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JUST WORDS
A good many years ago, Will Rogers, the noted American humorist, said of himself, “I am not a member of any organized political party. I am a Democrat.” Judging by the time it has taken to nominate the 2008 Democratic presidential candidate, it appears that Will Rogers probably had it right. At this point, we…
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USA! USA! USA! ETC.
As my career with the Bell System neared its end, AT&T decided that it could be served best by my spending the final seven or eight years being involved in Correspondent Relations. The term Correspondent Relations is an anachronism and an antiquated description of my duties. When the various telephone companies around the world began…
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A MAMMOGRAM FOR JOHN MCCAIN’S BRAIN
This is not a political essay but rather it is a call for neurological help or even psychiatric help for Mr. McCain’s brain. Mr. McCain’s brain needs at least a mammogram before he sets off to encounter the Democratic presidential contender in an effort not to make a fool of himself. There is a bit…
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Un: THE NEW NEOLOGISM
Yesterday, which was Maundy Thursday in the Christian calendar, was marked by a dispatch from Mosul, Iraq, filed by a New York Times reporter named Solomon Moore. In an effort to dispel the forces that oppose our holy mission in Iraq, Solomon Moore reports that there have been “several stepped-up attacks” on suspected insurgent hangouts.…
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“LOWER THAN A WHALE TURD”
This essay has to do with the emotional state of a sinner who knows that on the morrow, he will be required to deliver an apology or an explanation for his conduct. In this case, the apology or explanation must flow not necessarily from the head, the heart, the stomach, the crotch, or the femur…
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CHUTZPAH
When politicians of the Joe McCarthy type insist that English is the only language to be spoken in this country, they are missing a glorious opportunity for words of other languages that make the English language more colorful. One of those words is chutzpah, which I assume is Hebrew in nature or perhaps even Yiddish.…
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NOSTALGIA FOR CALVIN COOLIDGE, HERBERT HOOVER AND OTHER CONSERVATIVE ROCK STARS
In the latter half of the 1960s, AT&T decided that I could serve the corporation best by working in its Washington Office. At that time the company maintained a relatively small office in Washington headed by a full vice president who was assisted by two assistant vice presidents. There were about five department heads such…
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MIRACLES OF MATHEMATICS
This Saturday morning, February 9, my breakfast was largely ruined by listening to a speech by Governor Huckabee which was delivered to the Conservative Political Action Conference, a group of ideologues. Huckabee explained that when he went to college, he did not major in mathematics but rather in miracles. In this case, the miracle business…
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JOHN MCCAIN HAS SUFFERED ENOUGH
Those of you who follow Republican politics will be aware that John McCain is the presumptive front-runner in the quest for the Republican nomination for President of the United States. McCain has such a commanding lead in the delegate count that it is only a matter of days until he is declared the Republican nominee.…
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ENDURING ANOMALIES
The enduring anomalies that are referred to in the title of this brief have to do with religion and politics. Both of those subjects have fascinated me since I was a lad of six years. Now that I am entering my 86th year, it might be said that I am older but no wiser or…