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I’D BE ASHAMED
This piece is being written largely at the request or demand of Miss Chicka. She makes editorial suggestions and tries to correct my grammar. And she does all the typing. So as you can see, I pay attention to her. After I wrote “Lillie,” the piece about my mother and my enlistment, Miss Chicka suggested…
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TWO UNSPEAKABLE FOOLS: JERRY FALWELL AND PAT ROBERTSON
Two days after the destruction of the World Trade Center, Jerry Falwell appeared on Pat Robertson’s Television show called “The 700 Club.” That was September 13, 2001. Laurie Goodstein of the New York Times reports that Falwell and Robertson claim “that an angry God had allowed the terrorists to succeed in their deadly mission because…
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THE BRENTWOOD, MO. HISTORICAL SOCIETY’S CONTRIBUTIONS
In the Midwest we are plain speakers. For example, turn to Carl Schroth’s letter to support my application to join the Army in wartime. (The Right Way; The Wrong Way; The Army Way”) He listed his Mobil Gas station as being at the corner of Clayton Road and North and South Road. Clayton Road was…
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The Plaque
The news about 32 Sixth Avenue (Avenue of the America’s) came as no surprise. When AT&T Long Lines moved to Bedminster N. J. in 1977, the die was cast. The headquarters for Long Lines and its successor organizations was to be in suburban New Jersey, not in New York City. The news first appeared as…
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BEN GIVENS’ NEWSPEAK
When, in an earlier discussion at Kessler, the subject of the former President Herbert Hoover came up. Mrs. Morganstein said that it was not unusual for Aphasia patents to mangle his name, i.e., Hoobert Heever. I gather that Spoonerisms are a commonplace and would involve other names beyond Herbert Hoover. During much of the last…
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WHY NOT?
There are some times when the New Jersey winters just won’t let up. There are gray days and there are many sunless days. In the midst of one of those endless periods without seeing the sun, Walt Fennessey walked into my office. Walter had responsibility for business and correspondent relations with several African countries, including…
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MISTAKEN IDENTITY TIMES TWO
During the late 1980s and the earlier part of the 1990s, my wife Judith and I rode on mountain bikes all over northern New Jersey. Our objective was to reach at least 100 miles per week. On most weeks, we met that objective. From time to time, we would stop to rest, usually in preparation…
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“…HE KEPT IT FOR HISSELF ” (sic)
It may come as a surprise to all of you to know that your ancient essayist has been a victim of permanent shock since 1940. Permanent shock is sort of a funk which is debilitating in every sense. The shock was caused by Del van Buren Barbee, a philosopher who also washed cars for a…
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MILLBURN AND TERRORISM | Everybody Has A Story
Advancing age seems to have done considerable violence to my memory. From the time I started to school, it was my belief, which I thought was shared by all other Americans, that this was a nation of immigrants. As it turns out now, people who seek asylum in this country are more often regarded as…
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BERNICE and WERNER’S UNANSWERED QUESTIONS
Bernice Hughes and Werner Friedli, two likeable people, have been waiting since 1944 for answers to their questions. At this late date, I am still unable to provide them with suitable answers. But I will offer their questions to you in the hope that you may have a suggestion or two. Let’s deal first with…