This morning during Sunday worship, a bomb exploded in the St. Peter and St. Paul Church in Cairo, Egypt. At least 25 people have reportedly been killed. The church is adjacent to St. Mark's Cathedral, the seat of the Coptic pope. The bomb is said to have contained 12 kilograms of TNT. Whether the bomb had been thrown into the church or had been planted there earlier has not been determined.
Read more at BBC News, RTE, Sky News, Al Jazeera and CNN.
Sunday, December 11, 2016
Friday, December 9, 2016
Greg Lake 1947-2016
The year 2016 continues to be sad for rock musicians and their fans. (I learned about this news yesterday, but I did not want to make two obituary posts in one day.) Singer-bassist-guitarist-songwriter-producer Greg Lake died in London yesterday at age 69 after a long battle with cancer.
Gregory Stuart Lake was born in Poole, in Dorset County, England. His parents were Harry Lake, an engineer, and Pearl Lake, a housewife who played piano. He was 12 years old when he first learned to play guitar. After playing in various bands, he was invited by fellow Dorset native Robert Fripp to sing and play bass in the first lineup of King Crimson. Lake appeared on their first two albums. In 1970, he joined keyboardist Keith Emerson and drummer Carl Palmer to form Emerson, Lake & Palmer, which lasted until 1979. An attempted reunion during the 1980's resulted in the formation of Emerson, Lake & Powell, in which Palmer was replaced by Cozy Powell on drums. Lake started recording solo material in 1975. He also briefly replaced John Wetton in Asia, where he was reunited with Palmer.
Lake is survived by his wife Regina and their daughter Natasha.
Thursday, December 8, 2016
John Glenn 1921-2016
John Glenn, who became the first American to orbit the Earth, and who later served as a Senator from Ohio for four terms, has died at the age of 95, at the James Cancer Hospital at Ohio State University in Columbus. His illness, which was not necessarily cancer, has not been disclosed.
John Herschel Glenn Jr. was born in Cambridge, Ohio to John H. Glenn Sr. and the former Teresa Sproat. He studied engineering at Muskingum College and earned a pilot's licence, but left school to the enter the military. He enlisted as a Navy aviation cadet, but later was given a chance to transfer to the Marine Corps. During World War II, he flew 59 combat missions in the South Pacific and patrol missions over China. He was a flight instructor at NAS Corpus Christi, Texas. During the Korean War, Glenn flew 63 combat missions in a F9F Panther jet and 27 more in an F-86F Sabre, attracting so much flak that he acquired the nickname "magnet ass". For a time, his wingman was baseball player Ted Williams. After the war, he served as a test pilot, including as an armaments officer, where he tested airplanes' guns.
In 1959, Glenn was chosen by NASA to become one of the seven Mercury astronauts. In 1962, he flew the Friendship 7 mission, on which he became the first American in Earth orbit. He stayed with NASA until 1964. He retired from the Marine Corps in 1965 and became an executive for Royal Crown Cola.
In 1974, Glenn was elected Senator, defeating Cleveland Mayor Ralph Perk (R). He would serve four terms, ending in January 1999, but was caught up in the Keating Five scandal. While still in the Senate, he returned to space at age 77, on the STS-95 mission aboard the Space Shuttle Discovery, which made him the oldest person to go into space. (To recognize this, among his other accomplishments, this post gets the "badass" label.)
Glenn is survived by his wife Annie, whom he met when they were just toddlers, and who likewise attended Muskingum College. They had two children.
Read more at The Columbus Dispatch, CNN, ABC News, Cincinnati(dot)com and Reuters.
John Herschel Glenn Jr. was born in Cambridge, Ohio to John H. Glenn Sr. and the former Teresa Sproat. He studied engineering at Muskingum College and earned a pilot's licence, but left school to the enter the military. He enlisted as a Navy aviation cadet, but later was given a chance to transfer to the Marine Corps. During World War II, he flew 59 combat missions in the South Pacific and patrol missions over China. He was a flight instructor at NAS Corpus Christi, Texas. During the Korean War, Glenn flew 63 combat missions in a F9F Panther jet and 27 more in an F-86F Sabre, attracting so much flak that he acquired the nickname "magnet ass". For a time, his wingman was baseball player Ted Williams. After the war, he served as a test pilot, including as an armaments officer, where he tested airplanes' guns.
