Volume 265 | No. 15

Mon, April 12

2007—The George W.[MD] Bush White House says official emails about the dubious firing of eight U.S. Attorneys—among five million sent via private RNC servers—are “lost.” 2001—Veep Dick “Dick” Cheney files his 2000 return; 14% of his adjusted gross came from Halliburton. 1937—Sixty thousand U.S. students demonstrate against war. 1933—In Oakland, brothers George and William Besler test fly a Travel Air biplane powered by a Doble steam engine; nearly-silent, it works fine. 1927—Shanghai’s Green Gang begins slaughtering as many as 10,000 Communists on orders from Chiang Kai-shek—famous hero of our GOP. 1867—William Bullock, inventor of the revolutionary web-fed rotary press, dies of complications after his leg …

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Sun, April 11

2007—Auf weidersehen, Kurt V. 2006—At the Washington Nationals home opener, the ceremonial first pitch is thrown by Vice President Dick “Dick” Cheney, who is greeted with jeers and catcalls. 2002—Venezuelan generals replace elected President Hugo Chavez with CIA-approved Pedro Carmona. 1985—Press Secretary Larry Speakes says Ronald Reagan will lay a wreath at Bitburg, where American and German soldiers lie buried. Oops. Americans? No. Waffen SS?  Yes. 1968—The Civil Rights Act of 1968 is signed into law. 1966—Set out as bait at Xa Cam My by the CO of the Big Red One, Charlie Co., 2/16th Inf., 134 strong, is ambushed. Relief plans go awry, friendly …

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No more water, but fire next time…

Well, maybe water and fire…. Starting this fortnight’s news at the top, we can report that things are looking a little squishy up there at the top of the ancient oblate spheroid we all call home. It’s early in the season, but according one authoritative source,* the extent of arctic sea ice is now lower than it was in 2012, and has been since mid-February. That’s not good, since 2012 holds the record for minimum sea ice. Members of the Party of Lincoln may choose to refute this, but it’s widely believed that ice melts as a result of higher temperatures. Another phenomenon associated with …

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A Belated Happy Easter, All

For one reason or another, spring has returned to the northern hemisphere. Some may say it’s the will of the Lord: the warming earth and returning birds are a manifestation of His infinite grace and wisdom. Perhaps so; it’s certainly not for the likes of us to say. That will, though, if indeed it exists, seems so wildly unpredictable, the regularity of spring’s arrival raises our suspicions as to His involvement. Others ascribe this recurring phenomenon to the slightly more scrutable laws of physics. Because those laws are contingent upon verification through experimentation, this argument has won fairly widespread acceptance. It’s a bold strategy, though—at …

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Mmm…Lab Meat!

To the Editor, Way back in 1931, Winston Churchill predicted the rise of cultured meat. For those who don’t know know, this revolutionary protein is grown from animal cells, without slaughter. It has only recently been granted regulatory approval in Singapore. An Israeli company has reduced its production cost to $7.50 for a quarter pound of cultured chicken. “With a greater knowledge of what are called hormones, i.e. the chemical messengers in our blood, it will be possible to control growth,” the future British leader wrote in Strand Magazine. “We shall escape the absurdity of growing a whole chicken in order to eat the breast …

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