Mark R. Kelly
» Founder in 1997 and site-runner for 20 years of Locus Online (Hugo Award winner in 2002). Founder in 2012 and still site-runner of sfadb.com (Science Fiction Awards Database). Retired in 2012 after 30 years as a software engineer for a certain rocket engine factory.
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Meta
Monthly Archives: September 2024
Distrust of Science and of Public Schools
Thomas B. Edsall on the roots of MAGA’s distrust of science; Hemant Mehta on evangelicals and public schools. NY Times, guest essay by Thomas B. Edsall, 11 Sep 2024: MAGA vs. Science Is No Contest [Gift Link] I’ve mentioned before … Continue reading
Posted in Conservative Resistance, Education, Religion, Science
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Regression Toward the Tribal
Let’s see now. Here we are in the 21st century. In the past 500 years humankind has shown remarkable progress on two parallel fronts. Along governance: no longer was the divine right of kings (or tribal leaders) recognized; rather, principles … Continue reading
Posted in Conservative Resistance, Epistemology, History, Human Progress, Politics, Science
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Fear vs. Hope
An essay about “contrasting views of reality” by the American right and the left; Short items about MAGA and pets; Republicans and raunch; Laura Loomer; Buttigieg explains Trump; Lance Wallnau blames witchcraft; and Trump’s new big lie about crime; And … Continue reading
Posted in Human Nature, Politics, Psychology
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The Debate, Politics, and Science
How Kamala Harris defended fracking and did not properly address climate change; How nothing about science came up in the debate; Short items: How MAGA will fall for anything; how Trumps confessed he’s unprepared; how the GOP has become the … Continue reading
Easily Baited
Last night’s debate between Trump and Harris was certainly more entertaining than the debate a couple months ago between Trump and Biden. NY Times, Opinion, 11 Sep 2024: ‘Trump Brought Darkness; Harris Brought Light’: 14 Writers on Who Won the … Continue reading
Posted in Politics
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Lies Absurd, and Telling
The latest absurd Republican lie is about cat-eating Haitians, and they don’t care whether it’s true or not, they know it will rile up their base; A Republican suggests that the Great Depression was planned; An article that quotes Republican … Continue reading
Posted in conservatives, Lunacy, Morality, Politics
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About Bureaucracy and the Real World
How bureaucracy is evidence of the complexity of the real world, and the only way to solve global problems; Notes from the fringe: How Tennessee prevents people voting; Trump’s niece on Trump’s dementia; USA Today about covering Trump’s dementia; Candace … Continue reading
Posted in conservatives, Culture
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How Beliefs Prevail over Evidence and Reality
Democrats have fixed the economy, but many people don’t “believe” it; CBS News’ Ted Koppel visits a Wisconsin State Fair; The crowd cheers Trump’s latest word salad; How conservatives actually hate American values; And how the mainstream press in America … Continue reading
Posted in conservatives, Meaning, Morality, Politics
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Cheating and Lying
To me, all of these undermine the Conservative project as a legitimate intellectual discourse. How new local news sources are not what they appear to be; Epoch Times; my rule of thumb about reliable news sources; How the Heritage Foundation … Continue reading
Posted in conservatives, Human Nature, Politics
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Plot Armor
Beginning with this unusual topic. Not about Trump per se; more a general principle of story-telling. And faith. OnlySky, Dale McGowan, 6 Sep 2024: For the Trump faithful, it comes down to plot armor, subtitled “It’s no surprise that Trump … Continue reading
Posted in Astronomy, conservatives, Lunacy, Narrative, Religion
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