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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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DIVINE PROVIDENCE
Around the middle of October, the Roman Catholic Pope in the Vatican made a very surprising announcement. On that occasion he invited the Church of England, which had been separated for 478 years from the Catholic Church, to rejoin his flock. As an inducement, the Pope said that married preachers could remain married and, after…
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UPON BEING RESPECTED AND/OR BEING BELOVED
The genesis for this essay took place earlier this week when a gentleman highly skilled in the science of computer technology appeared at our home to work on Judy’s computer. I know nothing about computers, so I am left to admire the verbal byplay between my wife and this gentleman. Over the years, this fellow…
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LOVE, LUST, AND LARCENY
It is a rare case when I have the opportunity to write an essay on love, lust, and $65 billion in larceny. There is also the element of infidelity in an extra-marital affair in this essay. According to the New York Times, the Bloomberg News, and several other publications which appeared on August 14th, a…
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GREED GETS ITS JUST REWARDS
Two or three years ago, the stock market was humming along at somewhere in excess of 13,000. A good many people were working and prosperity was in the air everywhere. It was in this era of prosperity that the New York Mets, the New York Giants, and the local professional football teams in New York…
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A REPRISE ON THISA AND THATA
Those of you who read Ezra’s Essays may recall an essay on Ben Bernie. He was a popular orchestra leader from the 1920s through the end of the 1950s. When he was pleased with the performance of his orchestra, he would say, “Yousa, yousa, yousa.” And when he was going to play a variety of…
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THE GREAT SUBTRACTION CRISIS
In the past two months Americans and, indeed, the rest of the civilized world have been troubled by the banking crisis as well as the collapse on Wall Street. Recent reports suggest that the banks are now turning a hefty profit and reading the stock tables will suggest that the stock market is recovering. From…
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CONCUPISCENCE
The Reverend Charles E. Coughlin was a Catholic priest in Royal Oak, Michigan, who had a radio contract to deliver weekly sermons. I am not certain as to the extent of the network that he broadcast over but am reasonably certain that it covered the eastern half of the United States. His broadcasts started in…
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HOBGOBLINS AND GANDER SAUCE
The explanation for this current title will probably appear before the end of this essay. This means that those of you who wonder why this lovely title exists will have to hold on for a while and it will give you a vital interest in the outcome of this little piece. Over the 11 years…
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SETTING THE RECORD STRAIGHT AGAIN
Over the years, the telephone service provided by the Verizon Corporation was interrupted frequently. In one case, over the Memorial Day holiday of this year, service went out on a Sunday and we were told, according to the recorded announcement, that it would not be restored until Wednesday. I found this, as an old telephone…