-
Bill Maher and the N Word
Bill Maher. I'm a fan, with some hesitation. Sometimes he is so arrogant and decidedly wrong in his opinionated self that he will say the stupidest shit imaginable. He actually asked President Obama AND Cornel West if they were just faking it about believing in God because they're too smart to believe in fairy tales. He knows that their ( Read more... ) -
Book Review: House of Stairs by William Sleator
When I was teaching 8th grade English in the mid-eighties, one of the books students read on their own and then were tested on was House of Stairs by William Sleator. While the characters are one-dimensional and the dialogue stilted, I was drawn to the dystopian metaphor of five "throwaway" children (no parents to interfere) being transported to a ( Read more... ) -
Review: Botanical Inspirations Deck by Lynn Araujo
One of the quandaries every conscientious reviewer faces is not simply recognizing one's partialities and prejudices, but then expanding his or her vision regarding the subject of the review to encompass an audience that has quite different inclinations. No product is for everyone; the questions that need to be answered are 1) who is the target ( Read more... ) -
How Scapegoating and Discrimination Work
This post is in response to people thinking that because a number of the bomb threats to Jewish Community Centers were made by one person, this whole rise in anti-Semitism isn't really a big deal. Nor is a registry of Muslims, nor the latest Trump EO limiting visitors from "dangerous countries" nor ( Read more... ) -
Last Night's Trump Speech
For complete transparency, let me be clear. I didn't watch. I. Just. Can't.
So, I'm reading the transcript and here's practically the first sentence:
Recent threats targeting Jewish community centers and vandalism of Jewish cemeteries, as well as last week’s shooting in Kansas City, remind us that while we may be a nation divided on policies, we ( Read more... ) -
On the Trump-Netanyahu Press Conference
Everything he says goes through the Trump mind-set strainer. What comes out most resembles a three year old child's analytical skills. "Cookie, good. Me want biggest cookie."
Israeli-Palestinian affairs? "NO yell. Me like Bibi best." -
A Year Ago Yesterday
Antonin Scalia died a year ago yesterday, and the GOP leadership refused to allow President Obama to appoint a replacement with almost a year of his Presidency remaining ( Read more... ) -
Truth in Mockery
We often see political cartoons and tend to laugh hardest at the ones that mock those with whom we disagree ( Read more... ) -
Diane Birch, Goddess
Diane Birch wowed me beyond belief with her first album, Bible Belt. An incredible ear worm of an album that distilled Laura Nyro, Joni Mitchell, and Carole King, yet was uniquely individual, too. Classic songwriting ( Read more... ) -
The Job of the President is that of a PUBLIC SERVANT
Donald Trump is going to have to learn that the office of the Presidency isn't a kingship but that of a PUBLIC SERVANT. (Just that term will gall him for the rest of his Presidency. I hope people use it often, because...it's the truth ( Read more... )