1. Well, this was certainly a week. For those who are just joining us, last weekend I moved cross-country, from Michigan to Arizona to take up a teaching post. It was three days' driving, and a chance to see more of the country than I yet have. The route took us, among other things, right … Continue reading Friday Flotsam: Moving Cross Country, History in the Making, and Dickens
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Saturday Flotsam: Various and Fourth of July
1. I really wanted this to be a Friday Flotsam again, but again didn't get around to it. 2. It's a mark of how busy I've been that the Fourth of July came and went and it didn't even occur to me to write sarcastic comments about the Revolution. Not that I wouldn't have tried … Continue reading Saturday Flotsam: Various and Fourth of July
At the Everyman: The Battle to Stop Killing Games
My first piece in a while is up at The Everyman, giving a rundown of Ross Scott's efforts to end the practice of killing games: In summary, video game companies are destroying the products that they have previously sold to their customers without providing any compensation. One does not have to be a gamer to … Continue reading At the Everyman: The Battle to Stop Killing Games
Pilgrim’s Pass on Musashi
Fascinating video by the ever-entertaining Pilgrim's Pass about Miyamoto Musashi and the figure of the holy warrior and the potentially redemptive role of violence in society. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yTqyQq09Wo4
Luther Martin Calls It
Luther Martin was the Attorney General of Maryland and was a delegate to the Constitutional Convention. He was in favor of strengthening the central government, but also of maintaining the sovereignty of the States, and he quit the Convention when he judged they'd gone too far and was one of the most out-spoken Anti-Federalists. From … Continue reading Luther Martin Calls It
Back on Catholic 365: Infant King
First article in a long time is up on Catholic365, just in time for Christmas: Among the strictures against monarchy presented by the American Revolutionaries was the absurdity that a king can come to the throne at any age, and that, as Mr. Hamilton put it in one of the Federalist Papers, “a helpless infant … Continue reading Back on Catholic 365: Infant King
50 More Quotes for AFI
It's hardly definitive, but I still like the AFI '100 Years, 100 Quotes' list, especially this excellent montage someone put together of it. It's a fun sort of quick summary of film history. That said, it was definitely missing a lot of lines I would have wanted to see included. So, I decided to take … Continue reading 50 More Quotes for AFI
“When You’re Overqualified for the Job”
I started laughing about halfway through this and couldn't stop: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-UYgORr5Qhg "Can anyone here play the drums? I mean, someone good!" Apparently (such is the grapevine of the internet), the gentleman inside the costume is named Nyango Star, and, as a matter of fact, doing...what he does here is precisely his specialty. I love niche … Continue reading “When You’re Overqualified for the Job”
‘Spy x Family’ at the Everyman
My latest piece for The Everyman went up today, where I get to talk a bit about Spy x Family: Following a devastating conflict some decades prior, a tense cold war persists between the nations of “Westalis” and “Ostania” (fictionalized versions of West and Easy Germany circa the 1960s). Ace Westalis spy ‘Twilight’ works tirelessly … Continue reading ‘Spy x Family’ at the Everyman
Kaiju Appreciations: Zilla (Update)
Another Kaiju Appreciation update, this one for Zilla, the unfortunate kaiju from the Roland Emmerich / Dean Devlin film from 1998. Enjoy! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TfRVnLY1OoA&t=34s (Gotta give a CONTENT WARNING on this one: the song has a pretty heavy and crude F-Bomb near the middle) G-98 may be the textbook example of how not to make an … Continue reading Kaiju Appreciations: Zilla (Update)
Serpent's Den 