Current Affairs

I keep seeing a meme which claims Stanley Milgram found that 80% of the population does not have the moral courage to stand against the crowd, but will follow rules regardless. This claim is usually accompanied…

Blue zones, places where a high proportion of people who live to be over 100 years of age, have been examined and analysed for variations in diet, level of education, physical activity, proximity to water, trees,…

King Randall (if you haven’t heard of him, look him up) conducted a social experiment by posting two videos. In one video, he said he would vote for Kamala, and in the other, he said he…

Apropos of nothing in particular. Just an interesting read. Something unthinkable happened during the summer of 1718. Edward Teach, the infamous pirate known as Blackbeard, decided to give up piracy—at least ostensibly—in exchange for a royal…

A week ago, eight weeks before President-elect Trump is due to take over, President Biden approved the firing of US ballistic missiles deep into Russia. Two days ago, the first of those missiles was fired at…

I have just added an archive page which contains links to all previous posts, sorted by year since Qohel started in 2008. Qohel Archive

Anti-vaccination propaganda kills. In just three and half months, up to January 2020, there were 5700 cases of measles in Samoa. Nearly two thousand people had to be admitted to hospital. Eighty-three people died. Almost all…

If the Palestinian cause is just, why is every argument in favour of it a lie? Lie 1.    Israel is an apartheid regime. This charge is especially misplaced because apartheid involves race. Israel is the only…

Does astrology work? Does the position of celestial bodies at the time of our birth say anything about our intelligence, personality, relationships, or how our life will unfold? Short answer: NO Long answer: Also NO In…

I regularly see posts or comments on social media claiming mRNA vaccines are not vaccines but gene therapy. Here’s why this is not so. A vaccine is a biological preparation that primes the immune system to…

It is important to read and consider the views of those who think differently from you. I read a variety of news sources, for example, from all sides of politics. The same is true in other…

A response to a friend who insisted: 1. All early COVID-19 vaccines were mRNA based 2. COVID-19 vaccines did not help, and killed or harmed millions Some initial observations: Nothing on social media, including this, should…

Imagine that over the last twenty years China has been sponsoring drug cartels in the Northern quarter of Mexico. With that support, those cartels have grown into a single empire which is well-armed and relentless in…

Some thoughts on justice, and especially the claim that retribution has no purpose beyond mere revenge: Cesare Beccaria is often regarded as the founder of modern rational theories of justice. It is an amusing conceit to…

The paper Beyond Correctional Quackery by Latessa et al, is itself a perfect example of correctional quackery. How do I detest thee? Let me count the ways… The paper starts with a description of a skit…