EDITORIAL MATTERS:
Well, now. We made it past Issue 666/2 with no problems. Which means
that we're now at Issue 666/2 +1 ... or 334, to use a more normal
notation. Whatever "normal" means. As the old fellow said "Everybody
is abnormal except me and thee, and I'm not too sure about thee."
But he was making a joke, right?
May that as it be, we're not joking when we suggest a mild donation
of cash money to help keep TLE running along smoothly. Such
a deed can be done at
http://www.ncc-1776.org/donate.html
or you can just shop at one or more of our affiliates or advertisers,
which also puts some small coins in our pocket, and makes us happy.
Another thing that makes us happy is Our Publisher L. Neil Smith
has yet again aimed two (count 'em, two!) articles our way. One new, and
one relavant blast from the past. Keep 'em coming, Neil!
Ken Holder
editor@ncc-1776.org
Editor
ARTICLES
Letters to the Editor
from Bill Hartwell, EJ Totty, Jim Davidson, and Dennis Kabaczy
FULL STORY
The High Price of Gas
by L. Neil Smith
The price of gasoline at the pump has risen to a point that is not
only absurd, it's obscene. Real people are starting to look longingly
at Eurotrashmobiles again, instead of the SUVs and trucks they truly
love, and it's going to be costly this winter to stay warm enough to
live.
FULL STORY
Critic-at-Arms: Shudders And Shakes
by Keith R. Wood
In my recent article, "Nehemiah Shudder," I took
Dennis Kabaczy to task for comparing Duhhh-Bya to the fabled theocrat
Nehemiah Scudder. Mr Kabaczy has responded, but his response is not
the below-the-waterline torpedo which he may have hoped that it would
be. He starts by showing that he missed a major point.
FULL STORY
The Listing Ship of State
by Lady Liberty
I'm a busy woman. That's probably why I'm one of those people who
relies so much on lists.
Like many of you likely do, I have a grocery list. I add to it
throughout the week whenever I notice I'm out of or running low on
something. I have a personal "to do" list that encompasses everything
from reminders to buy birthday or wedding gifts to performing a
particular housecleaning chore. Of course, I also have a work "to do"
list. That's the one that tells me what projects remain to be done, and
what priority each of those projects have. And then I have Christmas
lists (I shop year 'round, keeping my eyes open for the perfect gift
for friends and family) and "wish" lists (for myself). Then, of course,
there are temporary lists composed to ensure I don't forget anything
when I prepare to take a trip, or that all preparations are completed
prior to a party.
FULL STORY
The Presidency and Other Dinosaurs
by Jonathan David Morris
Let me tell you something. I've heard a lot of dumb
questions in my time. Hell, I've asked a lot of dumb
questions in my time. But, by far, the dumbest
question I've heard all summerand maybe all yearis
this: Should George Bush meet with Cindy
Sheehan, the grieving mother of a slain Iraq war vet
who's set up camp outside his Texas ranch? The answer
to this question is, of course, yes. But whether he
should or shouldn't isn't what makes this the dumbest
question I've heard all summer. No, what makes it the
dumbest question I've heard all summer is the idea
that Americans think he has a choice. As far as I'm
concerned, this issue has nothing to do with the Iraq
war, nothing to do with Cindy Sheehan's relative
leftness, and everything to do with the general
ineffectiveness of the presidency. Simply put, it's an
office which more and more looks to have outlived its
use.
FULL STORY
Story of the Year
by L. Neil Smith
In the March, 2004 issue of Discover magazine (the cover's
mostly blue, with silvery methane bubbles, illustrating a fairly
idiotic piece claiming that the sky is fallingagainonly from
the bottom up) there's a letter from one Robert Magill, of Sarasota,
Florida, complaining that what may prove to be the most important
science story of the past century was shoved out of the magazine's Top
100 2003 by articles about things like gigantic prehistoric guinea
pigs.
FULL STORY
Will Colleges Respect Your Child's Rights?
by Wendy McElroy
Hundreds of thousands of families across North America
are now preparing their children for college. As parents hustle to buy
clothing, repair secondhand cars and otherwise fret about the impending
separation, they should consider how their son or daughter's human rights
will fare on campus.
FULL STORY
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Back to 2005 Issues Archive