Slate gives a detailed explanation that the origin of this term did not come from “…someone who copies, like a cat, but a jerk prone to imitation.” The article gives references to writers, including Shakespeare, using versions of “copycat.” Constance Harrrison wrote in 1887, “Our boys say you are a copy cat, if you write in anything that’s been already printed.” The term evolved from the word cat being was used in medieval times as an insult based on the idea that cats “…were associated with all sorts of evil and mischief.”
Many Ends of the World
Craig Childs, who is a commentator on National Public Radio, has written a strange book. Apocalyptic Planet is primarily a collection of Childs’ extreme treks, each inspired by a different view of what the Earth might become after “the end of the world” as we know it.
Various possible scenarios are represented by Childs’ travels through a desert in Mexico, crumbling mountain glaciers in the Andes, an island remnant of the land bridge that once connected Asia and North America, an arctic research station buried in snow, and other terrains. The one man-made landscape is a huge corn field of giant plants grown for industrial uses with “leaves so sharp they cut skin and cloth”. Continue reading
Fracking
The practice of using hydraulic fracturing is interesting from several perspectives. The process has moved the U.S. closer to energy independence, has resulted in reductions of carbon dioxide emissions, and has upset fans of alternative energy. They are upset because the cost of energy produced by fracking is much less than the cost of solar and wind despite their government subsidies. Those who prefer to not use any hydrocarbon-based energy are searching for any reason to stop the successful process of producing the fuel some of us prefer in order to comfortably live our current life styles. Continue reading
Case Closed
I mentioned to my brother that I felt the “Killing Kennedy” book by Bill O’Reilly and Martin Dugard did not answer whether Lee Harvey Oswald was the single assassin of John F. Kennedy. He suggested that I read this book by Gerald Posner, which has the subtitle “Lee Harvey Oswald and the Assassination of JFK.” I must say that I was convinced after reading the 607 page book (there are over a hundred pages of appendices, acknowledgements, notes and the index). I agree with my brother that the book gives a definitive answer that Oswald was the lone assassin. I thought the strongest evidence was that some of Oswald’s coworkers were on the floor directly beneath where he was firing out the window at the President. They all said there were three loud shots directly over their heads, the concussion from the shots knocked loose “cement” from the ceiling that filtered down on them, they heard the bolt action of the rifle worked three times, and they heard three casings hit the floor directly over their heads. There is even a picture in the book of two of the men looking out the fifth floor window during the shooting to see what was happening on the floor above them where Oswald was firing. Continue reading
Break the Ice
The Phrase Finder explains the expression means to “break down social formality and stiffness.” The original meaning was “to forge a path for others to follow” and refered to breaking ice to allow navigation. The expression had a resurgence with the development of special ships designed for exploration in the polar regions. Mark Twain wrote a version of the expression in 1883.
Wal-Mart versus Dodd-Frank
Family members watch for subjects for the commentary part of this web site. That led me to an article from the March 2013 North Carolina Banking Institute Journal by V. Gerald Comizio. The article discusses how the Dodd-Frank law included a moratorium on Industrial Loan Company (IFC) charters after Wal-Mart tried to get one. The focus of the article is what will happen when the moratorium expires, but I was more interested the fact Congress passed a law that included prevention of Wal-Mart or anyone else obtaining a charter to operate what is commonly called an Industrial Bank. I should give attribution that the articles published in the journal “…are written by professionals in the banking industry and Notes and Comments are written by law students at the University of North Carolina School of Law.” Continue reading