NOW PATRIOT!

Many if not most are proud to be an American. They tell you this, if you ask, and will usually elaborate saying there’s no place they’d rather be. A few might complain how health care, tax rates or eldercare are better in this place or that, but generally the facts on these are sketchy and not nearly enough to make them move. When we say we’re proud to be American, is this being patriotic? I think it is to some degree,...

EXPOUNDING SOME BELIEFS

As children we learn about right and wrong, good, bad etc.  We learn these things from our parents, then from clerics, teachers and finally, perhaps most importantly, our peers. When we played games with our pals we learned there were rules which usually coincided with what we already learned at home/school/church but they quickly took on more meaning since not playing by the rules had immediate consequences. This gave...

THE DIRTY DOZEN

JOE M   WILL B   JOHN B   JOHN K   DICK N   BARRY G  ANITA B    ROBERT B    RON R    SARAH P   MIKE F   DONNY T In the course of recent history and within the scope of my own memory there have been many public officials/candidates who because of their beliefs were criticized, ridiculed, demeaned, humiliated and boycotted. Their views were rejected, their opinions held in contempt and their personal...

SEA OF AMBIVALENCE ?

Our republic is sometimes referred to as a Ship of State, many favoring this metaphor since its imagery is easy to understand. People can relate to being confined on a ship subject to the whims of not only its captain/crew but also the seaworthiness of the ship itself – and don’t forget, the SEA! If one agrees, for years we’ve had a motley crew, it could be they’ve damaged our ship almost beyond repair. They did it...

GOING NOWHERE, FAST?

Lately I’ve been watching various political analysts review our current situation, offering recommendations of what to do to recapture the founders’ dream for America. They begin by critiquing Trump’s flaws from the conservative standpoint, expending great effort/ink decrying his aberrant behaviors, untrustworthy exhortations and refusal to identify himself as being this type conservative or that, resulting in praise...

IS NICKI TALKING TRUTH?

I’m barely aware who Nicki Minaj is, she being a rap-culture entertainer. Trashy, rappy, hippety-hoppy, I’m about three generations and sixty years removed from the age at which her artform is appreciated, but evidently she’s a talented performer with a vast fan club of teens/young adults in the millions. Question: why did she recently post on internet the message/warning – they’re eating babies!? This came out...