In Our World

  • That French Paradox

    How do the French indulge in such guilty pleasures as thick, creamy sauces and rich, buttery desserts, yet stay so slim? While only 7 percent of the French are considered obese, a whopping 30 percent of Americans are considered over the limit. This mystery has confounded overeating Americans…

  • Hermaphrodite, Heal Thyself

    By a show of hands, who in the audience thinks it is a good idea to find someone on the Internet to castrate you in your own home? You, over there near Pittsburgh – what were you thinking?!? Were you thinking at all? As bizarre as this story…

  • Human Condition

    This morning, I read about a kid who beat a puppy to death with a board. Why? He said that it felt good. It felt good? To beat a puppy? Until it died? Where do we find these people? I don't care how much you dislike something -…

  • A Sense of Entitlement

    Earlier today, I read a disturbing post at Mezzoblue. For those who don't know, Dave Shea is the creator and caretaker of the CSS Zen Garden. If you haven't visited the garden to see the designs that people come up with using pure CSS (no mucking about with…

  • Just Another Bowl?

    In the beginning (not that beginning), there was the Bud Bowl. Then the Butt Bowl. Now we have the Lingerie Bowl. I know, I know, I missed the announcement earlier this summer. Better late than never, right? So they say that these women will be playing 7-on-7 full…

  • Spare Change

    An excerpt from a letter published in the September 3 issue of Creative Loafing: One program which would at least help to reduce the spread of HIV would be a clean-needle program — the distribution of unused, sterile syringes to anyone, no questions asked. As a former public…

  • Dilbert Finance

    The other day I talked about the amount of wedding bills piled up by your typical couple on their special day. About a week ago, I went into the lifestyles that seem so prevalent these days. When was it, exactly, that our lives changed so much that they…

  • Watch Out for Beavers

    I generally listen to Bob & Tom on my way to work. Like most radio shows, they are often (but not always) entertaining. Some days they just float by in the background and I’d be hard-pressed to remember what is said. Quit giving me those looks. Listening to…

  • Transportation Follies

    Not long ago, a teenager was arrested at Logan International Airport in Boston for what can only be described as a joke in poor taste. The teenager, you see, had seen fit to leave a profanity-laced note in his bag, which when found by TSA screeners, apparently caused…

  • Debtors Lifestyle

    It seems that the current fad is to buy, buy, buy. Everywhere there are houses that are bigger – though the yards are smaller, and often non-existent. Did you know that here in Charlotte we have townhomes that sell for hundreds of thousands of dollars? Cars these days…