2021

2021 1,867

December 2021

1. 31 DecFriday: Hili dialogue
2. 31 DecReaders’ wildlife photos
3. 31 DecIlhan Omar’s “Combating International Islamophobia Act”
4. 31 DecMatt Taibbi worries that the Dems are shooting themselves in the foot again
5. 31 DecBetty White died
6. 30 DecThursday: Hili dialogue
7. 30 DecReaders’ wildlife photos
8. 30 DecScientific American does an asinine hit job on E. O. Wilson, calling him a racist
9. 30 DecShrews do the conga
10. 29 DecWednesday: Hili dialogue
11. 29 DecReaders’ wildlife photos
12. 29 DecJesus ‘n’ Mo ‘n’ Raisin Cain
13. 29 DecAnother public university speech kerfuffle: On the defense of liberal but not conservative speech by San Diego State
14. 29 DecMore than half of Americans oppose the use of Arabic numerals!
15. 28 DecTuesday: Hili dialogue
16. 28 DecReaders’ wildlife photos
17. 28 DecThe Royal Society of New Zealand takes down its statement damning the Satanic Seven
18. 28 DecUN launches unprecedented open-ended investigation of Israel
19. 28 DecAnimals vs. GoPro cameras
20. 27 DecE. O. Wilson died
21. 27 DecMonday: Hili dialogue
22. 27 DecReaders’ wildlife photos
23. 27 DecPerformance of New Zealand students in math, science, and reading falls dramatically in last two decades
24. 27 DecQuillette’s most popular article of 2021: A piece by Glenn Loury
25. 26 DecSunday: Hili dialogue
26. 26 DecReaders’ wildlife photos
27. 26 DecTwo questions about human history
28. 26 DecWhat did the Galileo affair say about science vs. religion?
29. 25 DecWake up! Space telescope to be launched today at 7:20 Eastern time.
30. 25 DecSaturday: Hili dialogue
31. 25 DecReaders’ wildlife photos
32. 25 DecCaturday felids: Christmas edition with readers’ kitties!
33. 25 DecPeter Nothnagle’s take on the Nativity
34. 24 DecFriday: Hili dialogue
35. 24 DecReaders’ wildlife photos
36. 24 DecWonderful fossil dinosaur embryo shows birdlike “tucked” posture before hatching
37. 24 DecBlogger: Ken Ham and I are like “two peas in a pod”
38. 23 DecThursday: Hili dialogue
39. 23 DecReaders’ wildlife photos
40. 23 DecSabine Hossenfelder on free will and “superdeterminism” of quantum mechanics
41. 23 DecTwo bits of Irish woo
42. 23 DecGood news for free speech in the UK: Court of Appeals rules that legal investigation of “hate incidents” cannot be used to chill speech
43. 22 DecWednesday: Hili dialogue
44. 22 DecReaders’ wildlife photos
45. 22 DecJesus ‘n’ Mo ‘n’ Twitter
46. 22 DecSome correspondence and a statement from from the Royal Society of New Zealand about “ways of knowing” and cancellation
47. 22 DecWas the D. C. librarian anti-Semitic?
48. 22 DecSend in your Christmas cats!
49. 21 DecTuesday: Hili dialogue
50. 21 DecReaders’ wildlife photos
51. 21 DecWinter has just begun!
52. 21 DecMore degeneration of a once-noble organization: the ACLU’s Human Rights Director defends organizations that support terrorism
53. 21 DecA piece on the Left I wish I’d written (well, at least part of it)
54. 20 DecMonday: Hili dialogue
55. 20 DecReaders’ wildlife photos
56. 20 DecHead of Swedish Academy announces that Nobel Prizes will be awarded solely for merit, without gender or ethnicity quotas
57. 20 DecJames Webb Space Telescope
58. 20 DecD.C. school librarian fired after making students reenact the Holocaust—including dying in a gas chamber and shooting their classmates—to show how the “Jews ruined Christmas” for Germans
59. 19 DecSunday: Hili dialogue
60. 19 DecReaders’ wildlife photos
61. 19 DecWhat are Maori “ways of knowing”, and should they be taught in science class as coequal to modern science?
62. 19 DecPrinceton University violates the Kalven Report (even though it doesn’t have one)
63. 18 DecSaturday: Hili dialogue
64. 18 DecReaders’ wildlife photos
65. 18 DecCaturday felid trifecta: Medieval cat armor; Russian mother cat raises baby hedgehogs; “talking” cat helps scientists; and lagniappe
66. 18 DecGuest Post: “Aftermath of the Prof. Jason Kilborn Controversy at UIC.”
67. 17 DecFriday: Hili dialogue
68. 17 DecReaders’ wildlife photos
69. 17 DecRoyal Society of New Zealand responds to complaints about investigations of its fellows’ free speech; and two science-supporting academics apparently get punished for their free speech
70. 17 DecA eulogy for Hitchens by Douglas Murray
71. 17 DecA drone descent down Angel Falls
72. 16 DecThursday: Hili dialogue
73. 16 DecReaders’ wildlife photos
74. 16 DecA funny title but a serious point about ivermectin and Covid-19
75. 16 DecAt 70, Wisdom the albatross, the oldest known living wild bird, has returned to Midway Atoll to breed again!
76. 16 Dec“Jeopardy” shows that the Woke have won
77. 15 DecWednesday: Hili dialogue
78. 15 DecReaders’ wildlife photos
79. 15 DecJesus ‘n’ Mo ‘n’ a duet
80. 15 DecAmerica is rapidly losing its religiosity
81. 15 DecGreg Lukianoff on the recent history of campus free speech
82. 14 DecTuesday: Hili dialogue
83. 14 DecMore news from New Zealand about the big science vs. indigenous “knowledge” ruckus
84. 14 DecMore about ivermectin!
85. 14 DecAlex Honnold does a dangerous climb
86. 13 DecMonday: Hili dialogue
87. 13 DecReaders’ wildlife photos
88. 13 DecHeadline of the month!
89. 13 DecNew Zealand authorities stand firm in desire to teach Maori “ways of knowing” alongside science in high schools and colleges
90. 13 DecMore infighting among academics about the 1619 Project
91. 12 DecSunday: Hili dialogue
92. 12 DecReaders’ wildlife photos
93. 12 DecIn which I start to ascertain my genetic ancestry
94. 12 DecChair of Stanford’s Department of Computer Science sends out woke and confusing email affirming his department’s virtue
95. 12 DecReverend Warren’s weekly bromide and sermon in the New York Times
96. 11 DecSaturday: Hili dialogue
97. 11 DecReaders’ wildlife photos
98. 11 DecCaturday felid trifecta: The adventures of Business Cat; endangered South American felid found near Santiago; Mark Twain’s love of cats; and lagniappe
99. 11 DecNYC’s Tenement Museum goes off the rails as the Woke elbow aside the story of immigrants to emphasize issues of race
100. 10 DecFriday: Hili dialogue
101. 10 DecReaders’ wildlife photos
102. 10 DecRichard Dawkins writes to New Zealand’s “friends of science and reason”
103. 10 DecAn atheist-basher writes in
104. 10 DecMSNBC bashes Jussie Smollett’s guilty verdict as the “crowning jewel” of the Right, a verdict that empowers Trump and his minions
105. 9 DecThursday: Hili dialogue
106. 9 DecReaders’ wildlife photos
107. 9 DecJussie Smollett, considered a hoaxer by all sentient beings, is defended by BLM
108. 9 DecAbigail Shrier speaks truth to Princeton
109. 9 DecJussie Smollett found guilty on 5 of 6 felony charges
110. 8 DecWednesday: Hili dialogue
111. 8 DecReaders’ wildlife photos
112. 8 DecJesus ‘n’ Mo ‘n’ mockery
113. 8 DecMaori “ways of knowing” to be taught as science in NZ universities
114. 8 DecWhat should a university do when a rabid anti-Semitic student calls for the killing of Jews?
115. 7 DecTuesday: Hili dialogue
116. 7 DecReaders’ wildlife photos
117. 7 DecAnti-Semitic materials distributed to Toronto school students; school board agrees that they’re anti-Semitic but censures the person who called them out
118. 7 DecAlumni begin withholding donations from universities that suppress free speech or disinvite speakers
119. 6 DecMonday: Hili dialogue
120. 6 DecReaders’ wildlife photos
121. 6 DecKrauss on how “offense” impedes the finding of truth
122. 5 DecSunday: Hili dialogue
123. 5 DecReaders’ wildlife photos
124. 5 DecThe stuff John McWhorter likes, including land acknowledgments
125. 5 DecMore indigenous anger from New Zealand about real science
126. 4 DecSaturday: Hili dialogue
127. 4 DecReaders’ wildlife photos
128. 4 DecCaturday felid trifecta: Cats from below; a cat’s-eye view of their world; cat scared to death by giant plush tiger; and lagniappe
129. 4 DecThe “teach Maori other ways of knowing in science class” fracas continues; Richard Dawkins weighs in
130. 3 DecFriday: Hili dialogue
131. 3 DecReaders’ wildlife photos
132. 3 Dec“Ways of knowing”: New Zealand pushes to have “indigenous knowledge” (mythology) taught on parity with modern science in science class
133. 3 DecColeman and Navratilova on transwomen in sports: The International Olympic Committee has failed its mission
134. 3 DecUK Humanists podcast
135. 2 DecThursday: Hili dialogue
136. 2 DecReaders’ wildlife photos
137. 2 DecIran will build a bomb no matter what
138. 2 DecJohn McWhorter versus “The View”
139. 1 DecWednesday: Hili dialogue
140. 1 DecReaders’ wildlife photos
141. 1 DecUnder pressure from the benighted, Rhodes College refuses to disinvite Peter Singer but issues a “free speech but. . . ” statement
142. 1 DecJesus ‘n’ Mo ‘n’ the Savior’s birthday
143. 1 DecTalking sense about the Omicron variant
144. 1 DecIt was inevitable . . .

November 2021

1. 30 NovTuesday: Hili dialogue
2. 30 NovReaders’ wildlife photos
3. 30 NovVox analogizes invasive species with human immigrants
4. 30 NovDick Lewontin’s colleagues remember him
5. 29 NovMonday: Hili dialogue
6. 29 NovReaders’ wildlife photos
7. 29 NovNew York Times profiles a medium who channels Jesus for the benefit of celebrities
8. 29 NovFrench resist new pronoun “iel” on grounds of spreading “wokisme”
9. 29 NovSalman Rushdie has a Substack site, and describes an encounter with the Beatles
10. 28 NovSunday: Hili dialogue
11. 28 NovReaders’ wildlife photos
12. 28 NovHarriet Hall debunks Mayim Bialik’s claims for Neuriva “brain supplement” and her status as “an actual neuroscientist”
13. 28 NovSpot the snipe!
14. 28 NovI need a new word for “woke”
15. 28 NovWhy are Biden’s ratings so low?
16. 28 NovHere’s the snipe!
17. 27 NovSaturday: Hili dialogue
18. 27 NovReaders’ wildlife photos
19. 27 NovCaturday felid trifecta: Asymmetric cat gets adopted; Japan’s biggest cat cafe; On the Origin of Felids; and lagniappe
20. 27 NovA new anti-woke book
21. 27 NovAtlantic article on why universities shouldn’t make official political or ideological statements
22. 27 NovFrom Peter Jackson’s upcoming movie “Get Back”: Beatles songs come to life
23. 27 Nov25,005 posts!
24. 26 NovFriday: Hili dialogue
25. 26 NovReaders’ wildlife photos
26. 26 NovCanadian government denies McGill professor grants on the grounds that his mandatory DEI statements describe color-blind hiring based on merit
27. 26 NovReason interviews John McWhorter
28. 25 NovThursday: Hili dialogue
29. 25 NovReaders’ wildlife photos
30. 25 NovTwo more university deans (at Princeton and NYU) condemn the Rittenhouse verdict
31. 25 NovHappy Thanksgiving!
32. 24 NovWednesday: Hili dialogue
33. 24 NovReaders’ wildlife photos.
34. 24 NovJesus ‘n’ Mo ‘n’ reason
35. 24 NovFor Bible Week: MSN News claims that bits of the Bible are scientifically true
36. 24 NovPublic university in Massachusetts provides segregated spaces for students to “process” the Rittenhouse verdict
37. 24 NovSmall spider pulls big empty shell up into a bush to make itself a home, and I haz questions
38. 24 NovThree found guilty of murder in Ahmaud Arbery case
39. 23 NovA Polish tongue twister
40. 23 NovUniversity of California at Santa Cruz also pronounces on Rittenhouse verdict
41. 23 NovThe coalescence of the American Right: a view from David Brooks
42. 23 NovTuesday: Hili dialogue
43. 23 NovReaders’ wildlife photos
44. 23 NovUC Irvine Vice Chancellor retracts and apologizes for his official pronouncement on the Rittenhouse verdict
45. 22 NovMonday: Hili dialogue
46. 22 NovReaders’ wildlife photos
47. 22 NovCompeting and divergent reviews by The Washington Post and the NYT of the 1619 Project book
48. 22 NovACLU condemns Rittenhouse verdict
49. 22 NovCanadian girls’ book club event with Nobel Peace Prize activist canceled because of potential “Islamophobia”
50. 21 NovSunday: Hili dialogue
51. 21 NovReaders’ wildlife photos
52. 21 NovUC Irvine Chancellor officially weighs in on Rittenhouse verdict: says it shows racism of the jury
53. 21 NovAmong student calls to defund and abolish the U of C police, three students are murdered
54. 20 NovSaturday: Hili dialogue
55. 20 NovReaders’ wildlife photos
56. 20 NovCaturday felid trifecta: Rescuing a baby Pallas’s cat; man builds elevator to help senior cat up and down stairs; kitten therapy at a retirement home; and lagniappe
57. 20 NovThe University of California eliminates all standardized tests for admission
58. 20 NovTrue facts about life in the deep ocean
59. 19 NovFriday: Hili Dialogue
60. 19 NovReaders’ wildlife photos
61. 19 NovMy review in the Washington Post of a new book on genetics and social justice
62. 19 NovPanpsychism again?
63. 18 NovThursday: Hili dialogue
64. 18 NovReaders’ wildlife photos
65. 18 NovMichael Shermer documents the decline and fall of Scientific American
66. 18 NovA near total lunar eclipse tonight
67. 17 NovWednesday: Hili dialogue
68. 17 NovReaders’ wildlife photos
69. 17 NovJesus ‘n’ Mo ‘n’ fresh eyes
70. 17 NovA woke person opposed to diversity statements
71. 17 Nov“Woodstock”
72. 16 NovTuesday: Hili dialogue
73. 16 NovReaders’ wildlife photos: senior Teddy bears
74. 16 NovBob Zimmer and Steve Pinker resign from the advisory board of the University of Austin
75. 16 NovA NYT op-ed: Liberal Michelle Goldberg decries the “social justice industry”
76. 15 NovMonday: Hili dialogue
77. 15 NovSend in your teddy bear photos!
78. 15 NovReaders’ wildlife photos
79. 15 NovYour own NYT column
80. 15 Nov“Seinfeld” in the cancellation crosshairs
81. 14 NovSunday: Hili dialogue
82. 14 NovReaders’ wildlife photos
83. 14 NovSleepless in Chicago
84. 14 NovTish Harrison Warren says that Christian virtues dispel racism
85. 13 NovSaturday: Hili dialogue
86. 13 NovReaders’ wildlife photos
87. 13 NovCaturday felid trifecta: Old book with cat photos taught kids to read; why house cats can’t roar; why cats dip their paws into water; and lagniappe
88. 12 NovFriday: Hili dialogue
89. 12 NovReaders’ wildlife photos
90. 12 NovDo electrons behave differently when they’re in brains? Sean Carroll takes Philip Goff apart on panpsychism
91. 12 NovThe University of Chicago nixes required diversity statements for hiring
92. 12 NovReal or fake?: Representative Boebert fools the public
93. 12 NovWhat a lovely headline to see!
94. 11 NovThursday: Hili dialogue
95. 11 NovReaders’ wildlife photos
96. 11 NovScientific American again posting nonscientific political editorials
97. 11 NovCaltech engages in big-time renaming involving eugenics
98. 10 NovWednesday: Hili dialogue
99. 10 NovReaders’ wildlife photos
100. 10 NovJesus ‘n’ Mo ‘n’ erasure
101. 10 NovSpace X launch tonight
102. 10 NovDuck runs NYT marathon (not the whole thing)
103. 9 NovTuesday: Hili dialogue
104. 9 NovReaders’ wildlife photos
105. 9 NovFreddie deBoer has some questions
106. 9 Nov“Everybody has won and all must have prizes”: The drive to end merit-based schooling
107. 9 NovWhy the pastel hair?
108. 8 NovMonday: Hili dialogue
109. 8 NovReaders’ wildlife photos
110. 8 NovLame compatibilism from the NYT’s resident Anglican priest
111. 8 NovMIT faculty worried about chilling of speech
112. 8 NovChicago Tribune: No religious exemptions for vaccines
113. 7 NovSunday: Hili dialogue
114. 7 NovJust for fun: One year ago today
115. 7 NovReaders’ wildlife photos
116. 7 NovThe Council of Europe retracts pro-hijab campaign
117. 7 NovAcademic Freedom Alliance criticizes mandatory statements of University “values”
118. 7 NovThe duck season is winding down
119. 6 NovSaturday: Hili dialogue
120. 6 NovReaders’ wildlife photos
121. 6 NovCaturday felid trifecta: Bohemian Catsody; a Pittsburgh cat rescue collective; why your cat doesn’t want you to work from home; and lagnaiappe
122. 6 NovThe NYT gets a reality check from the elections
123. 6 NovAndrew Sullivan on the election and CRT
124. 6 NovSet your clocks back tonight: Daylight Savings Time ends
125. 5 NovFriday: Hili dialogue
126. 5 NovReaders’ wildlife photos
127. 5 NovIt must be the full moon
128. 5 NovYep, it’s the full moon!
129. 5 NovIs Wokeness moving Brits to the right?
130. 5 NovA victory (?) for academic freedom
131. 5 NovThe new math in Toronto
132. 5 NovThe Sun throws up
133. 4 NovThursday: Hili dialogue
134. 4 NovReaders’ wildlife photos
135. 4 NovJesus ‘n’ Mo ‘n’ the origin of the specious
136. 4 NovOhio introduces an antiabortion bill similar to that of Texas, but worse: it bans all abortions
137. 4 NovAmerican Psychological Society apologizes for perpetuating systemic racism
138. 4 NovPBS panel, including James Carville, analyzes the elections
139. 4 NovWords and phrases I detest
140. 3 NovRepublic Youngkin wins governorship of Virginia; country is doomed
141. 3 NovWednesday: Hili dialogue
142. 3 NovReaders’ wildlife photos
143. 3 NovThe illiberal Right and the illiberal Left
144. 3 NovJohn McWhorter verbally reviews DiAngelo’s and Kendi’s most well-known books
145. 2 NovTuesday: Hili dialogue
146. 2 NovReaders’ wildlife photos
147. 2 NovThe hypocrisy of the AMA (and other elite organizations like the NYT)
148. 2 NovWhat contemporary philosophers believe
149. 1 NovMonday: Hili dialogue
150. 1 NovReaders’ wildlife photos
151. 1 NovJesse Singal: The AMA jumps the Woke Shark, introduces Medspeak
152. 1 NovMore religious palaver from the NYT
153. 1 NovKamala Harris gets an improperly administered Covid booster

