First came the chicken bombs, then the chicken guns. I fear chicken landmines and drones will soon rear their ugly heads. Sometimes the things that seem most like jokes are what we need most fear. Or not. But you can never really know for sure. (For an overview of the real-life use of chicken cannon […]
The Future Is Dismal, and It Is Here
Posted by Ben on April 5, 2004
https://www.swordbilled.com/the-future-is-dismal-and-it-is-here/
What Makes Us Violent?
The Globe and Mail has a fantastic article on aggression, delving into deep philosophical and psychological issues of what exactly makes violent people violent.
Hint: It’s not TV.
(Or videogames.)
The article focuses mostly on the work of Dr. Richard Tremblay, who the article cites as “one of the world leaders in aggression studies.” It’s interesting stuff.
Posted by Ben on April 4, 2004
https://www.swordbilled.com/what-makes-us-violent/
Online Resources for YOU to use, abuse, and confuse
Freedom of Information Act: so you have some idea what the Freedom of Information Act is, maybe, but did you know that you can read some of the things that have been made publicly available online? Oh. You did? Well, for those of you who haven’t, you may want to check out the FOIA’s Electronic […]
Posted by Ben on April 2, 2004
https://www.swordbilled.com/online-resources-for-you-to-use-abuse-and-confuse/
News as arterial spray likely isn’t the most brilliant metaphor I’ve ever devised, but it works
Maybe. Possibly. It’s well and good to stay informed, but sometimes news is nothing so much as arterial spray: here one minute, gone the next, and what the hell can we do about it anyway? E.g., the blogfolk at Pandagon are thorough and tend to very often bring up salient points, but the problem is […]
Posted by Ben on March 31, 2004
https://www.swordbilled.com/news-as-arterial-spray-likely-isnt-the-most-brilliant-metaphor-ive-ever-devised-but-it-works/
When the question isn’t How or What but Why?
h = Q.(12+3s/8) There’s really no way to make an educated guess as to what this formula refers, and even though you’d almost certainly be better off not knowing, I’m going to tell you anyway: high heels. Yes, high heels. Why? Why? Why? No, that’s not an explanation.
Posted by Ben on March 29, 2004
https://www.swordbilled.com/when-the-question-isnt-how-or-what-but-why/
Pick The Right Caption! Win a Prize!
Which of the following captions goes with this picture? Don’t worry, it’s not a trick question: one of them actually does fit the picture, believe it or not. A) Like many redbone coonhounds, Cal is eager to try out new things; B) Jesus said that we should help others and that means our parents too, […]
Posted by Ben on March 28, 2004
https://www.swordbilled.com/pick-the-right-caption-win-a-prize/
Quotes in the news
Noam Chomsky, MIT Linguist and Anarchist: “Kerry is sometimes described as ‘Bush-lite’, which is not inaccurate. But despite the limited differences both domestically and internationally, there are differences. In a system of immense power, small differences can translate into large outcomes.” (The Guardian, March 20) Mel Gibson, on George Bush: “I am having my doubts, […]
Posted by Ben on March 22, 2004
https://www.swordbilled.com/quotes-in-the-news/
Gee That’s A Large Beetle I Wonder If It’s Poisonous…
…and many other weird and often irreverently profane band names, found on the The Canonical List of Weird Band Names. Which, yes, restricts the list to actual band names. Skimming the list, I recognized maybe 11 or 12 names, but I’m not too sure whether that’s a particularly good thing. It might be, it might […]
Posted by Ben on March 22, 2004
https://www.swordbilled.com/gee-thats-a-large-beetle-i-wonder-if-its-poisonous/
The Noble Car
Fact: Every day, more people die from road traffic accidents than from drugs, war, and violence, combined. (via World Health Report 2002; comparisons based on estimates from 2001: daily deaths = 3200 road traffic, 1300 violence, 630 war, 186 drugs)
Posted by Ben on March 20, 2004
https://www.swordbilled.com/the-noble-car/
Reframing an old story
I’ve heard the story of Easter Island used many times as a cautionary tale. Recently, I’ve heard it used in a slightly different, and immensely thought-provoking, incarnation. Here’s the story, more or less: the people of Easter Island, quite obviously, were not born there but arrived there on boats. Liking what they saw—and being able […]
Posted by Ben on March 18, 2004
https://www.swordbilled.com/reframing-an-old-story/