About a year ago, I introduced the blogosphere to a term that had become common on certain Usenet newsgroups. I can’t take credit for coining the term, but I think I can take some degree of credit for disseminating it to a wider audience. That term is “altie,” and has a meaning similar to the term “woo-woo,” in that it describes people who are so militantly pro-alternative medicine and so distrustful of conventional medicine that they will never admit when conventional medicine is effective and refuse ever to concede that any alternative medical practitioner might, just might, possibly be a …
The wit and wisdom of G’Kar
Since the death of Andreas Katsulas, I’ve been thinking just how many great lines he had as G’Kar in the series and how well he delivered them. Here, culled from the web, is but a sampling of some of them. Some are very serious; some are humorous, but all are quintessential G’Kar. I can’t think of a better tribute:
Orac knows World War II and Holocaust history
In a continuing series of posts, for the benefit of new readers (and a trip down memory lane for old readers), I now present: Orac knows World War II and Holocaust history: 60 years ago today: The evacuation of Auschwitz and start of the death march The 60th Anniversary of the Liberation of Auschwitz: How I discovered Holocaust denial 60 years ago tonight: The Dresden firestorm 60 years ago today: The flag-raising at Iwo Jima 60 years ago tonight: The firebombing of Tokyo 60 years ago today: The liberation of Buchenwald Sunday afternoon history lesson 60 years ago today: The …
The Twenty-eighth Meeting of the Skeptics’ Circle
The Twenty-eight Meeting of the Skeptics’ Circle has come to order at Unused and Probably Unusable, and Eh Nonymous has done a great job at gathering the best examples of skeptical blogging from the last two weeks into, of all things, a courtroom scene: WHEREFORE the 28th Meeting of the Skeptics’ Circle was convened on February 16, 2006, with the customary formalities… ALL RISE! Hear ye, hear ye! This court is now in session, the Reasonable Judge Eh Nonymous presiding. All ye who have business before this Skeptical court, draw near. Good day to you, counselors. Let me remind everyone …
Teenage graffiti as cave art
I’ve always had an interest in archaeology. Indeed, one of the elective courses that I most enjoyed in college was a prehistoric archaeology course. All of this shows why the following interests me. Through a scientific analysis of ancient cave art, it’s been found that human nature hasn’t changed much in 35,000 years: Many art historians and anthropologists believe Paleolithic cave wall art was done by accomplished shaman-artists, but mixed in with the finer paintings are graffiti-like scenes of sex and hunting. An analysis of thousands of paintings from the late Pleistocene epoch suggests the graffiti artists back then were …
Alright, who’s responsible?
Alright, everyone, who’s responsible? Someone out there must have done it. Someone out there must have nominated me for a Koufax Award for Best Overall Writing by a Lefty Blogger? (True, it’s my old blog that’s listed, but I am listed!) Come on. ‘Fess up. It’s not that I’m not honored that someone would consider me for such an award (I am), it’s just that I’m afraid that my membership in the Raging RINOs could be in jeopardy… Fortunately for my membership (but unfortunately for my ego) I have a snowball’s chance in hell of winning, given the huge numbers …
Orac knows medicine and surgery
In a continuing series of posts, for the benefit of new readers (and a trip down memory lane for old readers), I now present: Wearing two hats (and part 2) What is a surgical oncologist? The deadly power of denial: Personal observations Also see Part 2: It’s not always denial; Part 3: Fear; and Part 4: Denial isn’t just for patients A tragic story (Also see Part 2: Update; and Part 3: A sad end to a sad tale) When not to treat A pet peeve Dealing with conflict Needlestick An odd place for a telephone booth If you think …
Ohio rejects intelligent design
As someone who lived in Cleveland for 8 years and whose wife grew up in Toledo, it does my heart good to see that the Ohio Board of Education finally got something right. They voted to strike language in their state science standards singling out evolution for a “critical evaluation: COLUMBUS, Ohio, Feb. 14 — The Ohio Board of Education voted 11 to 4 Tuesday to toss out a mandate that 10th-grade biology classes include critical analysis of evolution and an accompanying model lesson plan, dealing the intelligent design movement its second serious defeat in two months. The board, which …
G’Kar is dead
Sad news on the Babylon 5 front. Andreas Katsulas died on February 13 of lung cancer at the age of 59. Besides playing the One-Armed Man in the movie The Fugitive and making frequent appearances on Star Trek: The Next Generation, Katsulas was best known for playing the Narn Ambassador G’Kar on what was, in my opinion, one of the best SF television shows of all time, Babylon 5. G’Kar was my second favorite character on the show after his nemesis, Londo Mollari. Whereas Londo’s character arc saw him starting out as a decadent and buffoonish oaf and then becoming …
An interesting take on the use of Holocaust denial in response to the Danish cartoons
As anyone who read my old blog knows, I have some very strong views on free speech, viewing it as the single most important basis of a free society. It is therefore not surprising that I recently commented on the Danish cartoon imbroglio, in which fundamentalist Muslims, outrage stoked by their Imams and by Muslim governments such as Saudi Arabia and Syria, have tried to impose their religious views on secular societies. One thing I noted is how the Iranian government, in their effort to try to claim that Europeans have a double standard, launched a contest asking for cartoons …