October 2021

1. 31 OctSunday: Hili dialogue (and Leon and Mietek monologues)
2. 31 OctReaders’ wildlife photos
3. 31 OctDeconstruction of a Twitter fracas involving Ibram Kendi
4. 31 OctGuest essay: Did a meteorite destroy Sodom and Gomorrah?
5. 31 OctSci Am reports on a science fellowship cancelled because all the candidates were white men
6. 31 OctVideo camera falls out of plane, lands in pig pen
7. 30 OctSaturday: Hili dialogue
8. 30 OctReaders’ wildlife photos
9. 30 OctCaturday felid trifecta: Cat confused by card trick; how cats were domesticated (twice); why cats wiggle their butts before pouncing; and lagniappe
10. 30 OctAndrew Sullivan interviews Steve Pinker
11. 29 OctFriday: Hili dialogue
12. 29 OctReaders’ wildlife photos
13. 29 OctMorning column opposing Huxley’s cancellation
14. 29 OctProfessor Phoebe Cohen of Williams College nabs the Lysenko Award for the Suppression of Academic Speech
15. 29 OctSupreme Court goes execution-happy; prisoner suffers horrible death
16. 28 OctThursday: Hili dialogue
17. 28 OctReaders’ wildlife photos
18. 28 OctJesus ‘n’ Mo ‘n’ and a lax god
19. 28 OctLionel Shriver decries the demonization of Thomas Jefferson
20. 28 OctPenn State denounces upcoming appearance of Milo Yiannopoulos, but kvetches that they can’t stop him from appearing
21. 27 OctWednesday: Hili dialogue
22. 27 OctReaders’ wildlife photos
23. 27 OctReviews of John McWhorter’s and Steve Pinker’s new books
24. 27 OctT. H. Huxley about to be cancelled at Imperial College London
25. 27 OctA new free speech organization
26. 26 OctTuesday: Hili dialogue
27. 26 OctReaders’ wildlife photos
28. 26 OctCathy Young: What is cancel culture and is it really a problem?
29. 26 OctThe lies of the Art Institute of Chicago
30. 25 OctMonday: Hili dialogue
31. 25 OctReaders’ wildlife photos
32. 25 OctAndrew Sullivan on the Netflix walkout and the anti-gay movement
33. 25 OctAdvice from my primary care doc: Should you get a booster? If so, which one?
34. 25 OctUSA Today defends firing of Chicago docents, and a new theory on why they were fired
35. 25 OctZeFrank: True facts about the mosquito
36. 24 OctSunday: Hili dialogue
37. 24 OctReaders’ wildlife photos
38. 24 OctIvory poaching imposing selection on elephants to evolve shorter tusks
39. 24 OctMore anodyne cures for the world’s ills by Reverend Tish Harrison Warren
40. 24 OctThe Spectator on the decline and fall of the New York Times
41. 23 OctSaturday: Hili dialogue
42. 23 OctReaders’ wildlife photos
43. 23 OctCaturday felid trifecta: Cat boogie woogie; woman adopts 12 fluffy Persians; cat positions itself in train station for maximum pets; and lagniappe
44. 23 OctThe problematic Thomas Jefferson
45. 23 OctYesterday’s “Real Time”
46. 22 OctFriday: Hili dialogue
47. 22 OctReaders’ wildlife photos
48. 22 OctTexas makes no bones about its new abortion law, asks Supreme Court to overturn Roe v. Wade
49. 22 OctMy stitches are out!
50. 22 OctAt long last, the NYT covers the Art Institute of Chicago’s DocentGate
51. 21 OctThursday: Hili dialogue
52. 21 OctReaders’ wildlife photos
53. 21 OctMatt Taibbi on the nefarious, acquisitive Bidens
54. 21 OctAbbotgate hits the mainstream media and Quillette: MIT gets egg on its face
55. 20 OctWednesday: Hili dialogue
56. 20 OctReaders’ wildlife photos
57. 20 OctJesus ‘n’ Mo ‘n’ camel urine
58. 20 OctThe harm caused by radiator installation at Oberlin College
59. 20 OctBari Weiss on the need for moxie
60. 20 OctSome winners: 2021 Wildlife Photographer of the Year
61. 19 OctTuesday: Hili dialogue (and Mitek monologue)
62. 19 OctReaders’ wildlife photos
63. 19 OctMIT President and Provost respond (lamely) to Abbotgate, say free speech at their school is alive and well, and apologize to students rather than Abbot
64. 19 OctShort take: “Books Do Furnish a Life” by Richard Dawkins
65. 18 OctMonday: Hili dialogue
66. 18 OctColin Powell died today
67. 18 OctReaders’ wildlife photos
68. 18 OctWokeness invades London’s Natural History Museum
69. 18 OctNYT columnist touts the afterlife
70. 18 OctMy hand is healing (I hope)
71. 17 OctSunday: Hili dialogue
72. 17 OctReaders’ wildlife photos
73. 17 Oct“Black tigers” in a small Indian reserve suggest random genetic drift
74. 17 OctThe Wall Street Journal on the firing of the Art Institute’s docents; and a personal observation
75. 17 OctTwo easy pieces
76. 17 OctSeeing my “sensitive content” on Twitter
77. 16 OctSaturday: Hili dialogue
78. 16 OctReaders’ wildlife photos
79. 16 OctCaturday felid unifecta: Free cat art show in L.A.
80. 16 OctMcWhorter comes back strongly
81. 16 OctFeeder cam gets great bird shots
82. 15 OctFriday: Hili dialogue
83. 15 OctReaders’ wildlife photos
84. 15 OctMainstream media accused of censoring William Shatner’s post-spaceflight comments
85. 15 OctNetflix employees and many civilians criticize Dave Chappelle’s “The Closer,” Netflix executives stand by the Chappelle and the show
86. 15 OctA nice lecture from Matthew on genetics and human evolution
87. 14 OctIs the NYT defanging John McWhorter?
88. 14 OctThursday duck report
89. 14 OctThursday: Hili dialogue
90. 14 OctReaders’ wildlife photos
91. 14 OctBret Stephens on Dorian Abbot and reforming campus dogmatism
92. 13 OctDelayed posting due to injury
93. 13 OctThe aftermath
94. 13 OctWednesday: Hili dialogue
95. 13 OctJesus ‘n’ Mo ‘n’ Kafka
96. 13 OctThe Times of London defends Kathleen Stock’s freedom of expresson, and so should we
97. 12 OctTuesday: Hili dialogue
98. 12 OctReaders’ wildlife photos
99. 12 OctA reader’s comment: The Jews are behind diversity and multiculturalism initiatives
100. 12 OctA brief review of Andrew Sullivan’s new essay collection
101. 12 OctTwo new columns, and a definition and exposition of “wokeness”
102. 11 OctMonday: Hili dialogue
103. 11 OctReaders’ wildlife photos
104. 11 OctNote to new readers: Read the posting rules before your first comment
105. 11 OctYascha Mounk: Dorian Abbot’s cancellation is novel—and dangerous
106. 11 OctEric Clapton breaks my heart for the fourth time, bankrolling an anti-vaxer band
107. 10 OctSunday: Hili dialogue
108. 10 OctReaders’ wildlife photos
109. 10 OctDucklings appear to swim behind mothers in a way that rides her wake and saves energy
110. 10 OctTwo taboo articles to read
111. 10 OctWinners: Nature Conservancy photo contest
112. 9 OctSaturday: Hili dialogue
113. 9 OctReaders’ wildlife photos
114. 9 OctCaturday felid special: Readers’ polydactylous cats
115. 9 OctNew appeal leads to reinstatement of Texas’s restrictive abortion law
116. 9 OctThe Art Institute of Chicago fires all 122 of its (unpaid and volunteer) docents because they aren’t sufficiently “diverse”
117. 9 OctBill Maher’s new show, including interview with Steve Pinker
118. 8 OctFriday: Hili dialogue
119. 8 OctReaders’ wildlife photos
120. 8 OctFilipina and Russian journalists share Nobel Peace Prize for promoting freedom of expression
121. 8 OctWilliam Lane Craig’s new book on Adam and Eve given semi-laudatory review—in Science!
122. 8 Oct“A Song For You”
123. 7 OctThursday: Hili dialogue
124. 7 OctA scathing takedown of a ham-handed attempt to rename “Huxley College”
125. 6 OctNobel Prize in Chemistry awarded to two for work on asymmetric catalysis (and a revised contest)
126. 6 OctWednesday: Hili dialogue (and Leon Monologue)
127. 6 OctReaders’ wildlife photos
128. 6 OctJesus ‘n’ Mo ‘n’ guests
129. 6 OctAcademic Freedom Alliance calls out MIT for canceling Dorian Abbot lecture (and a poll)
130. 6 OctDentally handicapped Otis won the title of “Fattest Bear”
131. 5 OctTuesday: Hili dialogue
132. 5 OctReaders’ wildlife photos
133. 5 OctUC Prof Dorian Abbot canceled for a prestigious lecture at MIT after criticizing diversity initiatives
134. 5 OctThe Fat Bear finals!
135. 4 OctMonday: Hili dialogue
136. 4 OctReaders’ wildlife photos
137. 4 OctIt’s Nobel Prize Week! Physiology/Medicine Prize awarded to pair for work on bodily temperature and touch sensors. Plus, our annual Guess-the-Laureate Contest.
138. 4 OctSexual versus natural selection: a case in beetles
139. 4 OctKink the Cat is back!
140. 3 OctSunday: Hili dialogue
141. 3 OctReaders’ wildlife photos
142. 3 OctInstitutions’ self-flagellation undercuts their own credibility
143. 3 OctJack the Cat is healing nicely
144. 2 OctSaturday: Hili dialogue
145. 2 OctReaders’ wildlife photos
146. 2 OctKink the Cat has gone missing
147. 2 OctCaturday felid trifecta: BBC cat quiz; hilarious cat signs in a vet’s office; cat study wins Ig Noble Prize; and lagniappe
148. 2 OctAndrew Sullivan on the possible downfall of Biden
149. 2 OctCNN touts astrology to sell stuff: the “Mercury retrograde” effect
150. 1 OctFriday: Hili dialogue
151. 1 OctReaders’ wildlife photos
152. 1 OctBig Brother arrives at the University of St Andrews
153. 1 OctMy booster shot

