Curious News, Diary

The Last Days of a Dictator

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The last days of a dictator are not particularly fun. Hitler committed suicide in 1945 when the Russians were close to his underground bunker in Berlin. Saddam Hussein loved life too much and come out of a hole in the ground when guns had surrounded him.  I am not sure about Qaddafi’s attitude toward his image image [Read More]
Diary

A Story that you will not forget

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Even for someone who reads a lot this story will stand out and stay burned in your memory if you have children or consider having them in the future Notes From a Dragon Mom   By EMILY RAPP (NT Times) MY son, Ronan, looks at me and raises one eyebrow. His eyes are bright and focused. Ronan image [Read More]
Diary, Must Know

The Limits of Empathy

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David Brooks describes in the NY Times his key lessons from reading Steven Pinker’s new book. We are surrounded by people trying to make the world a better place. Peace activists bring enemies together so they can get to know one another and feel each other’s pain. School leaders try to attract a diverse set of image [Read More]
Diary

Irene shuts down NYC

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By SAMANTHA GROSS and LARRY NEUMEISTER, Associated Press reports. NEW YORK—The normally bustling streets emptied out and the rumble of the subways came to a stop. New York buttoned up Saturday against Hurricane Irene, which threatened to paralyze Wall Street and give the big city its worst thrashing from a storm since at least the 1980s. City image [Read More]
Diary

Origins of the debt showdown

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Here is another good account of the drama behind the debt showdown by the Washington Post. In mid-January, newly installed as the GOP House majority leader, Virginia’s Eric Cantor rose to the podium inside a spacious hotel ballroom to deliver a message to his troops, including the 87 newcomers who had given the party control of image [Read More]
Diary

Be Glad Your Nose is on Your Face

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Poem by Jack Prelutsky Be glad your nose is on your face, not pasted on some other place, for if it were where it is not, you might dislike your nose a lot. Imagine if your precious nose were sandwiched in between your toes, that clearly would not be a treat, for you’d be forced to smell your feet. Your nose would be a image [Read More]