POLITICS & THE ECONOMY
AMERICA AND IRAN PLAY CHICKEN
When making decisions, government leaders must evaluate their nation’s pain threshold and their own political risks. Cue Donald Trump and Iran’s Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. Trump gave Khamenei 60 days to agree to processing uranium only for civilian use—and outside Iran. Khamenei refused. The deadline passed. Given the stalemate and American inaction, Israeli prime minister Benjamin…
Read MoreDISHONORING THE FLAG
A military parade in Washington will mark Flag Day tomorrow when Donald Trump again dishonors the Stars and Stripes. I love our flag. At its best, it stands for life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness—and equal treatment before the law—for everyone. The parade supposedly will celebrate the 250th anniversary of the U.S. Army. I have…
Read MoreWE’RE ALL GOING TO DIE
Today marks the eighty-first anniversary of D-Day, the Normandy invasion to reclaim Europe from Nazi Germany. Our troops displayed incredible courage. How sad, then, that a veteran of a later war revealed cowardice as a U.S. senator. Joni Ernst, R.-Iowa, graduated from Iowa State and, through ROTC, was commissioned a second-lieutenant in the Army. In…
Read MoreANTISEMITES “PROTECTING” JEWS
The Trump administration boasts about protecting American Jews from antisemitism and anti-Israel attacks. The truth is just the opposite. Jews have been called “the canary in the coal mine.” Attacks on Jews warn that a society is giving way to ethnic autocracy. Other minorities soon will be assaulted. This canary smells the scent emanating from…
Read MorePOTUS’ FLYING PALACE
The Defense Department just accepted a luxury Boeing 747 gifted by Qatar to serve as Air Force One. But that’s only half the story. The new plane, meant to serve only King Donald, must undergo serious modifications to make it presidentially secure. But other changes will be made in response to Oval Office demands. The…
Read MorePLATO, COMICS AND COMPETING AMERICAN VISIONS
The Greek philosopher Plato and several comic-strip characters can tell us where America should be going. Plato wrote of numina and phenomena. Numina represent the ideal. Phenomena attempt to express the ideal in physical or other form. Plato used a chair as an example. The ideal chair can’t be seen. Real chairs, whatever their design, are attempts to…
Read MoreO CANADA!
Does eating breakfast make me a Benedict Arnold? I’ve always considered myself a loyal American. When I was commissioned a second lieutenant in the Army after being graduated from Officer Candidate School at Fort Benning, Georgia, I swore to protect and defend the Constitution. I maintain that oath. Now, am I aiding and abetting a…
Read MoreDEMOLITION DERBY
My neighborhood is full of home-improvement projects, including my own. What I see says a lot about today’s American government. Most homeowners and landlords maintain or upgrade their properties. New owners often make major renovations. On my daily walks, I see up to two dozen subcontractors providing electrical and plumbing services, hardwood floors, windows, sheetrock,…
Read MorePOLICE STATE USA
A favorite novel begins with a terrified protagonist: “The footsteps—thick-sole, steel-toe heavy, no pretense at stealth—approached our floor from the wrong direction. On a Monday morning, most people left their apartments for work, shlepped their still-sleepy way down the stairs as Indira had earlier. The stomping that terrified me came up from the lobby. I…
Read MoreTHE HERMIT OF MAPLE STREET—A FABLE
A drive to brunch at a friend’s house provided a jarring encounter with a suburban hermit. As I parked at the curb at the house next-door, the neighbor’s front door flew open. A white-haired man popped out. He wore a red, white and blue bathrobe over white pajamas. His feet were tucked into red slippers.…
Read MoreTHE DEPARTMENT OF WAR AND SIGNALGATE
What happens when an American President reviles competence? One week ago, Donald Trump called out Pulitzer Prize-winning New York Times reporter Maggie Haberman for reporting that Elon Musk would receive a Pentagon briefing on potential war with China. Trump went schoolyard bully. He called Haberman, Maggot. He said she should give him her Pulitzer Prize. And:…
Read MoreNUKING EGG PRICES
Mea culpa! I didn’t understand Donald Trump when, during the presidential campaign, he said that “starting on Day 1,” he would drive down inflation, including egg prices. I didn’t comprehend during his inaugural address when he proclaimed that “the golden age of America begins right now.” Now, I get it. The President of the United…
Read MoreWORDS, IMAGES AND AUTOCRACY
We used to say, “Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never harm me.” Such innocence! The pen can mightier than the sword. So, a bully has prohibited certain words—and images—from use by government agencies. Toadying civilian organizations likely will follow suit. The Trump administration now outlaws—or cautions against—hundreds of words on…
Read MoreLOVE LETTER FROM MOSCOW
The internet revealed Vladimir Putin wrote Donald Trump after Trump’s address to the nation last Tuesday. I herein pass it on. Everyone knows, if it’s on the internet, it’s true. Tovarich Donald: I applaud 99-minute speech you gave Tuesday night America time. Comrade’s advice: Leader’s speech should be minimum three hours. Four, better. Five, you show…
Read MoreBALANCE, COSMIC AND EARTHLY
A good friend is disturbed by photos of the cosmos. What is a human being in the vast universe? Rabbi Simcha Bunim (1765-1827) addressed this. He exclaimed that everyone should have two pockets. One should hold a note declaiming, The world was made for me. The other should hold a note stating, I am but dust and ashes. We’re motes…
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