Character is much easier kept than recovered. -- Thomas Paine Thomas Paine wrote the famous pamphlet titled Common Sense that fueled the inspiration for the American Revolution, publishing it on January 9, 1776. Six months later, the Declaration of Independence would be signed in Philadelphia, starting the war between England and its American colonies. In plain language every colonist could easily understand, Payne challenged the authority of the British crown to rule over America and inspired the revolution in doing so. Founding Father John Adams even said, "Without the pen of the author of Common Sense, the sword of Washington would have been raised in vain." The interesting thing about common sense is that it never goes out of style, nor stops making sense. Even today, his quote about character remains quite relevant. Monica Lewinsky found this out the hard way. When Bill Clinton had an affair with her while occupying the White House, it was her reputation that was destroyed, because Bill was a popular president. But Monica wasn't exactly innocent -- media reports suggested that she was a seductress who pursued the affair with Clinton. More problematic for her reputation was the fact that she lied in a sworn affidavit in the Paula Jones sexual harassment case. The scandal led to the impeachment trial of Bill Clinton, but Monica became the punchline for an endless stream of mostly tasteless jokes. Bill Clinton emerged from the scandal largely unscathed, however. Once the Senate acquitted him of perjury and obstruction of justice charges, he … [Read more...]
The Pearl: 20 May 2015
If we knew what it was we were doing, it would not be called research, would it? – Albert Einstein Everybody knows who Albert Einstein was, right? He once owned a chain of bagel shops with his brother, didn't he? In all seriousness, for a brilliant, world famous physicist, Einstein had a pretty good sense of humor, as future Pearls will demonstrate. His theory of relativity made a crucial contribution to modern physics, as it explains the effect of gravity on space and time. His work also led directly to the development of the atomic bomb, which wasn't very funny. Today's "pearl" is funny, but it's also very true. The Belousov-Zhabotinsky reaction was an unexpected result of an experiment observed by Boris Belousov. Because of laziness and/or shoddy peer review, the science journals to which Belousov submitted rejected his paper -- nobody believed his claims were possible, they didn't bother to attempt replicating his experiment. Belousov retired in frustration. Matches were also discovered by accident. Penicillin, Post-It notes, microwave ovens, safety glass, x-rays, and Viagra were all fortuitous but "accidental" discoveries as well. Perseverance and good luck had led to some of mankind's most important discoveries! … [Read more...]
Why the Georgia Bulldogs will win a National Championship in football in the next two years
I had the pleasure of attending the University of Georgia at the same time Herschel Walker was in school -- the undisputed best running back in Bulldog history thus far, and arguably the greatest college player of all time. Bulldog fans got spoiled rotten. The Junkyard Dawg defense coached by Erk Russell rarely gave up very many points, and it seemed that nobody could stop Herschel in the red zone. Then again, nobody could really even slow Herschel down for very long, period. He ran by people. Herschel ran through people, and even leaped over them. Mr. Walker simply wore defenses down. When asked how he could carry the ball thirty five or more times per game, Herschel famously replied, "The ball ain't heavy." You might be wondering if I've lost my mind: am I living in the past? What does reminiscing about the past and the great Herschel Walker have to do with the chances that UGA will win a national championship within the next two years? What gives me confidence to say the Bulldogs can and will win it all under Mark Richt, other than the fact I love our coach and think he's fantastic? Well, I can summarize my answer to that question with only two words: Nick Chubb. If you haven't noticed, satellite television and TIVO are wonderful inventions. Several UGA football games recorded from last season remain on my play list to satisfy the occasional urge to watch football between seasons. One of the recordings I've kept was the Auburn game. Watching the replay this afternoon I was absolutely mesmerized by what I believe to be the most amazing play … [Read more...]
The Pearl: 19 March 2015
Outside of a dog, a book is man's best friend. Inside of a dog it's too dark to read. -- Groucho Marx I remember what I've said in the past about actors...but Groucho was a lot more than just a movie star. He was a comedic genius who wrote most of his own material, and he was even funnier and more brilliant when he ad-libbed without a script. Besides, he said something nice about both books and dogs, and in the same sentence. It's a very funny line. And if you've read my book Always a Next One, you know how much I love dogs. … [Read more...]
The Pearl: 18 March 2015
To one who has faith, no explanation is necessary. To one without faith, no explanation is possible. – Thomas Aquinas This pearl of wisdom from St. Thomas Aquinas is a reminder for me that arguing online with atheists is such a terrible waste of my time. My Counterargument for God has already covered every reason I could think to offer why design is superior to descent to explain why we have the variety of flora and fauna on Earth that we can easily observe. I've discovered that most atheists won't finish my book. They can't even get past the section on Darwinism and my explanation why design is a superior argument. Design is superior to descent for one simple reason.,,,life cannot evolve until it exists. Life cannot "descend" from inanimate matter. In other words, before evolution ever becomes possible, either supernatural creation, or stupendous good luck, has already occurred. Of course, when St. Thomas uses the word "faith", of course he means religious faith, or belief in a supernatural creator God. But atheists also have faith, if only faith in their intelligence, and that of their peers. As a general rule, atheists apparently refuse to even consider the possibility that someone with religious beliefs could have experienced something they haven't, or might know something they don't. However, observation is a crucial component of the scientific method, and I have observed phenomena in multiple personal experience that literally defies the laws of physics. Firsthand observation is empirical evidence, according to the scientific method. The … [Read more...]