September 2021

1. 30 SepThursday: Hili dialogue
2. 30 SepReaders’ wildlife photos
3. 30 SepAn excerpt from Pinker’s new book and a new interview
4. 30 SepWinners of yesterday’s Fat Bear pairings. Don’t forget to vote today!
5. 30 SepWhat, exactly, is critical race theory?
6. 29 SepWednesday: Hili dialogue
7. 29 SepReaders’ wildlife video
8. 29 SepJesus ‘n’ Mo ‘n’ palaver
9. 29 SepA long read on Pinker
10. 29 SepDon’t forget to vote in the Fat Bear Contest!
11. 29 SepBari Weiss interviews Glenn Loury
12. 28 SepTuesday: Hili dialogue
13. 28 SepReader’s wildlife video
14. 28 SepACLU admits it screwed up by changing RBG’s words; Michelle Goldberg explains why the changes were misleading
15. 28 SepWhen commitment to diversity outweighs teaching and research in a biology job
16. 28 SepIt’s Fat Bear Week!
17. 27 SepMonday: Hili dialogue (and Mietek monologue)
18. 27 SepReaders’ wildlife photos
19. 27 SepThe fallacy of using observational study to guide medical treatment: about 40% of medical procedures and drugs reported as not useful
20. 27 SepPastor Warren compares pro-choice views with anti-vaxers ( touts the benefit of religion in helping us making sacrifices for society
21. 27 SepJohn Oliver on duck stamps
22. 26 SepSunday: Hili dialogue
23. 26 SepReaders’ wildlife photos
24. 26 SepIvermectin: still horsewash
25. 26 SepEx-editor of Science-Based Medicine chews the site’s tuchas for its treatment of Abigail Shrier’s book
26. 26 SepCensorship of schoolbooks by the Right
27. 25 SepSaturday: Hili dialogue
28. 25 SepReaders’ wildlife photos
29. 25 SepCaturday felid trifecta: CONTEST, Minneapolis tour of window cats; Simon’s cat goes to the vet; cats’ personality traits; and lagniappe
30. 25 SepMore Wokeness in Wisconsin
31. 25 SepHoney has a boyfriend
32. 24 SepFriday: Hili dialogue (and Mietek monologue)
33. 24 SepReaders’ wildlife photos
34. 24 SepRift between “progressive” and centrist Democrats in House bill on Iron Dome funding
35. 24 SepLessons from a free-speech victory at Cambridge University
36. 24 SepBizarre acronym pecksniffery in Scientific American
37. 23 SepThursday: Hili dialogue
38. 23 SepTraveling with the Great Unmasked
39. 22 SepWednesday: Hili dialogue
40. 22 SepThe ACLU alters an RBG quote to avoid “transphobic” implications
41. 22 SepFood in the Boston area
42. 21 SepTuesday: Hili dialogue
43. 21 SepTuesday: Duck report
44. 21 SepJack the Cat improving rapidly, takes a short walk!
45. 21 SepUniversity of Chicago no longer #1 in free speech rankings
46. 20 SepMonday: Hili dialogue
47. 20 SepA geometry puzzle from Russia’s prime minister
48. 20 SepQuillette’s top examples of colleges behaving badly
49. 20 SepThe solution to this morning’s puzzle
50. 19 SepSunday: Hili dialogue
51. 19 SepReaders’ wildlife photos
52. 19 SepThe most beautiful experiment in biology
53. 19 SepUnconscious bias: your mental armpits
54. 18 SepSaturday: Hili dialogue
55. 18 SepReaders’ wildlife photos
56. 18 SepCaturday felid: The unfortunate fall of Jack the Cat
57. 18 SepHuxley College name canceled for the usual reasons
58. 17 SepFriday: Hili dialogue
59. 17 SepReaders’ wildlife photos
60. 17 SepTraining versus education
61. 16 SepThursday: Hili dialogue
62. 16 SepReaders’ wildlife photos
63. 16 SepBret Weinstein and Heather Heying go unvaccinated for Covid, take and promote Ivermectin instead
64. 15 SepWednesday: Hili dialogue
65. 15 SepReaders’ wildlife photographs
66. 15 SepJesus ‘n’ Mo ‘n’ silencing
67. 15 SepAre your letters of recommendation gender-biased?
68. 15 Sep“The Chair”: A miniseries about academia
69. 15 SepWatch the SpaceX launch: 4 “civilian” astronauts to orbit Earth for 3 days
70. 14 SepTuesday: Hili dialogue
71. 14 SepReaders’ wildlife photos
72. 14 SepWhite Virginia Tech professor apologizes for her race (and racism) on course syllabus
73. 14 SepA mammoth debacle
74. 13 SepMonday: Hili dialogue
75. 13 SepReaders’ wildlife photos
76. 13 SepThe heritability of IQ from an adoption study
77. 13 SepCat survives long fall by being netted in an American flag!
78. 12 SepSunday: Hili dialogue
79. 12 SepReaders’ wildlife photos
80. 12 SepFFRF interviews Dawkins
81. 12 SepAn Anglican priest pushes more religious palaver at the NYT
82. 12 SepDiscussion thread
83. 12 SepLovely BBC video of meerkats standing on videographers
84. 11 SepSaturday: Hili dialogue
85. 11 SepReaders’ wildlife photos
86. 11 SepCaturday felid trifecta: Man plays fractious cat; why you can’t outrun a housecat; what is it like to be a cat?; and lagniappe
87. 11 SepAndrew Sullivan suggests that Wokeness is already on the wane. Is it?
88. 10 SepFriday: Hili dialogue
89. 10 SepReaders’ wildlife photos
90. 10 SepA rise in targeting of scholars for political and ideological reasons
91. 10 SepLook at this duck!
92. 10 SepWhere were you on 9/11?
93. 10 SepHow to get ketchup on your hot dog in Chicago
94. 9 SepThursday: Hili dialogue
95. 9 SepReaders’ wildlife photos
96. 9 SepTake this quiz: Which of six new political parties do you belong to?
97. 9 SepCRT in schools endorsed by four U.S. mayors, including Chicago’s
98. 8 SepWednesday: Hili dialogue
99. 8 SepReaders’ wildlife photos
100. 8 SepJesus ‘n’ Mo ‘n’ WEIT
101. 8 SepPeter Boghossian hangs it up at Portland State
102. 8 SepA two-year old book burning in Canada
103. 7 SepTuesday: Hili dialogue
104. 7 SepReaders’ wildlife photos
105. 7 SepShould there be religious exemptions from vaccine mandates?
106. 7 SepEquity vs. equality: a cartoon
107. 7 SepWhat makes a good life?
108. 6 SepMonday: Hili dialogue
109. 6 SepReaders’ wildlife photos
110. 6 SepThe Economist on Wokeness, part two
111. 6 SepWinners: 2021 Bird Photographer of the Year Contest
112. 5 SepSunday: Hili dialogue
113. 5 SepReaders’ wildlife photos
114. 5 SepThe Economist’s history of the rise of American wokeism (with prognostication)
115. 5 SepSunday ducks
116. 4 SepSaturday: Hili dialogue
117. 4 SepReaders’ wildlife photos
118. 4 SepCaturday felid trifecta: Four-eared cat finds forever home; international cat idioms; “more than one way to skin a cat”; and lagniappe
119. 4 SepMcWhorter on how to teach kids to read
120. 3 SepFriday: Hili dialogue
121. 3 SepReaders’ wildlife photos
122. 3 SepNYC schools propose ditching honor rolls and class ranks
123. 3 SepNew Zealand PM exculpates religion in an ISIS-inspired terrorist stabbing attack in New Zealand
124. 3 SepCanadian university office ditches capital letters as forms of oppression
125. 3 SepFinalists: 2021 Comedy Wildlife Photography Awards
126. 2 SepThursday: Hili dialogue
127. 2 SepReaders’ wildlife photos
128. 2 SepA latter-day Scarlet Letter
129. 2 SepMuir Woods gets its reckoning
130. 2 SepWildlife photographer of the year
131. 1 SepReaders’ wildlife photos
132. 1 SepMatt Taibbi on National Public Radio’s trashing of free speech
133. 1 SepJesus ‘n’ Mo ‘n’ presuppositionalism
134. 1 SepFive books, all trying to show that science and religion are BFFs, get my kishkes in a knot
135. 1 SepMcWhorter defends himself against charges of being a “sellout”
136. 1 SepWednesday: Hili dialogue (and Kulka dialogue)

August 2021

1. 31 AugTuesday: Hili dialogue
2. 31 AugReaders’ wildlife photos
3. 31 AugNote to readers and commenters
4. 31 AugElaine Ecklund has a new book, and yes, it’s more of the same accommodationism
5. 31 AugShould schools hide children’s issues about gender and transexuality from their parents?
6. 30 AugMonday: Hili dialogue (and Mietek monologue)
7. 30 AugReaders’ wildlife photos
8. 30 AugThe world gets more secular as it gets better: data continue to show that religion is unnecessary and inimical to healthy and moral societies
9. 30 AugWhat we’re reading now
10. 30 AugThe racism of chemistry at Barnard
11. 29 AugSunday: Hili dialogue
12. 29 AugReaders’ wildlife photos
13. 29 AugCorrection: Harvard’s “Chief Chaplain” may be an exaggerated title
14. 29 AugThe full paper on which saints to pray to when you’ve got Covid, and a laudatory reply
15. 29 AugScientific American (and math) go full woke
16. 29 AugClapton breaks my heart for the third time, goes anti-vax again
17. 28 AugSaturday: Hili dialogue
18. 28 AugReaders’ wildlife photos (and video)
19. 28 AugCaturday felid trifecta: Cats interrupting work; cat DNA analysis; baby ocelot born; and lagniappe
20. 28 AugAn academic paper: Which saint is best to pray to if you’ve got Covid?
21. 28 AugEvidence waning for the Wuhan lab-leak theory for the origin of the pandemic
22. 28 AugHelicopter lands on the summit of Mount Everest
23. 27 AugFriday: Hili dialogue
24. 27 AugReaders’ wildlife photos
25. 27 AugWhat is wrong this with picture?
26. 27 AugAtheist-bashing quote of the day
27. 27 AugMcWhorter returns to the mundane
28. 26 AugThursday: Hili dialogue
29. 26 AugReaders’ wildlife photos
30. 26 AugDo we really want a color-blind society?
31. 26 AugHarvard’s head chaplain is now an atheist
32. 25 AugWednesday: Hili dialogue
33. 25 AugReaders’ wildlife photos
34. 25 AugMcWhorter back in form, speaks truth to wokeness in the NY Times
35. 25 AugDo trees senesce?
36. 25 AugJesus ‘n’ Mo ‘n’ confirmation bias
37. 25 AugThe Nation touts astrology
38. 24 AugTuesday: Hili dialogue (and Mietek monologue)
39. 24 AugReaders’ wildlife photos
40. 24 AugJohn McWhorter cancels Substack column
41. 24 AugUnbelievable osculation of religion at the New York Times
42. 24 AugPublic acceptance of evolution grows in the U.S.
43. 23 AugMonday: Hili dialogue
44. 23 AugReaders’ wildlife photos (and video and painting)
45. 23 AugJAMA and race
46. 22 AugSunday: Hili dialogue
47. 22 AugReaders’ wildlife photos
48. 22 AugScientific American: Denying evolution is white supremacy
49. 22 AugMcWhorter’s second NYT column: better, but still no cigar
50. 21 AugSaturday: Hili dialogue
51. 21 AugReaders’ wildlife photos
52. 21 AugCaturday felid trifecta: Cats from below; cats once again proved smarter than dogs; cat poems; and lagniappe
53. 21 AugJohn Horgan: a proud agnostic
54. 21 AugNYT readers, including Dan Dennett, respond to Ross Douthat’s column on the “increasing” evidence for God
55. 21 AugSullivan on Maher on wokeness
56. 20 AugFriday: Hili dialogue
57. 20 AugReaders’ wildlife photos
58. 20 AugDid American troops in Afghanistan die in vain?
59. 20 AugFaculty response to Western Washington University’s proposal to cancel the name of T. H. Huxley
60. 19 AugThursday: Hili dialogue
61. 19 AugReaders’ wildlife photos
62. 19 AugMore evidence that COVID-19 had a zoonotic (animal) origin and didn’t come from a lab
63. 19 AugSarah Silverman hosts Jimmy Kimmel’s show, disses podcasting
64. 18 AugWednesday: Hili dialogue (and Leon monologue)
65. 18 AugReaders’ wildlife photos
66. 18 AugMcWhorter’s first NYT essay: The origins of “woke” as a pejorative
67. 18 AugJesus, Mo, the good cop, and the bad cop
68. 18 AugSome pushback by religion
69. 17 AugTuesday: Hili dialogue
70. 17 AugReaders’ wildlife photos
71. 17 AugNeil deGrasse Tyson osculates religion, arguing that dissing religion impedes accepting science
72. 17 AugDiscussion: Afghanistan
73. 17 AugThe origin of the coronavirus
74. 16 AugMonday: Hili dialogue (and Leon monologue)
75. 16 AugReaders’ wildlife photos
76. 16 AugThe Globe and Mail touts tarot readings
77. 16 AugCatholic magazine accepts article exculpating Jerry Sandusky, then rejects it because it didn’t want the Church to deal with accusations of pedophilia
78. 15 AugSunday: Hili dialogue (and Mietek monologue)
79. 15 AugReaders’ wildlife photos
80. 15 AugDouthat: Science gives us more reason than ever to believe in God
81. 15 AugTaibbi rips Obama a new one
82. 15 AugAnts eating cheesecake
83. 14 AugSaturday: Hili dialogue
84. 14 AugReaders’ wildlife photos
85. 14 AugCaturday felid trifecta: Cats and sterilized milk; when to pet a cat; “Stray”, a new cat video game; and lagniappe
86. 14 AugThe woke termites burrow their way into therapists’ offices
87. 14 AugConor Friedersdorf: “Solve all murders” should replace “Defund the police”
88. 13 AugFriday: Hili dialogue
89. 13 AugReaders’ wildlife photos
90. 13 AugA U of C prof and his colleague damn DEI initiatives in Newsweek, comparing such initiatives to the race obsession of Nazi Germany
91. 13 AugEric Hedin is back, now asserting that there is zero chance that life originated through natural processes, so God must have been responsible
92. 13 AugThe marvelous beaver
93. 13 AugA brilliant idea: the Thought and Prayers App
94. 12 AugThursday: Hili dialogue
95. 12 AugReaders’ wildlife photos (and a message)
96. 12 AugThe transgender/prison dilemma
97. 12 AugHow do you change the minds of science deniers?
98. 12 AugScary Australian ad promoting vaccinations
99. 12 AugLiberal media ignore Oregon bill removing math, reading, and writing requirements for high school graduation
100. 11 AugWednesday: Hili dialogue
101. 11 AugReaders’ wildlife photos
102. 11 AugOregon quietly eliminates all standards in reading, writing, and math for getting a high-school diploma
103. 11 AugJesus ‘n’ Mo ‘n’ language
104. 11 Aug“For No One”
105. 10 AugTuesday: Hili dialogue
106. 10 AugMore histrionic and harmful political statements from university departments
107. 10 AugReally? Defund the police?
108. 10 AugCuomo resigns as New York governor
109. 10 AugThe Europeans react to mandatory “vaccine passports”
110. 9 AugMonday: Hili dialogue
111. 9 AugReaders’ wildlife photos
112. 9 AugBiologist and educator Thomas Henry Huxley about to get canceled
113. 9 AugOn the 20th anniversary of the suicide bombing of the Sbarro pizzeria in Jerusalem, Palestine continues to pay off the terrorists
114. 9 AugThe latest from my doc on the pandemic, vaccinations, masks, and Delta
115. 9 AugReader’s travel photos: Nagasaki
116. 8 AugSunday: Hili dialogue
117. 8 AugReaders’ wildlife photos
118. 8 AugAndrew Sullivan’s new book reviewed by the NYT
119. 8 AugMore words and phrases I detest
120. 8 AugRediscovery of a live Joni Mitchell performance originally recorded in 1968—by Jimi Hendrix
121. 7 AugSaturday: Hili dialogue
122. 7 AugReaders’ wildlife photos
123. 7 AugCaturday felid trifecta: Two cat songs by Sandra Boynton; cat scratches itself on an iguana; a new statue to Street Cat Bob; and lagniappe
124. 7 AugThe importance of recognizing natal sex in healthcare
125. 6 AugFriday: Hili dialogue
126. 6 AugReaders’ wildlife photos (and video)
127. 6 AugWhy do people think the coronavirus vaccine should be an exception to mandated vaccinations?
128. 6 Aug“Desistance” in two cases of transgender men
129. 5 AugThursday: Hili dialogue
130. 5 AugReaders’ wildlife photos
131. 5 AugUnbelievable woo from the NYT: the touting of reincarnation (as well as astrology and oracle cards) by an editor
132. 5 AugCan you reduce hate by banning hate speech?
133. 4 AugWednesday: Hili dialogue
134. 4 AugReaders’ wildlife photos
135. 4 AugJesus ‘n’ Mo ‘n’ pedantry
136. 4 AugCensorship in the US vs. back in the USSR
137. 4 AugPalestine is a right-wing country with right-wing policies
138. 4 AugWhich of these ducks is not like the others?
139. 3 AugTuesday: Hili dialogue
140. 3 AugReaders’ wildlife photos
141. 3 AugA wood duck (Frisky?) is here
142. 3 AugKendied and Di Angeloed out? John McWhorter recommends some books as palliatives
143. 3 AugThe third and final show in Matthew’s BBC series on genetic engineering
144. 3 AugMy brilliant idea on how to get people vaccinated
145. 3 AugFantastic slow-mo videos of moths
146. 2 AugMonday: Hili dialogue
147. 2 AugReaders’ wildlife photos and video
148. 2 AugMy podcast with Iona Italia
149. 2 AugU of C activists demand a “People’s Library” and a “People’s University” with no administration or Board of Trustees
150. 2 AugAn Intelligence-Squared Debate: Has the New York Times lost its way?
151. 2 AugTheRighting: a right-wing news aggregator for Left-wing readers
152. 1 AugSunday: Hili dialogue
153. 1 AugReaders’ wildlife photos
154. 1 AugDiscussion thread
155. 1 AugSunday ducks (and turtles)

