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L i k e U s ! ! !

THE QUIET POWER OF KINDNESS

small-acts-of-kindnessFor some, happiness is a word that conjures up visions of selfish people concerned only with their own pleasure; but this sort of hedonistic approach to happiness is a recipe for serial bursts of pleasure at the expense of long-term happiness.

When I speak of happiness, I am describing a much richer concept; more akin to what the ancient Greeks called eudaimonia or “success at being human.”

One of the central elements for living well is how we relate to other people. In this regard, happiness is literally the opposite of self-centeredness or self-absorption.

In fact, contrary (more…)

THE BORU HARP

boru_harp
The Boru Harp, attributed to the one and only High King of the entire island of Ireland, Brian Boru (941-1014), is the only musical instrument that is the national symbol of a country – the Republic of Ireland. It is also on the label of Guinness beer. Beautifully and exquisitely made, the Boru Harp is on display in the famous Long Room of the Trinity College Library in Dublin. You’ll experience a sense of awe when you see it for yourself. (Glimpses of Our Breathtaking World #219 photo ©Jack Wheeler)

THE RUSSIAN OBSESSION WITH ALASKA

the-russian-obsessionRussia’s Siberia and America’s Alaska seem almost to touch, with the tips of the Chukotka and Seward Peninsulas only 55 miles apart across the Bering Strait.

The scene of the planned Aug. 15 meeting between U.S. President Donald Trump and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin — the U.S. state of Alaska — has played an outsized role in Russian propaganda and mythology.

The choice of Alaska for the summit has re-ignited imperialist narratives, with Kremlin propagandists emphasizing again that the peninsula used to be a Russian territory.

Some imperialist Russians have perceived the sale of Russian Alaska to the U.S. (more…)

AN HONEST HOUSE? THE END OF RACIAL GERRYMANDERS

Is the US Supreme Court about to disenfranchise black Americans and other racial minority voters?

You would think so, given the hysterical hyperbole found in the progressive press. In the New York Times, Jamelle Bouie claims that the Supreme Court is seeking to make the Voting Rights Act of 1965 – legislation that prohibits racial discrimination in the electoral process – “an artefact of the past”.

“The Supreme Court Prepares to End Voting Rights As We Know Them,” shrieks the headline in the Left-wing journal Mother Jones.

“Sixty years ago, the Voting Rights Act ended the Jim Crow (more…)

BUYI KIDS AT THE LUOPING FLOWER FIELDS

buyi-kids-at-luoping-flower-fieldsThe Buyi are the indigenous people of Luoping in northeast Yunnan, having lived here for many thousands of years. A peaceful agricultural people, for some 2,000 years they’ve been growing what we call rapeseed for vegetable oil. (Actually, we call it canola oil as “rapeseed” has unfortunate connotaions.)

Their multilevel terraces of bright yellow rapeseed flowers blooming in early spring (February-March here) – the Luoping Flower Fields – are world wonders of natural art.

They are marvelously friendly and hospitable – watch out for drinking rice wine with them, though, it’s seriously strong! These two Buyi kids exemplify what a (more…)

MORE THAN YOU WANT TO KNOW ABOUT PATERNITY

Anna Nicole Smith November 28, 1967 – February 8, 2007

[It’s August.  Let’s take a break from anything political.  This Monday’s Archive  was originally published in TTP on April 11, 2007. Everyone back then knew of notorious Anna Nicole whose life had tragically ended two months earlier.  Yet her promiscuity turned out to be quite instructive. It still is.]


TTP, April 11, 2007

I can’t pass this one up.  DNA testing that shows among Anna Nicole Smith’s multiple lovers, a fellow named Larry Birkhead is the father of her daughter provides such an exquisitely teachable moment about paternity – well, it’s simply impossible for me to resist.

This is going to be fun.  We’ll start with a discussion of what scientists delightfully call “sperm wars.”  Let’s first discuss those conducted by chimpanzees.  They give the phrase “flooding the zone” a whole new meaning.

Chimpanzees are our closest primate relatives (more…)

FLASHBACK FRIDAY – A FIRST CONTACT WITH THE NAKED AUCAS

naked-aucas-tribe-and-jwJuly, 1972. That’s what these people were known as back in 1972 who lived in the Amazon forests south of the Napo River in Ecuador killing anyone foolish enough to enter their territory. The Quechuas living along the north bank of the Napo were terrified of them, calling them “Aucas” – naked savages. I found them, as you can see, naked but not savage.

