RMWMTMBM Archive

A Parable for “Glorious” Essay-Writers Everywhere

June 9, 2024 Leigh M. Johnson Philosophy, Pop Culture/Film/Literature, RMWMTMBM Archive, Teaching 3 Comments

Whenever I’m grading papers at the end of the semester, there always comes a point when I am reminded of that peculiar conversation between Alice and Humpty Dumpty (from Lewis Carroll’s Through the Looking Glass). After noting that there are 364 days of the year that one can receive un-birthday presents, Humpty Dumpty says to…

Read More

Best of Reality Television

June 9, 2024 Leigh M. Johnson Dr. J's Lists, Pop Culture/Film/Literature, RMWMTMBM Archive 5 Comments

It’s no secret that one of my guilty pleasures is reality television. I was an early convert to this genre of entertainment, having come of age around the same time that MTV’s groundbreaking series The Real World was in its prime. (The first season of that show was broadcast in my freshman year of college.)…

Read More

Listening While Grading

June 9, 2024 Leigh M. Johnson Dr. J's Lists, Music, RMWMTMBM Archive, Teaching 1 Comment

This following is the soundtrack of my life these days: Ennio Morricone’s The Mission: This is the soundtrack to the movie of the same name. Quite simply, some of the most breathtakingly beautiful music ever composed. This album made me love the oboe. The emotional rise and fall of the compositions carries its listener from…

Read More

President Barack Obama’s Inaugural Address

June 9, 2024 Leigh M. Johnson Obama, Politics, RMWMTMBM Archive Comments Off on President Barack Obama’s Inaugural Address

Text of President Obama’s Inaugural Address: My fellow citizens: I stand here today humbled by the task before us, grateful for the trust you have bestowed, mindful of the sacrifices borne by our ancestors. I thank President Bush for his service to our nation, as well as the generosity and cooperation he has shown throughout…

Read More

Heidegger, We Hardly Knew Ya…

June 9, 2024 Leigh M. Johnson Philosophy, RMWMTMBM Archive 3 Comments

The brainy parts of the internet are all a-buzz recently about philosopher Martin Heidegger and his student Hannah Arendt, largely as a result of the publication of a series of provoctaive reviews of Emmanuel Faye’s provocatively titled book Heidegger: The Introduction of Nazism into Philosophy. The most provocative of those reviews was an essay published…

Read More

Obama’s 2009 Address to Joint Session of Congress

June 9, 2024 Leigh M. Johnson Obama, Politics, RMWMTMBM Archive Comments Off on Obama’s 2009 Address to Joint Session of Congress

Madame Speaker, Mr. Vice President, Members of Congress, and the First Lady of the United States: I’ve come here tonight not only to address the distinguished men and women in this great chamber, but to speak frankly and directly to the men and women who sent us here. I know that for many Americans watching…

Read More

2011 in Viral Videos

June 3, 2024 Dr. J RMWMTMBM Archive Comments Off on 2011 in Viral Videos

[Note: The following should have posted on Dec 30.] There’s nothing like a good viral video to add a chuckle to your day, and 2010 had a lot of chuckles to share. This was probably the first year that I noticed YouTube videos making it onto the “real” news fairly regularly. As we now live…

Read More