1. Yesterday was the anniversary of the martyrdom of King Louis XVI, so I made sure to go to Mass to ask his intercession, and that of all the royal saints, that we might have good leaders in Church and State. Or, failing that, at least leaders who aren't brain-dead swine. Appropriately enough, the first … Continue reading Flotsam: Of Kings, Clothes, and Inspiration
Thoughts
Thought of the Day: Significant Other
I don't really like the term 'significant other'. It seems to me a problem that the same phrase can refer equally well to the love of your life or the alien that lives inside your head.
Flotsam: A Hodgepodge Ending in Lovecraft
1. I try to hunt up simple, straightforward points where ideas make contact with reality in order to judge their truth or falseness. Preferably reality I can see for myself, or which is at least clear and concrete enough to be resistant to rhetoric. For instance, a question that occurred to me this week: has … Continue reading Flotsam: A Hodgepodge Ending in Lovecraft
A Disappointing Ending
I finished Cowboy Bebop this weekend, and, I have to say, I was really disappointed by the ending. I won't say what happens, except that's it's ambiguous and the writer has explicitly said that he wants people to make their own minds about it. Well, I can do that. In fact, I might end up … Continue reading A Disappointing Ending
Friday Flotsam: Thoughts on ‘No Way Home’
1. It being New Year's Eve, I suppose standard practice would be to give some kind of a retrospective of the year gone by or speculations of the one to come. But we have more important things to talk about today; namely Spider-Man! I'd thought I was done with the MCU, but the word-of-mouth on … Continue reading Friday Flotsam: Thoughts on ‘No Way Home’
Talking Bitcoin at ‘The Everyman’
My latest Everyman article went up last week (I was on vacation visiting relatives so missed sharing it 'out of the box'). This one delves into the topic of Bitcoin and cryptocurrency in general. The short version is that I think paying actual money for meaningless bits of data that only have value because people … Continue reading Talking Bitcoin at ‘The Everyman’
Quick Thoughts on ‘Bofuri: I Don’t Want to Get Hurt So I’ll Max Out My Defense’
Since I mentioned Bofuri in the Friday Flotsam before last, I realized that I was due to give it a rundown. And since I’ve just come off of a re-watch over the past weekend (it’s very short: only twelve episodes in the first season), now seems the time. Maple and her Guild Teenaged Kaede has … Continue reading Quick Thoughts on ‘Bofuri: I Don’t Want to Get Hurt So I’ll Max Out My Defense’
Friday Flotsam: Class Values and Rudolph
1. Something many people forget or miss is the fact that different social classes or castes or what have you have different value structures. This isn't the same as having different values as such: the same religion and the same moral ideals are liable to be preached across all classes. Rather, it's a difference of … Continue reading Friday Flotsam: Class Values and Rudolph
Friday Flotsam: There’s Really No Through-Line for This One
1. As I understand the matter, modern corporations are descendants of the religious orders. The idea is that property does not belong to any particular member, but rather to the imaginary ‘corporate’ self. In the religious orders, this was to allow for a vow of poverty: yes, the abbey had a lot of property, but … Continue reading Friday Flotsam: There’s Really No Through-Line for This One
Friday Flotsam: A few Quick Points on Authority and Other Things
A few quick conclusions crystalized or articulated over the past week or so. 1. Authority derives from relations and consequent responsibility. In fact, ‘responsibility’ is in a sense only another term for ‘authority’. Because to the extent that you are responsible for something, you must be able to exercise decision making power over it. 2. … Continue reading Friday Flotsam: A few Quick Points on Authority and Other Things
Serpent's Den 