July 2021

1. 31 JulSaturday: Hili dialogue
2. 31 JulReaders’ wildlife photos
3. 31 JulCaturday felid trifecta: How to befriend a misanthropic cat; Instagram “influencer” cat banned for being too young; cats smell durian fruit for the first time; and lagniappe
4. 31 JulMatt Taibbi on the decline of NPR
5. 31 JulIs now the winter of our discontent?
6. 30 JulFriday: Hili dialogue
7. 30 JulReaders’ wildlife photos
8. 30 JulNew NPR ethics policy raises questions about what journalists are permitted to say privately
9. 30 JulSome science listening from the BBC
10. 30 JulGutsy impala evades wild dogs, crocodiles, and angry hippos
11. 29 JulThursday: Hili dialogue
12. 29 JulReaders’ wildlife photos
13. 29 JulOldest evidence for animals found? New sponge-like fossil is 890 million years old, several hundred million years older than next oldest animal
14. 29 JulKodak deletes pictures of Xinjiang, but it’s too late: Bari Weiss’s site publishes them
15. 29 JulThe best of culture (my own view)
16. 28 JulWednesday: Hili dialogue
17. 28 JulReaders’ wildlife photos
18. 28 JulReprising a few Roolz
19. 28 JulJesus ‘n’ Mo ‘n’ skin
20. 28 JulAlan Sokal descries the place of postmodernism in the alt-Right’s denial of facts, but neglects the Left
21. 27 JulTuesday: Hili dialogue
22. 27 JulReaders’ wildlife photos
23. 27 JulPart 2 of Matthew’s 3-part BBC show on genetic engineering
24. 27 JulMed school and the denial of biological sex
25. 26 JulMonday: Hili dialogue
26. 26 JulReaders’ wildlife photos
27. 26 JulFire use by hominins: an example of rapid cultural evolution?
28. 26 JulSean M. Carroll shows that panpsychism is unlikely and unnecessary
29. 25 JulSunday: Hili dialogue
30. 25 JulReaders’ wildlife photos
31. 25 JulCultural evolution in an Australian parrot (?)
32. 25 JulPanpsychism hangs around like a bad penny
33. 25 JulRecommended film: “My Octopus Teacher”
34. 24 JulSaturday: Hili dialogue
35. 24 JulReaders’ wildlife photos
36. 24 JulCaturday felid trifecta: Majestic Maine Coons, the hidden world of cats, most cat friendly places in the U.S., and lagniappe
37. 24 JulAndrew Sullivan recommends going easy on China and letting them have Taiwan, all to reduce global warming
38. 24 JulSteven Weinberg died
39. 23 JulFriday: Hili dialogue
40. 23 JulReaders’ wildlife photos
41. 23 JulThe obituaries for Dick Lewontin
42. 23 JulDiscussion thread
43. 23 JulWood duck romance in 2020
44. 22 JulThomas Jefferson, slaveholder
45. 22 JulThursday: Hili dialogue
46. 22 JulReaders’ wildlife photos
47. 22 JulA short primer on Critical Race Theory
48. 21 JulWednesday: Hili dialogue
49. 21 JulReaders’ wildlife photos
50. 21 JulJesus ‘n’ Mo ‘n’ Lewis
51. 21 JulBari Weiss in conversation with Masih Alinejad
52. 21 JulDucklings climb Everest
53. 20 JulTuesday: Hili dialogue
54. 20 JulBezos’s “Blue Origin” flies into space today: 9 a.m. Eastern U.S. time
55. 20 JulReader’s wildlife photos
56. 20 JulMatthew’s new BBC show on recombinant DNA
57. 20 JulAnt- and wasp-mimicking jumping spiders
58. 19 JulMonday: Hili dialogue
59. 19 JulReaders’ wildlife photos
60. 19 JulManchester Museum to add “multifaith” space (presumably largely for Muslims)
61. 19 JulIs being a bit overweight good for you?
62. 19 JulPanda cubs in the snow
63. 18 JulSunday: Hili dialogue
64. 18 JulReaders’ wildlife photos
65. 18 JulJesse Singal fact-checks Science-Based Medicine again
66. 18 JulChristianity and religion in general are dying in America, especially among Hispanics
67. 18 JulSunday ducks
68. 17 JulSaturday: Hili dialogue
69. 17 JulReaders’ wildlife photos
70. 17 JulCaturday felid trifecta: Turning your back on a lion; Japan’s stunning digital cat billboard; Hank gets groomed; and lagniappe
71. 17 JulThe American Booksellers Association apologizes for mailing out Abigail Shrier’s book, calling it a “serious, violent incident”
72. 17 JulAndrew Sullivan flogs his new book and discusses the meaning of CRT
73. 16 JulFriday: Hili dialogue
74. 16 JulReaders’ wildlife photos
75. 16 JulBad news from Colin Franks
76. 16 JulJesse Singal: Science-Based Medicine has put its foot into it
77. 16 JulIsrael can’t catch a break: The rejected vaccine exchange with Palestine
78. 16 JulSelling term papers
79. 15 JulThursday: Hili dialogue
80. 15 JulReaders’ wildlife photos
81. 15 JulRemembrances of Ken Miyata
82. 15 JulWords and phrases I detest
83. 14 JulWednesday: Hili dialogue
84. 14 JulReader’s wildlife photos
85. 14 JulJesus ‘n’ Mo ‘n’ reaction
86. 14 JulOnce again, should teaching CRT be banned? Richard Hanania says it won’t work, but offers another solution that liberals won’t like
87. 14 JulDiscussion thread
88. 13 JulTuesday: Hili dialogue
89. 13 JulReaders’ wildlife photos
90. 13 JulMajor U.S. media outlets whitewash the odious Palestinian “Martyr’s Fund”
91. 13 JulLegal Aid Society demonizes progressive public defender who criticized racial tribalism
92. 12 JulMonday: Hili dialogue
93. 12 JulReaders’ wildlife photos
94. 12 JulNow they’ve come for the ants and the moths—and the rest of the insects will be vetted
95. 12 JulHelen Pluckrose interviews Sam Harris
96. 11 JulSunday: Hili dialogue (s)
97. 11 JulReaders’ wildlife photos
98. 11 JulSteve Pinker talks with Helen Pluckrose for Counterweight
99. 11 JulMore mishigas at Scientific American: A claim that opposition to evolution comes from white supremacy, not religion
100. 11 JulThe 2021 Audubon photography awards
101. 11 JulOy: another duckling rescue!
102. 10 JulSaturday: Hili dialogue
103. 10 JulReaders’ wildlife photos
104. 10 JulCaturday felid trifecta: Fifty seriously spoiled cats; ship’s cats in tiny hammocks; pandemic may have made cats more affectionate; and extra lagniappe
105. 10 JulSpot the snow leopard!
106. 10 JulMore thoughts on Dick Lewontin (post by Greg Mayer)
107. 10 JulAndrew Sullivan on the death of “true liberalism”
108. 10 JulWe hit 73,000
109. 10 JulHere’s the snow leopard!
110. 9 JulFriday: Hili dialogue
111. 9 JulReaders’ wildlife photos
112. 9 JulFIRE: Should teaching CRT be banned?
113. 9 JulI rescued six ducklings!
114. 9 JulEmpty nest to egg in 8 minutes! An efficient Blue Tit
115. 8 JulThursday: Hili dialogue
116. 8 JulReaders’ wildlife photos
117. 8 JulSome thoughts on Dick Lewontin’s obituary in the New York Times
118. 8 JulShould we replace the traditional ways of evaluating scientific quality with indices of mentorship?
119. 8 JulBob Richards answers Agustin Fuentes
120. 8 Jul“God Only Knows” redux
121. 7 JulWednesday: Hili dialogue
122. 7 JulReaders’ wildlife photos
123. 7 JulJesus ‘n’ Mo ‘n’ statues
124. 7 JulDiversity officer loses job for criticizing anti-Semitic attacks on Jews
125. 7 JulWednesday duckling
126. 7 JulAfternoon time-wasting: Beaver chews through tree limb
127. 6 JulTuesday: Hili dialogue
128. 6 JulReaders’ wildlife photos
129. 6 JulShould teaching CRT be banned?
130. 6 JulHarvard announces Lewontin’s death
131. 6 JulPolitical protests from the podium banned by the IOC; do you agree?
132. 6 JulSummer camp in Gaza: “Hitler left some of you Jews alive in order to show us how wicked you are.”
133. 5 JulMonday: Hili dialogue
134. 5 JulReaders’ wildlife photos
135. 5 JulDick Lewontin, 1929-2021
136. 5 JulDawkins on “ways of knowing”
137. 4 JulSunday: Hili dialogue
138. 4 JulReaders’ wildlife photos
139. 4 JulHaverford College earns disgrace as FIRE’s “speech code of the month”
140. 4 JulA new podcast: Dawkins on how to write popular science
141. 3 JulSaturday: Hili dialogue (and Leon monologue)
142. 3 JulReaders’ wildlife photos
143. 3 JulCaturday felid trifecta: Supposedly cremated cat returns home; the world’s most talented cats; Curtis Sliwa and 15 cats in a NYC studio apartment
144. 3 JulMore on Abigail Shrier, Harriet Hall, Science-Based Medicine, Jesse Singal, and transitioning
145. 3 JulVisualizing scenes in novels
146. 2 JulFriday: Hili dialogue
147. 2 JulReaders’ wildlife photos
148. 2 JulSteven Novella and David Gorski defend their removal of Harriet Hall’s book review (the book: Irreversible Damage by Abigail Shrier)
149. 2 JulTeacher fights for job after repeating student’s use of racial slur when reporting the student for using that racial slur
150. 1 JulThursday: Hili dialogue
151. 1 JulReaders’ wildlife photos
152. 1 JulMore bogus claims from a believer that everyone, including atheists, realizes that Christianity is essential for the survival of the West
153. 1 JulAtlantic: The Left’s dismantling of meritocracy hurts Democrats
154. 1 JulThursday ducks: a new but small brood!
155. 1 JulAustralian woman has tonsil surgery, wakes up with Irish accent

