Bruce Momjian: General Blog
I recently attended a church conference, and during a roundtable discussion titled "A Christian's Guide to Authenticity in an Artificial Intelligence World," I made the following observation: Let me give you my 10,000 foot view on this. Imagine it's the 1700s and you're a shoemaker. You say, "I am a shoemaker." It sounds like a normal statement, but in fact you're equating your value to be a…
Donald Trump's unorthodox approach has baffled many. This article explains that Trump uses confidence to win arguments, even if the facts don't support his position. Trump gave an uncharacteristic commencement address ( video ) in 2025 at the University of Alabama. In it, he listed eleven keys to his success: Do big things when you are young Love what you do Think big Work hard Don't lose your…
Star Trek: The Original Series turns 60 this year. I have admired the show since the early 1970s, having attended Star Trek's Creation Con at that time in the Statler Hilton (also known as the Hotel Pennsylvania). During one convention I rode in an elevator with James Doohan, who played Scotty in the show, and when someone in the elevator murmured "bridge," we all cracked up. During the Saturday…
In the past few centuries, science has exposed the underlying forces that allow the world to function forces that had been hidden from humanity. There is a sense that science will continue to expose forces, going deeper and deeper. However, in recent decades, the limits of what science can explain have been exposed, and this article highlights those. Science cannot explain the Origin of the…
My wife was born in Beirut, Lebanon, and I know many people who live or used to live there. Therefore, I have always been interested in why it has been trapped in dysfunction for so long, and why recovery is elusive. This video explains that the dysfunctional sectarian government created a country-wide Ponzi scheme using the Lebanese central bank. The Banque du Liban offered high interest rates to…
This is a table of the nominal gross domestic product (GDP) by continent: GDP per Rank Continent capita (USD) 1 North America $58,947 2 Oceania $44,152 3 Europe $40,056 - World $14,613 4 South America $11,258 5 Asia $9,323 6 Africa $2,606 Continue Reading »
We instinctively want to help those in need, but that help can also be harmful by increasing irresponsible behavior preventing those closer to the problem from helping avoiding addressing the cause of the need This video uses an example of children drowning in a river to address this very complex issue. The focus is how to help people in a way that will benefit them long-term. As an example,…
Two years ago I wrote about how the Old Order Amish "use religion to manipulate and control others." Last year I attended a Catholic-focused conference and now see a parallel between the Old Order Amish and Roman Catholics in this area. I am no stranger to Roman Catholicism, having attended many Catholic services, read many Catholic writings, taught in a Catholic school, and having been an adult…
I try to keep current on revelations in the spy world, but this one got by me, perhaps because it was more of a psychological operation (PSYOP) than a spy operation to collect secret information. When Ronald Reagan became president in 1981, he took a more aggressive approach to relations with the Soviet Union, which eventually led to its collapse a decade later. The 2009 book Reagan's Secret War:…
I have always been fascinated by how submarines work ( video ) and the history of their use. I have been fortunate to have visited the following submarines: B-427, Los Angeles, California ( closed ) Becuna, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Cod, Cleveland, Ohio Growler, New York City, New York Lembit, Tallinn, Estonia Nautilus, Groton, Connecticut Pampanito, San Francisco, California Requin, Pittsburgh,…