Peter Murmann

Other countries, other customs. Arnold Schwarzenegger apparently remarked upon reading this story: “Life is unfair!” An Islamic faith healer in Nigeria has married 107 women. The wives seem happy, but religious authorities are not amused. By Robyn Dixon, Los Angeles Times He fell in love with his first wife because she was sincere and eager to please. His [Read More]

The world is full of mysteries. I have no idea how this stationary picture appears to be moving.

Click on photo to start the gallery. The AP reports on Mubarak’s final hours: Desperate bids to stay By MAGGIE MICHAEL and HAMZA HENDAWI, Associated Press – CAIRO – Hosni Mubarak was supposed to announce his resignation on Thursday. The Egyptian military expected it. The new head of his ruling party pleaded to him face-to-face to do [Read More]

There is often a fine line between a hero and villain. Many people have a hard time realizing: just because people have done a good thing it does not mean that they are nice people. By the same token, just because somebody is nice, it does not mean that they make a positive difference in [Read More]

I had lunch at a Thai Restaurant today. On the front side of her T-shirt, the attractive waitress had a daring message printed. I could not resist asking her: “What does ‘Meaningful Overnight Relationship Wanted’ mean?” She smiles and says innocently: “I don’t know.”  This answer left everything open…

I am spoiled. I admit it. But in my defense, I shall say: In the industrialized world most of us are spoiled! We are living in far greater comfort than the kings of the middle ages who lacked modern medicine and ipods. If you don’t believe me, read on this story about the locust epidemics. [Read More]

This line is coined by Jen McCreigh, a brave student from Indiana. She writes on her blog: This little bit of supernatural thinking has been floating around the blogosphere today: “Many women who do not dress modestly … lead young men astray, corrupt their chastity and spread adultery in society, which (consequently) increases earthquakes,” Hojatoleslam Kazem Sedighi [Read More]

The New York Times reports that the Library of Congress will archive the collected works of Twitter, the blogging service, whose users currently send a daily flood of 55 million messages, all that contain 140 or fewer characters. Library officials explained the agreement as another step in the library’s embrace of digital media. Twitter, the [Read More]

David Brooks reports an amazing Nordic Tale that I want to see made into a movie. The Hard and the Soft (NY Times) The United States, a nation of 300 million, won nine gold medals this year in the Winter Olympics. Norway, a nation of 4.7 million, also won nine. This was no anomaly. Over the years, [Read More]