June 2021

1. 30 JunWednesday: Hili dialogue
2. 30 JunReaders’ wildlife photos
3. 30 JunJesus ‘n’ Mo ‘n’ no gods
4. 30 JunA discussion on genetics, evolution, and information with Richard Dawkins
5. 30 JunScholar denies, in the face of strong evidence, that Norse “settled” in North America, but only because he doesn’t like the implications
6. 30 JunA Venn diagram for the anxious
7. 29 JunTuesday: Hili dialogue
8. 29 JunReaders’ wildlife photos
9. 29 JunFailures of replication in psychology
10. 29 JunAre we playing into the hands of the Right by criticizing the excesses of the Left?
11. 29 JunBari Weiss unpacks Amazon Studios’ new inclusion policy and playbook
12. 28 JunMonday: Hili dialogue (and Szaron monologue)
13. 28 JunReaders’ wildlife photos
14. 28 JunBrandeis’s revision of language: a mixed bag
15. 28 JunGallup poll: American’s view on the rights of transgender people
16. 27 JunSunday: Hili dialogue (and Mietek monologue)
17. 27 JunReaders’ wildlife photos
18. 27 JunJohn Horgan makes a strawman argument against “consilience”
19. 27 JunJustice as fairness: gender in sports
20. 27 JunBird Photographer of the Year contest
21. 26 JunSaturday: Hili dialogue
22. 26 JunReaders’ wildlife photos
23. 26 JunCaturday felid trifecta: Public cat-shaming of a cat burglar; Revisiting a cat pub; a new Netflix film on cat people;
24. 26 Jun“Citizen” science?
25. 26 JunJohn McWhorter: Why electism isn’t just “like” a religion, but IS a religion
26. 25 JunFriday: Hili dialogue
27. 25 JunReaders’ wildlife photos
28. 25 JunDiscussion thread
29. 24 JunThursday: Hili dialogue
30. 24 JunReaders’ wildlife photos
31. 24 JunThe University of Oklahoma teaches instructors how to make students shut up and swallow an accepted ideology
32. 24 JunUnintentional humor of the day: Why French food is racist and expresses white supremacy
33. 23 JunWednesday: Hili dialogue
34. 23 JunReaders’ wildlife photos
35. 23 JunReactions to views about transsexuality and race
36. 23 JunJesus ‘n’ Mo ‘n’ hypocrisy
37. 23 JunJon Stewart gets pushback for dissing science and insisting on a lab-leak origin for Covid-19
38. 23 JunSupreme Court rules for cheerleader accused of obscene and disruptive speech
39. 23 Jun“A Case of You”
40. 22 JunTuesday: Hili dialogue
41. 22 JunReaders’ wildlife photos
42. 22 JunScience-Based Medicine unfairly deplatforms a book review
43. 22 JunWaPo editor blames reading gaps between groups on systemic racism
44. 22 JunA wandering herd of Asian elephants
45. 21 JunMonday: Hili dialogue
46. 21 JunReaders’ wildlife photos
47. 21 JunThe absence of objective morality
48. 21 JunCNN describes (and tacitly supports) the existence of “after death communications”
49. 21 JunOur letter to Science about Agustín Fuentes’s Darwin-bashing
50. 20 JunSunday: Hili dialogue
51. 20 JunReaders’ wildlife photos
52. 20 JunWrongheaded religious accommodationism in physics
53. 20 JunVancouver school board ditches honors math and science courses (English, too), fibs about why
54. 20 Jun“Kiss From a Rose”
55. 19 JunSaturday: Hili dialogue
56. 19 JunReaders’ wildlife photos
57. 19 JunCaturday felid trifecta: “Big Floppa” the pet caracal, cat interrupts CBS News, the Kifness symphony, and lagniappe
58. 19 JunScientific American: religious or “spiritual” treatment of mental illness produces better outcomes
59. 19 JunAndrew Sullivan on why we shouldn’t ban the teaching of CRT, but why it’s bad to teach it
60. 19 JunThe death of pop and rock via Auto-Tune
61. 18 JunFriday: Hili dialogue
62. 18 JunReaders’ wildlife photos and videos
63. 18 JunWhat is a social construct?
64. 18 JunFriday ducks (and turtle lagniappe)
65. 18 JunA post of mine on human genetics gets condemned and labeled “harmful” by a university
66. 17 JunThursday: Hili dialogue (and Mietek monologue)
67. 17 JunReaders’ wildlife photos
68. 17 JunU Chicago law professor: Universities need dedicated units and officers to protect academic freedom and free speech
69. 17 JunA wine recommendation
70. 16 JunWednesday: Hili dialogue
71. 16 JunReaders’ wildlife photos
72. 16 JunJesus ‘n’ Mo ‘n’ performative outrage
73. 16 JunScientific American withdraws anti-Semitic op-ed
74. 16 JunMore racism in birding and bird names
75. 16 JunThe world’s most beautiful spots
76. 16 JunDennett on consciousness and other stuff
77. 15 JunTuesday: Hili dialogue
78. 15 JunReaders’ wildlife photos
79. 15 JunJapan’s death penalty
80. 15 JunWhy ideology should not be injected into science
81. 15 Jun“Moonstruck”: a contrarian review
82. 14 JunMonday: Hili dialogue
83. 14 JunWildlife photos: Visit to a Great Blue Heron Rookery
84. 14 JunFaith versus fact: the problem of Native American creationism and paleoanthropology in North America
85. 13 JunSunday: Hili dialogue
86. 13 JunReaders’ wildlife photos
87. 13 JunPunctuated equilibrium is dead; long live the Modern Synthesis
88. 13 JunShould police and the media release the ethnicity of unapprehended criminal suspects?
89. 13 JunMeet the new Botany Pond babies!
90. 12 JunSaturday: Hili dialogue
91. 12 JunReaders’ wildlife photos (and a video)
92. 12 JunCaturday felid trifecta: Really adventurous cat; One-eyed Hawaiian surfing cat;Shanghai company takes in pregnant mother, rears eight kittens; and lagniappe
93. 12 Jun“Progressophobia” demolished by Bill Maher: “Kids, there actually was a world before you got here.”
94. 12 JunWhy the big increase in U.S. murders? Andrew Sullivan has a theory which is his.
95. 12 JunDuck news!!
96. 11 JunFriday: Hili dialogue (and Kulka dialogue)
97. 11 JunReaders’ wildlife photos
98. 11 JunToday in collegiate dystopia: the triumph of Goodhart’s Law
99. 11 JunA new paper by a psychoanalyst looks like a hoax, but isn’t
100. 11 JunA poll: Will wokeism hurt the Democrats in the midterms and in 2024?
101. 10 JunThursday: Hili dialogue
102. 10 JunReaders’ wildlife photos
103. 10 JunWhy apple pie is a symbol of racism, genocide, white supremacy, and cultural appropriation
104. 10 JunThe ACLU unconvincingly denies accusations of “mission creep”
105. 10 JunPatricia Churchland on consciousness and the brain
106. 10 JunMcWhorter backs off a tad on language requirements for studying classics
107. 10 JunWaddles the Duck gets a prosthetic leg
108. 9 JunWednesday: Hili dialogue
109. 9 JunReaders’ wildlife photos
110. 9 JunJesus ‘n’ Mo ‘n’ Bulver
111. 9 JunResponse by Brian Charlesworth to the latest episode of Darwin-dissing
112. 9 JunMichelle Goldberg on why the Left needs the ACLU to keep defending odious speech
113. 9 JunPrinceton’s Classics Department ditches student requirement for knowing either Latin or Greek
114. 9 JunHoney the Duck eats from my hand!
115. 8 JunTuesday: Hili dialogue
116. 8 JunReaders’ wildlife photos
117. 8 JunOn the trend to “depublish” books
118. 8 JunUniversity of Chicago student government refuses to retract pro-Palestinian, pro-BDS, anti-Zionist statement
119. 8 JunWhat is CRT? How to find out
120. 8 JunBird- squirrel- and chipmunk-feeding machine
121. 7 JunMonday: Hili dialogue
122. 7 JunReaders’ wildlife photos
123. 7 JunThe ACLU loses its way
124. 7 JunDoes cancel culture work?
125. 7 JunScientific American publishes misleading and distorted op-ed lauding Palestine and demonizing Israel, accompanied by a pro-Palestinian petition
126. 6 JunSunday: Hili dialogue
127. 6 JunReaders’ wildlife photos
128. 6 JunSex with a stranger? Evolutionary psychology and sex differences in behavior
129. 6 JunShould we cancel Walt Whitman?
130. 6 JunShould the government pay for everyone’s college?
131. 5 JunSaturday: Hili dialogue
132. 5 JunReaders’ wildlife photos
133. 5 JunHow many ducks were there?
134. 5 JunCaturday felid trifecta: Cats sleeping oddly; elephant cats; cats of brutalism; and lagniappe
135. 5 JunSullivan on Orwell on Language
136. 5 JunOne response to Agustín Fuentes’s Darwin-dissing
137. 5 JunWolf pup tries to howl
138. 4 JunFriday: Hili dialogue
139. 4 JunReaders’ wildlife photos
140. 4 JunCancel culture: is it real and, if so, how can we tame it?
141. 4 JunSpot the hen!
142. 4 JunKatie Herzog on metastasizing wokeness in medicine
143. 4 JunDid the Covid-19 virus come from a Wuhan lab? It’s looking increasingly likely.
144. 3 JunThursday: Hili dialogue
145. 3 JunReaders’ wildlife photos
146. 3 JunKrauss on the universality of science
147. 3 JunStanford University tries to block student from graduating for publishing a satirical post, fails on First Amendment grounds
148. 3 JunJohn McWhorter favors affirmative action, but based not on race but on disadvantage, not race; also says that there’s little evidence that racial diversity improves schools and education
149. 2 JunWednesday: Hili dialogue
150. 2 JunReaders’ wildlife photos and videos
151. 2 JunJesus ‘n’ Mo ‘n’ othering
152. 2 JunJane Goodall nabs the Templeton Prize
153. 2 JunU. Chicago student government demands elimination of Israel, but University administration refuses to take stand on Israel/Palestine war
154. 2 JunGuardian: All statues should come down, no matter whom they depict
155. 2 JunRescue of baby raccoons
156. 1 JunTuesday: Hili dialogue
157. 1 JunReaders’ wildlife photos
158. 1 JunNew woke taxonomy: a special pronoun added to a species’ name
159. 1 JunGreg Lukianoff’s answers to common criticisms of free speech
160. 1 JunAndrés Roemer, Mexican intellectual and founder of “Ciudad de Las Ideas” meeting, issued arrest warrants for sexual harassment, rape, and abuse

May 2021

1. 31 MayMonday: Hili dialogue
2. 31 MayReaders’ wildlife photos
3. 31 MayStuff that’s gotten more expensive
4. 31 MayHow I spent my afternoon
5. 30 MaySunday: Hili dialogue
6. 30 MayReaders’ wildlife photos
7. 30 MayDawkins converses with Tyson
8. 30 MayAn unbelievably invidious op-ed in the NYT: Americans shouldn’t physically attack Jews because it inhibits our ability to criticize Israel
9. 30 MayBill Maher’s latest show with James Carville and Nicholas Kristof:
10. 30 MayBill Maher show back up; watch ASAP
11. 29 MaySaturday: Hili dialogue
12. 29 MayReaders’ wildlife photos
13. 29 MayCaturday felids: Cat mascot spreads the word about masks; cat survives five-story leap to escape building fire; boot camp for chunky cats, and lagniappe
14. 29 MayMcWhorter on “cultural language appropriation”
15. 29 May“Jack the Bear”
16. 28 MayFriday: Hili dialogue
17. 28 MayReaders’ wildlife photos
18. 28 MayBranch of Rutgers Law School rescinds unconstitutional requirement mandating “viewpoint discrimination” with respect to CRT
19. 28 MayRiddle me this: a grammar mystery
20. 28 MayPhotos from my past
21. 27 MayThursday: Hili dialogue
22. 27 MayReaders’ wildlife photos
23. 27 MayJesus ‘n’ Mo ‘n’ drugs
24. 27 MayThomas Edsall on toxic wokeness and how it hurts the Left
25. 27 MayThursday ducks
26. 26 MayWednesday: Hili dialogue
27. 26 MayReaders’ wildlife photos
28. 26 MayRobert Wright takes apart Agustín Fuentes’s critique of Darwin
29. 26 MayWhat’s wrong with this picture?
30. 26 MayInterspecies primate love
31. 25 MayTuesday: Hili dialogue
32. 25 MayReaders’ wildlife videos
33. 25 MayAnother death threat
34. 25 MayUniversity College London handles political controversy the right way
35. 25 MayTest for teacher literacy ditched in New York State
36. 25 MayConcerto for Cootie
37. 24 MayMonday: Hili dialogue (and Mietek monologue)
38. 24 MayReaders’ travel photos
39. 24 MayHow much variation in human behavior is due to variation in our genes? Answer: quite a bit.
40. 24 MayI get email
41. 24 MayPence book deal opposed by Simon & Schuster employees, company tells protestors to get stuffed
42. 24 MayA letter to Bob Dylan from the President of Ireland
43. 24 MayMcWhorter’s book is done and in press: he calls it “the most pro-black book” he’s ever written
44. 23 MaySunday: Hili dialogue
45. 23 MayReaders’ turtles
46. 23 MayReaders’ wildlife photos
47. 23 MayThe Economist on the Israeli-Palestinian ceasefire
48. 23 MayAnother duck hiatus
49. 22 MaySaturday: Hili dialogue (and Leon monologue)
50. 22 MayReaders’ wildlife photos and video
51. 22 MayCaturday felid trifecta: Why did the leopard cross the road?; do cats rub their butts on everything?; controversy about “Le Chat” museum; and lagniappe
52. 22 MayA Pecksniffian anthropologist takes down Darwin for being a man of his time
53. 22 MayGuy solves three Rubik’s cubes while juggling them
54. 21 MayFriday: Hili dialogue
55. 21 MayReaders’ wildlife photos
56. 21 MayBlatantly unconstitutional Connecticut law apparently prohibits blasphemy and other insults
57. 21 MayFIRE has a chat about free speech with the University of Chicago’s incoming President
58. 21 May“Hooker’s Arch”: A post by Andrew Berry
59. 20 MayThursday: Hili dialogue and Mietek monologue
60. 20 MayReaders’ wildlife photos
61. 20 MayDuck-related hiatus
62. 20 MayMcWhorter: The anti-racist “Elect” are as antiscience as the anti-vaxxer and anti-masking Right
63. 20 MayAnother “UFO” explained as an artifact
64. 19 MayWednesday: Hili dialogue (and Mietek monologue)
65. 19 MayReaders’ wildlife photos
66. 19 MayJesus ‘n’ Mo ‘n’ creationism
67. 19 MayDiscussion: The Israel v. Palestine crisis
68. 18 MayTuesday: Hili dialogue
69. 18 MayReaders’ wildlife photos
70. 18 MayEric Clapton again disses coronavirus vaccines
71. 18 MayEditing function: is it wonky for you?
72. 18 MayUFOs for real?
73. 17 MayMonday: Hili dialogue
74. 17 MayReaders’ wildlife photos
75. 17 MayFIRE’s (bad) speech code of the month: The University of Wisconsin at Oshkosh
76. 17 MaySupreme Court agrees to decide major abortion case: not good news for Roe v. Wade
77. 17 MayThe man with a memory only seven seconds long
78. 16 MaySunday: Hili dialogue
79. 16 MayReaders’ wildlife photos
80. 16 MayWhy evangelical Christians fear Covid vaccination
81. 16 MayThroughout Europe, pro-Palestinian protestors shout “Death to the Jews” and similar slogans
82. 16 MaySunday ducks
83. 15 MaySaturday: Hili dialogue
84. 15 MayReaders’ wildlife photos
85. 15 MayCaturday felid trifecta: Do cats sit in imaginary boxes?; Leonardo’s “child with cat”, and lagniappe
86. 15 MayScottish law student persecuted for asserting that women have vaginas and are weaker than men
87. 15 May“Ko-Ko”
88. 14 MayFriday: Hili dialogue
89. 14 MayReaders’ wildlife photos and videos
90. 14 MayDinner last night
91. 14 MayThe end of my conversation with Adam Gopnik about “ways of knowing”
92. 14 MayLife without parole: man receives “third strike” sentence for possessing more than an ounce of pot
93. 14 MayHas the pandemic changed you?
94. 13 MayThursday: Hili dialogue
95. 13 MayReaders’ wildlife photos
96. 13 MayIsrael and Palestine, take 3.
97. 13 MayA tricky quiz
98. 13 MayThursday ducks
99. 12 MayWednesday: Hili dialogue
100. 12 MayReaders’ wildlife photos
101. 12 MayJesus ‘n’ Mo ‘n’ the Past
102. 12 MayMore to discuss on the Israel/Palestine conflict
103. 12 MayDucks and a gosling rescue
104. 12 MaySpot the woodcock chicks!
105. 12 MayHere are the woodcock chicks!
106. 11 MayTuesday: Hili dialogue
107. 11 MayReaders’ wildlife photos
108. 11 MayThe blood libel of The Onion
109. 11 MayMcWhorter: What is “systemic racism”?
110. 11 May“Here we believe science is real”. . . . well, not everyone
111. 10 MayMonday: Hili dialogue
112. 10 MayReaders’ wildlife photos
113. 10 MayTorygraph exaggerates Darwin’s evil in trying to smear Sheffield’s “decolonized” biology curriculum; and a bonus guest take by Andrew Berry
114. 10 MayKenan Malik on judging yesterday’s figures by today’s morality
115. 10 MayWorld’s highest everything
116. 9 MaySunday: Hili dialogue
117. 9 MayMore death on Botany Pond
118. 9 MayReaders’ wildlife photos
119. 9 MayChronicle of Higher Ed decries the diversity-driven corporatization of America, suggests some solutions
120. 8 MaySaturday: Hili dialogue (and Mietek monologue)
121. 8 MayReaders’ wildlife photos
122. 8 MayCaturday felid trifecta: Bobcat thanks boy who saved it from fire; Biden’s “Schrödinger’s Cat”; Illustrations of what it’s like to be a cat’s staff
123. 8 MayDavid B. Wake (1936-2021)
124. 8 MayRichard Dawkins’s new book
125. 8 MayMcWhorter on Maher
126. 8 MayMore on Botany Pond
127. 7 MayA discussion of CRT
128. 7 MayDeath on Botany Pond
129. 7 MayAmphibian Week Day 5
130. 7 MayReaders’ wildlife photos
131. 7 MayFriday: Hili dialogue
132. 7 MayHili dialogue!
133. 6 MayThursday: Hili dialogue
134. 6 MayReaders’ wildlife photos
135. 6 MayHuman genetics accused of furthering white supremacy and racism—today
136. 6 MayA great Stephen Fry interview in the NYT (with free-will lagniappe)
137. 6 MayAmphibian Week Day 4
138. 6 MayNew duckling, who dat?
139. 5 MayWednesday: Hili dialogue
140. 5 MayProprietor’s Wildlife: Last night with Bob the Duckling
141. 5 MayBob is integrated!
142. 5 MayJohn McWhorter lays out his position on the use of the n-word, a position omitted from his recent NYT column
143. 5 MayJesus ‘n’ Mo ‘n’ gender
144. 5 MayPinker to speak at Cambridge Union at 2 p.m. Chicago time
145. 5 MayAmphibian Week Day 3
146. 4 MayTuesday: Hili dialogue
147. 4 MayReaders’ wildlife photos
148. 4 MayStill busy
149. 4 MayAmphibian Week– day 2
150. 4 MayShhhhh……
151. 4 MayThe peeper is fine
152. 4 MayLiving the dream. . .
153. 3 MayMonday: Hili dialogue
154. 3 MayReaders’ wildlife photos
155. 3 MayHappy National Amphibian Week!
156. 3 MayPosting slowdown on account of duck farming
157. 3 May“Twenty-Five Things Everyone Used to Understand”
158. 2 MaySunday: Hili dialogue
159. 2 MayReaders’ wildlife photos
160. 2 MayJohn McWhorter, the “n word”, and the odious hypocrisy of the New York Times
161. 2 MayEffectiveness of coronavirus vaccines
162. 2 MayPhilip Roth’s biography pulped after its author is accused of sexual assault
163. 2 MayWorld record: Lowest note sung by a woman
164. 1 MaySaturday: Hili dialogue
165. 1 MayReaders’ wildlife photos
166. 1 MayCaturday felid trifecta: Demon cat; cat obsessed with empty cinnamon bottle ; and how whiskers work (and lagniappe)
167. 1 MayI may be busy for a while. . . .

