he helped find the right restaurants to dine at, arranged some special tickets and helped in locating key sites and attractions. We also had a couple of insightful conversations. In his role as a concierg.....read more…
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Trying to define 2016
Posted at: Feb/09/2017 : Posted by: mel
Related Category: People, Perspectives, Politics & Gov, Society,
We are 5 weeks into 2017, so it seems only fair to look back and try to access or define 2016. Definitions by their very nature need to be short to be effective and understood. In a dictionary, definitions are seldom more than 8-10 words in length. Sometimes a year is best described by a new word added to our lexicon, in this case I have settled on an old word that has taken on a new emphasis. 20.....read more…
A story in a story
Posted at: Apr/23/2016 : Posted by: mel
Related Category: People, Perspectives,
The other day I was channel surfing during one of my nights when sleep was eluding me. I eventually let the remote control rest and I settled on watching the movie Starship Troopers. The 1997 movie was directed by Paul Verhoeven with screen play by Edward Neumeier and follows the futuristic military career and personal growth of the main character Johnny Rico while earth is at war with a race of.....read more…
The Problem with a Free Society
Posted at: Mar/28/2016 : Posted by: mel
Related Category: People, Perspectives, Society,
As anyone who pays attention to current events knows, these are trying times for any open and free society. On the evening of 13 November 2015, a series of coordinated attacks occurred in the Paris suburb of Saint-Denis killing 130 and injuring another +360. During the morning rush hour on 22 March 2016 another set of coordinated attacks in Brussels killed at least 30 and seriously injured 230 m.....read more…
The Best Number is
Posted at: Mar/05/2016 : Posted by: mel
Related Category: My philosophy, Perspectives,
I like to consider myself “well read.” By stating this I believe that I have learned enough in my life to speak intelligently on many subjects. Sometimes I am inspired to correct the liberties taken by some to rewrite history to serve an agenda. Sometimes I write about what I believe to be important political or philosophical observations that seem to have an especially timely meaning. Until t.....read more…
Misunderstanding science fiction
Posted at: Aug/10/2015 : Posted by: mel
Related Category: Perspectives,
If you are perusing this, you are familiar with an old fashioned form of time consumption called reading. There are a lot of reasons to read including education, research and entertainment. I grew up prior to the age of the internet or 105 channels of cable/satellite where reading was one of the limited forms of entertainment available to me besides playing in the rain. While I read lots of dif.....read more…
Being a Preppie isn’t getting it done
Posted at: Apr/20/2015 : Posted by: mel
Related Category: People, Perspectives, Politics & Gov,
Americans love their brands. When buying cars, the established brands always dominate in sales over new entrants regardless of the price differential. In the grocery store, the name brand ketchup will out sell the less expensive store brand with great consistency. In a similar manner Americans consider Harvard, Yale and Princeton as the go to place to find our “best and brightest.” Yet our shi.....read more…
When will they learn to shut up!
Posted at: Dec/29/2014 : Posted by: mel
Related Category: Perspectives, Politics & Gov, Society, Watching America,
The democratic process is a wonderful conundrum. We get to on a regular basic elect new people, placing them in positions of authority and responsibility. Sometimes we elect them because we clearly understand their agenda and see that as a path forward. Sometimes we elect people because we are optimistic they will be able to accomplish great changes even when we don’t know what those changes mi.....read more…
Some really good ideas
Posted at: Apr/17/2014 : Posted by: mel
Related Category: Perspectives, Science,
Humans are fascinating creatures, we fight, we make up, we destroy, we create and we alter our world. I am sure some cultural anthropologist would say that these traits to some degree define what it means to be human and not merely another mammal among many. Using tools is considered part of what it means to be human. More important to me is the ability to create things that allow us to change .....read more…
Is it really a sport?
Posted at: Feb/24/2014 : Posted by: mel
Related Category: Perspectives, Sports,
It is February 2014 and the Winter Olympics hosted in Sochi Russia are underway. Thanks to the miracle of television and the internet I get to enjoy watching the competition in a variety of events. Some of the events I have enjoyed to this point include Speed Skating, Snowboarding, Cross-Country skiing, 2-Man Bobsledding, Ice Hockey and Super-G. As a lover of sports and competition I have to ad.....read more…
