October 7, 2025
Today is the two year anniversary. I learned about the tragedy from a @JDVance1 tweet: “Praying for our friends in Israel this morning. Just an awful situation.”
As the scope of the tragedy became apparent, I knew two things. One, Israel would exponentially over-retaliate, killing thousands of Palestinians for every Israeli that died. (In my wildest conspiratorial imagination, I would not have thought that Israel would kill hundreds of its own citizens.) Two, there was going to be a tsunami of toxic rhetoric. Israel has known how to play to American public opinion for a long time. This second aspect of this calamity is what today’s post will focus on. Specifically, “Dave Smith vs. Coleman Hughes Debate: Israel and U.S. Foreign Policy.”
Coleman Cruz Hughes supports Israel. Dave No-Middle-Name Smith supports the Palestinians. CCH has been critiqued at chamblee54 before. 010224 030324 In case you have any doubts, I should state upfront that I am on team Dave here. There will be no attempt at being fair. If you want to see pro CCH commentary, look to any x discussion of this event.
The concept of these discussions being a smackdown sport is “part of the problem.” Gotcha mongering takes the place of thoughtful discussion. People make points that appeal to their buddies, and do not address the concerns of those on the “other side.” The rhetoric from CCH displays many of the bad faith tactics that Hasbara is known for. This post will focus on two examples.
I did not listen to very much of the CCH-DS smackdown. My phone was acting up, and switching to other shows without warning. When I returned to CCH-DS, I would skip over large parts of the show. Finally, after the second incident, I grew weary of the entire affair.
The first incident took place early in the show. CCH was discussing the reasons for the 9/11 attack, specifically the fact that Arabs were offended at American troops in the Islamic holy land of Saudi Arabia. CCH mentioned that South Korea was not offended at the presence of US troops in their country … an apples to oranges comparison. This is a tactic of bad faith argument: to make any possible argument you can, never mind that it usually is not relevant to the discussion.
Somehow, this led to a discussion of terrorism. ”DS – There were Irish terrorists. There were Jewish terrorists. Uh, of course, as you know, in the leadup to the creation of the state of Israel. … CCH – Those were local ethnic disputes between the Irish and the British, between the Jewish and the Palestinians. What justifies going abroad, flying planes into buildings thousands of miles away … “
There was Zionist terrorism after the end of World War II, and the creation of the State of Israel. The British governed Palestine at the time. The Zionist terrorism was directed at the British authorities governing Palestine, as well as the Arab population. This was the same time as the Nakba, which was a “local ethnic dispute”. Maybe that is what CCH meant.
This is a bad faith tactic. Flood the playing field with dozens of details. Some of them are going to be either misleading, or outright lies. It is impossible to respond to all the details being raised.
The other incident concerned the role of “the Israel lobby” in the decision to invade Iraq in 2003. CCH brought up a book by John J. Mearsheimer. CCH claims to have read the book, and was not persuaded. We have to take CCH’s word on having read the book.
CCH went into a monolog about how much money TIL had actually spent. “During the entire George W. Bush administration, the Israel lobby spent $17 million lobbying Congress. Now, that might sound like a lot to me or you. It is absolute chump change on the scale of uh domestic lobbying. To put it in perspective, the tobacco lobby spent $200 million, so more than 10 times that amount over the same time period. And they couldn’t even stop Congress from passing a federal tax hike on cigarettes in 2009. Now during the Obama era, the Israel lobby spent 30 million and they were outspent by the dentists. The dentist lobby spent 32 million. This is all according to OpenSecrets.org which is usually the standard source people go to for such figures.”
My gut sense is that this is a distraction. There may be other ways to measure the influence of TIL than the amount of money they spend on lobbying congress. Or maybe not. If you google “How much did the Israel lobby spend lobbying congress in 2003?”, you are directed to a chart from OpenSecrets. “$1,500,000 Total Spent on Pro-Israel, 2003” Is this the total, or there is more that we don’t know? I honestly don’t know, but don’t trust the way CCH is throwing this out.
When I heard CCH say that Dentists spent more on lobbyists than Israel, I decided I had heard enough. Technically, on some level CCH may be correct on some of his points. However, I just don’t trust him. I wonder how many minds are going to be changed by this discussion. The initial reaction on x was that CCH “won”. However, in the last day or so I am seeing more people who agree with DS. It will probably boil down to people agreeing with who they agreed with going into the debate.
There was a controversial discussion of the “clean break” strategy, which I missed entirely. DS has released an episode of his own show, Part Of The Problem, that deals with this. I have not listened to this episode of POTP.
