Headed down to DC yesterday to meet Cliff Etheredge, the rattlesnake-hunting, poetry-writing, one-armed Texas wind magnate whom I am privileged to be assisting on a memoir he is writing. Over a very fine lunch of lalibera rib and yesom wot at the Lalibela Ethiopian Restaurant on 14th Street (first time with that cuisine for either …
At The Earth Institute of Columbia University’s State of the Planet 2010 Conference last Thursday, Dr. Jeffrey Sachs (left, photo by Eileen Barroso), the economist, intellectual tummler, and director of said Earth Institute, summed up the State of the Planet as “interconnected, crowded and complex.” Later, he threw in “wondrous” and “challenging,” and nary a …
For years we’ve thought of Democrats as the Mommy party and Republicans as the Daddy party. A crude division, but useful. Republicans were stronger on defense and fiscal discipline, Democrats were more compassionate and willing to spend money. Let us recall that one of the big reasons the Democrats won in 2008 because the Republicans …
Nobody will accuse Joe Biden of committing oratory, but nobody will accuse him of overstatement, either. When the Democrats in the House of Representatives passed a health care reform bill on Sunday, they did something that was thought to be impossible (after all, presidents since Teddy Roosevelt have sought to accomplish this); doomed by the …
The Final Four is in full swing, hockey and basketball playoffs are virtually moments away, and baseball’s Opening Day is in the air. So let’s talk a little football. This week the NFL meets to discuss changes in the overtime rules. Specifically, they are meeting because they can no longer ignore the complaints that sudden …
The highlight of early 2010, namely the class I taught at Marymount Manhattan College, came to an end Thursday night. Called “Writing in a New environment,” we explored blogging, tweeting, and the many changes digital technology has foisted on the word industry. I was joined by a group of students that was small but curious …
Most of the obituaries of Fess Parker, the actor who famously portrayed Davy Crockett on television in the fifties and who died yesterday, placed him at the center of genuine coonskin fad, part of the crazy quilt of crazes of that period that included Elvis, hula hoops, drive-ins and that made up pop culture during …
You don’t have to listen to me; listen, if you prefer, to Karl Rove. Six weeks ago, I wrote a post that argued that anybody who wants to end the bitter partisanship that has metastasized in Washington shouldn’t direct his or her protests to the White House or to Congress, but should instead address their …
In an article on CNET.com called “Why No One Cares About Privacy Anymore,” Declan McCullagh celebrates (I don’t think that’s too strong a word) the changing mores and advancing technology that seem to be turning the idea of privacy into a quaintly passe concept. Noting that the anticipated storm of privacy objections to Google Buzz …
LET’S NOT REJOICE OVER THE DEATH OF PRIVACY JUST YET Read More »
I had an amazing reception to my recent post about my uncle, Andy Malanowski. I heard from many of my cousins, which was wonderful, notably Dave Powell, the husband of my cousin Christine Malanowski Powell. He has constructed an impressive Powell family tree which by his good grace (or maybe it’s the grace of Chris) …