April 2021

1. 30 AprFriday: Hili dialogue
2. 30 AprReaders’ wildlife photos
3. 30 AprA teacher and educator argues for high (and similar) standards and expectations for all students
4. 30 AprWhy do we need free-will compatibilism?
5. 30 AprWords and phrases I detest
6. 30 AprIt’s almost duckling time!
7. 29 AprThursday: Hili dialogue (and Leon monologue)
8. 29 AprA note to readers about civility
9. 29 AprReader’s wildlife video
10. 29 AprReader discussion: Biden’s speech
11. 29 AprThe hell that India has become
12. 29 AprEdit function working?
13. 28 AprWednesday: Hili dialogue
14. 28 AprReaders’ wildlife photos
15. 28 AprJesus ‘n’ Mo ‘n’ cancellation
16. 28 AprBari Weiss has a round table on the meaning of “systemic racism”
17. 28 AprJames Carville is worried about the Democrats’ message
18. 27 AprTuesday: Hili dialogue
19. 27 AprReaders’ wildlife photos
20. 27 AprA Guardian “long read” on free will
21. 27 AprMore on woke birding: changing the names of all birds named after people will at least create an inclusive birding community—and help conserve birds
22. 27 AprHow college admissions have become a mess, as well as moralistic and intrusive
23. 26 AprMonday: Hili dialogue (and Leon monologue)
24. 26 AprReaders’ wildlife photos
25. 26 AprA new comparison of transgender and transracial identities
26. 26 AprA time-travel game
27. 26 AprHoward University students protest deep-sixing of the Classics Department
28. 25 AprSunday: Hili dialogue
29. 25 AprReaders’ wildlife photos
30. 25 AprThe New Yorker’s hit job on Elizabeth Loftus
31. 25 AprAndrew Sullivan compares wearing masks to gay men wearing condoms
32. 25 AprWhat is this sign really saying?
33. 25 AprEarliest known Joni Mitchell recording, and it’s fantastic
34. 24 AprSaturday: Hili dialogue
35. 24 AprReaders’ wildlife photos
36. 24 AprCaturday felid trifecta: Rare video of Chinese mountain cats; a very round cat; a family of Korean policecats (and lagniappe)
37. 24 AprHoward University about to dissolve its classics department; Cornel West and Jeremy Tate object
38. 24 AprMy nephew awards his Oscar equivalents, the “Golden Steves”
39. 23 AprHalf an hour until the SpaceX launch
40. 23 AprFriday: Hili dialogue
41. 23 AprReaders’ wildlife photos
42. 23 AprThe conversation with Adam Gopnik continues
43. 23 AprConservative Supreme Court takes away a route to rehabilitation for juveniles convicted of capital crimes
44. 23 AprMcWhorter on “white values”
45. 22 AprThursday: Hili dialogue
46. 22 AprReaders’ wildlife photos
47. 22 AprPinker and Goldstein respond to the American Humanist Association’s cancellation of Dawkins
48. 22 AprArkansas creationism bill fails—but narrowly
49. 22 AprThe diversity training racket
50. 22 AprThursday art: Banana bruiser and ambidextrous artist
51. 22 AprGuest post: SpaceX launch early Friday (5:49 a.m. Eastern time)
52. 21 AprWednesday: Hili dialogue
53. 21 AprAnswers to the “young musicians quiz” (and two more to guess)
54. 21 AprJesus ‘n’ Mo ‘n’ the Infidel Game
55. 21 AprThe Godless Spellchecker defends Dawkins against transphobia
56. 21 AprA call to optimism from Glenn Loury
57. 21 Apr“Jessica”
58. 20 AprTuesday: Hili dialogue
59. 20 AprReaders’ wildlife photos
60. 20 AprBiden administration poised to impose CRT on American public schools
61. 20 AprGuess the music stars
62. 20 AprVerdict reached in Derek Chauvin trial: Guilty on all three charges
63. 19 AprLivestream on the Mars helicopter starts now. IT FLEW!
64. 19 AprMonday: Hili dialogue
65. 19 AprReaders’ wildlife photos
66. 19 AprShort take on a book: Dennett vs. Caruso in “Just Deserts”
67. 19 AprHoney’s nest
68. 19 AprNeil deGrasse Tyson on reviving public interest in science (and other stuff)
69. 18 AprSunday: Hili dialogue
70. 18 AprReaders’ wildlife photos
71. 18 AprSpot the cats!
72. 18 AprHere are the cats!
73. 18 AprBdelloid rotifers, once the poster group for having no sex, now thought to have been bonking on the sly
74. 18 AprBernstein on the Beatles
75. 18 AprPhotos from my constitutional
76. 17 AprSaturday: Hili dialogue
77. 17 AprReaders’ wildlife photos
78. 17 AprCaturday felids: Stray cat bring sick kittens to vet; French chats in weird places; and the white cats of the Sydney River Bridge (and lagniappe)
79. 17 AprFrance’s highest court sets anti-Semitic murderer free because he was high on weed when he killed a Jewish woman
80. 17 AprTwo Saturday Substacks to read: McWhorter and Sullivan
81. 16 AprFriday: Hili dialogue
82. 16 AprReaders’ wildlife photos
83. 16 AprMore badinage: looking backwards
84. 15 AprThursday: Hili dialogue
85. 15 AprReaders’ wildlife photos
86. 15 AprThursday ducks: pics and videos
87. 15 AprZeFrank on trap-jaw ants
88. 14 AprWednesday: Hili dialogue
89. 14 AprReaders’ wildlife photos
90. 14 AprJesus ‘n’ Mo ‘n’ morality
91. 14 AprProfessor Ceiling Cat (Emeritus): “Ask me anything”
92. 14 AprInstallment 7 of McWhorter’s “The Elect”
93. 14 AprA Magellanic penguin visits his rescuer in Brazil every year
94. 13 AprTuesday: Hili dialogue
95. 13 AprReaders’ wildlife photos
96. 13 AprHawaiian shirts are now “problematic” symbols of colonialism
97. 13 AprThe Friendly Atheist is not so friendly, damns Richard Dawkins as “transphobic” for comparing transexualism with transracialism
98. 13 AprAnother educator risks his job by objecting to mandatory and ideologically narrow diversity training
99. 12 AprMonday: Hili dialogue
100. 12 AprReaders’ wildlife photos
101. 12 AprThe American Library Association’s “challenged book” list for 2020, censoriousness of the Right, and much more about race and less about LGBTQ issues than previously
102. 12 AprThe pathetic Michael Egnor thinks the existence of stuff proves God
103. 11 AprSunday: Hili dialogue
104. 11 AprReaders’ wildlife photos
105. 11 AprRoss Douthat laments the “elite’s” loss of faith
106. 11 AprUniversity of Oklahoma illegally compels students and staff to give “approved” answers during mandatory diversity training
107. 11 AprThe Skeptic magazine is skeptical about two sexes in humans; a clear thinker sets them straight
108. 10 AprSaturday: Hili dialogue
109. 10 AprReaders’ wildlife photos
110. 10 AprCaturday felid trifecta: Cats sleeping in strange places; Dubai’s stray cat cafe; a bogus “demon cat”; and lagniappe
111. 10 AprHarvard issues most self-abasing antiracist statement ever
112. 9 AprFriday: Hili dialogue
113. 9 AprFinalists: Bird photographer of the year
114. 9 AprThree evolution societies condemn the shootings in Atlanta; a few of us react
115. 9 AprFacebook puts a damper on Holocaust Remembrance Day
116. 8 AprThursday: Hili dialogue
117. 8 AprReaders’ wildlife photos
118. 8 AprDiscuss: Should the filibuster process die in the U.S. Senate?
119. 8 AprWhy
120. 8 AprWhat is art? What is vandalism?
121. 8 AprTexas, Day 10: Lagrange to Austin via Lockhart
122. 7 AprWednesday: Hili dialogue
123. 7 AprReaders’ wildlife photos
124. 7 AprJesus ‘n’ Mo ‘n’ stigmata
125. 7 AprThe uselessness of land acknowledgments
126. 7 AprTexas, Day 9: Around La Grange
127. 7 AprIn which PCC(E) tells people how to get rid of fruit flies
128. 6 AprTuesday: Hili dialogue
129. 6 AprSpot the mallard!
130. 6 AprReaders’ wildlife photos
131. 6 AprTexas, Day 8: Georgetown to La Grange
132. 6 AprHere’s the mallard!
133. 6 Apr“Proof” of the afterlife in the Globe and Mail!
134. 5 AprMonday: Hili dialogue
135. 5 AprReaders’ wildlife photos
136. 5 AprTexas, Day 7: Johnson City to Georgetown via Llano
137. 5 AprThe Covid vaccines: science or miracles?
138. 4 AprSunday: Hili dialogue
139. 4 AprReaders’ wildlife photos
140. 4 AprTexas, Day 6: Johnson City; chicken-fried steak and the LBJ Ranch
141. 4 AprA retrospective look at a paper: Coyne and Orr (1989)
142. 3 AprSaturday: Hili dialogue
143. 3 AprCaturday felid trifecta: Thailand’s fluffiest cat; stray cat becomes BFFs with lynx in a zoo; gangster cats get a new bathroom—and lagniappe
144. 3 AprAndrew Sullivan really does believe in the truth of Catholicsm
145. 3 AprTexas, Day 5: Taylor to Johnson City. Have I found America’s best BBQ?
146. 2 AprFriday: Hili dialogue
147. 2 AprDay 4 in Texas: San Antonio to Taylor
148. 2 AprNew post by Dr. Alex Lickerman: Should you get the Johnson & Johnson vaccine?
149. 2 AprEvolution society renames Fisher Prize; some of us wrote a letter in response
150. 1 AprThursday: Hili dialogue
151. 1 AprReaders’ wildlife photos
152. 1 AprNew letter from Adam Gopnik in our “ways of knowing” exchange
153. 1 AprTacos in San Antonio
154. 1 AprHow the ACLU got woke, became political, and changed its mission

