Since in many species, sperm is males’ only contribution to reproduction, biologists have long puzzled about why evolutionary selection, known for its ruthless efficiency, allows them to exist.
Source: Why do men exist? Scientific study offers an explanation
My Comments: Whoa! for a minute there I thought we men were useless…
The festival kicked off Saturday with the city hosting a naturalization ceremony where 50 people became U.S. citizens. Warm weather and clear days allowed thousands of people to attend the two-day event.
Source: World of Nations Festival in Jacksonville brings thousands to Metropolitan Park | jacksonville.com
My Comments: My first appearance in a local newspaper!
Because gravity doesn’t fundamentally conflict with people’s religious ideas in the way that evolution does. If it did, they would try to rewrite school science books on that too.
Source: Why does everyone question evolution but not gravity? – Quora
My Comments: My favorite response – “Because Falling Hurts”. Click and check out the rest.
Two roads diverged in a yellow wood, but I chose neither one. Instead, I set sail in my little boat to watch a sunset from a different view that couldn’t be seen from shore. Then I climbed the tallest mountain peak to watch the amber sun through the clouds. Finally, I travelled to the darkest part of the valley to see the last glimmering rays of light through the misty fog. It was every perspective I experienced on my journey that left the leaves trodden black, and that has made all the difference.” ~ Shannon L Alder
Source: How I Found My Magic In The Quiet Spaces. | Rebelle Society
My Comments: I just love the stuff at Rebelle Society. I can identify with this piece. Spending lots of time on deployment and away from home has given me those times to really appreciate my solitude.
NOR HELL A FURY LIKE A WOMAN SCORNED” is the best-known line from William Congreve’s The Mourning Bride. But I’m concerned with the phrase preceding it, which captures wrath in more universal terms: “Heaven has no rage like love to hatred turned.” Even an angry Almighty can’t compete with mortals whose love turns to hate.
Cornel West’s rage against President Barack Obama evokes that kind of venom. He has accused Obama of political minstrelsy, calling him a “Rockefeller Republican in blackface”; taunted him as a “brown-faced Clinton”; and derided him as a “neoliberal opportunist.” In 2011, West and I were both speakers at a black newspaper conference in Chicago. During a private conversation, West asked how I escaped being dubbed an “Obama hater” when I was just as critical of the president as he was. I shared my three-part formula for discussing Obama before black audiences: Start with love for the man and pride in his epic achievement; focus on the unprecedented acrimony he faces as the nation’s first black executive; and target his missteps and failures. No matter how vehemently I disagree with Obama, I respect him as a man wrestling with an incredibly difficult opportunity to shape history. West looked into my eyes, sighed, and said: “Well, I guess that’s the difference between me and you. I don’t respect the brother at all.”
Source: Cornel West’s Rise and Fall by Michael Eric Dyson | The New Republic
My Comments: I love and respect both Dr West and Dr Dyson. We need them both now, as they represent the very best among us.
The hallmark of a human life is loss, it seems. And the body is a vessel for grief.
This is not an if, but when. When is loss gonna hit?
And then it is how. How do you carry it? All that grief. And don’t even askwhy. Why is not a question that grief ever answers.
I only know this because I have my own grief. I am not looking for more, but it keeps coming anyway. It makes me feel like I’m getting nowhere sometimes, and yet closer to something at the same time.
Maybe that’s because loss doesn’t just take. It gives, too. Like a trade.
Source: All This Fucking Time and I Still Feel Grief. | Rebelle Society
My Comments: The depth of this piece is illuminating, beautiful, human and real. Been there!