Pictures today are from The Library of Congress. John Vachon took the social media picture in January 1941. “Steelworker at grievance committee meeting. Steelworkers organizing committee office. Aliquippa, Pennsylvania” ©Luther Mckinnon 2025 · selah
Just Collapsed
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cooper piano · 2020 insight · hostage · david whyte · tetragrammaton
spanish flu · gospel politics · legal af · theist · lewis grizzard · i beg you please
@XAVIAERD · Jimmy Carter · anthony dissen · anthony dissen · anthony dissen · lance twiggs
Pictures today are from Special Collections and Archives, Georgia State University Library. The social media picture was taken September 9, 1948. Victory Motors Used Cars · This is another monday morning reader. The picture below is from the GSU library. This is Victory Motors Used Cars on September 9, 1948. · @MaxBlumenthal The best ‘conservative’ influencers Israel can buy? Emily Austin participated in the Epstein binders hoax, and joined Netanyahu’s recent influencers meeting Xavaier DuRousseau attended the secret Hamptons influencer summit with Bill Ackman, then junketed off to Israel · Mine eyes have seen the orgy of the launching of the Sword; He is searching out the hoardings where the stranger’s wealth is stored; He hath loosed his fateful lightnings, and with woe and death has scored; His lust is marching on · Did the translators and scribes get it wrong? Maybe Jesus did not say to love your enemy. Maybe what Jesus said was to show kindness to everyone. This is a practice thing, rather than a belief thing · You spend the first five minutes telling a story to “make a point” I quit listening at 8:39, when you were telling us about the Philippians. (Thank you spell check) Right now the entire Charlie Kirk tragedy is on my mind. Mr. Kirk was using Jesus in ways that many of us are put off by. The only mention of Mr. Kirk is the cognitive dissonance of what his wife said at the funeral, to what Mr. Trump said. I could discuss this at great length, but it would not make me happy. You are entitled to your opinion. · Listened to the barroom episode this morning. Was Charlie Kirk playing the same game as Jeffrey Epstein? By that I mean getting megabucks from the same sources, with similar strings attached. Both men made deals with the devil. · Those “text messages” are full of problems. Saying “vehicle” is one of the milder ones. That said, @RealCandaceO is also full of problems. She lost me when she started trashing Leo Frank · If he became convinced tomorrow that coming out for cannibalism would get him the votes he needs so sorely, he would begin fattening a missionary in the White House yard come Wednesday. The American Mercury (March 1936) – referring to Franklin Delano Roosevelt · “If he became convinced tomorrow that coming out for cannibalism would get him the votes he needs so sorely, he would begin fattening a missionary in the White House yard come Wednesday.” Henry Louis Mencken, The American Mercury, March 1936 · “Only two rooms were adequate, all others contained a film of dirt on everything, stained carpets, and strange odors. The bed comforters had questionalbe stains on them and hair. … The swimming pool was green with algae and there was a dead bird · This quote is not on the Huxley wikiquote. “Propaganda” is mentioned 8 times. “All war propaganda consists, in the last resort, in substituting diabolical abstractions for human beings. Similarly, those who defend war have invented a pleasant sounding vocabulary of abstractions in which to describe the process of mass murder. “Pacifism and Philosophy” (1936) · anthonydissenrd@gmail.com · slow and steady wins the race, sacred or scared leaves no trace, the whore and the madonna are in, the same body and ready for sin, yahweh is both allah and god, the worship religions are both so flawed, charlie kirk got wasted for a reason, this is not the time or the season · manley pointer start, ring around the roses tonight, gotta start somewhere · Pictures today are from The Library of Congress. Jack Delano took the social media picture in August 1942. “Nashville, Tennessee. Lunch time in the tail assembly section. Vultee Aircraft Corporation plant” ©Luther Mckinnon 2025 · selah
The Four Agreements
This post was published October 8, 2023. … The Four Agreements were put into words by Don Miguel Ruiz, aka Miguel Ángel Ruiz Macías. I do not claim to practice these ideas. Number two is especially tough for me. The main thing is to try, and to always do your best. This is not about what you believe or think, it is about what you do. This is about you. If you fall short in some way, work on improving yourself, instead of looking at someone else. This is about you.
Agreement 1–Be impeccable with your word – Speak with integrity. Say only what you mean. Avoid using the word to speak against yourself or to gossip about others. Use the power of your word in the direction of truth and love.