In 1959, Glenn was chosen by NASA to become one of the seven Mercury astronauts. In 1962, he flew the Friendship 7 mission, on which he became the first American in Earth orbit. He stayed with NASA until 1964. He retired from the Marine Corps in 1965 and became an executive for Royal Crown Cola.
In 1974, Glenn was elected Senator, defeating Cleveland Mayor Ralph Perk (R). He would serve four terms, ending in January 1999, but was caught up in the Keating Five scandal. While still in the Senate, he returned to space at age 77, on the STS-95 mission aboard the Space Shuttle Discovery, which made him the oldest person to go into space. (To recognize this, among his other accomplishments, this post gets the "badass" label.)
Glenn is survived by his wife Annie, whom he met when they were just toddlers, and who likewise attended Muskingum College. They had two children.
Read more at The Columbus Dispatch, CNN, ABC News, Cincinnati(dot)com and Reuters.
Wednesday, December 7, 2016
A Solemn Anniversary, And Today's News
Today is the 75th anniversary of the "date which will live in infamy", when the Japanese navy attacked Pearl Harbor and Hickam Field in Hawaii. Early this morning, a moment of silence was observed at Pearl Harbor. About 4,000 people were expected to attend a commemoration ceremony. Survivors of the attack attended the ceremony in Hawaii, or a reception in Los Angeles. As some look back, the attack is said to have "shaped the modern world".
------------
Here are some things going on today:
The Charleston church shooter starts to get his day in court.
When in Spain, beware the fake police.
Donald Trump finds his DHS secretary....
....And maybe his Secretary of State.
Leftists already have problems with another Trump nominee.
Time gives their Person Of The Year award to.......
Responsibility for the plane plane crash in Brazil, which killed 71 people, goes all the way to the top.
A founder of the "alt-right" movement speaks and gets protested.
A deadly earthquake strikes Indonesia.
Indonesians celebrating Christmas get shut down.
A British imam claims that Islam has been distorted.
As Steven Stills sang, "paranoia strikes deep".
The above-mentioned DHS isn't doing so well these days.
If you think Chicago is violent, five other Illinois cities are even worse.
Miami has been wracked by heroin overdosing.
And to finish, the weird ways we've been using Cheetos.
------------
Here are some things going on today:
The Charleston church shooter starts to get his day in court.
When in Spain, beware the fake police.
Donald Trump finds his DHS secretary....
....And maybe his Secretary of State.
Leftists already have problems with another Trump nominee.
Time gives their Person Of The Year award to.......
Responsibility for the plane plane crash in Brazil, which killed 71 people, goes all the way to the top.
A founder of the "alt-right" movement speaks and gets protested.
A deadly earthquake strikes Indonesia.
Indonesians celebrating Christmas get shut down.
A British imam claims that Islam has been distorted.
As Steven Stills sang, "paranoia strikes deep".
The above-mentioned DHS isn't doing so well these days.
If you think Chicago is violent, five other Illinois cities are even worse.
Miami has been wracked by heroin overdosing.
And to finish, the weird ways we've been using Cheetos.
Tuesday, December 6, 2016
Things I Don't Believe #3
This post goes into the field of science, or possibly pseudo-science (which you might expect from someone who names himself after a creature whose existence is not universally accepted). There are some interesting but strange ideas out there, some of which I've decided are a bit too strange.
I do not believe:
That there is a planet, often called Nibiru, which is headed for a close encounter with Earth.
This idea seems to be quite popular on YouTube, and is based on the work of Zechariah Sitchin, who in his book The Twelfth Planet, alleges that the solar system includes a planet with a highly elliptical orbit. About every 3,600 years this planet, called Nibiru or Marduk, passes through the inner solar system. According to various YouTube users, Nibiru will soon either collide with Earth or pass closely thereto, which either way will be catastrophic. The trouble is, predictions of this planetary encounter have been going on for over a year, with the predicted times of Nibiru's arrival coming and going without it ever showing up. Another problem is that the Nibiru theorists don't agree with each other as to the planet's characteristics and trajectory. Some say that it's coming from the south, which is why nobody in the northern hemisphere can see it. Others say that it's behind the sun, either directly or off to one side, and show pictures of the sun with a second smaller luminous sphere nearby. I've also heard that Nibiru has an extremely dark surface that reflects almost no light from the sun, which is why it can't be seen. Is this object very dark, or does it reflect so much sunlight that it looks like a second sun? Both can't be true. For those of you who believe in an imminent encounter with Nibiru, could you please decide what it is, where it is, and how it's moving?
