Ezra's Essays

Category: Current Event

  • SCORN NOT THEIR GAYNESS

    Readers of the Carr essays know that the author maintains no religious affiliation. He is not a Catholic, a Jew, a Muslim, a Buddhist, or a Hindu. And certainly he is not the Protestant that his World War II dog tags proclaim him to be. And finally, his Irish ancestry bars him from membership in…

  • OF PISSANTS, POLITICIANS, AND CUPIDITY

    The breadth of the title of this essay might lead you to believe that it is a formidable undertaking.  But when taken by its individual parts it is not necessarily so formidable operation.  Let us take the pissant part to start.  The word pissant is far from a vulgarity.  It identifies a living creature who…

  • THAT ONE SO HIGH SHOULD FALL SO LOW

    This humble essay has spent a longer time in gestation than normal. The longer pregnancy is brought about by the fact that it deals with human failures. And secondly, some of the characters in the essay are less than glorious. No one likes to read about failures; they like to read about cuddly dogs and…

  • DEBORAH JEAN’S ACE IN THE HOLE

    The United States government has its hands full in dealing with the war in Iraq. There is also the problem of rebuilding New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina, gasoline prices going through the ceiling, the bust in real estate prices, and the failure of the Attorney General and his chief assistant to answer questions put to…

  • “THE MORE THINGS CHANGE THE MORE THEY REMAIN THE SAME”

    LES GUÊPES, 1849 JEAN BAPTISTE ALPHONSE KARR This essay has spent a longer time than normal in gestation. I had intended to dictate it on Memorial Day, but the news from Iraq was so depressing that I could not bring myself to work on it. Now that the essay has emerged from the womb, let…

  • THE PENTAGON’S EASTER SURPRISE

    On Good Friday, 2007, which was April 6, the Pentagon leaked the information that 12,000 National Guardsmen would be activated and called to service starting early next year. They will be sent to Iraq and will serve at least one year there.* There are some significant thoughts about this development. This will be an involuntary…

  • ALBERTO’S FORGETTERY

    On April 19th, the Attorney General of the United States appeared before the Senate Judiciary Committee to answer questions about the firing of eight prosecutors. In five hours of testimony, the Attorney General, Alberto Gonzalez, was not very helpful in that he said on more than 70 occasions, “I can’t recall.” Two weeks earlier, his…

  • THE AMERICAN ARMY: AN EXERCISE IN TREACHERY

    This essay is being written during the first week in March, 2007. I am assuming that by this time every American knows about the scandal at the Walter Reed medical facilities in Washington. The commanding general of the hospital, as well as his successor, and the Secretary of the Army have been relieved of their…

  • THE INTERREGNUM

    In ancient times when one king died or was deposed and there was a period before the new king was crowned, it was called an interregnum. Scholars have told me that this term comes from Latin sources. As I attempt to compose this modest essay today on November 25, the American public wants the interregnum…

  • THE PAPAJOHN.COM BOWL GAME

    For intellectuals who have no desire to know about sports, perhaps I should explain that the title has to do with a post-season football game. I was baffled myself until I looked into this matter and found that Papa John was a pizza maker serving the tastes of the citizens of such states as Alabama.…