One State, Two State, Red State, Blue State

I was looking at a couple of interesting maps over the past few days. First was this fascinating map depicting by color the largest religious group in each county of the united States. I’m not a particularly religious person: you could probably call me a Saganist if you have to… Continue reading

Here we go again, SB1054

SB1054, a bill whose time has long since past. Ultra-conservative Tea Party good-ol-boy-network Republican State Senator John Kavanagh has introduced legislation to make it illegal to record a police officer within 20 feet without express permission. Kiss sousveillance goodbye. Open the door for police abuse of power. I don’t need… Continue reading

Public Schools, Sayonara

It’s been a long and busy day, but I wanted to get a brief post online before I go upstairs and collapse. I spent the day watching all sorts of genre peeps down at Phoenix Comicon and wishing I was there. Instead, I went to the high school graduation of… Continue reading

Usher In the Mathematically Illiterate Society

Math is Too Hard, Dammit! Apparently, the state of Arizona is headed toward a mathematically illiterate society. We expect too much from from our children, at least, that’s what I gather from this letter to the editor that appeared on the opinions page of today’s Arizona Republic. (If you can’t… Continue reading

Not All Arizona Laws are Crackpot

For the benefit of those not living under the Arizona Good ol’ Boy Network, here’s some visibility of some legislation that didn’t make national news. Ten laws that go into effect tomorrow, and they aren’t all that crazy. 1. Civil Penalty for boaters who refuse drug or alcohol tests. Arizona… Continue reading

Shooting Ourselves in the Foot

West Virginia Representative David McKinley is a Republican, and drinks the Party Line Kool Aide. In this case, it’s an extremely foolish and short-sighted amendment to a budget bill for the Department of Defense. The DoD has already begun planning for climate change, but that could end. The McKinley amendment… Continue reading

Politics Trumps Science

Politics Trumps Science There has been a lot of climate change news with the recent issue of yet another climate change report underscoring the dangers of anthropogenic climate change due mainly to release of CO2 into the atmosphere by the burning of fossil fuels. Short-sighted politicians swayed by even shorter-sighted… Continue reading

The Slow Dismantling of America’s Greatness

The Wild West As many know, I was a Republican for many years. I grew up in a family with classic conservative values. When I lived in California, I was among like-minded fiscal conservatives, so when I moved to Arizona, definitely a Red state with capital R, it felt refreshing… Continue reading

Security vs Liberty – The Loss of Privacy

There are many aspects to the modern world full of excitement and possibility. The other side of the coin is that technological advances make it far more difficult to retain privacy. We have cameras on the street corners, cameras at the gas station, in the bank, even on our own… Continue reading

Potpourri – Random Thoughts 7/16/13

Novel In Progress It has been a hectic few weeks here at Entropy Central. Business side has been keeping me busy, so Proxima Centauri, the sequel to Rigel Kentaurus, had to be put on hold. On top of the client work, I’m also teaching a summer class that consumes too… Continue reading