Author: Eric Scheie

I get a little tired of attempts to manufacture hysteria, and the latest example is a campaign against mixing caffeine and alcohol being ramped up by doctors: Mixing alcohol and caffeine is hardly a new concept, but a rash of cases involving students and others who landed at hospitals after drinking beverages that combine the…

An incident I don’t want to blog about has reminded me of the dangers of the phenomenon of the agitated “choir.” When activists get together, what starts as a chorus of agreement can escalate to the encouragement of obnoxious, even illegal behavior. Activists compete with each other, and sooner or later someone — perhaps an…

Regular readers know that I consider George Soros one of the most detestable characters on the political horizon. So, I was quite upset to read that he is supporting a cause I also support. George Soros, the multibillionaire investor who helped bankroll three initiatives to change drug laws in California, endorsed the marijuana legalization initiative…

I’ve been grappling with the abortion issue lately, and not in the usual way. I have stated my opinions on the moral issues before and this post is not to revisit that topic. Rather, I want to consider abortion in the context of the changed, evolved, Constitution. A lot of activists talk about getting rid…

To say that Michigan’s economy is in the dumps would be understatement. In many charts which compare states by factoring in unemployment rates alongside population exodus, Michigan ranks at the absolute bottom, because it has the highest unemployment rate and the highest population exodus rate. But there’s a little bit of “competition” (if you’ll forgive…

Is Batman Jewish? How about Superman? It would never have occurred to me that either show had a religious theme in any way, shape, or form. But if you watch the latest “Poliwood” with Roger L. Simon and Lionel Chetwynd, you will learn that some Muslim activist film maker has declared that because these shows…

I’m having an argument with myself over sentimentalism. Last night I left this comment over at Dr. Helen’s blog: I don’t believe in the inherent goodness of man at all (often just the opposite), yet I often have feelings I would describe as sentimental. I think it is very possible to hate humanity and still…

While I have written about the race between Dynasty Democrat John Dingell and cardiologist Rob Steele, there’s an interesting new development which may catapult the battle into something other than the local news category. Bill Clinton is coming to town! From NBC’s John Yang Is Michigan Rep. John Dingell (D) — the longest serving member…

Viktor Ivanov is a fascinating character. A KGB man and Soviet war veteran of the old school, according to his Wiki bio Ivanov …served in the KGB Directorate of Leningrad and its successors in 1977-1994. In 1987-1988 as a KGB officer he took part in the Soviet war in Afghanistan. In December 1990 together with…

Glenn Reynolds linked a thought experiment that intrigues me: let’s do a thought experiment. We won’t use the word “Muslim.” Instead, let’s use the word “crocodile.” OK? So the question is, do you qualify as a lunatic if you say, “You know, it’s certainly not completely rational, but when I see a crocodile on the…

Via Glenn Reynolds, I learned that Denver Mayor John Hickenlooper (who is running for Colorado governor) is complaining about “backwards thinking” in Western rural areas, and he has invoked the name of Matthew Shepard for political gain — clearly implying that people in rural parts of his state are the type of people who would…

Sarah’s comments about consequences which are meted out to writers who dare to say anything critical of Islam — by people who have no problem at all with vicious criticism of Christianity — make me wonder about the nature of free speech. We have the First Amendment, but that really does not guarantee free speech;…

A post by Clayton Cramer confirms my longterm suspicion that we are being ruled by near-total idiots. (I said “near total” only because they are intelligent enough to implement this zero-tolerance-based nonsense.) A friend works for TSA, and tells me that under certain conditions, TSA screeners will be taking actions that ordinarily involve dinner and…

Last week I emailed a link to M. Simon about the Obama administration’s threat to intervene federally if the California Marijuana Initiative passes. If California voters were still under the illusion that Proposition 19 would legalize marijuana, U.S. Attorney General Eric H. Holder Jr. sought to disabuse them of the notion last week. “We will…

In response to a four year old post I wrote about the bigoted cultural tribalism of Glenn Reynolds (which Glenn has twice acknowledged as true!), reader Alan Massey emailed me this very incriminating photo: He also tried to leave a comment which couldn’t go through because the post is so old, and which I’ll just…

Years ago (geez, at this point it’s almost two decades ago) I was in the night club business, and I got way over my head in debt. It was out of control (as was I), and eventually I ended up filing for bankruptcy. A disgraceful and shameful situation to be in, and of course I…

A friend emailed me a link to Michelle Malkin’s post about how moronic leftists embarrassed themselves by accusing Palin of being a historical ignoramus. Sarah Palin wisely warned Tea Party activists to keep working hard right up until Election Day — and not to “party like it’s 1773” yet. Intellectually superior leftists from Daily Kos…

Coco is quite the socializer these days, and she has a new friend, a Rhodesian Ridgeback named “Grendel.” Grendel is so big that he makes Coco look like a little dog. Which is good for Coco, as she likes to have an opportunity for unlimited, no-holds-barred, canine roughhousing. Not fighting, just rough play. Coco will…

I often kvetch about activists, and how ordinary people stay the hell away from them. I can’t stand them either, but there is one stubborn problem with activists. Just because you stay away from them does not mean they will stay away from you! Activists are quite happy to have the playing field all to…

Not much time to blog today, but here are some pics of Coco (who has recovered nicely from her illness) and her friend Pearl. Pearl is a Redtick Coonhound. We didn’t see any raccoons, but there was a carved wooden squirrel statue, and they both checked it out. And now that I’m back, I have…