Agreement 2–Don’t take anything personally – Nothing others do is because of you. What others say and do is a projection of their own reality, their own dream. When you are immune to the opinions and actions of others, you won’t be the victim of needless suffering.
Agreement 3–Don’t make assumptions – Find the courage to ask questions and to express what you really want. Communicate with others as clearly as you can to avoid misunderstandings, sadness and drama. With just this one agreement, you can completely transform your life.
Agreement 4–Always do your best – Your best is going to change from moment to moment; it will be different when you are healthy as opposed to sick. Under any circumstance, simply do your best, and you will avoid self-judgment, self-abuse and regret.
These ideas are presented as agreements, rather than beliefs. According to the AI Overview: “The Four Agreements are presented as a path to personal freedom, not beliefs, because they are intended to be active choices rather than passive convictions. The key distinction lies in the nature of beliefs versus agreements: Beliefs are passively accepted; agreements are actively chosen. … Beliefs are convictions you hold as true, often without ever questioning or examining them. … Agreements, in Ruiz’s usage, are active choices you make with yourself. The Four Agreements are a conscious decision to operate differently, liberating you from the unconscious beliefs that cause suffering. … The shift from living by unconsciously inherited beliefs to consciously chosen agreements is the central transformative process of Ruiz’s book. The agreements are not just concepts to be mentally accepted; they are practical tools that require daily effort and action to reshape your life.”
This feature was written like David Foster Wallace. Pictures today are from Special Collections and Archives, Georgia State University Library. The social media picture was taken in 1954. “Loew’s Grand Theatre marquee and ticket line for the fifteenth anniversary rerelease of “Gone With The Wind.” ©Luther Mckinnon 2025 · selah
Motel One Star Reviews
I was listening to a podcast. Some of the action took place in a tacky motel. The narrator mentioned a review of this motel. A guest said he complained to the staff about roaches in the room. The motel employee said the roaches were high, and that they would not bother anybody.
This got me curious, which is never a good idea. I googled “high roaches motel.” I could not find the comment from the podcast, but did find reviews of two motels in Texas. A later search for “worst motel in Georgia” turned up a third suspect. Pictures today are from The Library of Congress. Today’s pictures are all white men. The older, and the gnarlier, the better. Marion Post Wolcott took the social media picture in November 1939. Tobacco auctioneer (in white gloves) and buyers during auction sale in warehouse in Mebane, Orange County, North Carolina”
Beachtree Motel, 3126 Avenue S, Galveston, Galveston Island, TX 77550
“The tub was so disgusting we were better off bathing on the beach! Dust..outdated tv…bootleg rigged plumbing and lights… and to top it off the owner walked around all night and his wife checked me out with crust in her eye and no bra!”
“It was filled with junkies and Acoholics hanging in the doorways asking for cigarettes. I could not sleep all night because the drug people were up all thur the nite slamming doors, shouting and fighting and starting up their cars to go make their drug buys. The furniture looked like it came out of the goodwill store from the 50’s.”
“We went for a girls weekend and stayed in this awful place. It was so disgusting! We killed several bugs, water bugs and roaches! We had to go buy sheets because theirs were so gross, bought towels because theirs were covered in hair and bought lysol and bleach wipes to wipe everything down! Not to mention the meth heads that wondered the parking lot and came back so drunk and high from the bar they kept trying to walk into our room.”
“Jigsaw the clown would be disgusted to lock you up in here”
Gulfway Motel, 365 Hwy 124, High Island, TX 77623
“Dead bugs and dirt along with a couple of paint chips around the sink. The light fixture above the sink would not work and it was rusty. There were two bulbs missing out of it. I took a bath and ended with paint chips all over me because the poorly painted bathtub was not just beginning to flake apart, it appeared that it had been doing so for some time. … I also had to walk through bird poop(a good ammount) to get to my room. This is because a bird nest was right in front of my door and every time the bird takes off it has to fly over this spot.”
“The first thing to hit us was the odor. Many couldn’t place it, but it seemed like insecticide … The next thing that greeted us was three dead sewer roaches–not the little brown things, but the two-inch guys that look like they belong more in the Amazon jungles. No amenities, cracks in the tub base and elsewhere–obviously where this monsters hang out during the day, one meager bar of soap, a quarter roll of toilette paper with no additional roll. I knocked on the office door, the dog barked, but no one came out. I finally borrowed an extra roll of T.P. from another trip-mate’s room.”
“Only two rooms were adequate, all others contained a film of dirt on everything, stained carpets, and strange odors. The bed comforters had questionalbe stains on them and hair. … The swimming pool was green with algae and there was a dead bird”
Super Inn, 301 Fulton Industrial Cir, Atlanta, GA 30336.
