“Kobe is dead.” Those were the first words out of my middle son’s mouth when I answered the phone. I paused, waiting for the punchline to this really bad joke. He said it twice more. My mouth fell open. Was he serious? It felt like words had become disconnected from meanings. I put him on […]

Democrats could use some cheering up now that their conventional politicians are locked in fierce ideological battle. The moderate Democratic majority fears that an aggressive left could saddle them with a zombie candidate sure to lose to President Donald Trump. That person could also cost them control of the House by hurting down-ballot Democrats in […]

I love Ireland for its natural beauty, its people, its food (some of it), its music, its writers and especially its elections, which are shorter, less costly and designed to engage citizens and boost voter turnout. On January 14, Irish Prime Minister Leo Varadkar called a general election for February 8. That means a campaign […]

It’s easy to forget what the Senate impeachment trial is supposed to be about. It’s not a fight over whether the Senate will call a couple of witnesses that the House couldn’t, or didn’t bother to, obtain on its own. The underlying question is whether the United States Senate will impose the most severe sanction […]

This week marks 75 years since Soviet troops stormed the gates of hell. Hell was near a Polish town called Oswiecim. Hell was a place called Auschwitz. Seven-and-a-half decades later, the murder factory has all but passed from living memory, been swallowed by that great maw called history. So perhaps it feels distant to you, […]

We all desire the power to choose our friends, hobbies, careers, spouse and house. But to make choices, we need multiple options. Without options, we can’t choose — and if those choices are important, we likely feel powerless and stuck. All of us want to choose how we invest our energies working and playing; and […]

I love definitions because they help focus the mind. For decades, we are said to have been in a culture war. As in any war, it helps to know one’s enemy. One online dictionary defines culture this way: “the quality in a person or society that arises from a concern for what is regarded as […]

An acquaintance recently emailed me, in a sense of bewilderment after following the national news for the past few weeks, and his questions prompted me to write these down. With his permission I present some of them, edited for clarity and PG-13 audiences. He hopes that when Trump is re-elected to a second term that […]

Bernie Sanders’ campaign recently stabbed Elizabeth Warren in the back. She was the Vermont senator’s comrade in arms. It also threw a pack of lies at Joe Biden, tarring him as corrupt with zero evidence. As former Vermont Gov. Peter Shumlin told Politico, Sanders “will play dirty.” The Democrat added, “I’m concerned that we’re seeing […]

On May 1, 2019, Russian police in Moscow and St. Petersburg arrested more than a hundred demonstrators who had made it clear to all observers they were protesting one man: Russian President and former KGB Col. Vladimir Putin. On Jan. 15, 2020, Putin announced that he would send the Russian parliament legislation that would amend […]