Mother

Words are often inadequate to express deep emotions.  How does one describe love? I only know that I was wrapped in a cocoon of deep affection from the time I arrived on earth.  At the center of it all was my mother – that wonderful woman that I was privileged to call Mom.   I […]

Free Trade – Another Look

Free trade advocates have dominated economic thinking in Washington for decades.  In August 2018 I posted an article in this blog questioning some of its assumptions. The Spring 2020 issue of National Affairs contains a defense of free trade  written by Richard Reinsch, II, editor of Law & Liberty. His target is the industrial policy aimed at […]

He Loves Me. He Don’t.

  I know not whether the practice continues today, but in times past young ladies would sometimes dream of love and express their hopes by slowly picking the petals of a flower and alternately saying,  “He loves me.”  “He loves me not.” Back in the age of dinosaurs when I was a teen, I remember […]

In the Eyes of the Beholder

It is interesting to note how we see things so differently.  Our world view has a profound effect upon how we interpret events, even to the point of describing an object black on some occasions and other times seeing it as white. The recent controversy over the sexual assault charges against Joe Biden is a […]

Pump Out the Bilge

  The bilge is the lowest part of a ship where the bottom curves up to meet the sides. The water that collects there is also called bilge.   Bilge water becomes foul and dirty.  Boats of any size have a bilge pump to remove accumulating bilge water. We might say the same thing about our government […]

Gunfights and Posses

  During the coronavirus shutdown people are watching lots of movies and old TV shows.. Most people love a good western.  They admire the soft-speaking,  hard-fisted hero epitomized by actors like John Wayne and James Arness.  The television show Gunsmoke starring Arness was a prime-time staple for many years, and millions of Americans watched the […]

More on Icons

  On April 10th I wrote about icons. As we all know, the cinematic and television industry is in the business of  producing icons.  Some of them are good.  Some are bad.  Many of them are larger than life superheroes or supervillains who bear very little resemblance to real persons. Much of what we see […]

I Would Rather Walk

  Ronald Reagan was a very popular President, and many Americans continue to honor his memory.  Of course, he had his enemies, and his ideological opponents actually hated him and vilified him.  Their scathing attacks were frequently blunted by Reagan’s basic affability and sense of humor.  Somehow, no matter the gravity of the moment, he […]

Trump Bashing

  The vilification of President Trump in the mainstream media and by Hollywood celebrities continues,  CNN host Anderson Cooper said last week that President Donald Trump “acts like a drunk in a bar” during his daily press conferences.  MSNBC host Lawrence O’Donnell chimed in with the opinion that Trump is a straight up “sociopath.”  (A […]