“Nasty i moved the sheets back and found things that are used for drug use ..so dirty i tried to post pics of the lube on base of lamp i mean alot if it”
“We arrived after 11 pm so didn’t notice this hotel was surrounded by strip clubs…luckily we were fine once inside, but when my partner went outside for a smoke he was propositioned by a prostitute…the second time he went out there were 2 prostitutes fighting and the one was threatening that her pimp was going to come down (from the hotel)…one of them had a small board with nails as a weapon. My partner was too scared to try to intervene in the fight and just came in to warn us not to come out.”
“There are at least three strip clubs right across the street, in which, prostitution is going on too and they end up at Super Inn. … They kept slamming the doors in the hallway ALL NIGHT!!!!! It didn’t stop until 5 a.m.”
“Upon arrival, we were greeted by multiple prostitutes and their pimp/ drug dealer. The place is located in an alley with several strip clubs in sight. After making my way past the prostitutes, there was no one in the lobby. A prostitute informed us to knock on the door to get the office managers attention. Against my better judgment, I took the key and made my way past more prostitutes smoking pot in the main hallway/lobby. Once in the room, I found at least FIVE car air fresheners hanging throughout the room trying to cover the musty/smoky smell in my “non smoking” room.”
“With the stares we got from the men and prostitutes coming in and out of the hotel I felt like fresh meat among a pack of wild dogs. The taxi driver stated he could not leave us here so we got back in the vehicle and drove back to the airport.”
“First of all there are 4 strip clubs across the road from the hotel. Secondly, there was about 5 prostitutes at the entrance of the hotel. When we went into the lobby we asked the clerk if it was safe there and he said, “of course, why do you ask?” and I said, “because there are about 5 prostitues standing at the entrance” then he said, ” NO, they don’t come on my property, you have nothing to worry about. They aren’t allowed in this hotel”. We believed that until that night when we saw him give the prostitutes a room key!!!!! The whole weekend stay the prostitutes were cold I guess so they were prostituting from the lobby of the hotel! Their pimps were outside bringing in the customers. I saw this with my two very own eyes!” … UPDATE: Google currently lists the Beachtree Motel as “Temporarily closed”. The Gulfway Motel is apparently open. The Super Inn was demolished August 30, 2024. ©Luther Mckinnon 2025 · selah
Lower Than A Snake’s Belly
This content was published October 21, 2008. … It is amazing what gets your attention when you should be looking for a job. The yahoo page had a link to a poll of the “49 most influential men of 2008”. Polls like this are usually rubbish, but there is a post to be written.
I don’t have the patience for all 49. This is one of those deals where you have to click on a link for every name on the list. That is a lot of work, especially for men I have never heard of. I seldom watch TV or pay full price for movies, so a lot of celebrities go under the radar. It will be fun to see how many I have heard of. There is a profile about each man, but that is another click, and wait for the popupdropdown ad to clear. This is going to be a lot of work just to get to the top ten. · If you can’t say anything good about someone, don’t say anything at all.
1 – Barack Obama … Hype is color blind. · 2 – Steve Jobs · 3 – Micheal Phelps · 4 – Robert Downey, Jr … Rehab does work sometimes. · 5 – Stephen Colbert · 6 – Gordon Ramsey … This is the first one I totally don’t know. Mr. Ramsey is wearing a chef’s outfit, which is a clue. · 7 – Christian Bale · 8 – Rob Kay … Mr. Kay designs video games. If you see Mr. Kay … · 9 – Cristiano Ronaldo … Mr. Ronaldo kicks soccer balls. and has an Irish cousin named Ronald O’McDonald.
10 – John McCain … Bless his heart. · 11 -Lorne Michaels … Mr. Michaels gets points for staying alive this long. · 12 -Tom Ford … Mr. Ford is a fashion designer. No word on what kind of car he drives, or whether he pardoned Mr. Nixon. · 13 -Mark Zuckerberg … Mr. Zuckerman invented Facebook, and is glad this list is not in alphabetical order. · 14 -Dana White … Mr. White fronts something called “Ultimate Fighting Challenge. … One more “influencer” I have heard of, and I quit. It doesn’t matter if I have seen his show. · 15 -Jon Stewart … Mr. Stewart is a comedian/political commentator.
