Stormbringer's Thunder

by Cowboy Bob Sorensen  People require illustrations on posts and such, but there is a risk of copyright infringement. I cringe when I see bloggers and site owners using images that are not  free to use, as they are risking disciplinary action from their providers, or even lawsuits. Shoot your own pics, Sherman. Although I do not always have item-specific photos and illustrations when necessary (use  extreme caution , many can be found). Sometimes I use related images — occasionally with effects, especially my own pictures . Part of what I call "nature therapy" (seriously, get out in nature) is taking pictures. Esopus Lighthouse on left, barge on right, all on Hudson River (photo by Cowboy Bob Sorensen) This child is old enough to remember being selective when taking snapshots because we had to send them away for processing and pay for them. Even the crummy ones. It's so different now. We can use digital cameras and take dozens or hundreds at a setting, depending on stora...

by Cowboy Bob Sorensen  There are millions of professing Christians, many celebrate the bodily Resurrection of Jesus from the dead. Today my wife is celebrating Easter with Jesus for the first time. I miss her, but my grief is tempered with the knowledge that I will see her again. Unbelievers and leftists taint and distort good things that were created. Biblical creationists are called "science deniers" because we reject fish-to-phlebotomist evolution, but those who believe that people can change genders really are  science deniers. Distorted woods, original image by Cowboy Bob Sorensen Study on it a bit. A person's DNA is in every cell, and to change genders would mean to change that in all those trillions of cells. Taking hormones, changing clothing choices, forcing others to use preferred pronouns, having surgery — those are superficial changes. March 31 has been called the Transgender Day of Visibility where people who deny what God created demand to be celebrated. No...

by Cowboy Bob Sorensen  In the formerly United States, today is the conclusion of Black History Month. Some things I want to say will rile a few folks. (Of course, those will be the ones who "think" with their emotions and are less concerned with actual thought.) This material came together for me in a big box store. Like many places, our shopping experience is allegedly enhanced by the music system. The store had several announcements about being proud to support black-owned businesses. They also exhorted people to buy items made by those businesses. Limestone near Rosendale, NY railroad trestle, Photo by Cowboy Bob Sorensen (modified with FotoSketcher The messages on that radio rubbed me the wrong way — they struck me as manipulative. Conservative talk show host Chris Plante refers to the "soft bigotry of low expectations." The messages sound like " white man's burden " because they need the help of white people in order to succeed. Blacks also nee...

At this time of year, misotheists and professing Christians of a liberal bent make their disbelief in the Bible known. Documentaries on television and articles in secular sources give actual Bible believers little or no credence. One does not need to even be a theist, let alone believe in biblical inerrancy, to be a professor of the New Testament. It is important for Christians to use critical thinking when dealing with alleged experets. In this case, one indicated that since two of the Gospels do not mention that Jesus was born in Bethlehem, the silence is an implicit contradiction. Christmas Nativity Scene, Pixabay / Andreas Böhm They didn't mention Bethlehem? This child's first response was, "Huh. How about that?"  Calling the omission of the birthplace of Jesus a possible contradiction is a massive argument from silence, old son. In police investigations, the witnesses are separated to keep them from discussing the details with each other. That cuts down on influe...

by Cowboy Bob Sorensen  Although nobody asked and I am under no obligation to explain myself, I will anyway. In several places, I have mentioned that I have a wife. (At Piltdown Superman when I'm writing in my cowboy character, I do not.) However, I never named or described her. The reason is quite simple: atheists and leftists. On more than one occasion, I have been physically threatened by them, especially angry misotheists. This only happened online, but some have stated they wanted to come over here — especially because I staunchly present creation science. Charlene at Niagara Falls in 2007 (?) EDIT: It occurred to me later that I left out a secondary factor. Years ago (and I am leaving off the sequence of events that led me to my reluctant conclusion), I could not have a Fakebook account under my real name. Apparently atheists in power there kept deleting my accounts, so I became someone else. She didn't call me by my real name when I was using that account. Although I la...

Here I am at Westchester Medical Center waiting for open heart surgery for a double or triple bypass in a couple of days. There was a strange sequence of events that got me here, I was originally expecting to have a short visit to the Urgent Care for a different problem. This is being written using an old cell phone, speech to text, and other technological wizardry. There is a small table on wheels just under 3 ft long for me to use. I did not notice before, it has a small drawer that is not very deep. I put some things in there that I wanted to be close to me. I needed something, went to look for it - and it was gone. Creepy hospital, Unsplash/ Andy Li Time to write off on a short but relevant side trail. The word gaslighting is overused nowadays, but it is still something real. When used correctly, the word involves psychological manipulation to make someone deny their perception of reality -  or even their own sanity. You can see that it is malicious, not just a mist...

by Cowboy Bob Sorensen This article was inspired while I was writing an introduction to a post about wolverines . At first, it was going to be a part of the introduction, but it needed its own place. It is expanded from that intended introduction. Wolverines are known to mostly live in the far north, but a few live further south.  Captain Meriwether Lewis saw on in 1806 and referred to it as a "tyger cat," as it was unknown to white folks. Indeed, when the first specimen of a platypus was sent from 'Straya to England, the recipients thought it was a prank. Public domain image from the National Park Service, modified at FotoSketcher I am  doing a backward approach to cryptozoology , which is a search for animals that are hidden or extinct. I spent my first forty years in Michigan, which is called the Wolverine State even though it apparently never had a large number of them. Did they ever exist there? All we have are eyewitness accounts and the fact that there are others...