Predicting what will happen in the New Year is ordinarily a futile exercise, but in President-Elect Donald Trump’s case, there are a couple of prognostications that will, without a doubt, come to pass. First, Trump will be officially inaugurated on January 20—notwithstanding those ludicrous ballot recounts, yowling Democrats, the Russians, …
Last week in an interview with Oprah Winfrey, Michelle Obama said that with the Obama’s moving out of the White House and the Trumps moving in, America is a nation where hope is lost. “We feel the difference now,” Michelle Obama said, referring to Donald Trump’s victory over Hillary Clinton. …
(Note: This is a substantially revised and highly personalized version of an email I recently received from a like-minded American Deplorable. I hope you will find it thought-provoking). I used to think I was just a regular guy, but . . . I was born a white male, which means, whether …
In 1995, I returned to Vietnam for the 20th anniversary of the Fall of Saigon. During that trip, I made it a point to interview as many people as possible about their country–including former Communist Viet Cong cadres. What I heard was surprising. They were not happy with this new …
There is a reason the very first amendment to the U. S. Constitution in 1791 dealt with issues such as freedom of speech, the press, religion, the right of peaceful assembly and the right to redress grievances via government petition.
The founding fathers viewed those freedoms and rights as critical to a functioning democracy. Without them a government could exercise almost total control over its people.
I recently received the results of a poll asking that very question. It was produced by a company called Grammarly, a leading automated proofreader. The results are sure to set off some interesting (read: heated & intense) discussions among writers of both genders. I won’t keep you in suspense. The …
Accomplished wordsmith William Safire once defined a gap between the generations as “a frustrating lack of communication between young and old, or a useful stretch of time that separates cultures within a society, allowing them to develop their own character.” That’s a pretty good definition. But it doesn’t tell the …
You have probably received one of those e-mails displaying photos of so-called “Walmart People.” As you scroll down, there is a collection of photos of Walmart shoppers wearing wild assortments of clothing covering bodies that seem fashioned from silly putty or carved from tree stumps. There are horribly overweight women wearing …