Galileo Galilei (1564-1642) was tried by the inquisition, charged with suspicion of heresy. He was forced to recant his theory that the Earth orbited the Sun. Catholic Church dogma said the Sun orbited the Earth. Legend has it that after he recanted, while still in the presence of the Inquisitor, he muttered, “E pur si muove“ (“And yet…
President Donald Trump has attacked the World Health Organization, accusing it of “covering up the spread of the coronavirus” and failing to “share information in a timely and transparent fashion.” He has declared he is cutting off funding for the world’s public health body in the middle of the COVID-19 pandemic. It’s a transparent attempt…
Lemony Snicket, for anyone who has been avoiding children’s literature the last twenty years, is the pseudonym for Daniel Handler. Snicket has written a highly successful series of thirteen children’s books with the master title, A Series of Unfortunate Events. And that describes Alaska’s economy, doesn’t it? The decline in crude oil production as Prudhoe Bay…
John Mitchell had set the benchmark for U.S. Attorney General misconduct. Back in December, WC warned that William Barr, Trump’s toady Attorney General, was in jeopardy of taking that prize. Well, it has happened. It’s not just the sham investigations into Trump’s enemies. It’s not just his unwillingness to enforce the rule of law. He’s…
From Wikipedia: A show trial is a public trial in which the judicial authorities have already determined the guilt, and/or innocence, of the defendant. The actual trial has as its only goal the presentation of both the accusation and the verdict to the public. There are characteristics of a show trial. Often, witnesses are not…
WC encountered a car with this bumpersticker on Hayes Street in Boise, recently. WC suspects that three-quarters of Americans won’t get it. Physics isn’t a required course in high school and red shift/blue shift is pretty esoteric, even for physics. It doesn’t help you understand football, baseball, hockey or even soccer. Unless you know that…
One difference between WC and Dermot Cole is that Dermot is a journalist and WC is just another irresponsible blogger.1 As this blog post will show. Dermot Cole ran a fine essay recently, showing just how hypocritical and dishonest Alaska Governor Mike Dunleavy is when it comes to Alaska’s state budget. Dermot effectively demonstrated by…
