Category Archives: Uncategorized

Left with Frustration

Many people on the political left are frustrated, including me. We are frustrated with hearing liberal arguments and points of view with which we agree, only to realize that their proponents have no practical ideas and/or no will to enable action to promote their beliefs. Tom Friedman and President Obama are unfortunately good examples. Friedman […]

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America the Exceptional

The notion of “exceptionalism” in the United States has come to mean that we are a nation of such far-above-the-norm excellence socially, politically and economically compared with the other countries of the world, that “our way” deserves their admiration of, if not their allegiance to, our policies and pronouncements. And those in America who might […]

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Rules for a Revolution

Having spent four days in Cairo during the mass protests that have led to the ousting of Hosni Mubarak, I would like to offer some observations regarding how, as a tourist — particularly a Jew with an American passport — one should behave during a Muslim revolution against a corrupt and repressive government. I do […]

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The Giant Hobglobin

“Foolish consistency is the hobgoblin of little minds,” said Ralph Waldo Emerson. He might just as well have been talking about John Mara, co-owner of the New York Giants football team, who is preparing a new contract for Tom Coughlin, their head coach, because, said Mara, the Giants believe in consistency. What consistency is he […]

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The Giant Hobgoblin

“Foolish consistency is the hobgoblin of little minds,” said Ralph Waldo Emerson.  He might just as well have been talking about John Mara, co-owner of the New York Giants football team, who is preparing a new contract for Tom Coughlin, their head coach, because, said Mara, the Giants believe in consistency. What consistency is he […]

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Mitch Machiavelli

The die is cast.  And the Republicans have made it clear that they are ready to leave America for dead. Senator Mitch McConnell has announced that the primary objective of the Republican Party is the defeat of President Obama in 2012.  What they have already clearly shown is that they will use their new majority […]

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A $700 Billion Lie

Now that the Republicans control the House of Representatives and have enough votes in the Senate to block any legislation they oppose, President Obama and his advisors are scrambling to find some position consistent with their presidential campaign pledge to raise taxes on those individuals earning $200,000 per year (or couples earning $250,000) to the […]

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Just Saying No

As an anti-drug slogan, “just say no” was pretty lame in that it totally ignored the difficult psychology of why people, especially teenagers, do drugs and what it takes to counteract those influences.  But as an explanation of why President Obama and the Democratic Party seem poised to suffer a loss of their majority in […]

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