This content was published October 22, 2008. … In a couple of weeks, the election will, blessedly, be over. The only thing that could screw up … north of Florida … is a Georgia race where no candidate receives over 50 percent of the vote. In 1992, the incumbent Senator was an Atlanta Baseball fan named Wyche Fowler. He was confident of victory, but many were dissatisfied with his performance. The Libertarian candidate, Jim Hudson, got enough votes to force a runoff. In the runoff, Repub Paul Coverdell won election. Mr. Fowler was consoled by the job of Ambassador to Saudi Arabia. A few months after he left that position, 15 Saudi nationals flew planes into American buildings. … This story does have a moral. If you want Saxby Chambliss, the incumbent, to spend more time with his family, then vote for Democrat Jim Martin. While the Libertarian movement might be a good idea, this is not the time to push it. … Saxby Chambliss is a vile man who needs to retire. His issues and shortcomings are well documented elsewhere. In addition, he has a funny first name.
The rest of this feature is a personal story about Mr. Saxby. As it became obvious that we were going to invade Babylon, I decided to go on record as being opposed. I felt we were starting something we were not going to be able to finish, that we could not afford, and was based on shaky premises. Once the fighting started, I would support the troops. However, before the “shock and awe”, I would speak my mind. The email/letter went to My House of Representatives lady, and the two senators.
The house lady at the time was Denise Majette. She had defeated Cynthia McKinney the previous fall. Ms. Majette sent a long and thoughtful reply. While she did not explicitly say so, I got the sense that she was opposed to the invasion. However, due to some votes cast in the previous congress, there was little that could be done to stop the war. … Of the two Senators, I never did hear from Zell “ZigZag” Miller. My letter mentioned that “You were elected to represent me”. Mr. Miller was appointed by the Governor to finish the term of Paul Coverdell, who died. Mr. Coverdell was a Republican. The Governor and Mr. Miller were Democrats. Mr. Miller has since decided that the Democratic Party is too liberal for his taste. ZigZag is lower than a snake’s belly.
Mr. Chambliss did send a reply to my letter. It was a few months after “Mission Accomplished”. Mr. Chambliss praised the war. He made no mention of my objections to the war, which were still valid in those early days of the insurgence. I wonder if his staff even read my letter. … Saxby Chambliss needs to retire. Some lobbying firm will give him a nice job, and the taxpayers will only indirectly pay for it. … Pictures today are from Special Collections and Archives, Georgia State University Library. The social media picture was taken February 24, 1966. Shell Oil Company meeting Stone Mountain Inn. ©Luther Mckinnon 2025 · selah
Be Kind To Your Enemy
Did Jesus say to “Love your enemy?” Some believe this, and do it. Some claim to believe this, and practice the opposite. There are others who claim to love their enemies, but you have to understand what they mean by it. It can be very confusing. This is a repost.
I went to a source for documentation. Oh, the blessed conjunction of copy/paste with public domain. When I entered enemy (singular) in the search engine, 100 verses came up. When the request was made plural (enemies), 237 entries popped up. The last mention of enemies is Revelation 11:12. “And they heard a great voice from heaven saying unto them, Come up hither. And they ascended up to heaven in a cloud; and their enemies beheld them.” Loving your enemies does not include bringing them to heaven with you.There is also the star of the show.
Matthew 5:44 “But I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you.”
There is scholarly debate about what Jesus did, or did not, say. The words available to modern man have been copied by hand, edited, translated, and interpreted. I do not know Aramaic from Alabama. Like anyone else, I can only read and listen, and think for myself.
In a sense it does not matter what Jesus “really” said. Christians are going to believe what they want to believe. More important, they are going to do what they want to do. As far as the difference between what Jesus “really” said, and what his believers say and do … they can explain.
What follows is a humble suggestion. Did the translators and scribes get it wrong? Maybe Jesus did not say to love your enemy. Maybe what Jesus said was to show kindness to everyone. This is a practice thing, rather than a belief thing.
It is not as much fun to be nice to someone, as it is to scream about life after death. Kindness does not need to be justified by a quote from a magic book. You just need to do it. Pictures today are from Georgia State University Library. The social media picture was taken December 6, 1967. Artistic Beauty Institute (5 1/2 Auburn Avenue, NE) ©Luther Mckinnon 2025 · selah
Money Hymn Of The Republic
This content was published October 29, 2009. … Mark Twain wrote a lot during the War in the Philippines. Many of his words could apply today. War has gotten more high tech … for our side … but the bottom line is the same. No matter how fancy the weapons get, the casualties are just as dead. And the investors make money. … Mine eyes have seen the orgy of the launching of the Sword; He is searching out the hoardings where the stranger’s wealth is stored; He hath loosed his fateful lightnings, and with woe and death has scored; His lust is marching on.
