Is the World Too Ridiculous to be Funny?

The news yesterday was sadder than sad: P.J. O’Rourke has died. He was 74 but didn’t look it. He led many of us on a humorous journey over the river and through the woods, from silly childhood to appreciation of being an adult.

We Are All Going to Die

We forget this all the time. Perhaps as we get older, we’re a little less oblivious and proud about it, but I don’t think we truly understand the fragility of our existence. Most people who start off essays like this have some sort of axe to grind; I don’t, at least not about this, but I was reminded by something I read.

The Dark Underbelly of Star Trek: The Next Generation

Death, Life and Suicide in an "Optimistic" World

I should say firstly that it is perhaps my favorite television show. It’s one of the best regarded shows in the history of American television, and that is not an exaggeration. It also was able to transcend the somewhat niche quality of Star Trek, and of science fiction more generally. It still has one glaring flaw.