Think ‘US Civil War’ — some late Election Day pep talk

We can learn plenty from history — and beat MAGA … It’s 44 minutes after 7 pm on the East Coast — a bit late for an Election Day pep talk — but there’s an American Civil War story to share that parallels present and future encounters with Trump supporters. Because you know they’re not […]

Who’s uncivilized? Remembering Indigenous People’s Day

These “savages” taught Americans plenty about governing and constitutions … I will spend zero time on Indigenous People’s Day to discuss that murdering, accidental discoverer, in favor of bringing up an amusing bit of history, recalled by Benjamin Franklin, about the American natives he encountered. Franklin seemed fascinated with the lifestyle of these so-called “savages”: […]

The Republican Party has become a fake-Christian death cult

and Donald Trump is its current leader. Government policies enable citizens to either live better, or die sooner — a reality that is hidden by the mist of feverish political debates on television and social media. Your response to this reality shows the world what your moral wiring looks like. Poverty in America means people […]

Time for the obligatory Colin Kaepernick post: y’all should’ve listened to him in 2016

Most Americans, myself included, do not endorse looting in response to injustice. But your preference to discuss looting over racial equity right now misses the point Kap was making nearly four years ago. I’m breaking an editorial rule for this blog by stating what seems to be the most obvious viewpoint that’s been proven by […]

Senator Harris, the presidency, her Jamaican roots and those curious answers about weed

For whatever reasons, I have this bad habit of writing stuff and not posting it. My thoughts about US Senator and presidential candidate Kamala Harris’ interview on The Breakfast Club Morning Show well over a week ago is an example. I’ll do better … My observations about her “Whites-only bank” affiliation aside, the interview went […]

Democrat lawmakers agreed with Trump’s wall — 25 percent of the way

There’s a question I meant to raise a few weeks ago about the budget debate in Washington and President Trump’s Great Wall idea. “What would you prefer Congress to fund — $5 billion for border security or $5.7 billion for a border wall?” Yeah. That was a debate. In real life. Sure, I think paying […]

Amazon’s pullout and New Yorker’s confusion about economic growth

My response — after laughing — when I heard Amazon is pulling out of that sweet deal to set up a second headquarters in New York City was short, but loaded with meaning. “Jeff Bezos must’ve thought he was playing with Independence, Iowa.” Or some other small town. But even those places are pushing back […]

When the beat stops dropping — marching after Trump

The synchronized goose-stepping to President Donald Trump’s White-America-First drumbeat seems highly familiar to many of you. And this is the point where most media analogies between Trumpism and Nazi Germany stop short. I want to go deeper and explore the policy and moral ramifications of Trumpism’s eventual end — and what will happen once the […]

Deleting inconvenient contradictions: US Declaration of Independence, Thomas Jefferson and Congress

Leave it to me when it comes to peppering America’s Independence Day celebration with quick dive into how the country reconciled its slave-owning system of production with a statement for liberty and independence from Britain’s rule. Like most other chapters in American history were the narrative of virtues cruise closer to B.S. territory, the nation […]

“Where are our leaders today?” you ask.

It’s been 50 years and three days after Dr. Martin Luther king Jr.’s assassination, and people still ask “Where are our leaders today?” Which makes me think of Americans’ funny attitudes about leaders. By 1964, a Gallup poll reported that Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. was the fourth most admired person in America, even beating […]