I have seen him in the watch-fires of a hundred circling camps; They have builded him an altar in the Eastern dews and damps; I have read his doomful mission by the dim and flaring lamps — His night is marching on. · I have read his bandit gospel writ in burnished rows of steel: “As ye deal with my pretensions, so with you my wrath shall deal; Let the faithless son of Freedom crush the patriot with his heel; Lo, Greed is marching on!”
We have legalized the strumpet and are guarding her retreat; Greed is seeking out commercial souls before his judgement seat; O, be swift, ye clods, to answer him! be jubilant my feet! Our God is marching on! · In a sordid slime harmonious Greed was born in yonder ditch, With a longing in his bosom — and for others’ goods an itch. As Christ died to make men holy, let men die to make us rich — Our God is marching on.
This content was published October 13, 2008. … 22 WORDS weighed in today with a comment about web design for dyslexics. No jokes please. … The post linked to a site called dyslexia.com. They say that dyslexia is a gift. While I would not go that far, some of their ideas are useful. The basic concept is that if something is easier for dyslexics to read, it will also be easier for non dyslexics. … This makes sense. While I don’t follow all of them, there are some good points here.
1 – Keep paragraphs short, and use a medium amount of text on each page. If a long article is posted, create a topic index at the beginning, so that the dyslexic reader can quickly narrow in on the parts that interest him or her. · 2 – Use default font settings or provide a way for users to choose their own styles. That way, a user can choose their own preferred font with their browser, or create their own style sheet. Many dyslexics find they read best with one particular font. · 3 – Keep your main text left-justified. It is very hard to read paragraphs where all lines are centered or which are right-justified.
4 – Use a consistent layout and format throughout the site. It helps to have navigation aids laid out consistently on every page. · 5 – If you use frames, be sure to provide a no-frames alternative; some text-to-speech software cannot read text on framed pages. · 6 – Make a list of relevant links at the end of a paragraph or section, rather than merely placing the links within the body of the text. That way the user can find the important links without needing to read all the text. Be sure to clearly describe the type of information or site the link will lead to.
7 – Use medium icons to help with navigation between frequently used web pages. There should also be a text alternative for navigation (or the ‘alt’ tag should be used), for those individuals who rely on computers to read the page contents to them. · 8 – Never use flashing text. Do not use animated or moving graphics unless the animation is necessary to illustrate important information, such as an animation demonstrating how a machine works. Even so, it is best to place the animation on a different page, or to set it up to start only when clicked.
9 – Avoid using background images behind text. Make sure that there is a good contrast between the color of the background and the color of text. · 10 – Do not set up background music to play, unless the site gives the user a choice whether to turn it on. … Several points ring especially true here. Short paragraphs are the way to go. A long block of text is intimidating to many readers, and screams out “skip over me”. On a more personal level, I have a tough time with quotes from the Bible. That is a subject for another post, if not a new blog.
Background music that starts without asking is a peeve of mine. This is highly unthoughtful to your visitor. If you are already listening to something, or are in a place music is inappropriate, this is going to cause problems. Flashing text and background images are also annoying, but at least they do not make noise. There is a reason I do not like MySpace. … For blocks of text, left-justified is simply the way to go. While centered text may be good for ads and invitations, it is a lot of work on the eyes to follow for extended reading. And, why on earth would anyone ever use right-justified?
A post like this is not complete without a hypocrite alert. I have heard people say they do not like multi colored text, that it can be difficult to read. Black text is a holdover from dead tree journalism. I probably will continue to use colors, though maybe with a bit of restraint. The rainbow posts are fun. Using colors for quotes and different themes helps the reader to tell when the subject has changed. Red letters stand out when you want to make a point.
The internet is a work in progress. People are learning what does and does not work. Just because you can do something … like have an automatic music player … doesn’t mean that you should. It is like when telephone answering machines first came out. At first, the idea was to have a clever message for incoming calls. Then, people got tired of listening to those, and the basic messages we have today became popular. Some techie things are suggested here … letting the user choose the font…are a bit too geeky for me, although I guess that could change. The main idea is to show a bit of courtesy to your visitor. It is not like your blog is the only one. … Pictures today are from Special Collections and Archives, Georgia State University Library The social media picture: “Two individuals pose with Irvindale’s “Minnie Quarts” dairy cow, 1940s” ©Luther Mckinnon 2025 · selah
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