Archive of Flotsum & Jetsam Archives - DON SILVER, Author

Shoot

on April 10th, 2009 in Flotsum & Jetsam, Gallagher's Frolics, Uncategorized by | Comments Off on Shoot

In certain spots in the South, guns are ubiquitous and since we bought our land, I’ve been advised many times to go get one. This advice appealed to me. For one thing, I’ve been told that the Sheriff out our way is at least forty-five minutes away and doesn’t make…

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on January 8th, 2009 in Flotsum & Jetsam by | Comments Off on

“You can only defend yourself as the person you are attacked as.” Hannah Arendt 1941

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Disgusting Letter from Civil War Re-Enactor Discovered in Tennessee Attic

on November 28th, 2008 in Flotsum & Jetsam by | Comments Off on Disgusting Letter from Civil War Re-Enactor Discovered in Tennessee Attic

Dearest Brother, I find myself in a deplorably weak state owing to an injury that I took to my hind section in a skirmish over a bridge. It’s painful, but worse yet, very embarrassing. As opposed to the rectal aperture, when this wound oozes, it brings no relief. Thank God…

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My Worry Will End

on November 22nd, 2008 in Flotsum & Jetsam by | Comments Off on My Worry Will End

It occurred to me this morning that my worry will end when the thing I worry most about happening happens.

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Climate Change (the big picture)

on June 5th, 2008 in Flotsum & Jetsam by | Comments Off on Climate Change (the big picture)

The twentieth century opened on a world that was home to little more than a billion people and closed on a world of 6 billion, and every one of those 6 billion is using on average four times as much energy as their forefathers did 100 years before. This helps…

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More well-meaning attempts to communicate with foreign visitors:

on May 15th, 2007 in Flotsum & Jetsam by | Comments Off on More well-meaning attempts to communicate with foreign visitors:

In a Tokyo Hotel: Is forbitten to steal hotel towels please. If youare not person to do such thing is please not to read notis. In another Japanese hotel room: Please to bathe inside the tub. In a Bucharest hotel lobby: The lift is being fixed for the next day.During…

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Lost in Translation

on May 12th, 2007 in Flotsum & Jetsam by | Comments Off on Lost in Translation

From an article in the Guardian Unlimited: Coors Beer maker Coors discovered that its slogan “Turn it Loose” translated into Spanish as “Suffer from Diarrhoea”. The company immediately pulled the advertisements and changed the campaign’s slogan to “Won’t Slow You Down” which it said “better resonated with Spanish-speaking audiences”. Reebok…

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The Wal*Mart Movie

on April 19th, 2007 in Flotsum & Jetsam, Uncategorized by | Comments Off on The Wal*Mart Movie

Two years ago, Robert Greenwald, a progressive filmmaker made Wal*Mart: The High Cost of Low Price. I finally got around to watching it and sent off a note to Mr. Greenwald, who was kind enough to respond. His other work is worth checking out: he made a creditable film about…

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Deconstructing a Joke (or why I’m no fun at parties)

on March 18th, 2007 in Flotsum & Jetsam by | Comments Off on Deconstructing a Joke (or why I’m no fun at parties)

A man was at the country club for his weekly round of golf. He began his round with an eagle on the first hole and a birdie on the 2d. On the third hole he had just scored his first ever hole-in-one when his cell phone rang. It was a…

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Interviewing Reporters

on March 16th, 2007 in Flotsum & Jetsam by | Comments Off on Interviewing Reporters

There’s a scene in my new novel which involves the response the media would have to a very racy, though thoroughly fictitious event. It’s pretty easy to imagine what goes on in newsrooms — we’re forced to watch the product of it every frickin’ day — but I thought I…

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