The site for ranting and reporting by John Masters
Come, ye thankful people, come, raise the song of harvest home; all is safely gathered in, ere the winter storms begin. God our Maker doth provide for our wants to be supplied; come to God’s own temple, come, raise the song of harvest home.
Read moreCarl Kasell is retiring from NPR as the Morning Edition news anchor after holding the job for 30 years since the inception of the program. I have never had the pleasure of meeting Carl Kasell, and I don’t think I’d ever seen a picture of him until his retirement was announced this week, but I knew that voice as well as that of my best friends.
Read moreJim Mccan with the Dubliners performing Lord of the dance. This will get your feet tapping.
Read moreReporter Bob Wilton is in search of his next big story when he encounters Lyn Cassady, a shadowy figure who claims to be part of an experimental U.S. military unit. According to Cassady, the New Earth Army is changing the way wars are fought. A legion of “Warrior Monks” with unparalleled psychic powers can read the enemy’s thoughts, pass through solid walls, and even kill a goat simply by staring at it. Not a terrible movie, but I was expecting more.
Read moreRecently I complained about the overall demeanor and conduct of a Naturalization Ceremony I attended. I commented about the fact that with all the beautiful American Anthems available, they had chosen to play, “Proud to Be An American.” I know some people like it, but it’s a bit too country and smarmy for my tastes.
Read moreWhen California girl Susan Murphy is unwittingly clobbered by a meteor full of outer space gunk on her wedding day, she mysteriously grows to 49-feet-11-inches tall. Alerted to the threat of this new monster, the military jumps into action and Susan is captured and secreted away to a covert government compound. There, she is renamed Ginormica and placed in confinement with a ragtag group of other monsters. I would give the movie 7/10. It is an animated movie that you can actually volunteer to take your kids to and enjoy it just as much as they can.
Read moreAfter a young, middle class couple moves into what seems like a typical suburban “starter” tract house, they become increasingly disturbed by a presence that may or may not be demonic, but is certainly most active in the middle of the night. Especially when they sleep. Or try to. The concept was OK, but it’s been done before to much better effect. Overall, neither one of us found the movie scray at all.
Read morePaul explains he’s a bear protecting his cubs as he talks about his two daughers, one of which is gay. He talks about being a Catholic family, and how they love both their daughters equally. Paul talks about his service in Vietnam, and how if people don’t think equal rights are important, they should have some of their’s taken away sometime.
Read moreRepublicans sound like they’re conducting a giant experiment in saying whatever they can get away with, and I suspect they’re surprised as any of us by some of the results. That’s probably too harsh, though. What’s worse is that a good chunk of them might believe the stuff they say.
Read moreI saw this story of New York High School student, Jason McElwain, when it first aired and was touched by the story. After serving many seasons as the team manager, Jason, a person with autism, was allowed to play the last four minutes of the last game, and wound up scoring 21 points, most from outside the three point line. It’s kind of old news, but someone posted it on Facebook, which brought it back to mind, so I thought I’d link to it here. So this is your chance for a nice feel good story for the day.
Read moreAs usual, Keith Olberman does a good job of explaining the need for healthcare reform, and explaining the public option. Olberman cites a comment by Winston Churchill: Churchill’s argument was this, “I have heard it said that the government had no mandate such a doctrine is wholly inadmissible. The responsibility for the public safety is absolute and requires no mandate!”
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