I do not believe:
That there is a planet, often called Nibiru, which is headed for a close encounter with Earth.
This idea seems to be quite popular on YouTube, and is based on the work of Zechariah Sitchin, who in his book The Twelfth Planet, alleges that the solar system includes a planet with a highly elliptical orbit. About every 3,600 years this planet, called Nibiru or Marduk, passes through the inner solar system. According to various YouTube users, Nibiru will soon either collide with Earth or pass closely thereto, which either way will be catastrophic. The trouble is, predictions of this planetary encounter have been going on for over a year, with the predicted times of Nibiru's arrival coming and going without it ever showing up. Another problem is that the Nibiru theorists don't agree with each other as to the planet's characteristics and trajectory. Some say that it's coming from the south, which is why nobody in the northern hemisphere can see it. Others say that it's behind the sun, either directly or off to one side, and show pictures of the sun with a second smaller luminous sphere nearby. I've also heard that Nibiru has an extremely dark surface that reflects almost no light from the sun, which is why it can't be seen. Is this object very dark, or does it reflect so much sunlight that it looks like a second sun? Both can't be true. For those of you who believe in an imminent encounter with Nibiru, could you please decide what it is, where it is, and how it's moving?
One Two Three [Guitar Chords] Turn It Up
In a story I ran across yesterday, but which was published about two weeks ago, shoppers at a Brooklyn food store were triggered by, of all things, a song. I know that some people can be oversensitive, but this was so strange that I wonder if a bit of NaCl might be in order. As David Marcus, who had been shopping with his wife, writes in The Federalist:
After getting our Brazilian Arabica ground for drip (I know, I should really use a French Press), Libby and I walked towards the organic maple syrup. That’s when it started. I suppose there had been music playing in the store, but I hadn’t noticed until a familiar guitar lick pierced the air and a soft voice said, "Turn it up."
Monday, December 5, 2016
Castro's Last Ride Not Without Problems
In what the right side of the blogosphere might call a bit of irony, the funeral procession of Fidel Castro experienced some technical difficulties. The reportedly Russian-made jeep that was pulling the wagon carrying the late tyrant's ashes broke down and had to be pushed toward his final resting place in St. Ifigenia Cemetery.
Read more at Fox News, Townhall and VOA. The last link comes via Gateway Pundit.
Read more at Fox News, Townhall and VOA. The last link comes via Gateway Pundit.
Sunday, December 4, 2016
To Follow The Cat
As my British blogosphere friend Tim Burton again finds himself in trouble for (gasp!) offending a Muslim, he has decided to recount this strange episode by writing a playlet entitled Liberty and Justice meet Hubris and Nemesis. In doing so, he has taken the nom de plume 'Follow the Cat'. The character based on himself is Catstrangler101, which is also his Twitter handle, which means that you can indeed follow the cat. (It should be noted that Tim has never actually strangled a cat, but has merely produced the sound effect of a cat being strangled when attempting to play the violin. Fortunately, he has had more success with the guitar.)
Tim has posted the first act of his playlet at the Liberty GB website, and has invited the public join in.
Tim has posted the first act of his playlet at the Liberty GB website, and has invited the public join in.
The following playlet entitled "Liberty and Justice meet Hubris and Nemesis" is an imagined account of events surrounding the upcoming Crown Court trial of Liberty GB representative Tim Burton, accused of 'Religiously Aggravated Harassment' of one Fiyaz Mughal, professional Muslim and head of Tell Mama, an organisation of ill-repute.
To enter our competition, all you have to do is write your own alternative version of the ending, or of any act or scene in the play. Submit to Liberty GB at info@libertygb.org.uk before Friday 23rd December. The lucky winner will earn an honourable mention on the Liberty GB website and an exclusive dual wine presentation box.Taking up this challenge, I have written a scene for the playlet. I don't think it's an alternative to any part thereof, but instead could be inserted into wherever Tim thinks it may be used. This scene was written as a show of support from the North American part of the Anglosphere. To read it, click on the "read more" link.
