Ezra's Essays

Category: 2004

  • MUSINGS — Volume II

    There was such a demand for the first volume of the essay called Musings, that a second one had to be produced forthwith. A large part of the demand came from me. It seems to me that there is a plethora of thoughts that pervade my musings and ponderings now that driving is done only…

  • MUSINGS – Volume I

    To put it bluntly, the eyesight of this old essayist is not as sharp as it was when soldering was my occupation. So after 67 years of driving cars and trucks and airplanes, my head prevailed over my heart and my retirement from driving cars has now occurred. If there is an emergency, of course,…

  • MILITARY MATTERS – MUSIC, JUSTICE AND PRECISION BOMBING

    These matters having to do with the American military come to mind largely as a result of our ill conceived, pre-emptive invasion of Iraq. The holding of prisoners at Guantanamo for more than two years is also a significant consideration. The American Army has now held prisoners from Afghanistan and from Iraq for a substantial…

  • BITS & PIECES: GROWING OLDER IS OFTEN NOT MUCH FUN

    A couple of weeks ago, my car was heading westward on a cold, bleak December afternoon when the sun was low in the sky. There was almost no way to block out the sun and still see to drive. The thought occurred to me that driving like this is no fun. And growing older is…

  • A CZECH FAIRY STORY

    In Prague, there lived a wicked Queen named From No To. Her lovely daughter Princess To Yes From lived in a forest outside Olomouc. In a cave in downtown Brno lived another princess, Princess Two One Third. The wicked queen sold contraceptives and 10,000 old condoms. Princess To Yes From had warm feelings toward Princess…

  • THE MCGREEVEY AFFAIR

    On Friday, Miss Chicka called my attention to an Internet report that James E. McGreevey, the Governor of New Jersey, had resigned and had announced he was a “gay American.” My retirement took place a long time ago, so what is being said around water coolers is now largely unknown to me. However, using my…

  • INFIDELS AND APOSTATES

    This short essay is undertaken with a sense of fear and trembling since it involves religion. When one person or one sect or one country calls another infidels and apostates, it would almost always be a slur. Generally speaking, my religious involvement is minimal because this ancient non-believer would seem to have no dog in…

  • IS BUSH WIRED?

    Before we consider whether Bush is radioactive, there is a matter of a misspelling of a Hebrew name in a previous essay about “piling on.” And so we start this essay with an apology called: Correctimus Errata Mistakenismus The title of this apology is in Latin, of course. An apology like this has a two-fold…

  • A CASE OF GROSS DISAPPOINTMENT

    On Sunday, May 2, 2004, the New York Times reported on its front page, “Kerry Struggling to Find a Theme, Democrats Fear.” John Kerry has been planning to run for the presidency for years. For virtually all of 2003 and through the early part of this year, he has been engaged in the Democratic primary…

  • ELEPHANTS AND MORE CONUNDRUMS

    Today is my birthday. Ordinarily, my birthday happens only once a year, so it has always been my intention to be as charitable as possible on this sanctified occasion. It is very difficult to be charitable this year as we were told last Sunday, August 1st, that the terrorists planned to annihilate those of us…