Category Archives: Everyday etiquette

Seat belt law opponents are either idiots or liars

To: letterstotheeditor@bostonherald.com To the editor: It has been painful to watch the avalanche of flawed statistics and discredited urban legends wielded by opponents of a primary enforcement seat-belt law in their foolhardy efforts to stop a law which would undeniably save lives. Jonah Goldberg informs us that since there are states with higher traffic fatality… Read More »

Grammar Police on patrol

For those whom this might amuse: From: Jonathan Kamens <jik@kamens.brookline.ma.us> To: info@commutercheckdirect.com Subject: Typographical error on “Commuter Benefits Order Fulfillment” email OK, so admit it, I’m ridiculously picky, and this is a ridiculously trivial thing I’m writing to you about.  Still, on the off chance that someone there might care about it…   The “Commuter Benefits… Read More »

Letting blind people drive

On the topic of mandatory periodic retesting of senior citizens when they renew their driver’s licenses, my wife recently had this letter printed in the Boston Herald (under the completely nonsensical headline “Rights watered down”, thus proving yet again that the Herald really needs to hire some better headline writers): Over a decade ago, it… Read More »

Rabbinic irony

I just saw an announcement for a talk being given tonight in a Boston Jewish venue by a visiting rabbi who shall rename nameless. The title of the talk is, “Self-Righteousness — Going on an Ego Trip”. The announcement of the talk included the following biography of the speaker (emphases mine): Rabbi [deleted] was born… Read More »

On public apologies

A few days ago, I flew off the handle and attacked someone on the jewish-boston mailing list for a comment which was meant in jest and which I incorrectly took seriously. I was helped to see the error of my ways by some very polite people, and this morning I sent this apology to the… Read More »

Speed kills

Four teens were killed, and a fifth critically injured, in a single-vehicle car accident in Leicester last Friday night. The driver of the car was traveling at over twice the speed limit. The local high school principal was quoted in the paper as saying, “It’s not like they did anything wrong.” I just sent the… Read More »

Lost and Found

Remember back on the playground, when you lost a favorite knickknack and later saw another kid playing with it? “Finders keepers, losers weepers!” the finder chanted, and that was the end of it, for how could you challenge such a time-honored saying? It is not surprising that children would resort to this defense, but how… Read More »