A blog by Tom Sheepandgoats (aka Tom Harley)
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Hitchhikers and Hoboes
If I had a dollar for every mile I hitchhiked, said the old guy, I wouldn’t be working. Used to be if you wanted to go anywhere, you hitchhiked. Perfectly acceptable, cheap, safe way to get yourself around. You met people. Sometimes you made lasting friendships. The old guy still gets Christmas cards from the person who drove him cross country after his Navy discharge.…
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Conscience, Movies and the MPAA Ratings
Noah (theonlyNoahyouknow) was in town and I spoke to him about movies and he ranted how silly was the American MPAA rating system. In Germany, he said, there was no such thing. In astonishment, I gasped: How, then, do you know what you can watch? They read movie reviews. If you’re a moviegoer, you want to shield yourself and family from filthy, gory or sicko…
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Don’t Worry, I’m in Charge and What About 911?
Many churches post out front some sappy slogan, such as “What is missing: C H _ _ C H.” The church down the street does that. A lot of them do. A few years ago one of them read: Don’t Worry, I’m in charge….signed, God. This stuff is embarrassing. It’s nothing more than feel-good fluff. Days later, terrorists flew airplanes into the World Trade Center.…
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No, Virginia, Douse the Firecrackers
Virginia O’Hanlon asked her Dad if there really was a Santa Claus, and Dad wasn‘t sure he wanted to lie to his own child. So he did what parents have done since the beginning of time when they’re stuck. He passed the buck. Why don’t you write the newspaper, he advised. If they say it’s true, then it is. Editorial page The New…
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Elliot Spitzer and the Garbage Plate
Hickey Freeman was not enough! Elliot Spitzer has selected another Rochester icon to usher in his inauguration day this Monday…the Garbage Plate. Seems when he was in Rochester his wife sampled this bit of local cuisine just after or before Mr. Spitzer bought his new suit, and decreed it must be on the Big Day Menu. If she ate the whole thing, she’s 20 pounds…
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Yes, Virginia, You’ve Come a Long Way Baby
Virginia O’Hanlon, eight years old, wanted to know about Santa Claus, so she asked her dad. He dodged the question, perhaps uncertain whether it was really such a hot idea to lie to his own child. Instead, he suggested she write the newspaper. Editorial page The New York Sun September 21, 1897 Dear Editor:I am 8 years old. Some of my little friends…
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Elliot Spitzer’s New Suit
You would think the Messiah was coming. “On Day One, Everything Changes!” pledged the campaign ads. Voters loved it, because it was Elliot Spitzer and he’d made a ruckus on Wall Street, sending some rich people to jail. He trounced what’s-his-name to become New York State governor. They swear him in January 1, amidst high expectations. But can he keep his promises? Politicians don’t always…
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Zedekiah, Nebuchadnezzar, and 1914
When the Babylonian forces penetrated Jerusalem, Zedekiah knew he was in trouble. The final Judean king, he’d double-crossed Nebuchadnezzar years before, and the Chaldean king wasn’t that nice a guy. So he tried to run away, but it was no good. And a military force of the Chaldans went chasing after the king, and they got to overtake Zedekiah in the desert plains of Jericho;…
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Xerox and Erasable Paper
Rochester’s own Xerox Corporation just came up with a great new invention: erasable paper, for those you-only-have-to-read-it-once messages. Within a day, the paper erases itself and you can reuse it! Thrilled, the cutesy Rochester Democrat and Chronicle used a fading headline to announce the innovation. No, they’re not going to sell it right now, it will take a few years to get to market. But…
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Senate Balance of Power and Revelation Chapter 12
Of the two parties, Democrats are the most liberated from religion. But they are praying like the Dalai Lama today…praying for the speedy recovery of South Dakota Senator Tim Johnson, who was hospitalized Wednesday with stroke-like symptoms. If he doesn’t get better, then that state’s governor will select a replacement, and if he selects a Republican, which he may well do since that’s his affiliation,…