Captain Digital

Random musings on politics, society, and pop culture from the Internet's marketing curmudgeon.

pop culture

Offensensitivity.

© Berkeley Breathed – All Rights Reserved. Bloom County, November 14, 1982.

NEWSFLASH: There is NO Constitutional right to ban something that might offend you.

I know this comes as a huge shock to Progressives, Atheists and Muslims everywhere. And I hate to be the one to break this tragic news to you (not really) but I looked it up. Nowhere in the United States Constitution, the Bill of Rights, or the other Amendments is there language that guarantees that you should be protected from any- and everything that causes you to be offended.  [Read more…] about Offensensitivity.

Wither diversity?

I got some insight this evening to the whole “diversity” thing, regarding the difference in approach by those who lean Left and those (like me) who lean Right.

I was talking with a friend and the subject of Walmart came up. She is quite a bit more Liberal than I am. She hates Walmart and all (she thinks) it stands for. I don’t. We agreed to disagree. But one of the things she said really stood out in my mind. She said that she values a place that is culturally diverse.

I thought about that, long after the conversation ended. [Read more…] about Wither diversity?

Tech-nopia.

While it’s impossible to have a well-balanced perspective on anything when you’re sitting in the middle of it, it’s hard not to think that we are living in a “Golden Age” for Technology. Think about it. Within my lifetime, I’ve seen the following items appear and become ubiquitous – part of the fabric of our lives (in no particular order): [Read more…] about Tech-nopia.

Is Tinder Hot?

IMG_0521My daughter recently talked me into signing up for “Tinder.” If you’re not familiar, it’s an iPhone app that’s designed to help you meet people. Apparently, it’s evolved from being something created for “hookups” (read: “meaningless sexual encounters”) into an app that facilitates meeting people for actually dating.

What makes this interesting is that it’s all based on Facebook, and the pictures you post here.

There’s a lot of different dating sites out there, each one slightly different in their approach. eHarmony makes you go through a long and laborious process before you even get to chat directly with someone in whom you might be interested. [Read more…] about Is Tinder Hot?

Blessed are the Makers…

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I think it was humorist and co-founder of the Algonquin Round Table, Robert Benchley (not to mention forbearer of author Peter “Jaws” Benchley) who quipped, “There are two kinds of people in this world…those who put people into two groups, and those who don’t.” I’m definitely in the first group. And for the purposes of this essay, the two groups into which I’m dividing people can be thought of as “Makers” versus “Customers.” To put it another way, when something needs fixing, or you can’t find exactly what you want, “makers” do it themselves, while “customers” hire it done. Nothing wrong with that. Depends on the task, I suppose. If it’s something I can do myself, I’ll do it. If it’s something I can’t (major surgery springs to mind) I’ll hire it done. But some people delegate a lot more than I. For instance, when I couldn’t find an iPhone 6 Plus belt holster to my liking, I made one. No big. Not hard to do. And I enjoy working with my hands. But I’ve gotten lots of questions about the case. It usually goes something like this: [Read more…] about Blessed are the Makers…

Underwood For President.

So I’ve finally run out of House of Cards (season 3) episodes. (Some shows I binge-watch. House of Cards, I savor like a fine wine.) And the ending was (as expected) another cliffhanger.

I’m going to be somewhat obtuse here, because I don’t want to spoil the show for those who are watching (or plan to) but haven’t gotten to the final episode of this season. However, I will tell you (which is no more or no less that you can get from the episode descriptions on Netflix) that the relationship between Frank Underwood (Kevin Spacey) and Claire Underwood (Robin Wright) is strained to the breaking point. What’s more interesting is why… [Read more…] about Underwood For President.

The People v. Climate Change

To the Honorable Chief Justice John Roberts and the Honorable Justices of the Supreme Court of the United States of America:

If it please the court, we hereby submit this petition for an injunction to bind the United States Government from any activity in support of the concept of Climate Change, including, but not limited to, “cap and trade,” “carbon taxes,” “carbon emissions,” and “environmental impact,” either through legislation, executive action, or administrative regulations. We ask the court’s help, due to the fact that Climate Change (nee: “Global Warming,” nee: “Global Cooling”) is so clearly a religion, and therefore violates Article I of the United States Constitution prohibiting the establishment of religion and abridging freedom of speech or of the press.  [Read more…] about The People v. Climate Change

On Bullying…and Bullies.

When I was a kid we had bullies. I was a student at Southfield School. And in 6th grade there was a kid who was bullying me. It just didn’t stop. I tried being nice. I tried keeping quiet. I tried telling the Principal. Nothing worked…until one day I’d had enough. I got to my mom’s car and threw my books in, furious, and I told her “Wait here…I’ve got something to take care of,” and I stormed off. There used to be an old wooden long building out by the field, they used as dressing rooms. I stormed onto the field, looking for this kid, mad as Hell, and I wasn’t going to take it any more. 
[Read more…] about On Bullying…and Bullies.