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 Clerk, the Licenses and the Law
Posted at: Sep/05/2015 : Posted by: mel
Related Category: Behavior, People, The Law, Watching America,
There is nothing like a creative news story or event to pique my interest. With our 24/7 news cycle, there is always the potential to find something that questions what we thought was normal. Some of these events are about important social questions; some are a manifestation of holes in current law. Some of these unique events are the unintended consequence of change or misguided legislation. O.....read more…
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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…
100 years of Relativity
Posted at: Apr/28/2015 : Posted by: mel
Related Category: Historical Insights, Science,
Way back when I was in high school I was introduced to physics for the first time. I loved the class, but in retrospect believe I must have tormented my teacher. While he was teaching about blocks sliding on an inclined plain, I was interrupting with questions about surface tension on air foil surfaces. When the lecture moved to centripetal force, I started asking about relativity. The teacher.....read more…
Is this really freedom?
Posted at: Apr/24/2015 : Posted by: mel
Related Category: Society, Watching America,
Indiana’s governor, Mike Pence, and the state lawmakers who approved their own version of the Religious Freedom Restoration Act (RFRA) in April 2015 say that they are shocked, shocked, shocked at the uproar, divisiveness and potential economic pain that the new law is bringing to their state. I’d rather they would just be honest and acknowledge that in the great balancing act that is the American .....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…
For my son
Posted at: Apr/17/2015 : Posted by: mel
Related Category: Behavior, My philosophy,
A funny thing happened on the way to college, I guess I should explain in a little more detail. It is high school spring break for one of my sons and we are taking 5 days to visit a number of colleges. Trips like this are expensive, yet they are also priceless. As part of this adventure we have visited a variety of schools taking the canned tours and meeting with their admissions advisors. In .....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…
What if he wasn’t killed?
Posted at: Apr/03/2014 : Posted by: mel
Related Category: Historical Insights,
In June of 1914 two shots were fired in Sarajevo killing Franz Ferdinand, heir to the throne of the Austro-Hungarian Empire and his wife. Much like a series of dominos ready to fall in sequence, one thing led to another. In response to the assassinations, rulers in Vienna threatened Serbia; Russia came to the Serbia’s defense and Germany came to Austria’s defense. As the tiles continued to topp.....read more…
One heck of a speech in Russia
Posted at: Mar/30/2014 : Posted by: mel
Related Category: Politics & Gov, World Watching,
Vladimir Putin's made a rousing address before Russian parliamentarians and officials a couple of days ago (March 18, 2014). The speech was in response to the fall of the Ukrainian government and the prompt annexation of the Crimean Peninsula by Russia under Putin’s leadership. Reading the translation of Putin’s speech, one could easily be lulled into the notion that the Russian people have been.....read more…
