Have you built your ship of death, or have you?
Oh build your ship of death, for you will need it.
— D.H. Lawrence, “The Ship of Death”
Author Archive: Paul Epps
Gay Woman Talks About Pride Marketing Campaigns
From Tammy Bruce, a gay TV and radio person: I realize that there’s all kinds of different people in the world. Lord knows I live a marginal life myself and I like my life. But what this [i.e., pride commercials and marketing campaigns] does is it sends a message it’s really kind of an extremist framework. [Pride is] really about being left alone but being treated equally and fairly . . . it’s as though there has to be another step forward, another kind of push for something, for everyone to be a victim or for some kind of new dynamic. Those kinds of ads really do damage to the gay and lesbian community. Because it’s pandering, it’s extreme… It does not respect the audience in a sense. [Companies are] not used to how Americans are usually quiet and that while we might not be having riots and marches, that… Read more →
TIL About Hormone Therapy
The following information is from the St. Louis Children’s Hospital Hormone Therapy web page. Children’s hospital. There are two types of hormone therapy (obviously): feminizing hormone therapy and masculinizing hormone therapy. Feminizing hormone therapy This means giving estrogen and possibly androgen blockers to people “assigned male at birth.” (That is a phrase I don’t like. People “assigned male at birth” are male and will be male their entire lives no matter what. Do a DNA test if you have any doubt about it.) Here are the changes you can expect from feminizing hormone therapy: Body fat redistribution Breast growth Decreased muscle mass and strength Decreased libido Decreased penile function Decreased testicular volume Decreased sperm production Slowed growth of body and facial hair Softening of skin To maintain these changes, you need to keep taking hormone therapy for the rest of your life. Masculinizing hormone therapy This involves giving testosterone to… Read more →
Another Reason Dogs Are Better Than Cats
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Reject the Evidence of Your Eyes and Ears
The Party told you to reject the evidence of your eyes and ears. It was their final, most essential command. — George Orwell, 1984 Joe Biden has said that the American economy is “stronger than hell.” In other news, the percentage of non-retired Americans who expect to have enough money to retire comfortably is now at 43 percent, an 11-year low. Read more →
Where’s Waldo’s Phone?
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You Get What You Voted For
I can think of one, and you did that Joe! pic.twitter.com/nAQJMyF6nx — Vernon Jones (@VernonForGA) May 12, 2023 To put in context what’s happening here, these are South Chicago residents complaining about immigrants being bused into their neighborhood. In the 2020 presidential election, one candidate promised (sincerely, I think) to do everything possible to prevent illegal immigration, and one candidate, well . . . Democrats don’t really care about illegal immigration because the people coming across the border are almost certainly going to be Democratic voters. South Chicago voted 97 percent for Biden, the “I don’t care about illegal immigration” guy. So what are they complaining about? They got what they voted for. Yes, I’m sure they all thought that the problems created by illegal immigration would be borne by somebody else — somebody closer to the border, probably redneck Texans — not by them. They voted to create problems… Read more →
Bring Back Mental Hospitals
My Boyhood Sports Icons Are Dying: Vida Blue
Vida Blue was a left-handed pitcher between 1969 and 1986, most notably as a member of the starting rotation with the Oakland A’s dynasty that won three consecutive World Series championships between 1972 and 1974. He won the American League Cy Young Award and Most Valuable Player Award in 1971, the youngest American League player to win the MVP Award in the 20th century. He had a 24–8 record, an AL-leading 1.82 ERA, eight shutouts and 301 strikeouts. Those were the days when starting pitchers throwing a shutout weren’t taken out of the game because of a pitch count. Today, pitchers throwing no-hitters are pulled based on pitch counts. So eight shutouts is more than a current pitcher will likely throw in a lifetime. Pete Rose, the all-time hits leader and a good guy to go to for an opinion like this, said that Vida Blue threw as hard as… Read more →
Parents Should Be Jailed as a Threat to Democracy?
