August 13, 2022 Shanghai, 1940. The Japanese have ravaged through much of China; they’re in Shanghai, but don’t (yet) control its international settlement. Wherein a top nightclub is owned and operated by Aiyi — a 20-year-old girl — of course impossibly beautiful too. Really?? This is Weina Dai Randel’s…

August 11, 2022 Trumpworld is foaming at the mouth in paroxysms of outrage over the FBI’s Mar-a-Lago search, screeching that it’s an improper “weaponizing” of government against a political adversary; “banana republic” stuff; another witch-hunt; the worst thing ever done; blah blah blah. Anything to avoid their heads exploding…

August 9, 2022 David McCullough was a great American. Just weeks ago I read his little 2017 book, The American Spirit — Who We Are and What We Stand For. I did so because I felt in need of a booster shot. McCullough was indeed an eloquent explicator of…

August 6, 2022 Keenya Oliver Bemis, who teaches high school biology in Schenectady, gave a talk to my local humanist group based on Natalie Wexler’s book, The Knowledge Gap — The Hidden Cause of America’s Broken Education System — And How to Fix It. The main idea is that…

August 3, 2022 I remember the Pecks’ first time at a local humanist gathering. Very ordinary looking dull folks, I thought. I remember that because deeper acquaintance has revealed remarkableness. Dave was a teacher. Mira had both chemical engineering and law degrees, and a high powered corporate career. They adopted…

July 29, 2022 At the used book sale, I explained, “I’m buying this because I debated this author on this subject.” It was David Gelernter, Yale professor and computer science guru.* His book is The Tides of Mind — Uncovering the Spectrum of Consciousness. At a local appearance I…

July 27, 2022 Watching some TV show with my wife, we heard the words “full English breakfast.” And, just being goofy, I piped up, “I’d like a full English breakfast.” “What are you talking about?” she said. “You eat very little for breakfast.” “Well then,” I replied, “I could…

July 23, 2022 The story was too good to be true. South Africa’s white-minority “apartheid” regime, oppressing the Black majority, was long decried. Then F.W. de Klerk, a reasonable man, came to power. Nelson Mandela, leader of the Blacks’ African National Congress (ANC) was released after 27 years in…

July 20, 2022 Sleep’s important role in health and longevity has grown increasingly apparent. Sleep well nightly and you put off the Big Sleep. I was a sickly kid. But now, at 74, my health is great, with no meds. I’ve also been fortunate to always follow a very regular…