Random stuff I find interesting and you may not.
Tractors manufactured in the late 1970s and 1980s are some of the hottest items in farm auctions across the Midwest these days — and it’s not because they’re antiques. Cost-conscious farmers are looking for bargains, and tractors from that era are well-built and totally functional, and aren’t as complicated or expensive to repair as more … Read more
I’ve recently discovered magswitches. These are magnets you can turn off and on. I use them in my workshop to hold down fences, stops, and featherboards. When they are turned on, you can’t move them. When off, they lift off instantly. They are non-electronic; the switch is an ingenious mechanical contraption hidden inside a very … Read more
In June of this year the China Tribunal delivered its Final Judgement and Summary Report. An independent committee composed of lawyers, human rights experts, and a transplant surgeon, the Tribunal was established to investigate forced organ harvesting on the Chinese mainland. These rumours have haunted the country for years—lurid tales of the fate suffered by … Read more
Finding free online tax filing should be easier this year for millions of Americans. The IRS announced significant changes Monday to its deal with the tax prep software industry. Now companies are barred from hiding their free products from search engines such as Google, and a years-old prohibition on the IRS creating its own online … Read more
As World War II raged around him in Poland, St. Maximilian Kolbe fought for souls using a printing press and another “weapon” – the Miraculous Medal. “Even though a person be the worst sort, if only he agrees to wear the medal, give it to him…and then pray for him, and at the proper moment … Read more
We also seem to see overspending in medicine, law, school, investment analysis, campaign spending, and much else. A consistent pattern I think I see is overspending in areas where spending lets one associate with prestigious folks. So I suggest that much of this overspending is better explained via motives to gain prestige via association. Re … Read more
Long-time Slashdot reader theodp shared his story about the worst tech book review he found on Amazon in 2019. Stephen Few is a respected author and speaker whose books on data visualization and analysis are well-received. But when it comes to Amazon reviews, you simply can’t make everyone happy, a particularly good example of which … Read more
Price Panic: NYC Mayor De Blasio puts Domino’s on blast for NYE pizza cost Mayor de Blasio’s batty attention has for the moment lighted upon Domino’s Pizza, which sold pies to New Year’s Eve revelers in Times Square for $30 each, roughly double its usual excellent price of about $15 for a large … Read more
There are horse barns in New York City. A lot of people don’t realize this, but I’m lucky enough to have uncovered this secret through volunteering at a therapeutic riding program for children with disabilities. A couple of Sundays a month, I get up early, drink my coffee on the train to Forest Hills, and … Read more
Draconian punishments for minor acts and politicized prosecutors have brought faith in the justice system crashing down. . . . Today, over 90 percent of American defendants waive that right in favor of a prosecutor’s proposed plea bargain, because, as Harvard Law professor Alan Dershowitz notes in his new book Guilt by Association, they are … Read more
“Only in Christ can men and women find answers to the ultimate questions that trouble them. Only in Christ can they fully understand their dignity as persons created and loved by God.” Pope St. John Paul II Related PostsJump off the media’s fear-and-panic bandwagon Biden and the Disunited Catholic Front Four Disciplines of Worthy Disciples … Read more
Peace and brotherly love are underrated. You want to look at Leonardo’s pictures, but you don’t want to love under the Borgias — any civilized man would much prefer the Swiss and their ridiculous cuckoo clocks. They have museums and galleries in Switzerland, and plenty of paintings, too. But no Michelangelo, just Vacheron Constantin. And … Read more
The consequentialist view of Christianity, which is common among non-Christian conservatives (and also among some Christian conservatives) is that what matters is not the truth or falsehood of Christianity but the consequences of Christian belief — i.e. that it will make people happier, make them better citizens, make them more likely to lead moral lives, … Read more
The year 2019 brought some notable golden anniversaries from a wild year: 1969. Some were glorious, such as the Moon Landing; others were scurrilous, scandalous, such as the Manson Family murders, Woodstock, Chappaquiddick. The year 1969 also marked some shocking deaths: Sharon Tate, Mary Jo Kopechne, even Judy Garland. Another death that year, which rocked … Read more
Stealing from the WalMart jewelry case “eluding” police on a low speed car chase captured in the Rural King parking lot “Everhart is now behind bars facing several charges, including a felony count of theft, criminal mischief, driving under suspension, and fleeing and eluding.” They forgot “stupidity” LOL! Man behind bars after shoplifting at Walmart, … Read more
O Come, All Ye Faithful – Pentatonix Learning real freedom from some joyful, loving women “This time, with freedom!” Sisters Mary Karen and Mary Gabriel implored. It was a rare “off” day for Sisters of Life from different convents getting to be together at their motherhouse in the suburbs of New York. And … Read more
I love Emma Thompson’s acting. I wish somebody would tell her about Skype. The great English actress is a climate-change activist, “activist” here meaning “a celebrity who cares about popular causes in public.” When she recently was accused of hypocrisy for jumping on a jet to attend a climate-change rally — international air travel is … Read more
Almost 50 years ago, the University of Kansas established a new humanities curriculum. It lasted only about 10 years. But those 10 years inspired conversions, priestly vocations, and so many Catholic initiatives that the program is still leaving its mark on the life of the Catholic Church. In September, a memorial dedicated to the Pearson … Read more
could a well-intentioned Catholic already enrolled in the Brown Scapular Confraternity get a tattoo of the image of the scapular on their skin and receive those same graces and promises? CNA asked; theologians and priests answered. The short answer is: no. But, you might not want to write off tattoos completely. There is a bit … Read more
“You have to go to college” was an article of faith when we were growing up in poor families. Now we wonder if our ticket out of poverty still has the same value. Far too many of this generation are leaving college with substantial debt and few meaningful job opportunities. Put a little differently, what … Read more
Sexual abuse of minors was rife among superiors of the Legionaries of Christ Catholic religious order, with at least 60 boys abused by its founder Father Marcial Maciel, a report by the group showed. The report is important because for decades until 2006, including during all of the pontificate of Pope John Paul, the Vatican … Read more
The blue-and-white clad Sisters of the Community of Our Lady of Walsingham have recently acquired a new novitiate, a converted barn in Dereham, Norfolk, on a large stretch of land with another barn which they are turning into extra rooms for their youth work. The community is not large, but it’s growing – and in … Read more
Japan now has over 70,000 people who are more than 100 years old. That stunning fact comes from Extreme Economies, an interesting new book by Richard Davies. Davies looks at extreme economies around the world such as extreme failure (Darien, Kinshasa, Glasgow), extreme resilience (Aceh, Angola Prison, LA), extreme inequality (Santiago) and in the case … Read more
Christmas has passed and New Year is just around the corner. And the sales continue. Things started six weeks before Christmas with Singles Day, which began in China and is now the world’s biggest shopping day. This was followed by Black Friday, Cyber Monday sale, the pre-Christmas sales and now the period of post-Christmas or … Read more
The American Hospital Association, the biggest hospital trade group, says it promotes “best practices” among medical systems to treat patients more effectively and improve community health. But the powerful association has stayed largely silent about hospitals suing thousands of patients for overdue bills, seizing homes or wages and even forcing families into bankruptcy. Atlantic Health … Read more