Was life better back then than it is today? We all see a lot of memes out there that suggest that reality. Just today, this made it across my Facebook feed: It got me thinking and, when I think, I research, and when I research, I write. And three hours later, here we are. And […]
A question on so many minds is “How many Americans are killed by police?” The website killedbypolice.net is doing a good job at tracking data as far back as two years ago. While you can find details of each death on the site, I compiled the monthly numbers into an easy-to-read bar graph. 2013 May 104 deaths 2013 June […]
Take even a casual glance at American airport security and it’s clear that the TSA doesn’t care about passenger safety. Even the name “TSA” stands for “Transportation Security Administration,” having nothing to do with travelers and having everything to do with the objects that transport them; their behavior reflects this through the enigmas that are […]
I’ve always been a fan of cool presidential portraits. DeviantArt.com has long-been a source of cool artwork, and work by user “SharpWriter” is no exception. One series he works on is basically various fantasy presidential portraits. Without further ado, here they are (click to enlarge) Cool Presidential Portraits […]
I hear a lot of people talking about red states and blue states, often speaking of them as if it’s a set-in-stone phenomenon. Unfortunately, because American History taught in high school often glosses over 20th Century History (especially the political side), many people don’t know what really went on over the last 100 years. Let’s […]
This Is a Simple But Detailed Taichung Population Density Report If you’re moving to Taichung, you’re probably looking online to find a detailed Taichung population density information. Officially, Taichung has 2.6 million people spread out over 1500mi2 translating into a population density of around 1800 per mi2, but that’s pretty misleading. 90% of the population lives in […]
Anyone who reads my blog knows that I do a lot of compiling/analysis of data. Usually, it’s not directly related to me, personally: today, it is. I have my blog, which you’re reading, as well as my YouTube Channel. Feel free to check it out. My blog has been active since May of 2011, but […]
Simple Global Energy Consumption Analysis Here’s a look at how the energy generated on this planet gets consumed: Our planet creates around 500 Exojoules of consumable energy, each year. While only encompassing almost 32% of the overall global population, China, the European Union, and the United States of America use over 50% of its total consumable energy. […]
A lot of people freak out about how much money our elected government spends, often choosing to go the route of, “Let’s stop paying them and see what happens to their policy-making!” First of all, most Representatives/Senators/Vice-Presidents/Presidents made far more money in the private sector than they do in government. Beyond that, when they were in the […]
If you ask the average net-savvy American about internet censorship, they’ll often reference the Epitome of Internet Censorship on our planet: The People’s Republic of China. The PRC blocks so many sites, it’s freaky. We all know how things like Facebook and Twitter and YouTube and adult porn sites like videoshd.xxx are blocked, but they […]
For those who remember me ranting about the 99% stuff a year-or-so ago, I wanted to tackle something I see a lot of people talk about. People tend to fly off the handle about the ultra-rich (the 1% – people who make enough money to give the maximum contribution to candidates) supporting certain candidates. I’m […]
There seem to be two types of people on Facebook or, at least, that’s been my perception over the last six months: People who continuously post politically charged articles, memes, status updates, comments, etc. – and people who don’t. Now, don’t get me wrong! I’m a politically-minded person, and I will post the occasional political thought. But they are […]
Many people don’t really understand inflation, so I thought a simple explanation of inflation might help. One of the more interesting ways is to look at the history of inflation as it relates to the minimum wage, because while only 2% of Americans make minimum wage, almost all of us have been minimum wage employees […]
Men are 1000% more likely to commit murder than women. 23% of American murders are men killing women. 50% of those murders involve the women being stalked, first. 75% of murders of women by previous intimate partners involve stalking, first. Possible threats are always to be taken seriously. Ten women are murdered by men every […]
Let me give you an easy way to understand the USA’s budget by comparing their numbers to something more familiar to you. Here’s the numbers regarding the 2012 US income/budget/debt:But that’s not easy to understand and appreciate. Because it just looks like such an enormous amount of money. So how about we remove some zeros and […]
Back in 2008, I voted on of a proposition here in Arkansas called The Unmarried Couple Adoption Ban. The concept was pushed by a group called The Arkansas Family Council (AFC), who are quirky in their homophobia: they freaked out about California’s Harvey Milk Day, saying kids would be required to dress in drag and have mock […]
People talk a lot about World War Three. A few years ago, I realized that World War Three, the way we all imagine it to be, is not going to happen. Nations secure in economy and military have no reason to launch war in the manner seen in the 1940s – actions like that were […]
For those unaware, BTJunkie closed down a few days ago, “voluntarily,” which is to say they closed down before the US government could close them down. The more I look at it, the more I see it all as innevitable. Everyone breathed a sigh of relief a month ago, thinking there was some victory over […]
YouTube, while being the most popular video hosting/sharing website, has some extreme failures that are frequently overlooked by the majority of users. The benefits of YouTube can not be understated; its value to the internet is unparalleled. If the advent of internet is equivalent to the invention of interchangeable type, then YouTube is the creation […]
An Economic Timeline Regarding US Military Spending (in billions) 1942 $260 (estimated) 1944 $850 (estimated) WWII ENDS 1946 $556.9 1947 $52.4 COLD WAR BEGINS 1948 $103.9 1949 $144.2 1950 $141.2 KOREAN WAR BEGINS 1951 $224.3 1952 $402.1 1953 $442.3 KOREAN WAR ENDS 1954 $420.9 VIETNAM BEGINS 1955 $376.9 1956 $356.2 1957 $360.9 1958 $352.9 1959 $352.5 […]
The following was a back-and-forth between myself and my very good friend, Dave McKelvey, over the course of 24 hours, on Facebook. Joseph Fritz This is not from “mainstream media pundits” – this is one of many actual people out there, uncut and flat-out. I await any video of a 99%er who actually has something […]
I’ve reached my breaking point. As has, it seems, plenty of governmental organizations and law-enforcement officers. I have major beef with The 99%ers. You all annoy me. You piss me off. And I have legitimate reasons why, just as you have legitimate reasons why you’re all pissed off, too. Some of the things you’re pissed […]
The following was printed in the High Point Enterprise April 20 of this year… Bush boosts U.S. security The war in Iraq is the right thing to do. I agree with Bush: “Stay the course.” I admire Bush for doing what Clinton failed to do by removing a threat to this nation and making it […]