March 2021

1. 31 MarWednesday: Hili dialogue
2. 31 MarNote to readers
3. 31 MarJesus ‘n’ Mo ‘n’ Batley
4. 31 MarDay 2: Texas, Luling to San Antonio
5. 31 MarMcWhorter: Excerpt 6 from “The Elect”
6. 31 MarTransiting the Suez Canal: a lovely video
7. 30 MarDiscussion thread: the trial of Derek Chauvin and other matters
8. 30 MarHere’s the cat!
9. 30 MarTuesday: Hili dialogue
10. 30 MarSpot the cat!
11. 30 MarAmerica’s inexorable secularization: for the first time, less than half of Americans are church members
12. 30 MarReaders’ wildlife photos
13. 29 MarMonday: Hili dialogue
14. 29 MarNo groping at TSA!
15. 29 MarWatch them try to free the Ever Given in real time
16. 29 MarReaders’ wildlife photos
17. 29 MarDucks and Texas BBQ
18. 28 MarSunday: Hili dialogue
19. 28 MarReaders’ wildlife photos
20. 28 MarNow, social justice in organic chemistry class
21. 28 MarIs social-media criticism by professors bullying and a violation of academic freedom?
22. 28 MarSunday ducks: pictures and movies
23. 27 MarSaturday: Hili dialogue
24. 27 MarReaders’ wildlife photos
25. 27 MarCaturday felids: A Japanese meal for cats, a really nasty moggy, and a cat realizes its owner is pregnant
26. 27 MarWhat immigration policy do Democrats want, if any?
27. 27 MarHarvard severely disciplines evolutionary biologist Martin Nowak for his ties to Jeffrey Epstein, closes Nowak’s evolution institute
28. 27 MarWhat is this?
29. 26 MarFriday: Hili dialogue
30. 26 MarReaders’ wildlife photos
31. 26 MarMary Schmich’s new Tribune column on my ducks
32. 26 MarGender studies professor has freedom of speech chilled for “transphobia”
33. 26 MarIs the Left bailing on free speech in social media?
34. 26 MarDarwin rocks out!
35. 26 MarA trio of fat, lazy mallards
36. 25 MarThursday: Hili dialogue
37. 25 MarReaders’ wildlife photos
38. 25 MarWendy Kaminer on free speech, compulsory race and bias training, and why they’re related
39. 25 MarA diligent brown hyena
40. 24 MarWednesday: Hili dialogue
41. 24 MarReaders’ wildlife photos
42. 24 MarJesus ‘n’ Mo ‘n’ pleonasms
43. 24 MarSome pushback to the toxic wokeness at Smith College
44. 24 MarThere are too many guns in the U.S.!
45. 24 MarPhone booth prank
46. 23 MarTuesday: Hili dialogue
47. 23 MarReaders’ wildlife photos
48. 23 MarBret Stephens in the toaster
49. 23 MarReligious treacle from David Brooks
50. 23 MarNeil Shubin to give prestigious lecture on “Your Inner Fish”
51. 23 MarMcWhorter’s new excerpt from “The Elect”
52. 23 MarZeFrank on Merlin Tuttle
53. 22 MarMonday: Hili dialogue
54. 22 MarReaders’ wildlife photos
55. 22 MarPressure grows to label Atlanta shootings as a “hate crime”
56. 22 MarThe “red hen” of Mauritius
57. 22 MarMonday ducks: nesting about to start
58. 22 MarCheck out the VolcanoCam
59. 21 MarSunday: Hili dialogue
60. 21 MarReaders’ wildlife photos
61. 21 MarAre sponges the closest relatives of the rest of the animals?
62. 21 MarMcWhorter on Amanda Gorman’s translators
63. 21 MarIntersectional music made with mathematics and Siri
64. 20 MarSaturday: Hili dialogue
65. 20 MarReaders’ wildlife photos
66. 20 MarCaturday felid trifecta: The return of Maru, with a new kitten; indifferent cats; Thai sailors rescues cats on sinking boat (and lagnaippe)
67. 20 MarLivestream of volcanic eruption in Iceland
68. 20 MarPossible debate between Robin DiAngelo and Ayaan Hirsi Ali
69. 20 MarSullivan on the Atlanta “hate crime”
70. 20 MarBari Weiss’s recommended reading—and ours
71. 19 MarFriday: Hili dialogue
72. 19 MarReaders’ wildlife photos
73. 19 MarAn interview with Dan Dennett on his work and life
74. 19 MarThe rush to judgment in Atlanta
75. 19 MarOctopus sex
76. 18 MarThursday: Hili dialogue
77. 18 MarReaders’ wildlife photos
78. 18 MarJesus ‘n’ Mo ‘n’ rationality
79. 18 MarAnother letter in my exchange with Adam Gopnik
80. 18 MarThe elimination of standardized test requirement makes college admissions crazy this year
81. 18 MarUnwarranted privilege: America’s elite college-prep schools
82. 17 MarWednesday: Hili dialogue (and Szaron monologue)
83. 17 MarReaders’ wildlife photos
84. 17 MarScientific American: Transgender girls belong on girls’ sports teams
85. 17 MarBari Weiss on the toxicity of American private schools (and her readers’ pushback)
86. 17 MarHow to ensure academic freedom
87. 16 MarTuesday: Hili dialogue
88. 16 MarReaders’ wildlife photos
89. 16 MarSpot the caterpillar!
90. 16 MarDiscussion thread: politics and stuff
91. 16 MarTuesday duck photos and videos
92. 16 MarU of C students agitate for a Department of Critical Race Studies
93. 15 MarMonday: Hili dialogue (and Kulka monologue)
94. 15 MarReader’s wildlife video
95. 15 MarHow hormones are sold to children
96. 15 MarPinker on the Worser Angels of our Nature
97. 15 MarMore segregation in secondary schools
98. 14 MarSunday: Hili dialogue
99. 14 MarReaders’ wildlife photos
100. 14 MarJohn McWhorter on the Georgetown diversity drama
101. 14 MarSam Harris: his last thoughts on free will
102. 14 MarGoing to Texas!
103. 13 MarSaturday: Hili dialogue
104. 13 MarReaders’ wildlife photos
105. 13 MarCaturday felid trifecta: Human plays piano for cats; cat park in Colombia; bag of kittens mistaken for a bomb; and lagniappe
106. 13 MarAndrew Sullivan has some concerns about the Biden administration
107. 13 MarA Seussian poem by Bret Weinstein
108. 12 MarFriday: Hili dialogue
109. 12 MarReaders’ wildlife photos
110. 12 MarSpot the hare!
111. 12 MarArkansas going bonkers: passes illegal abortion ban, proposes illegal bill to teach creationism
112. 12 MarA brain dump from Richard Dawkins
113. 12 MarA blind elephant listens to Bach, Chopin, and Schubert
114. 11 MarThursday: Hili dialogue
115. 11 MarReaders’ wildlife photos
116. 11 MarCalifornia may combine boys’ and girls’ clothing/toy sections into one gender-neutral section
117. 11 MarAmanda Gorman’s Catalan translator removed for having the “wrong profile”
118. 11 MarFirst they came for Dumbo, and then they came for Pepe Le Pew
119. 10 MarWednesday: Hili dialogue
120. 10 MarReaders’ wildlife photos
121. 10 MarJesus ‘n’ Mo ‘n’ the Crucifiction
122. 10 Mar“Dear University of Vermont”: a Jodi Shaw equivalent at a different school
123. 10 MarAdam Gopnik’s second letter to me
124. 10 MarRobin DiAngelo has a brand new book
125. 10 MarNote to readers
126. 10 MarAlbatross fails to stick landing
127. 9 MarTuesday: Hili dialogue
128. 9 MarReaders’ wildlife photos
129. 9 MarThe Unhappy Meal
130. 9 MarSea slug regrows entire body from just the decapitated head, or “autotomy with kleptoplasty”
131. 9 MarMcWhorter on Seuss
132. 9 MarA new and powerful organization to preserve freedom of expression in universities
133. 8 MarMonday: Hili dialogue
134. 8 MarReader’s wildlife video
135. 8 MarRosie is Dorothy!
136. 8 MarA creationist professor of evolutionary biology in England
137. 8 MarAnother violation of academic freedom at The University of Chicago
138. 8 MarMcWhorter and Loury on the math gap
139. 7 MarSunday: Hili dialogue
140. 7 MarReaders’ wildlife photos
141. 7 Mar“Problematic” films to be reframed by Turner Classic Movies
142. 7 MarWoke Elementary
143. 7 MarSunday ducks
144. 6 MarSaturday: Hili dialogue
145. 6 MarReaders’ wildlife photos
146. 6 MarCaturday felids: Cats with extra fluffy tails; cats on glass; a message from the White House cat (not yet in existence) and lagniappe
147. 6 MarPerseverance took its first drive on Mars
148. 6 MarDeep-sixing the SATs: the misguided Left discards a valuable tool
149. 5 MarFriday: Hili dialogue
150. 5 MarReaders’ wildlife photos
151. 5 MarBari Weiss on self-censorship
152. 5 MarUniversity of Minnesota adds mandatory racial justice course
153. 5 MarMore about Dr. Seuss, but with humor
154. 5 MarA duck song
155. 4 MarThursday: Hili dialogue
156. 4 MarReaders’ wildlife photos
157. 4 MarAn excellent essay by an actor on the novel “Lolita”
158. 4 MarA creationist writes in: Eric Hedin resurfaces
159. 4 MarNIH accused of structural racism, even though there’s no evidence for it; but director Francis Collins apologizes anyway
160. 4 Mar“Everyone’s just lying to everyone”: ZeFrank on mimicry
161. 3 MarWednesday: Hili dialogue
162. 3 MarReaders’ wildlife photos
163. 3 MarVerification of Honey (and Kim Jong-un)
164. 3 MarJesus ‘n’ Mo ‘n’ determinism
165. 3 MarDonald McNeil, fired from the New York Times, finally defends himself
166. 3 MarBBC show: Matthew and others on Drosophila
167. 3 MarGlenn Greenwald rips Biden, U.S. for coddling Saudi Arabia
168. 2 MarTuesday: Hili dialogue
169. 2 MarReaders’ wildlife photos
170. 2 MarBret Stephens writes another dangerous column
171. 2 MarHoney courted and mated!
172. 2 MarA bit more on the racism of math
173. 1 MarMonday: Hili dialogue
174. 1 MarReaders’ wildlife photos
175. 1 MarWhite translator cancels himself after criticized for translating Amanda Gorman
176. 1 MarUpdate on Shaw v. Smith College
177. 1 MarHoney is back! (I think)
178. 1 MarThe world’s worst apology from an anti-Semite
179. 1 MarJohn McWhorter on anti-racist math
180. 1 MarHow different languages depict dog and cat sounds

February 2021

1. 28 FebSunday: Hili dialogue
2. 28 FebReaders’ wildlife photos
3. 28 FebWhy do woodcocks rock when they walk?
4. 28 FebA new letter to Adam Gopnik
5. 28 FebNBC’s invidious portrayal of Orthodox Jews
6. 27 FebSaturday: Hili dialogue
7. 27 FebReaders’ wildlife photos
8. 27 FebCaturday felid trifecta: Cat-loving men go dateless; First National Trust guard cat; cats and dominos
9. 27 FebA neologism for which I have no theory that is mine
10. 27 FebA squabble: Andrew Sullivan and Mara Keisling on transgender women in women’s sports
11. 26 FebFriday: Hili dialogue
12. 26 FebReaders’ wildlife photos
13. 26 FebWorld criticizes Israel for not giving vaccines to Palestine, even though they do (and aren’t obligated to)
14. 26 FebBiden administration withdraws from lawsuit banning transsexual males from competing in women’s sports
15. 26 FebA new President for the University of Chicago
16. 26 FebAccomodationist physicist: Why science can’t disprove God
17. 25 FebThursday: Hili dialogue (and all the Polish cats)
18. 25 FebReaders’ wildlife photos
19. 25 FebSmith meltdown: NYT reports honestly, for once (but Rolling Stone doesn’t)
20. 25 FebGlenn Greenwald excoriates Dems for assailing free speech
21. 25 FebIce ducks and other things
22. 24 FebWednesday: Hili dialogue
23. 24 FebReaders’ wildlife photos
24. 24 FebJesus ‘n’ Mo ‘n’ Aliens!
25. 24 FebInsulting the hamantasch: the insane cultural policing of recipes
26. 24 FebToday’s reading: a new chapter from John McWhorter
27. 23 FebChilling of speech at Williams College
28. 23 Feb“My Back Pages”
29. 23 FebTuesday: Hili dialogue
30. 23 FebReaders’ wildlife photos
31. 23 FebSmith’s President writes a letter exculpating the College
32. 23 FebDiscussion thread
33. 22 FebMonday: Hili dialogue (and Leon monologue)
34. 22 FebReaders’ wildlife photos
35. 22 FebGoFundMe puts Jodi Shaw’s fund-raising drive on hold
36. 22 FebOnce again, the question of transgender women competing in women’s sports
37. 22 FebVideo and photos of Mars Rover at last!
38. 21 FebSunday: Hili dialogue
39. 21 FebReaders’ wildlife photos
40. 21 FebOn celebrating Rush Limbaugh’s death
41. 21 FebA hard case for free-speech advocates
42. 20 FebSaturday: Hili dialogue
43. 20 FebReaders’ wildlife photos
44. 20 FebCaturday felid trifecta: Best cat tweets; in love with a cheating cat; rescuing Russia’s cats in winter (and lagniappe)
45. 20 FebResponse from Adam Gopnik in the “Ways of knowing” discussion
46. 20 FebJodi Shaw packs it in at Smith
47. 19 FebFriday: Hili dialogue
48. 19 FebReaders’ wildlife photos
49. 19 FebChicago begins identifying potentially offensive and removable monuments, including those honoring Lincoln, McKinley, Ben Franklin, Washington, and Ulysses S. Grant
50. 19 FebOne of our own at the U of C defends the classics
51. 18 FebThursday: Hili dialogue
52. 18 FebReaders’ wildlife photos
53. 18 FebMars Perseverance Rover lands today!
54. 18 FebQuillette banned from Facebook
55. 18 FebFIRE’s annual award: The ten worst American colleges for free speech
56. 18 FebShakespeare gets canceled
57. 18 FebThe Mars Rover is about to land!
58. 17 FebWednesday: Hili dialogue
59. 17 FebReaders’ wildlife photos
60. 17 FebNew Polish law chills the work of historians; forbids accusing Poles of complicity with Nazis against Jews in WWII
61. 17 FebMars Rover “Perseverance” lands tomorrow
62. 17 FebSchool district gets in trouble: decides to count Asians as “whites” to highlight a bigger academic deficit between whites and people of color
63. 17 Feb“Don’t Worry Baby” by Foxes and Fossils
64. 16 FebTuesday: Hili dialogue
65. 16 FebA snow day in Chicago
66. 16 FebJesus ‘n’ Mo ‘n’ Pakistan (again)
67. 16 FebA “Letters” discussion between Adam Gopnik and me on ways of knowing
68. 16 FebLife found deep beneath an Antarctic ice shelf
69. 16 FebMore on the complete degeneration of modern pop music
70. 15 FebMonday: Hili dialogue
71. 15 FebReaders’ wildlife photos
72. 15 FebReadings for today: speaking the unspeakable
73. 15 Feb“Shenandoah”
74. 14 FebSunday: Hili dialogue
75. 14 FebReaders’ wildlife photos
76. 14 FebAsk me anything
77. 14 FebNefarious fungus mimics a grass flower to facilitate its own transmission
78. 14 FebBilly Bass + Alexa = Awesome
79. 13 FebSaturday: Hili dialogue
80. 13 FebReaders’ wildlife photos
81. 13 FebCaturday felid trifecta: Frank and Louis, the two-faced cat; spending the night with cheetahs; crow learns to meow for cat food
82. 13 FebDiscussion: Impeachment trial
83. 13 FebThe New York Times sinks even deeper
84. 13 FebToday’s readings
85. 13 FebBaby otter cam!
86. 12 FebFriday: Hili dialogue
87. 12 FebReaders’ wildlife photos
88. 12 FebDarwin Day Special: Darwin’s daily routine (and lagniappe photos)
89. 12 Feb“Intent is not irrelevant”: New York Times spikes a Bret Stephens column critical of the paper, the New York Post publishes it
90. 12 FebVirtual Darwin Day event on human evolution: tomorrow
91. 11 FebThursday: Hili dialogue
92. 11 FebReaders’ wildlife photos
93. 11 FebCarl Zimmer on governments ignoring and abusing science
94. 11 FebA new lexicon for midwives downgrades words involving “women” and “female”
95. 11 FebTrump lawyer fired from the University of Colorado for giving a speech at Trump’s rally
96. 11 FebCancel culture alive and well
97. 10 FebWednesday: Hili dialogue
98. 10 FebReaders’ wildlife photos
99. 10 FebJesus ‘n’ Mo ‘n’ pronouns
100. 10 FebShort take: “Meltdown” at the New York Times
101. 10 FebImpeachment trial: discuss
102. 9 FebTuesday: Hili dialogue
103. 9 FebReaders’ wildlife photos
104. 9 FebThe Church of Anti-Racism
105. 9 FebThe Lancet goes woke
106. 9 FebThe owl and the cop
107. 8 FebMonday: Hili dialogue
108. 8 FebReaders’ wildlife photos
109. 8 FebMovie review: “Ash is Purest White”
110. 8 FebGreenwald on journalistic tattle-tale culture
111. 8 FebDomino-toppling record: 32,000 blocks fall in 5½ minutes
112. 7 FebSunday: Hili dialogue
113. 7 FebReaders’ wildlife photos
114. 7 FebThe coronavirus and some basic evolutionary genetics
115. 7 FebCraven New York Times editors discipline a distinguished science writer for using the n-word in a non-malicious way, but then fire him after staffers call for his head
116. 7 FebHorrors! Darwin discovered to be a sexist!
117. 6 FebSaturday: Hili dialogue
118. 6 FebReaders’ wildlife photos
119. 6 FebCaturday felid trifecta: Medieval LOLcats, a rare white cougar in Brazil; “grumpy old men” kittens (and lagniappe)
120. 6 FebNYT article: Princeton professor calls for an end to studying classics because they promote white supremacy. Andrew Sullivan issues a strong critique
121. 6 FebChristopher Hitchens’s widow and agent ask friends and associates not to cooperate in a new biography of Christopher
122. 6 FebWeatherman’s snowfall meltdown
123. 5 FebFriday: Hili dialogue
124. 5 FebReaders’ wildlife photos
125. 5 FebThe Middle East and Ireland losing their religion
126. 5 FebThe EVOLUTION of the Covid-19 virus
127. 5 FebPaper in Cell demands that the NIH fund more black scientists; blames racism for disparity. Part 2.
128. 5 FebChristopher Plummer, 1929-2021
129. 4 FebThursday: Hili dialogue
130. 4 FebReaders’ wildlife photos
131. 4 FebPaper in Cell demands that the NIH fund more black scientists; blames racism for disparity. Part 1.
132. 4 FebAn analysis of the Trump movie shown at the Capitol Rally: An exercise in fascism
133. 3 FebWednesday: Hili dialogue
134. 3 FebReaders’ wildlife photos
135. 3 FebThe Equity/Bias Fallacy
136. 3 FebJesus ‘n’ Mo ‘n’ hijabs
137. 3 FebNow acronyms are racist
138. 2 FebLive Groundhog Day festivities
139. 2 FebTuesday: Hili dialogue
140. 2 FebReaders’ wildlife photos
141. 2 FebBernie’s mittens: a sign of white privilege
142. 2 FebIs “toxic femininity” a major cause of social justice warriorism?
143. 2 FebNavalny back in jail, handed 2½ year term for “violation of probation”
144. 1 FebMonday: Hili dialogue
145. 1 FebReaders’ wildlife photos
146. 1 FebCalifornia ethnic studies curriculum distorts history to conform to Critical Race Theory
147. 1 FebWhy do wombats poop cubes?
148. 1 FebBari Weiss on (i.e., against) woke culture in the New York Post
149. 1 FebBut can it herd sheep? Spot, the Boston Dynamics robot

