A Knock at the Door
Undying Dread: A 400-Year-Old Corpse, Locked to Its Grave (NY Times, 9/25/2023) In 17th-century Europe, the dead were a constant threat to rise again and bedevil the living. Now archaeologists have found the remains of a suspected child revenant. The candles have burned down to sputtering stumps, oozing the memory of their younger selves into…
The Fourth of July
Why the US ‘does not get to assume that it lasts forever’ (CNN, 7/4/2023) “As the United States marks its 247th birthday Tuesday, questions about how many more the nation will celebrate in its current form have become ominously relevant.” The President sits alone in the Oval Office, the soundproofed room eerily quiet. Once, you…
A Bridge Too Far
“Mysterious spiral” that looks like hazy, glowing galaxy seen hovering in Alaska’s northern lights (CBS News, 4/19/2023) Memo To: All Reali-Bridge employees From: Linda Sparring, CEO Subject: Successful Reality Bridge Test Congratulations Reali-Bridge team – we did it! Last week, we successfully deployed our latest six-dimensional reality bridge protocol and made contact with a parallel…
Nothing to See Here
Mysterious flying objects shot down over North America likely not spy balloons, Biden says (USA Today, 2/17/23) How many train derailments have there been in the US in 2023? Frequent train derailments under scrutiny after an ecological disaster struck East Palestine, Ohio (The Independent, 2/17/2023) The murmur of the press corps settles as the President…
Christ on a Cracker
How nuns got squeezed out of the communion wafer business Altar bread was once made by hundreds of communities of nuns across the US. Now, a for-profit company controls nearly the entire market. (The Hustle 10/14/22) Monsignor Abrams adjusts his reading glasses, squinting at the rows of black numbers cascading down the page. He licks…
The Timing’s All Wrong
U.S. Jet Shoots Down Flying Object Over Canada Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said he and President Biden had ordered the object violating Canadian airspace to be taken down, a day after another object was shot out of the sky near Alaska. (NY Times 2/11/23) Triggered by unseen relays at the edge of outer space, klaxons…