Books: Blink by Malcolm Gladwell. Mr. Gladwell is a New Yorker writer who is the author of a book called The Tipping Point, about how new ideas, concepts, technologies, etc. spread through virus-like dissemination. Blink is about first impressions – both those gut instincts that turn out to be valid and the knee-jerk reactions that characterize bigotry of all sorts. Gladwell discusses how these operate at a mostly unconscious level and the effects they have on our decision processes, positive and negative. Warren Harding, undistinguished 29th President, whom Gladwell describes as a man who “liked to play golf and poker and, most of all, to chase women”, has his legacy reflected in the “Warren Harding Error: Why We Fall For Tall, Dark and Handsome Men”. Gladwell’s writing is filled with examples and stories, for those of us liberal arts majors who couldn’t follow the science involved in these theories unless it’s condensed into sound bites. One odd bit of military trivia – in war games, the United States and its allies (The League of Righteousness) are always called the Blue Team while our enemy (The Axis of Evil) is called the Red Team. Hmmmm.

“Profanity is the last refuge of the inarticulate motherfucker.” Showing how easily entertained I am, this just cracked me up.