The man from the Clapham Omnibus

  Over 30 months ago I flew  with some firearms from Orlando Florida to Seattle . I declared them packed them as instructed and had the TSA check them before boarding . Unfortunately I also carried one magazine in my hand luggage and a pistol grip for a shotgun .  The nice lady at security spotted the mag and went through my bag carefully . She had no idea what the weird piece of plastic was so I told her it what it was - I also told her I had no idea that such items were prohibited in carry on baggage as they are entirely harmless and of no use whatsoever for a hijacker . A permitted steel pen would be however .Well the wheels of justice turn slowly and I have now received an official warning from the TSA - with threats of dire consequences if I again do what they say was "extremely serious matter" but what I view as a minor infringement of  their absurd nonsensical rules   .  Full text here - worth a read !       Transportation                                               

I have decided that Sir Max my classic Mercedes could be better cared for and utilised by someone else - and I could do with some more cash . Therefore I am putting him on Craigslist . Let see if anyone values him more than I do and a deal can be done .

Eulogy for Danielle Martel   Pictures and video here  https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.10156489065386822&type=3 Good morning, I'm Danny, father to Danielle's Grandson Xavier. We're gathered here together to celebrate a remarkable and wonderful woman Danielle Martel. She's been a mother in law to me for thirty years and it gives me great honor to share this eulogy with you. Thank you all for attending this ceremony to celebrate the life of this very special woman. Our Elders, our parents, our Grandparents, their life stories weave illuminating narratives that move and inspire us. I'd like to take you on a journey through Danielle's life, it's a remarkable journey, and through it we get a true measure of this amazing woman's life. The year is 1938. Hidden away in a small Parisian apartment a young handsome black man, a carpenter, works tirelessly on building a wardrobe. It's to be his 'piece de resistance', his mast

Carl Sagan’s rules for critical thinking offer cognitive fortification against propaganda, pseudoscience, and general falsehood.     What you should do :- Wherever possible there must be independent confirmation of the “facts.” Encourage substantive debate on the evidence by knowledgeable proponents of all points of view. Arguments from authority carry little weight — “authorities” have made mistakes in the past. They will do so again in the future. Perhaps a better way to say it is that in science there are no authorities; at most, there are experts. Spin more than one hypothesis. If there’s something to be explained, think of all the different ways in which it could be explained. Then think of tests by which you might systematically disprove each of the alternatives. What survives, the hypothesis that resists disproof in this Darwinian selection among “multiple working hypotheses,” has a much better chance of being the right answer than if you had s