Saturday, December 3, 2016
Brief Christmas Music Break
'Tis the season for caroling, but here are two songs that you might hear this month, which are not your standard Christmas carols. The first one ultimately comes from the Dr. Seuss cartoon The Grinch Who Stole Christmas. The YouTube user Biolleo recorded and posted this heavy metal version of Mr. Grinch.
Friday, December 2, 2016
Friday Links
As the first weekend of December comes around, here's some of what's going on out there:
From Zero Hedge, while the official unemployment rate has gone down, the number of people not in the work force has hit an all-time high, and on the first day of the recount in Wisconsin, Hillary Clinton (D-NY) gains one vote.
From The Big Story, Trump supporters strike back.
From RealClearPolitics, Donald Trump's campaign manager says that people in the Clinton camp haven't gotten to the acceptance stage.
From The Federalist, a report from a man who served under Trump's nominee for Secretary of Defense, retired General James Mattis.
From MSNBC, General Mattis has a "big legal obstacle" if he is to head the DOD.
From Yahoo News, the effort to name a street in Paris after Steve Jobs has hit some obstacles.
From the Daily Star, a gunman is at large in Paris after taking six hostages.
From FrontpageMag, why left-wing methods of fighting terrorism are unrealistic.
From National Review, beware the bear propaganda.
From WA Today, a Melbourne airport stops the construction of an Islamic school under a flight path leading to one of its runways. (Since this source is Australian, I think that "WA" might stand for "Western Australia".)
From Watchdog(dot)org, Hampshire College has allowed its flag to return. The Boston Globe has also covered this.
From Fox News, Israel gets their first whiskey distillery.
From the Belfast Telegraph, support grows for a moon village.
From the New York Post, a woman wants to be a mother, although she was born without a, well, just read the story.
From WQAD, be careful about downloading apps at a car lot.
From CNN, the CEO of the company building the Dakota Access Pipeline puts on a music festival in Cherokee, Texas. (His last name might be ironic due to the name of that town.)
From Philly(dot)com, ends its probe of an alleged incident in which a student was knocked down by men yelling "Trump!".
From The Detroit News, terror suspect Sebastian Gregorson gets hit with a new charge.
From The Times Of Israel, a stolen concentration camp gate is found in Norway.
From The New York Times, Gambia's president, in power for 22 years, loses his bid for re-election.
And from ESPN, Steelers wide receiver Antonio Brown introduces his alter-ego.
From Zero Hedge, while the official unemployment rate has gone down, the number of people not in the work force has hit an all-time high, and on the first day of the recount in Wisconsin, Hillary Clinton (D-NY) gains one vote.
From The Big Story, Trump supporters strike back.
From RealClearPolitics, Donald Trump's campaign manager says that people in the Clinton camp haven't gotten to the acceptance stage.
From The Federalist, a report from a man who served under Trump's nominee for Secretary of Defense, retired General James Mattis.
From MSNBC, General Mattis has a "big legal obstacle" if he is to head the DOD.
From Yahoo News, the effort to name a street in Paris after Steve Jobs has hit some obstacles.
From the Daily Star, a gunman is at large in Paris after taking six hostages.
From FrontpageMag, why left-wing methods of fighting terrorism are unrealistic.
From National Review, beware the bear propaganda.
From WA Today, a Melbourne airport stops the construction of an Islamic school under a flight path leading to one of its runways. (Since this source is Australian, I think that "WA" might stand for "Western Australia".)
From Watchdog(dot)org, Hampshire College has allowed its flag to return. The Boston Globe has also covered this.
From Fox News, Israel gets their first whiskey distillery.
From the Belfast Telegraph, support grows for a moon village.
From the New York Post, a woman wants to be a mother, although she was born without a, well, just read the story.
From WQAD, be careful about downloading apps at a car lot.
From CNN, the CEO of the company building the Dakota Access Pipeline puts on a music festival in Cherokee, Texas. (His last name might be ironic due to the name of that town.)
From Philly(dot)com, ends its probe of an alleged incident in which a student was knocked down by men yelling "Trump!".
From The Detroit News, terror suspect Sebastian Gregorson gets hit with a new charge.
From The Times Of Israel, a stolen concentration camp gate is found in Norway.
From The New York Times, Gambia's president, in power for 22 years, loses his bid for re-election.
And from ESPN, Steelers wide receiver Antonio Brown introduces his alter-ego.
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