Afghanistan | Afghanistan
Dec.18.2009
Looking at the state of our nation at the close of the year, stuck in two wars with a broken-down economy that deals cards from a stacked deck –- not to mention a crumbling ecology -- I recommend looking back at Picture This, a novel by Joseph Heller that came out in 1988.
By virtue of being a...
|
Dec.14.2009
Dropped into the local cellular phone store the other day to check out the newest line of cell phones. Every phone came with a mail-in cash back rebate. Who can recall getting even one dime back from a manufacturer? It makes one think about the whole notion of rebates, and whether taxpayers, in...
|
Dec.11.2009
Snow has interfered, dealt harshly with all involved,
Conquered everything. Two soldiers
Trespass the storm’s pure calm to just look,
One taller than the other, both androgynous
In their heavy coats so that they could be a couple almost
As close as a pair of buddies, civilians,
A man and woman,...
|
Dec.05.2009
The best part of a long- term Afghanistan occupation is there's no shame in failing, since we'll be joining so many other proud names on such a very long list. The worst part of a long- term occupation of Afghanistan is the many moons it's going to take for us to figure that out. And according to...
|
Dec.05.2009
It is intrinsic to my nature to see possibility, to see it with precisely the type and intensity of focus a donkey brings to the carrot swaying on a stick before its eyes, and like the poor donkey, to follow it until I can't.
Some of my hopes went on past the point of possibility, wearing me out....
|
Dec.04.2009
“La senora tambien...” – words in rapid Spanish come from the two women sitting behind me on BART I strain to understand, but can only make out a little of what they are talking about. How difficult it would be to live in Mexico, I think. And how difficult for immigrants who come here speaking a...
|
Dec.03.2009
Barack Obama’s plans are those of a man in a hurry to divert attention from issues back home. Clinton did it. Bush did it. He is doing it. The American tax payer will be shelling out $30 million in the first year for something s/he has no clue about. Is this revenge for 9/11? Prevention of another...
|
Dec.02.2009
Bull Rider by Suzanne Morgan Williams
upper middle grade/ya
Drugs, sex, teenage pregnancy, you name it, children's authors write about it. Suzanne Morgan Williams is no different. She has taken on perhaps the mother of all controversial issues for this country, the war on terrorism. Bull Rider's...
|
|
Dec.01.2009
The President spoke to thousands of cadets at West Point on Tuesday and, as anticipated, announced the deployment of another 30,000 troops starting after the first of the year.
Cameras scanned the crowded auditorium where the speech was delivered. One could see the fresh, if sombre faces of those...
|
Nov.11.2009
Barack Obama won the Nobel Peace Prize, but thanks to their recent headline, the Associated Press may be the first news organization to take first prize for headline of the year. About an hour ago, while munching some leftover chicken, a stunning headline streaked across my laptop: "Official: Obama...
|