Category: This World

  • What Jack the Ripper Means to Me

    What Jack the Ripper Means to Me

    In the fall of 1888, in the Whitechapel area of London, an unidentified assailant murdered and mutilated at least five women. From the first murder to the last, terror gripped the city. Newspapers printed grisly details. Letters were mailed to newspapers and the police, claiming credit for the crimes. These letters were signed “Jack the…

  • God Himself Doesn’t Have to Sink Ships, Humans Handle it Well Enough

    God Himself Doesn’t Have to Sink Ships, Humans Handle it Well Enough

    When the Titanic launched in 1912, one White Star Line employee noted “God himself could not sink this ship.” At the time, Titanic was the largest, most luxurious cruise liner to hit the seven seas. The White Star Line was a company owned by J.P. Morgan, one of the wealthiest men to ever live. Initially,…

  • Creepy, Beautiful Things

    Creepy, Beautiful Things

    By now, we’ve all seen the incredible spider web video footage and photography coming out of Australia. If you haven’t, you can look at it here and then come back. I’ll wait. Severe flooding drove millions of spiders inland. Perhaps you remember earlier this year when news footage of spiders fleeing up trees and poles…