Claire Wolfe wrote a few years ago, “America is at that awkward stage. It’s too late to work within the system, but too early to shoot the bastards.” Now Liz Michael observes:
It’s probably not going to be what is commonly thought of as a “patriot” that fires the first shot. It’s probably not going to be a political activist from the left, the right or the center. . . . The first shooting of the bastards will probably be by average citizens who tried to comply but were not allowed to, and whose lives were overcomplicated by that inability to comply.
In fact, this description fits Vin Suprynowicz’s account of Carl Drega – but that was before we had Fatherland Homeland Security to worry about.
Jeff Rowland’s swell cartoon When I Grow Up has come to an abrupt end, to be succeeded by a new strip.
Here is a relatively harmless violation of the Tenth Amendment: the Social Security Administration publishes lists of Americans’ favorite names for babies. Do similar data exist for other countries?
Emily, Hannah and Madison lead the pink pack for the second year running. Madison?! Do her parents fondly imagine her growing up to be a porno star, or has some other famous female Madison escaped my attention?
Much much later: “Madison” (taken from a street sign) was the name assumed by the nonhuman lead character in a movie that I never saw.
When allusions whoosh by to movies that I never saw, like these, I worry a bit less about homogenization of culture.
While I’m up: why do some -ize verbs like baptize have nouns in -ism, while others take -ization (half Greek and half Latin)? Would anyone understand me if I wrote “homogenism” above?