Monthly Archives: December 2013

Art Du Jour

Posted on December 4, 2013 by Eddie Pensier

  Erotic Scene (La Douleur), attributed to Pablo Picasso. (He denied it.) 1902-3, oil on canvas, Metropolitan Museum of Art via The Dirty Stuff.

Posted in Art, Sex | Tagged , , | 2 Comments

Tasmanian Devil

Posted on December 3, 2013 by Epaminondas

epiminondas writes: Great Australian bio about legendary actor Errol Flynn narrated by Christopher Lee.  His amazing ability to live life to its fullest was his greatest legacy.

Posted in Movies, Performers | Tagged , | 4 Comments

The Kind of Thing They’re Doing to Downtown

Posted on December 3, 2013 by Paleo Retiree

Paleo Retiree writes: Walking around the hipster downtown neighborhood of the Lower East Side the other evening, I ran across a construction site. Here’s a pic of what’s going up: For context’s sake — and, where architecture and urbanism go, … Continue reading →

Posted in Architecture | Tagged , , , | 11 Comments

Movie Still Du Jour

Posted on December 3, 2013 by Blowhard, Esq.

Blowhard, Esq. writes: Click on the image to enlarge. Greta Garbo in THE KISS. Production design by Cedric Gibbons.

Posted in Architecture, Art, Movies | Tagged , , | 3 Comments

Was Ayn Rand Secretly a Statist?

Posted on December 3, 2013 by Eddie Pensier

Eddie Pensier writes: John Humphreys of the Australian Libertarian Society starts a whopper of an argument on the ALS’ Facebook page: There is an apparent contradiction at the heart of objectivism. Ayn Rand said that she opposed the initiation of … Continue reading →

Posted in Philosophy and Religion, Politics and Economics | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 11 Comments

Voice Acting Gone Horribly Wrong

Posted on December 3, 2013 by Eddie Pensier

Eddie Pensier writes: I’m a great admirer of good voice acting, but I’m also a fierce critic of it when it’s poorly done. There are some unfortunate occasions when it’s just screwed up beyond belief. One extreme example: The “Bureaucrat” … Continue reading →

Posted in Humor, Television | Tagged , , , , | 1 Comment

17th Century Pirates. In NYC.

Posted on December 2, 2013 by Glynn Marshes

Glynn Marshes writes: Ha. In addition to rewarding his friends with the crown’s territories [New York governor Benjamin] Fletcher gave them free reign in the piracy business. As Kind William’s War dragged on — it didn’t end until 1697 — … Continue reading →

Posted in Politics and Economics | 1 Comment

Plus Ça Change: The Eternal Effort to Fix Africa

Posted on December 2, 2013 by Epaminondas

epiminondas writes: In this vivid, straight-talk article, Paul Theroux discusses the endless repetition of failed missionary and educational plans for Africa.  And they have become repetitive, some having been originally tried almost 200 years ago…many times.  And the likes of … Continue reading →

Posted in Politics and Economics | Tagged , , , | 4 Comments

First They Came for . . . the Academics??

Posted on December 2, 2013 by Fenster

Fenster writes: One cheer, at best, for Rebecca Shuman’s article in Slate on the issue of budget cuts in the academy.  Shuman fairly criticizes the growth of administration relative to academics in the competition for resources.  A lot of that … Continue reading →

Posted in Education | Tagged | 7 Comments

Tricky Teachable Moments

Posted on December 2, 2013 by Fenster

Fenster writes: Here is an article about a college prof getting a reprimand for what for some was a heavy-handed approach to teachable moments about white privilege and racism.  This is tricky territory.   Here, the administration seemed to be … Continue reading →

Posted in Education, Politics and Economics | Tagged , , , , , | 6 Comments