Politics
The Bushes and the evangelical vote
A fascinating interview with Doug Wead, who was a liaison between the 1988 Bush campaign and the evangelical communities and an early sounding board for George W. Bush.
Latest
History
Where I Was From
Joan Didion's latest book is an extended reflection on California, seen through the eyes of a native Californian; a musing at length about how the mythology and promise of California differ sharply from its reality. Come to think of it…every Joan Didion book I've read
Books
Bush at War
I have finally read Bush at War, Bob Woodward's application of his patented you-are-there-right-now technique to the workings of the Bush White House after September 11. As with all of Woodward's books, it is a compelling and breezy read. A good sign
Houston
Thursday evening at Onion Creek
After lolling around the Rice campus for a couple of hours yesterday evening, Thomas & Lori Gray, Booth Babcock and his girlfriend Moko, Lorin Gaertner (a friend of Lori and Booth's) and I had dinner at the Onion Creek Coffee House up in the Heights. We found a
Books
How to respond to bigoted remarks
Several years ago, I read Encountering Bigotry: Befriending Projecting Persons in Everyday Life, a book that is now out of print. I came across my notes from the book, and thought they might be of interest: People make bigoted remarks because they are dealing with more emotional turmoil than they
Money
Gas prices
Harry Boswell has "some thoughts about gas prices": When you bought your enormous SUV with the huge V-8 engine, there was a sticker on the window. That gas mileage number on the sticker? It meant something. Stop whining.
Miscellany
Negativity in blogs
In his article "The Revolution Will Not Be Blogged", George Packer notes that "bloggers are almost unfailingly contemptuous toward everyone except one another". I have noticed that blogs (including this one) tend to be negative, snarky, cynical, accusatory, etc. I wonder if that's because
Music
Lyrical surprises
As I was listening to the Beatles' White Album recently, for only the third or fourth time since high school, I realized that "Everybody's Got Something to Hide Except for Me and My Monkey" is about sex. Somehow I didn't pick up on
Music
The shorter White Album
Many Beatles fans question the group's decision to release The Beatles ("The White Album") as a double album. Was there really enough good material to justify four sides? What might a single album crafted from that material have sounded like? Compact discs and computerized playlists make
Houston
Half-Price Books: The home of serendipity
I was browsing the CD racks at my neighborhood Half-Price Books yesterday when I found three old CD singles that I doubt I would have been able to find had I been looking for them. But I would never have thought to look for them, so there they were.
Miscellany
Successories®: A bad sign
Someone wrote recently that the best indicator that a large newspaper is good is that it does without an ombudsman. Why? Because good newspapers hire good editors. Good editors keep around competent reporters. Competent reporters don't need an ombudsman to clean up after them. Successories® are the ombudsmen
Politics
The Amazon primary, as of May 12
Since February 3, John Kerry has collected $134,557 in the Amazon primary, while George W. Bush has collected $31,030. Since April 10, the Kerry advantage has been $34,137 to $6,782.