A video of this post is inlne below. ——————————— Our national mania for freedom (“You can’t tell me what to do!“) and our desire for retribution for both real and imagined wrongs, combined with our obsession over firearms (click for the truth about “Second Amendment remedies“) is a potent combination that is doing exactly what… [read more]
Our Watch
The good news is that there are lots of people who are smarter than me and I need them, because I have a big bucket full of I Don’t Know. For example, I don’t understand righties who not only want to have their way (that part is understandable, of course), but they want to “own… [read more]
That Guy
Upton Sinclair said, “It is difficult to get a man to understand something when his salary depends upon his not understanding it.” (Thanks go to MG for the quote.) That’s a powerful observation about human nature and motivation, but when I read it I instantly shifted to our national cultural and political divide. If you’ve… [read more]
FDB – Not a Typo
Were I twenty years younger and living where there is a Republican senator or congressperson I would run for office in 2022. I’m licking my lips at the idea of running against any fool Republican who voted against the American Rescue Plan, which includes every Republican in Congress. By November 2022 it will be the… [read more]
Lessons
The Playground Lessons When I was a kid the grown ups let me know when I behaved improperly and the messages were always very clear and compelling. That didn’t mean that I never did whatever-it-was again, but it did mean that I knew the rules and did whatever-it-was less and less often. I saw other… [read more]
Carrots, Sticks and George Washington
George Washington’s Farewell Address was delivered to Congress in 1796. He offered profound wisdom to our young nation and his words have value that is undiminished by time. Indeed, it reads as though Washington had a telescope to see into the 21st century and address our challenges of today. His address is wordy in its… [read more]
E Pluribus Unum
Perhaps you heard that in the face of the Texas winter nightmare Republican Governor Greg Abbott blamed the breakdowns and suffering on the Green New Deal. Of course, the GND is only an idea; nothing has been done to create its physical reality, so Abbott’s pronouncements were most perplexing. Besides, the wind and solar renewables… [read more]
You Have The Power
Arguably, even in the presence of moral outrages, assaults on democracy, compromise of our national security and even more, our most grievous shame of the past four years is our refusing fair treatment of people fleeing terrorism and the imprisonment of innocent children. Literally ripping babies – infants – from their mothers’ arms. We did… [read more]
Lessons From a Senate Committee Hearing
The Merrick Garland confirmation hearing yielded a couple of unanticipated lessons, one of which we might have expected, but it arrived in a surprisingly moving and impactful way. The other was a fresh take on what happened on January 6. Judge Garland responded to a question from Sen. Cory Booker (D-NJ) about why he wanted… [read more]
Trump’s Future, Dead Politician and Curmudgeon Corner
The Future of Trump Memo to DC, Georgia, Pennsylvania, Arizona, Michigan, New York State, New York City, SDNY, the Justice Department and all the women he raped: Indict the crook for inciting a riot, election interference, bank fraud, wire fraud, tax fraud, insurance fraud, money laundering, incitement to insurrection and sedition, bribery and the rest…. [read more]
