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Category Archives: RagBlog
Haiti and American Colonialism : The Story Behind the Story
A member of François “Papa Doc” Duvalier’s Tonton Macoutes death squad, center, with Haitian soldier to his right. Note the look of terror on the woman vendor’s face. Image from Latin American Studies. How did Haiti become so poor?Haitian earthquake: … Continue reading
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Tagged American Colonialism, American History, Haiti, Imperialism, Natural Disasters, Political Corruption, Poverty
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Partners in Demise By Carl R. Hultberg / The Rag Blog / Life has a strange way of intertwining existences in ways that defy human reason. Like puns or anagrams that seem to reveal hidden meanings, passings away are also … Continue reading
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Scientists : Dolphins are ‘Non-Human Persons’
Bottlenose dolphin Delphin and her baby Dolly at a zoo in Duisburg, western Germany. Photo by AP.Behavior studies:Dolphins are second smartest animal ‘The neuroanatomy suggests psychological continuity between humans and dolphins and has profound implications for the ethics of human-dolphin … Continue reading
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Tagged Animals, Behavior, Dolphins, Intelligence, Psychology, Scientific Research, Zoology
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Richard Lee FUCK A DUCK ANYTHING FOR A BUCK By Richard Lee / The Rag Blog / January 10, 2010 BOCAS DEL TORO, Panama — I’m watching the financial channel here in Panama, in Spanish, in the middle of the … Continue reading
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‘TV Everywhere’ : Pulling the Plug on Web-Based Video?
Say goodbye to free online television:Comcast launches ‘TV Everywhere’By Josh Silver / January 6, 2010 On Monday, public interest groups called on federal authorities to investigate a plan by the largest cable, satellite and phone companies that threatens the future … Continue reading
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Tagged Cable Television, Comcast, Digital Media, Internet, Monopolies, Television
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Life During Wartime : Courts Release Terrorists!
CLICK ON IMAGE TO ENLARGE Political cartoon by Joshua Brown / Historians Against the War / The Rag BlogThanks to Dr. S.R. Keister /The Rag Blog
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Tagged Blackwater, Iraq, Joshua Brown, Mercenaries, Political Cartoon, Political Satire, Terrorism
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MUSIC / Dynamic Compression : Yes, It Really is Too Loud!
Christopher Clark graphed the peak levels of and RMS levels of three hit songs a year over the past three decades. Here is a link to a PDF of his full poster, “A Visual History Of Loudness.”The loudness wars:Why music … Continue reading
UT-Austin’s Kuperman : Bomb Iran’s Nukes
Image from Crusader Rabbit.UT non-proliferation ‘expert’ calls forMilitary strikes against Iran nuclear facilities [Alan J. Kuperman is] ‘director of the Nuclear Proliferation Prevention Program at the University of Texas at Austin,’ but his Christmas eve call to war relies on … Continue reading
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Tagged Iran, Israel, Middle East, New York Times, Nuclear Weapons, U.S. Aggression, UT-Austin, Zionism
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Dark Ages Redux : Trickle Down Feudalism
Doge Enrico Dandolo preaching the Crusade. Gustave Doré (1832-1883) / Wikimedia Commons.The reincarnation of the Dark Ages:White evangelicals are the new Crusaders In place of mote-defended castles surrounded by thatched-roof shanties will be ‘gated communities’ (sporting high-tech surveillance to keep … Continue reading
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Tagged American Society, Capitalism, Class Warfare, Dark Ages, Economics, Feudalism, Religious Fanaticism, Right Wing Extremists, World History
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Lester ‘Red’ Rodney : The Sportswriter Who Helped Break Baseball’s Color Line
Sportswriter Lester “Red” Rodney, September 2007. Photograph by Byron LaGoy / Wikipedia Commons.More than a sportswriter: Lester ‘Red’ Rodney: 1911-2009By Dave Zirin / December 24, 2009 It didn’t make SportsCenter, but one of history’s most influential sportswriters died this week … Continue reading
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Tagged African-American, Baseball, Civil Rights, Communist Party, Deaths, Jackie Robinson, Journalists, People, Sports
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FILM / Cheap Thrills? ‘Avatar’ Kicks Butt
Avatar is shallow, predictableAnd totally awesome! By Pollyanna O’Possum / The Rag Blog / December 24, 2009 Avatar, the new, multi-million dollar James Cameron’s 3-D sci-fi flick, opened to mixed reviews on Dec. 18, with some criticizing the film’s length … Continue reading
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Tagged Criticism, Film, Pollyanna O'Possum, Popular Culture, Science Fiction
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