This was a true first contact. A helicopter pilot friend, Tony Stuart, and I chanced upon them, landing in their clearing. We were literally space aliens in a space ship from outer space, for all they (more…)

HALF-FULL REPORT 08/08/25

AG Bondi made the announcement last night.  Sounds like a job for ace private operator Erik Prince.  No one in the US government can participate in the reward. But anyone in the Venezuelan government sure can.

The number of people whom Maduro can trust to have close access to him is shrinking fast.  The message to them:  bundle him up, put him on a plane for a quick 865-mile flight Caracas (more…)

THE DAZZLING WHITE GODDESS

This is Dhaulagiri – Dazzling White Goddess in Sanskrit – the 7th highest mountain in the world at 8,167 meters, 26,795 ft.  By consensus of the world’s mountaineers and trekkers, it is the most beautiful mountain in all the Himalayas.  Dhaulagiri stands alone, not a part of any mountain range.  Far below its east face is the Kali Gandaki River which originates on the Tibetan Plateau.   On the other side of the river rises Annapurna, the 10th highest on earth at 8,091m/26,545ft.  The river between them is at 2,520m/8,270ft – a difference of well over 18,000 feet making (more…)

IS RUSSIA FALLING APART?

is-russia-falling-apartRussian officials are sounding increasingly alarmed and even paranoid in their public statements about the future of their country. Most notably, Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov claimed in September of last year that Western governments have assembled a coalition of at least fifty countries in order to dismember Russia.

What may appear to be political paranoia or an attempt to mobilize citizens behind the regime is not necessarily based on imagined enemies. It reveals the official realization that numerous negative trends are converging on Russia and that the current regime, and even the state itself, may be running out of time. (more…)

HOW DEMOCRATS RIG ELECTIONS AND CALL IT DEMOCRACY

Stephen Cobert humiliates Illinois Gov Pritzker on Tuesday (8/05)
Stephen Cobert humiliates Illinois Gov Pritzker on Tuesday (8/05)

The Democrat Party is in political free fall. Their approval ratings are sinking, their coalition is cracking, and the message they once rode to power no longer works. A recent Wall Street Journal poll found 63% of Americans now view the party unfavorably — the worst numbers the poll has recorded in three decades.

This wasn’t sudden. Democrats saw their decline coming — andinstead of changing course, they rigged the system to survive it.

After the 2020 census, Democrat-run states didn’t redraw their maps — they obliterated them. Republican districts were (more…)

RUNWAY ABLE

runway-able
It is a profoundly somber experience to stand here on this abandoned weed-strewn airstrip. For this is Runway Able on Tinian Island in the Northern Marianas, where 80 years ago, on August 6, 1945, a B-29 nicknamed Enola Gay piloted by Capt. Paul Tibbets took off with Little Boy in its bomb bay bound for Hiroshima – and three days later on August 9, a B-29 nicknamed Bockscar piloted by Maj. Charles Sweeney flew off with Fat Boy in its bomb bay headed for Nagasaki.

As a consequence, on August 15, Emperor Hirohito announced the surrender of Japan to America. (more…)

THE BRITISH PEOPLE ARE STARTING TO STAND UP TO THEIR FASCIST GOVERNMENT

Britain’s Labor government is in trouble: Its program of massive third-world immigration from places like Pakistan and Somalia is wildly, overwhelmingly unpopular.

But that’s not the real problem.

The real problem is that despite the best efforts of Prime Minister Keir Starmer and his leftist captive media, Britons themselves have discovered just how unpopular it is.

You might think that’s absurd — if mass immigration is unpopular, how can everyone not know it?

 

Everyone doesn’t know it because the government has been policing speech about immigration.

You see, Britain has no First Amendment, an inviolate right to free speech.  (more…)

SOUR GRAPES AND UGLY LEFTIST WOMEN

sour-grapes-1What in the world happened to these beautiful girls who so grotesquely uglified themselves on purpose? These four are examples of so many more.

We’ve all heard Aesop’s story since we were kids:

“Driven by hunger, a fox tried to reach some grapes hanging high on the vine but was unable to, although he leaped with all his strength. As he went away, the fox remarked, “Oh, you aren’t even ripe yet! I don’t need any sour grapes.” — Aesop, ca. 600 BC.

The Fox and the Sour Grapes is one of the oldest fables in Western culture: When we (more…)