January 2021

1. 31 JanSunday: Hili dialogue
2. 31 JanSunday’s Faux Duck o’ the Week
3. 31 JanJohn McWhorter vs. Ibram X. Kendi on whether American schools are structurally racist
4. 31 JanWhy do backs itch so much?
5. 31 JanWinter ducks
6. 30 JanSaturday: Hili dialogue
7. 30 JanReaders’ wildlife photos
8. 30 JanCaturday felid trifecta: a rare Arctic cat; military hero cats; Henri the existentialist cat passes away (and lagniappe)
9. 30 JanFree speech fundamentalism?
10. 30 JanA body-surfing duck!
11. 30 JanOn his new Substack site, John McWhorter previews his upcoming book on antiracism as a religion
12. 29 JanFriday: Hili dialogue
13. 29 JanReaders’ wildlife photos
14. 29 JanWorld’s smallest reptile (and amniote) described: a VERY tiny chameleon
15. 29 JanDueling essays that come to the same conclusion about wokeness
16. 29 JanBear plays with soccer ball!
17. 28 JanThursday: Hili dialogue
18. 28 JanReaders’ wildlife photos
19. 28 JanIn a “reckoning with America’s racist past”, San Francisco school board strips names from 44 public schools, including Lincoln, Washington, Roosevelt and Feinstein
20. 28 JanBig-time cognitive dissonance!
21. 28 JanNew Zealand tourist campaign against social media
22. 27 JanWednesday: Hili dialogue
23. 27 JanReaders’ wildlife photos
24. 27 JanAre students immune from criticism because of their identity?
25. 27 JanJesus ‘n’ Mo ‘n’ exaptations
26. 27 JanMy Pfizer jabs
27. 27 JanNew Yorker review of “Soul”: why I’m not renewing my subscription
28. 26 JanTuesday: Hili dialogue
29. 26 JanReaders’ wildlife photos
30. 26 JanWinter ducks!
31. 26 JanUniversity of Chicago student says that the purpose of our school’s free-speech policy is to perpetuate white supremacy
32. 26 JanBari Weiss interviews Natan Sharansky
33. 25 JanMonday: Hili dialogue
34. 25 JanReaders’ wildlife photos
35. 25 JanFatah: London’s Big Ben was stolen from Palestine!
36. 25 JanCounterweight: A new liberal but anti-Woke site
37. 25 JanAmerican Mathematical Society excoriated for creating a fellowship for black mathematicians, but not yet giving it a name
38. 25 JanA great book on freedom of speech
39. 24 JanSunday: Hili dialogue
40. 24 JanSunday Faux Duck o’ the Week
41. 24 JanSci Am op-ed: Lander the wrong choice as Biden’s science advisor because he won’t use science as a “tool for justice”
42. 24 JanIs there “post journalism” news?
43. 23 JanSaturday: Hili dialogue
44. 23 JanReaders’ wildlife photos
45. 23 JanCaturday felids trifecta: Why people are obsessed with cats; lynx climbs on a logging truck; the rapping cat man of Atlanta (and lagniappe)
46. 23 JanLike Bari Weiss, Andrew Sullivan is pro-Biden but worried
47. 23 JanWorld’s oldest representational art: an Indonesian warty pig from 45,000 years ago
48. 22 JanFriday: Hili dialogue
49. 22 JanReaders’ wildlife photos
50. 22 JanWhy do catnip and silver vine drive moggies crazy? A group of researchers says the plants could protect them against mosquitos
51. 22 JanBari Weiss: Worries about Biden and the Dems
52. 22 JanWords and phrases I detest
53. 21 JanThursday: Hili dialogue
54. 21 JanReaders’ wildlife photos
55. 21 JanPay for slay: Western countries help finance odious Palestinian program that pays terrorists who kill civilians
56. 21 JanThe danger of Bidenesque Wokeism
57. 21 JanFarewell, Orange Man!
58. 20 JanWednesday: Hili dialogue
59. 20 JanWatch the Inauguration live here starting 9 a.m. Eastern time
60. 20 JanReaders’ wildlife photos
61. 20 JanJesus ‘n’ Mo ‘n’ Q
62. 20 JanBill Clinton isn’t wearing his mask right: photos from the Inauguration
63. 20 JanSummary paper on the vaccines with Fauci as senior author
64. 20 JanA remarkable pupa that resembles a snake—and moves!
65. 19 JanTuesday: Hili dialogue
66. 19 JanReaders’ wildlife photos
67. 19 JanPublishers’ and authors’ manifesto: We won’t publish books by people who were in the Trump administration
68. 19 JanShould we retain the category of “hate crimes”?
69. 19 JanHowling with wolves
70. 18 JanMonday: Hili dialogue
71. 18 JanReaders’ wildlife photos
72. 18 JanAssessing Ronald Fisher: should we take his name off everything because he espoused eugenics?
73. 18 JanAnother legacy of slavery: tipping (or so says HuffPo)
74. 18 JanWho will get pardons from Trump?
75. 17 JanSunday: Hili dialogue
76. 17 JanSunday Faux Duck o’ the Week
77. 17 JanNick Cohen and Andrew Sullivan: Why Trump is a fascist and an insurgent
78. 17 JanFFRF interview with Anthony Grayling
79. 17 JanGuilty pleasures: Songs I’m ashamed of liking
80. 16 JanSaturday: Hili dialogue
81. 16 JanReaders’ wildlife photos
82. 16 JanCaturday felid trifecta: Portraits of Maine Coon Cats; why cats knead; blissed-out lynxes (and lagniappe)
83. 16 JanTwo books I just finished
84. 15 JanFriday: Hili dialogue
85. 15 JanReaders’ wildlife photos
86. 15 JanAnother scam paper published in a “scientific” journal
87. 15 JanA woke Hippocratic Oath
88. 15 JanThe culture wars and the news: a high-toned discussion
89. 14 JanThursday: Hili dialogue
90. 14 JanReaders’ wildlife photos
91. 14 JanThe conundrum of Powell’s Books: affirms free speech but refuses to place anti-Antifa book on its shelves
92. 14 JanAnother blow at the meritocracy: California to eliminate all standardized tests for college admissions
93. 13 JanWednesday: Hili dialogue
94. 13 JanReaders’ wildlife photos
95. 13 JanJesus ‘n’ Mo ‘n’ the “nones”
96. 13 JanShould Trump be tried by the Senate for insurrection?
97. 13 JanBari Weiss is back
98. 13 JanInterview with Horned Fur Hat Viking Guy (Jake Angeli)
99. 12 JanTuesday: Hili dialogue
100. 12 JanReaders’ wildlife photos
101. 12 JanNote to readers
102. 12 JanMisguided journalist argues that science—and wearing of facemasks—are based on a quasi-religious faith
103. 12 JanLauren Boebert, Congressional loon, now faces calls for resignation and pushback on her need to carry a gun in the Capitol
104. 12 JanA lovely and supposedly impossible aria
105. 11 JanMonday: Hili dialogue
106. 11 JanReaders’ wildlife photos
107. 11 JanPhilip Ball says that physics has nothing to do with free will. Part 2.
108. 11 JanI’ve broken up with Sarah Silverman over BDS
109. 11 JanImpeachment articles drawn up by House, as well as request for Pence to invoke the 25th Amendment
110. 11 JanThe Infinite Monkey Cage takes on flies
111. 11 JanThe potato king of Rio
112. 10 JanSunday: Hili dialogue
113. 10 JanFaux Duck o’ the Week
114. 10 JanSurvey of free speech among Wisconsin college students gives depressing results
115. 10 JanShabby science reporting in the New York Times
116. 10 JanPhilip Ball says that physics has nothing to do with free will. Part 1.
117. 9 JanSaturday: Hili dialogue
118. 9 JanReaders’ wildlife photos
119. 9 JanCaturday felid trifecta: Cats in classical music; cat loaves; spot the cat (and lagnaippe)
120. 9 JanSnopes investigates claim that Trump incited the storming of the Capitol
121. 9 JanAndrew Sullivan excoriates Trump, repudiates the GOP
122. 8 JanFriday: Hili dialogue
123. 8 JanReaders’ wildlife photos
124. 8 JanBook by election-questioning Republican Josh Hawley canceled by Simon & Schuster
125. 8 JanJodi Shaw, the gadfly of Smith College: Put on paid leave, nevertheless, she persists
126. 8 JanA stunning collection of photo-contest winners
127. 7 JanThursday: Hili dialogue
128. 7 JanReaders’ wildlife photos
129. 7 JanNYT writer Tom Edsall: Is the First Amendment obsolete?
130. 7 JanVideos of the woman shot dead in the Capitol
131. 6 JanWednesday: Hili dialogue
132. 6 JanReaders’ wildlife photos
133. 6 JanStanford’s faculty senate condemns a colleague for exercising free (but misguided) speech
134. 6 JanReparations for Merrick Garland: he gets to be attorney general
135. 6 JanBryn Mawr: “The world’s most expensive anti-racism YouTube training program”
136. 6 JanWatch the Congressional debates live
137. 6 JanThe good news and the bad news.
138. 6 JanFascist President spurs on mob to invade Capitol; woman in critical condition after being shot
139. 6 JanOssoff wins Senate seat in Georgia, both houses of Congress now with a Democratic majority
140. 5 JanTuesday: Hili dialogue
141. 5 JanReaders’ wildlife photos
142. 5 JanTaibbi’s woke news from 2020
143. 5 JanPoetry should have rhymes
144. 4 JanMonday: Hili dialogue
145. 4 JanReaders’ wildlife photos
146. 4 JanReview: “Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom”
147. 4 JanWho will win the Georgia Senate seats?
148. 4 JanIt’s the end of the world as we know it: More tribalism at The University of Chicago
149. 3 JanSunday: Hili dialogue
150. 3 JanSunday Faux Duck o’ the Week
151. 3 JanUniversity of California professor issues vile anti-Semitic tweets, university is investigating
152. 3 JanGlenn Loury on affirmative action
153. 3 JanFinal exchanges between Sarah Haider and Ayaan Hirsi Ali: Will Wokeism die?
154. 2 JanSaturday: Hili dialogue
155. 2 JanReaders’ wildlife photos
156. 2 JanCaturday felids: The Great Cat site
157. 2 JanThe worst books ever written
158. 2 JanWorst rock songs
159. 1 JanFriday: Hili dialogue
160. 1 JanReaders’ wildlife photos
161. 1 JanDiscussion: Is Iran making a nuclear bomb?