This and That

Some odds and ends in the news:

From Ben Stein:  "Here is what I got for Christmas: not having to be in Auschwitz; not having to be beaten to death by Lithuanian death squads with iron bars; not having to be a prisoner in a Japanese prison ship; not having to be galley slave in Roman times; not having to fight in sub-zero cold against Communist hordes in Korea; not having to be in a leukemia ward; not having to be homeless on skid row in downtown L.A. That’s not all. I got to not be tortured and executed by an opposing ethnic group in South Sudan; not being sold into slavery in Brazil; not being hanged for having been born Jewish; not having to be gassed by insecticide by Nazi 'scientists.'". 

Here's Jay Nordlinger with his Impromptus column.  

WQXR is compiling a list of the top 105 most requested classical pieces. I was listening at work today when they played #38, The Lark Ascending.

Read Linda Chavez's column about the ridiculous infantilization of our culture: "We’ve gone from blue jeans in the workplace to pajamas at the mall. What’s next? It’s hard to imagine we could become more casual in our attire than we already are, but then I never thought I’d see someone in his jammies in line at the supermarket." I've seen this myself, but what's even worse is when so-called "men" insist on wearing those wool baby caps with the drawstrings. Also, do you remember when men actually removed their hats in public places? Now it seems that their caps are permanently attached to their skulls.

Vanity Fair lists the best infographics of 2013.