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MORE BITS AND PIECES: THE DOG THAT CAUGHT THE CAR
A correspondent of the New York Times has drawn together his work and the work of dozens of his colleagues. He is Todd Purdum who ordinarily serves in the Washington bureau of the Times. His book is called, “A Time of Our Choosing.” It has to do with the American war in Iraq. A memorable…
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BITS AND PIECES: A SHOO-IN FOR THE NOBEL PEACE PRIZE
The news from the Royal Family in London continues to be horrid. The holidays at the end of 2003 have become a disaster not only for the English Royal Family, but for the rest of the civilized world as well. On Christmas Eve, wire services such as BBC and the Associated Press were kept hopping…
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A THOUGHT OR TWO ABOUT HORNETS OR WASPS
Much is being said this week (March 21, 2004) about disturbing a hornet’s nest. There was Richard Clarke’s charge that the Bush Administration was so obsessed by Iraq, that it paid no attention – or minimal attention to Al Qaeda. The hornets or wasps stung people all week with the Commission on September 11, 2001…
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FROM THE CROSSROADS OF THE WEST
It is not a general rule of mine to tout a Mormon radio program. It may have been a product of the Great Depression that influenced all American citizens from 1929 until 1941. There were not a lot of things to tout. Nearly all of my similarly aged colleagues agree that the two major influences…
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FRIDAY NIGHT FOLLIES
On Friday evening, the 13th of February, 2004, after all the press corps had left the White House Press Room, there appeared as if by magic, a two inch pile of paper having to do with Boy George and his lack of service in the Texas Air National Guard. The Friday in question was the…
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FOND MEMORIES OF BLIGHTY
Being an essayist in New Jersey, USA, is an exciting existence. There are pageants and banquets and balls to be attended. New Jersey honors its essayists weekly with an uncommon display of gratitude and outright affection. In the midst of all these ceremonies, there is a chance that Americans, particularly those of Irish ancestry, will…
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FADING TO GRAY
As this essay is being started, it is a cold, rainy, Sunday afternoon in late April. It means that most people are home bound which is the bad news on a Spring weekend. The good news is that the Boston Red Sox took three straight from the New York Yankees over the past three days…
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BITS AND PIECES: WHEN ENGLAND WAS A PUP (OR YES, MASTER)
This is the final Bits and Pieces essay in this current series. Originally, it was intended to immortalize a poem quoted on many occasions by Lillie Carr, my mother. Mrs. Carr was an Irishwoman who wanted desperately to throw off the yoke that England had on Ireland. She never set foot in England or in…