This video of a tense moment of border patrol agents meeting with their commander has been making the rounds lately. I share it both because it’s yet-another encouraging sign that the stranglehold is unravelling and because it’s an example of something that I’ve been noticing lately. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HIMORHoe_m8 The commander’s attitude is what I would call … Continue reading Pseudo-Leadership
Thoughts
‘Megamind’ at the Everyman
Got to do an essay on Megamind at last: There’s really a lot that could be said about this movie. I wouldn’t call it a great film: there are some gaps in the writing and not all the jokes land (though most of them do). But it is a very good film, with strong storytelling, … Continue reading ‘Megamind’ at the Everyman
“Tonight, I Am Nemesis”
Revenge stories never grow old. Though as Christians we know that wrath is a sin and vengeance belongs to the Lord, yet we still get a visceral satisfaction from a well-told tale of revenge. Don't believe me? Go read The Count of Monte Christo. We may deplore it morally, but...well, it feel rights. This isn't … Continue reading “Tonight, I Am Nemesis”
Flotsam: Of Kings, Clothes, and Inspiration
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
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’
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
Serpent's Den 