Blog
In March 2023, I shared my thoughts after season 4 of the Israeli TV show “Fauda” (Netflix). I titled the piece, “Fauda—Violence and Humanity.” Carolyn and I just finished season 5. Things have changed. Planning to watch season 5? Stop reading. Better, read and watch anyway. There’s much to be learned. At the end of season…
The Arc de Triomphe in Paris shares much with an arch from antiquity, a recent one and a proposed arch for America. Little of it is good. The Emperor Napoleon Bonaparte commissioned the Arc de Triomphe. Construction lasted from 1806 to 1836, its completion long after his death. It celebrated wars of conquest that cost…
Texas Toast and Las Vegas have something in common. Texas Toast is white bread cut to a thickness of about one inch. Why? Because many Texans believe that bigger is better. I’m not knocking Texas. I lived there long ago. The Lone Star State’s fascination with size goes way back. After all, it’s the biggest…
A week ago, President Trump announced that the United States would rename Lake Ontario to Lake America. As a patriot, I say, “Make America even greater!” with a few more red-white-and-blue name changes. Swiss Cheese to American Cheese II. The new name will plug up the holes in the cheese—empty spaces you pay for. Kind of.…
I rarely write about the death of a celebrity, but Dolly Parton’s life deserves a few words. In 2019, I wrote “Shalom, Dolly!” after seeing the Broadway road musical, “Hello, Dolly!” The show had aged, but the staging and cast made it literally—and figuratively—sing. I also felt it personally. Dolly Gallagher Levi, a matchmaker supreme, was a…
A week ago, President Trump declared, “After we finish defeating Iran, which is being very badly defeated, pretty soon I’ll be declaring the Hormuz Strait a territory of the United States.” The strait will then host Trump’s latest real-estate development. As real-estate agents say, property’s three top selling points are location, location, location. Is the…
Donald Trump’s wars on Iran and vaccines evidence the president again taking this nation down the rabbit hole. I detest Iran’s ayatollahs and the Iranian Republican Guard Corps—vicious theocrats and corrupt power mongers. I also despise life-threatening diseases. But Trump’s lack of common sense—a value of which he incessantly boasts—has destabilized the Middle East and…
Carolyn and I traveled to Houston and New Orleans for our son Seth’s 50th birthday celebration. It was a total family affair, and we brought back many wonderful memories and a few souvenirs—one of which we could do without. Yes, Covid. Of note: each for the first time. We’re fine. My symptoms were so light…
What do Robert Louis Stevenson, Milton Caniff, John Derek, Johnny Depp and Donald Trump have in common? You’re stumped? No prob. Here’s the skinny: Stevenson (1850–94) wrote “Treasure Island,” published in book form in 1883.The novel gave us one of fiction’s most unforgettable characters, the pirate Long John Silver. Milton Caniff (1907-88) was a cartoonist responsible for…
This past Fourth in Washington, wishing America “Happy birthday” was a sad affair. Love and respect for the nation and our Declaration of Independence are always called for. But the celebration was manhandled with overkill. The traditional fireworks staged in the nation’s capital fizzled in a misguided effort to make the Guinness Book of World Records with…