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GETTING CALIFORNIA STYLE PRIORITIES RIGHT
Chuck Scarborough has been broadcasting the evening news on NBC in New York City for at least 12 or 15 years. During that time, his sidekick has been a spirited black woman named Sue Simmons. Scarborough’s demeanor comes off as something between sober and dour. When Christmas week arrived this year, Scarborough was to read…
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A FEW WORDS IN PRAISE OF SANITY
I hope that my readers will not think less of me when I offer a few words of praise of sanity in the American relationship with those who practice the Muslim faith. During the month of September, pious adherents of that faith are celebrating the month-long holiday of Ramadan. Ramadan requires that the faithful consume…
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TOWARD A MORE PERFECT UNION
I suspect that most of you will recognize that the title of this essay has been lifted from the preamble to the American constitution. My best guess is that it came from the pen of Thomas Jefferson, a gifted writer. This essay is not about politics or governmental affairs. It is about a few items…
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SOME CATS PURR; THIS KATZ COLLECTS LOVERS
This may come as a shock to many of my readers, but in this essay, I will be dealing with a subject that I know a little bit about. From 1946 through the summer of 1951, I was an official of the Communications Workers of America. Then in 1951 the management of AT&T offered me…
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AFGHANISTAN
There are devices on the market that will turn the written word into the spoken word. Because I have lost the ability to read, I have one of those devices. On Sundays Miss Chicka makes it a point for me to read the op ed pieces in The New York Times and The Washington Post.…
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THE POLITICS OF WEIGHTS AND MEASUREMENTS
According to the Jewish calendar, the year is 5770. In the calendars that non-Jewish folks use, the year is identified as 2009 in the current era. Whether the year is 5770 or 2009 makes very little difference in writing this preposterous essay. It is preposterous because three countries use antiquated systems for weights and measurements.…
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UPON GIVING ADVICE TO THE PRESIDENT
I ordinarily do not give advice to sitting United States Presidents because I know it will probably never reach them and if it does it will probably be ignored. But if my thoughts have any currency at the moment, I would like them to be transmitted to Barack Obama. Point one is that he should…
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THE MOTHER OF ALL ARTHRITIS ATTACKS
Seven or eight years ago, the pain of arthritis descended upon my back and legs. I sought advice from the Summit Medical Group, which has a staff of renowned physicians. After a time, I visited the orthopedic department and saw Dr. Corona, who listened to my symptoms but who did very little else. I told…
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“BECAUSE THAT’S WHERE THE MONEY ISN’T”
Mr. William Sutton was born in Brooklyn, New York in 1901. There were five children in the Sutton family. As soon as Mr. Sutton completed the eighth grade, he quit school and that was the last of his academic career. We find that the records show that William Sutton departed this vale of tears in…
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LITTLE PEOPLE
I deplore the name “little people,” but it was bequeathed to us by Leona Helmsley, the wealthy woman who, at the end of her life, controlled the predominant interest in the Helmsley hotel chain and real estate. Throughout her life, Leona made other people as uncomfortable as possible. Upon her death, rather than giving money…