I read the New York Times each morning, they do a fine job of presenting the facts and their investigative journalists are top notch. The importance of the fourth estate in keeping democracy safe has never been more apparent than today. The term refers to the press and news media both in ‘explicit capacity of advocacy and implicit ability to frame political issues.’ They can wield significant social influence. Used as appropriate you have an NPR approach to unbiased reporting. You can also end up with a Fox type organization that is not reluctant to put their own spin on the facts. I do not believe everything I read and invest some time in verifying the validity of some sources, please do the same. Although the Pentaverate is no doubt running the world, composed of the Queen, the Vatican, the Gettys, the Rothschilds and Colonel Sanders, according to the father in “So I married and Axe Murderer” —we are about to be freed from the conspiracy theory craziness—I hope. We watched this exceptionally funny show for New Year’s eve and it will start your year off on the right foot.
The Times published a list of 74 of their favorite fun facts for 2020. I will mention a few to brighten your day and get the year off to a positive start.
In Finland, a tradition of getting drunk at home in your underwear is so commonplace that there is a word for it, “Kalsarikannit”. The rough translation is “pantsdrunk.” I bet this is happening in our country each night and now we have a really good name for it.
Tired. No wonder, we breath 25,000 times per day.
Bayes’s theorem is a device for rationally updating your prior beliefs and uncertainties based on observed evidence. Wow, believing what we can see, novel idea.
After being swallowed by a frog, the beetle Regimbartia attenuate can scuttle down the amphibian’s gut and force it to poop, emerging soiled but alive. Our country can learn a lot from this resilient creature as we are just beginning our recovery from such a journey.
Our world keeps changing, more dramatically than we can predict or imagine. This weeks pictures were taken on December 1 and December 30. The change is dramatic but predictable. I am looking forward to a 2021 away from the Pentaverate and back to scientific reality and a focus on our democracy and building back better.
Happy New Year. Stay safe and wear a mask to protect each of us. Mike