FELLED BY A BLOG

posted by James Reel

    The Arizona Daily Star reports the latest personnel mini-scandal at the UA: “An adjunct psychology lecturer at the University of Arizona resigned Saturday after writing to a conservative blogger that she wouldn't care if his 2-year-old son was killed the way JonBenet Ramsey was.” Although I am inclined to take the liberal side in most political arguments, I must admit that I’m happy to see a flamer of any persuasion go down in … um … flames.
    Something about the Internet has always brought out the worst in people, ever since the development of primitive electronic bulletin boards in the early 1990s. From there through the vicious exchanges in Usenet newsgroups up to the dopey comment sections in today’s blogs and news sites, Internet “discussions” have tended to degenerate into ad hominem attacks and sheer nastiness. This is why I don’t allow a free flow of comments at this blog. I’m not going to turn the blog over to the wackos and malcontents who make intelligent discussion impossible. If you have something relevant to say, e-mail me and I’ll be happy to post it, even if you disagree with me. (This isn’t censorship; it’s moderation.) I’d also encourage you to visit the sites listed in the right-hand column, where debate (when it occurs) remains civil yet stimulating.

MRS. MOZART, PRE-PAPARAZZI?

posted by James Reel

    Monday morning, before I discovered that my blogsite was down, I was all set to upload the following post …

    Here’s a link to a recently discovered photo taken in 1840 of a group that includes Constanze Weber Mozart, Wolfgang’s widow. She was 78 at the time; Mozart had been dead for nearly 50 years, but imagine—if he hadn’t expired so ridiculously young, he might have been in this photo, too. Perhaps he would have looked happier to be a subject of the new technology than the dour Bavarians in this picture.