It’s lonely at the top. It’s lonely at the bottom too. It’s lonely in the middle . . .
Author Archive: Paul Epps
Celebrating Women and Pancakes
Today is International Women’s Day AND National Pancake Day! It is a day of celebration! Read more →
The Most Transparent Liar in Modern Times?
I’m the most transparent public official in modern times. — Hillary Clinton “That’s why as Secretary of State I ran a shadow government from a private email server, sending and receiving communications regarding secret programs, anti-terrorist activities, drone strikes, etc., so that there would be no public record of my activities. “I also give paid speeches to Wall Street firms under a contract that prohibits anyone from releasing a transcript of what I said.” What a scream! Maybe she means she’s the most transparent liar in modern times . . . Read more →
Prominent Republicans Re: Donald Trump
If our self-indulgent Republican party establishment had really wanted to prevent a takeover of the GOP, they should not have gorged on political power while they failed to do anything to prevent the decline of the country. Our leaders could have led. They could have done more than say ‘no’ to Democrats while offering no alternative. They should have stood up for the change Donald Trump is bringing now but they didn’t. Now, Trump has earned the nomination. He won it, fair and square and we should respect that. Donald Trump whipped the establishment and it is too late for the limp GOP establishment to ask their mommy to step in and rewrite the rules because they were humiliated for their impotence. If Trump is going to be our nominee, as I believe he is, it is our mission to support Trump and make him the best nominee and president… Read more →
Morning Morgantown
So so beautiful . . . Read more →
I Have a System That I Think Would Work
I have a system that’s based on leaving myself visible reminders. I think it would work except that my wife likes to move things consistent with where she thinks they should be, even if they’re not her things, so instead of a working system I have a non-stop “Where’s Waldo?” challenge, which is not as fun as it might sound . . . Read more →
Peace Will Come (According to Plan)
Aside
Inc.com: How to Defeat Mindset Inequality
Who Will Be America’s America?
And do not forget that nearly all of the countless 20th-century innovations and industries that made the rest of the developed world so efficient and comfortable came from America, and it wasn’t a coincidence. As long as Europe had America taking risks, investing ambitiously, and yes, being “inequal,” it had the luxury of benefiting from the results without making the same sacrifices. Who will be America’s America? — Garry Kasparov Read more →
Talking About the Benefits of Socialism is a Capitalist Luxury
Americans talking about the benefits of Socialism is a luxury paid for by the successes of capitalism. — Garry Kasparov (@Kasparov63) March 1, 2016 Read more →
13 Hours Snubbed at Oscars
Michael Bays Benghazi movie was snubbed at the Academy Awards by the Hillary liberals. Maybe if instead of being a nationwide block buster it had been a Youtube video, democrats would of actually pretended like it deserved some credit for somthing. — PFT Commenter [sic all grammar and spelling] Read more →
Eat This Scroll
oreover He said unto me, “Son of man, eat what thou findest: eat this scroll, and go, speak unto the house of Israel.” — Ezekiel 3:1 Read more →
3 Possibilities
From The Possibilities of Organization by Barry Oshry (with very slight modification): Possibility I. Internal Warfare We can misunderstand one another’s worlds; we can misinterpret one another’s behavior; we can see malice, insensitivity and incompetence behind one another’s actions; we can see ourselves as the well-intentioned, blameless, helpless victims of other people and of circumstances; we can act accordingly and go to war with one another. Possibility II. Understanding and Accommodation We can see into, comprehend, accept and adjust to one another’s worlds; we can accommodate to others, acting in ways that make it possible, easy even, for them to do what we need them to do in order for us to move ahead with our work; we can see the “stuff” that comes at us from others as the behavior of people struggling to cope with and survive in the unique conditions of their worlds; we can choose NOT… Read more →
Harper Lee, 1926-2016
28 Sep 2008 I took my son to the bookstore to buy To Kill a Mockingbird for his English class. They had two paperback editions available — one with a fancy binding for $15.95 and another one for three dollars less. I pulled the cheaper one off the shelf and my son asked, “Why are we getting that one?” I said, “Because it’s three dollars less for the same book.” “I like the other cover better,” he said. “Gimme three dollars.” 23 Oct 2008 FATHER: Would you take out the trash please? SON: Are you KIDDING?! I’m doing homework! I’ll take out the trash if you read To Kill a Mockingbird and tell me what each chapter is about. FATHER: I’ve read To Kill a Mockingbird. You want to know what it’s about? ‘Racism is Bad.’ Now take out the garbage. RIP Harper Lee Read more →
I’m Pretty Sure Those Are Nouns
This is a real Bernie Sanders tweet, not a parody, although it has since been deleted . . . Read more →
It’s National Margarita Day!
My margarita just saw its own shadow. You know what that means? Six more margaritas! Olé! Fiesta! It's Monday, so you probably don't need an excuse to lift a celebratory margarita. But in case you do, here it is. Posted by Los Angeles Times on Monday, February 22, 2016 Read more →
Teaching Prisoners to Code: What Could Go Wrong?
What could go wrong here? Criminal minds + coding skills = ??? One of my favorite Mr. Boffo cartoons shows a gang of robbers in a bank in the Old West . . . one of the robbers says to another, “Someday this will all be done by computer.” What an inspiring program to solve a big and growing U.S. problem. Posted by Code.org on Sunday, February 21, 2016 Read more →
USC Drumline Plays with Questlove
This would be a better video without Fallon but you take the bad with the good and Fight On! Read more →
How People Learn to Become Resilient
[Developmental psychologist Emmy Werner] found that several elements predicted resilience. Some elements had to do with luck: a resilient child might have a strong bond with a supportive caregiver, parent, teacher, or other mentor-like figure. But another, quite large set of elements was psychological, and had to do with how the children responded to the environment. From a young age, resilient children tended to “meet the world on their own terms.” They were autonomous and independent, would seek out new experiences, and had a “positive social orientation.” “Though not especially gifted, these children used whatever skills they had effectively,” Werner wrote. Perhaps most importantly, the resilient children had what psychologists call an “internal locus of control”: they believed that they, and not their circumstances, affected their achievements. The resilient children saw themselves as the orchestrators of their own fates. In fact, on a scale that measured locus of control, they… Read more →
What Is the Evidence for Unconscious Bias?
What is the evidence for “unconscious bias,” since it’s, you know, unconscious? "Unconscious bias doesn't just affect women. It affects all constituencies." https://t.co/CjVw1F89mv @MITSloanWomen pic.twitter.com/qcjpr6dx8b — MIT Sloan (@MITSloan) February 22, 2016 Read more →