You Don’t Know Jack
Biden Nominee for FAA Chief goes 0-for-7 on Aviation Policy Quiz by Senator Ted Budd. Yes, 0 for 7. The nominee withdrew last night. Victory.pic.twitter.com/ORoo11cHpo — Citizen Free Press (@CitizenFreePres) March 27, 2023 I like this technique. I’ve seen it a few times now. Instead of partisan gotchas, the incompetence of Biden nominees is exposed by asking them basic questions about the job for which they’ve been nominated. In this one, the nominee for FAA Chief goes 0-for-7 on questions about aviation policy. I’ve seen judicial nominees who couldn’t answer questions like “As a judge, how do you handle a Brady motion?” or “What does Article 5 of the Constitution do?” Read more →
2 + 2 = White Supremacy
2 + 2 = White Supremacy: How Woke Ideologues Corrupted Canada’s Math Curriculum — nationalreview.com White supremacy? Wasn’t arithmetic invented by the Babylonians? Were Babylonians white? How great a threat is white supremacy in Canada? I’m thinking not much since when I’ve been in Canada, I didn’t see anything but white people and a few Asians. From the above-linked article: Two plus two no longer equals four, according to members of the Ontario Mathematics Coordinators Association (OMCA), who consider the equation to be a white-supremacist dog whistle instead of a basic mathematical truth. According to a webinar created by OMCA president Jason To, proponents of math’s political neutrality who use the phrasing “2 + 2 = 4” are engaged in an act of “Covert White Supremacy.” Former OMCA president Heather Theijsmeijer, who originally publicized the webinar, pointed to commentary by Laurie Rubel, an associate professor of mathematics education, explaining that… Read more →
NPR Issues Correction After Claiming There’s ‘Limited Scientific Evidence’ Men Have Physical Advantages In Sports
NPR didn’t really concede much with its correction. Here it is: Correction: An earlier tweet incorrectly stated there is limited scientific evidence of physical advantage. Existing research shows that higher levels of testosterone do impact athletic performance. But there’s limited research involving elite trans athletes in competition. To me, NPR’s statement is so stupid that “scientific research” is not required to refute it. Let’s look at some anecdotal evidence: Lia Thomas, a biological male, a total nobody as a swimmer in men’s competitions, won an NCAA championship when swimming against women. CeCe Telfer, a biological male, a total nobody as a hurdler in men’s competitions, actually won a national championship by a full second-and-a-half when competing against women. Tiffany Thomas (no relation to Lia AFAIK), a biological male, recently won a New York City women’s cycling race. Thomas is a Category 1 (i.e., elite) women’s cyclist, despite being 46 years… Read more →
The Meaning of “Woke” By Example
What does “woke” mean? I’ve heard a lot of different definitions, some with a positive connotation, some with a negative connotation. I’d say a woke person is one who makes sweeping, prejudicial judgments about others based on race, gender and sexual preferences. People are sorted into identity groups and the groups are stack-ranked from best to worst. Riley Gaines is attacked by violent trans activists mob, physically assaulted by a man in a dress, and then held hostage by the vicious mob because she dared to speak out to save women’s sports. The left is SILENT. pic.twitter.com/4Db0NGLa85 — Dana Loesch (@DLoesch) April 7, 2023 The woke left is silent about things like this because trans is the best identity group you can be in right now. It doesn’t matter that the trans branding is “We are militant, violent and delusional.” It doesn’t even matter that you shoot up a school… Read more →
How to Tell If You’re a Violent Extremist
NEW: Docs we obtained show how @FBI equates protected online speech to violence. According to @FBI using the terms “based” or “red pilled” are signs of "Racially or Ethnically Motivated Violent Extremism" pic.twitter.com/JSQiCoiKdT — Oversight Project (@OversightPR) April 3, 2023 The FBI uses a “glossary of terms” to look for online that could indicate someone is involved with “violent extremism. According to the FBI glossary, “based” means “someone who has been converted to racist ideology.” “Red pill” or being “redpilled” means someone is accepting racist, antisemitic or fascist beliefs, according to the FBI. I’ve never heard those definitions. I’ve heard “based” used in tech culture to admire, sometimes ironically, someone’s authenticity and boldness. Let’s run it by ChatGPT: The word “based” is often used to indicate that something has a foundation, source, or origin in something else. It means that a particular thing, person, or concept is rooted or founded… Read more →
Journalism 101 for Non-Journalists
Hunter Biden Sues Laptop Repair Shop Owner Citing Invasion of Privacy. — The Washington Post The lawsuit is an implicit admission that the laptop that was given to the FBI and Rudy Giuliani was in fact Hunter Biden’s laptop. The only way the laptop could be responsible for invading his privacy is if the material disseminated from it was in fact authentic. Pretty much everyone now knows and admits that the laptop is authentic, and pretty much everyone knew in October of 2020 that the laptop was authentic, including the corporate media and social media that were propagating a lie formulated by the CIA that the laptop was “Russian disinformation.” What we know for sure is that the media lied [about the laptop] and it’s Journalism 101 that when you make a mistake, as you’re going to do as a journalist, even big ones, the first thing you do is… Read more →
The desolation of winter;
passing through a small hamlet,
a dog barks.
— Masaoka Shiki
A caterpillar,
this deep in fall –
still not a butterfly.
— Basho
My Boyhood Sports Icons Are Dying: Willis Reed
Willis Reed is best remembered for Game 7 of the 1970 NBA Finals against the Los Angeles Lakers in Madison Square Garden, not for his performance on the court (he scored only four points), but for limping gamely onto the court during warmups. Reed hadn’t played in Game 6 because of a torn thigh muscle and was considered unlikely to play in Game 7. Even as a Laker fan, I have to admit it was an all-time iconic moment, so much so that no one (except Frazier himself) remembers that Walt Frazier had one of the greatest Game 7 performances in NBA playoff history: 36 points, 7 rebounds, 19 assists and 6 steals. That game is always remembered as “the Willis Reed game.” RIP Willis Reed Read more →
The NRA is a Red Herring
Every time some gun-related tragedy occurs, we get to hear from innumerable people who know nothing about guns other than everything is the NRA’s fault. And everything they think they know about the NRA is wrong. In other words, they think they know one thing but the one thing they know is wrong. The thing they think they know is that the NRA pays off (Republican) politicians to vote against gun control bills. I asked ChatGPT “How much does the NRA donate annually to politicians?” And I got this answer: The National Rifle Association (NRA) is a powerful lobbying organization that has donated millions of dollars to political candidates and causes over the years. However, the organization is not required to disclose its exact political contributions, and the amount it donates can vary widely from year to year and election cycle to election cycle. According to the Center for Responsive… Read more →