POLITICS & THE ECONOMY
SCANNING THIS WEEK’S POLITICAL HORSESHOE
A political theory holds that the extreme left and extreme right draw close at the opposite ends of a horseshoe-style curve. Differing views between traditional left and right leave a wide, but respectful, ideological gap in the middle of that curve. The extremes narrow the gap because they share similar views about exercising power and…
Read MoreARTEMIS II AND IRAN
A cartoon in last Friday’s San Francisco Chronicle says much about the war on Iran. Wiley Miller’s “Non Sequitur” appeared two days after Artemis II lifted off to circle the moon. Two astronauts ride in a moon buggy. One holds a rifle. A gun rack holds three more. The dialog balloon: “Let’s call it quits,…
Read MoreBASEBALL, PASSOVER, AND IRAN
Baseball, Passover and the war with Iran have a connection. The national pastime represents an ordered world. Games end in a recognized win or loss. The standings clearly position each team. Simple. Passover: not so simple. God freed the Israelites from Egypt. But the waters—during and after Pharaoh drowned in the Sea of Reeds—muddied quickly.…
Read MoreHUGE-BOAR AND THE NARROWS—A FABLE
Once upon a time, HUGE-BOAR, the brawniest beast in the forest, called out a very aggressive, if less powerful, rival. “Idiot-Ram is a danger to the whole forest!!!” Without telling anyone, HUGE-BOAR—known for his huge hump, the hugest—crossed the forest. With a deer friend, Big Buck, he attacked I-Ram’s territory. HUGE-BOAR deployed his enormous tusks…
Read MoreEXODUS ON WHITE HOUSE CORRUPTION
The book of Exodus says something important about corruption contaminating the Oval Office. Americans should pay heed. Exodus’ final portion, Pekudei, presents an example of power modified by integrity. The Israelites had brought precious gifts for the Tabernacle and the priests’ vestments. Pekudei begins, “These are the records of the Tabernacle, the Tabernacle of the Pact, that were drawn up…
Read MoreBOOTS ON THE GROUND IN AMERICA?
I started this post about the Iran war on Wednesday. Yesterday, a comment by Donald Trump confirmed my worst fears about imperiled American democracy. As to the war, I’m not disturbed by the deaths of Iran’s Supreme Leader, Ali Khamenei, and other top officials. They can rot in Hell. Since 1979, the Iranian theocracy has…
Read MoreSTATE OF DISUNION
Last Tuesday night, Donald Trump gave the first part of the State of the Union address. Here’s the rest he decided—with anguish—not to share. “My SUBJECTS: ‘My Fellow Americans,’ that’s Bullshit! The only people on my level are guys with three COMMAS in their asset totals. Also Numbers. Numbers add up to DOLLAR$$$. You break…
Read MoreTHE CRUELEST MONTH
“April is the cruelest month,” T.S. Elliot wrote in his 1922 poem, “The Waste Land.” I disagree. Those words begin Part I, “The Burial of the Dead” and present a world filled with post-Great War despair. I find more gloom in my own choice of cruelest month. March? They say it comes in like a…
Read MoreABUSING THE TEN COMMANDMENTS
A 15-foot, gold-plated statue of Donald Trump—a $300,000 “grift” from cryptocurrency investors—challenges the Christian champion’s supposed respect for the Ten Commandments. Tuesday’s New York Times reported: “Don Colossus” awaits installation on Donald Trump’s golf complex in Doral, Florida. “Pastor Mark Burns, one of the organizers of the effort and a friend of Mr. Trump’s, told his…
Read MoreTHE MIDDLE-FINGER TEST
At lunch, a man hassles you. Your friend starts videoing. The man curses and raises his middle-finger. Your friend shows the video to the restaurant manager. “I held up all five fingers,” the hassler insists. What does the manager believe? Images can be—and frequently are—manipulated through AI and various programs. But the restaurant video was…
Read MoreBARWD OF PEECE
Only creative spelling can express two disastrous horrors foisted on the United States by its would-be emperor. Donald Trump is bored with peace. He threatened force and tariffs to seize Greenland, an autonomous territory of NATO ally Denmark. Why? Trump texted Norwegian prime minister Jonas Gahr Store: “Considering your Country decided not to give me the Nobel Peace…
Read MoreKING AND THE KING
Martin Luther King Day will be celebrated Monday, one day before the first anniversary of Donald Trump’s second presidential—and first royal—term. Talk about irony! Martin Luther King, Jr. roused many Americans with his speeches and marches promoting civil rights while espousing nonviolence. Donald Trump incites violence—think January 6th, Venezuela, possibly Greenland, maybe Iran, definitely Minnesota—while…
Read MoreOSTRICHES, TURTLES AND CROWS
Opponents of America’s direction on both the internal and international fronts consist roughly of three basic species. Much has impacted these Americans: The Trump regime—a more fitting word for an autocracy than administration—seizing Venezuelan oil after kidnapping its president (not a good guy to be clear) and leaving turmoil in its wake. Threatening Colombia. Threatening Greenland. Homeland…
Read MoreMY CHANUKAH WISH LIST
Don’t think me greedy, but I have a long wish list for Chanukah presents, and I want everything. Chanukah is the Jewish “Festival of Lights.” The eight-night (and day) holiday begins on the 25th of the month of Kislev which, in the lunar-solar calendar, falls anywhere between late November and the end of December. Chanukah…
Read MoreVENEZUELA AND DELUSION
America is being led down the rabbit hole of self-deceit and towards potential war with Venezuela. I believe that our bellicose commander-in-chief has three goals in mind. Donald Trump’s fixation on small boats crossing the Caribbean from Venezuela to the U.S. goes beyond restricting drug-running. But first, let’s agree that the drug trade is horrible.…
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