(My dear friend, veteran journalist and author Fernando Romero is seriously ailing. For the life of me, I can't understand why his truly important and amazing book has not been turned into a screenplay and movie by now. My warmest wishes and most profound prayers for Fernando, his wife Denise, and their son, Dennis Romero, who is a journalist in Los Angeles. This was originally … [Read more...] about Book Review: “The Colors of Eden: Memories of a Runaway Boy” by Fernando Romero
Common refrain of those leaving White House: Don’t blame me
WASHINGTON -- One by one they leap -- or are pushed -- from the foundering USS Trump, each offering a variation of the same plea: Don't blame me. Comes now retired Gen. John Kelly, the second of President Trump's chiefs of staff to be discarded. Days before departing, he paused for a two-hour telephone interview with the Los Angeles Times. It was an extended exercise in … [Read more...] about Common refrain of those leaving White House: Don’t blame me
Only 1 out of 36 newly elected female representatives in Congress is Republican – here’s why it matters
Carol Miller of West Virginia is the only newly elected Republican woman joining the 116th Congress. AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster Malliga Och, Idaho State University and Shauna Shames, Rutgers University The 116th Congress will be the most diverse in U.S. history: 126 women will take office, including 43 women of color. Yet, as many have noted, this new … [Read more...] about Only 1 out of 36 newly elected female representatives in Congress is Republican – here’s why it matters
Cartoon: Warren and Trump
A look into the crystal ball for Jan. 1, 2020
[facebook] by DAVID IGNATIUS Washington Post Writers Group WASHINGTON -- Bill Safire, the late, great New York Times columnist, made a tradition over 35 years of publishing a year-end "office pool," a multiple-choice quiz in which, as he liked to say, "every reader becomes a pundit" because nobody knows the right answers. The office pool died with Safire in 2009, … [Read more...] about A look into the crystal ball for Jan. 1, 2020
Double-crossing the Kurds
If Turkey uses the possible American troop withdrawal from Syria to destroy the Kurdish enclaves in the northern part of the country, the United States will have lost the opportunity to create our only consistent Islamic ally in the Middle East. In spite of our inconsistent support of the Kurds, they truly seem to like Americans. Who are these people, and why is their fate … [Read more...] about Double-crossing the Kurds
What’s Creativity Got to Do with It in 2019?
The only antidote to destruction is creation. Stephen Nachmanovitch The intuitive mind is a sacred gift and the rational mind is a faithful servant. We have created a society that honors the servant and has forgotten the gift. Albert Einstein These times of massive change create understandable and often intense insecurities in us. The ongoing destabilization of … [Read more...] about What’s Creativity Got to Do with It in 2019?
Top 10 Comedic News Stories of 2018
Raging Moderate by Will Durst Sit the kids down. Let the dogs out. Prop the grandparents up. The nation's patience has been richly rewarded, because the eagerly awaited list of the Top Ten Comedic News Stories of 2018 has been officially released. This truly is the most wonderful time of the year. But first a caution: please do not confuse this list with the top ten … [Read more...] about Top 10 Comedic News Stories of 2018
Rightist Bolsonaro takes office in Brazil, promising populist change to angry voters
Brazilian president Jair Bolsonaro after his swearing-in on Jan. 1, 2019, in the capital of Brasilia. AP Photo/Andre Penner Benjamin H. Bradlow, Brown University Brazil’s new president, who took power on Jan. 1, is often called the “Trump of the Tropics” for his law-and-order rhetoric, racist and sexist remarks, pro-business stances and outsider … [Read more...] about Rightist Bolsonaro takes office in Brazil, promising populist change to angry voters
Trump’s wall is a symbol of ruin
by Michael Gerson Washington Post Writers Group Columnist WASHINGTON -- Republicans used to shut down the federal government with the intention (generally) of curbing public spending. Donald Trump's GOP, in contrast, shuts down the federal government with the goal of constructing a continent-long wall of dubious utility that will require (by one estimate) three times the … [Read more...] about Trump’s wall is a symbol of ruin
The Democratic jockeying begins
WASHINGTON -- It has begun. The field of candidates for the 2020 Democratic presidential nomination is starting to form, with Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., announcing Monday that she has launched a campaign "exploratory committee" -- the same step that former housing and urban development secretary Julian Castro took earlier in December. Spoiler alert: Exploratory … [Read more...] about The Democratic jockeying begins
Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez has a temper tantrum.
Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez isn't officially a member of Congress yet, and she is already having a temper tantrum. From The Hill, 31 December 2018: Rep.-elect Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez is ripping her fellow Democrats for failing to take up her proposed special climate change committee called the Green New Deal because it was deemed "too controversial." Ocasio-Cortez in a … [Read more...] about Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez has a temper tantrum.
A ‘Kakizome’ for the New Year
As most writers (in my own case, I use that term loosely), I have been racking my brain as to what to write about in my first – and by default or by definition, the best – writing of the New Year. Japanese culture takes such “first writings” to a whole new level. During Oshogatsu - Japanese New Year – Japanese people participate in the tradition of writing auspicious wishes, … [Read more...] about A ‘Kakizome’ for the New Year
Cartoon: Happy Baby New Year
LeBron James has much to learn about Jews
–First in a series– By Rabbi Michael Leo Samuel CHULA VISTA, California — The “secret” is out. According to the bigots, the Jews control the world! We own the media! Politicians do our bidding! The Jews “control” Wall Street! Have you heard about the old joke concerning two Jews who were dining at a Vienna café in the 1930s. One of them is reading the Yiddish … [Read more...] about LeBron James has much to learn about Jews
Here’s How Inventory Management Can Benefit the Construction Industry
Inventory management is a phrase that you hear in nearly every industry, from manufacturing to medicine and everything in between. One sector where the sentence is surprisingly absent is construction. How can the construction industry benefit from inventory management, and what changes can managers and supervisors make to improve inventory on their jobsites? Inventory … [Read more...] about Here’s How Inventory Management Can Benefit the Construction Industry
The roots of the new nationalism
WASHINGTON -- In affluent neighborhoods around Washington, New York and Los Angeles -- and, for that matter, Paris, London and Berlin -- it's common to denounce nationalism, to disdain supposedly mindless, angry populists, and to praise those with an open-minded, cosmopolitan outlook. Note that those involved are praising themselves. Lord knows, there is much to fear about … [Read more...] about The roots of the new nationalism
Another Adult Leaves the Trump Administration
Update III: Retired Rear Admiral Kevin Sweeney has resigned as Department of Defense Chief of Staff after serving former Defense Secretary James Mattis for two years. Brent Colburn, a senior Pentagon official under President Obama, explains why it matters: In normal times, the resignation of a chief of staff following the departure of a secretary of defense would … [Read more...] about Another Adult Leaves the Trump Administration
Can’t Democrats and Republicans just get along?
Can't Democrats and Republicans just get along? That question is asked by plenty of exasperated Americans who haven't made politics their de facto religion. In another blog post, this blogger states, "When Americans take in what the media have to say about politics, the former get doses of Crazy-vs-Crazy. It is enough to make a sane American want to have what Kermit … [Read more...] about Can’t Democrats and Republicans just get along?
Mike Peters Guest Cartoon: Trump and The Wall
OF RELATED INTEREST: --Trump is using the deaths of two migrant children to push for his border wall --How Democrats can drive a hard bargain over the wall --Kelly, on His Way Out, Says Administration Long Ago Abandoned Idea of Concrete Wall Mike Peters is recognized as one of our nation’s most prominent cartoon artists for his outstanding work as both a political and … [Read more...] about Mike Peters Guest Cartoon: Trump and The Wall