The first thing to know about Donald Trump’s alleged proposal for a Muslim registry is that it isn’t a Muslim registry. This has been lost in a freak-out that has some brave souls already promising acts of civil disobedience to disrupt and overwhelm the prospective registry. The controversy tells us much more about how the […]
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We have the freedom to demand better
I was sitting in the service department of my Toyota dealer, staring at a book without seeing it as I waited for my car. God was next to me, watching “The Price is Right.” “Eight-hundred forty-nine dollars and ninety-nine cents,” he said. “Huh?” I said. “The retail price of a stainless-steel Kenmore 4.2 cubic foot […]
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Thanksgiving a time to celebrate the present
Editor’s Note: The following is a revised version of a column first published in November 2002. Thanksgiving is the most American of holidays. But there is something almost un-American about it. It is a day opposed to striving, to getting more. We stop adding up the numbers on the scorecard of life. We freeze in […]
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PBS documentary worthy of your time
That race continues to be a major source of anxiety and division in America is an undeniable fact. While some politicians continue to use race to divide, Harvard Professor Henry Louis Gates Jr. is trying again to bridge the gap in his latest PBS documentary series “Black America Since MLK.” As a conservative white person, […]
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Welfare takes rap for weak economy
WASHINGTON — Alan Greenspan, former chairman of the Federal Reserve Board, weighed in recently on one of the pressing issues facing the Trump administration — slow economic growth. Greenspan’s explanation is bound to be controversial. To preview: He blames the welfare state and overall uncertainty for the slowdown. Economic growth matters greatly. Faster growth raises […]
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Liberal left, Obama don’t own history
President Barack Obama won’t explicitly say that Donald Trump is on the wrong side of history, but surely he believes it. The president basically thinks anyone who gets in his way is transgressing the larger forces of history with a capital “H.” In 2008, he declared John McCain “on the wrong side of history right […]
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Perhaps we aren’t alarmist enough
A few days ago, a black woman I know got a text from a friend who asked what she’d be wearing “to the slave auction in January.” Another friend, who is white, wrote that she is “seriously picturing trains to Auschwitz. I can’t convey how seriously.” These are the kinds of conversations I find myself […]
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Some advice for the president-elect
It didn’t take long. Journalists, editorial writers and columnists who hate Donald Trump and consistently opposed his election are now advising him what not to do. Newspaper headlines claim Trump is pulling back on his campaign promises. Editorials encourage him not to do everything he pledged, although his pledges are what got him elected. The […]
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Pedestrian safety issues remain for Lewiston
In attending the Nov. 16 public forum regarding pedestrian and crosswalk safety, it was humbling to hear from so many residents and neighbors. I greatly respect all of them for their frankness and heartfelt dialog. They were the voices of Lewiston. What happened on Nov. 3 was a great loss and, again, I offer my […]
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How many pedestrian deaths will it take to learn?
The recent tragic death of Jayden Cho-Sargent in Lewiston brought the total number of pedestrian fatalities in Maine to 13 in 2016. That tragic death put Maine uncomfortably close to last year’s record-setting tally of 19 and is in addition to three more bicycle fatalities. Cho-Sargent’s death should serve as a call to action to […]