November 21, 2020 Thanksgiving my ass. Square one and ground zero is where we are, for the third bloody time. We've ridden the roller coaster of pain and poverty, death and despair for nine months, but there's no delivery, no blessed event in sight. As I've written before, my wife and I are among the… Continue reading A pandemic diary: Fear and loathing and more loathing
Category: Trump
One man, one vote
October 14, 2020 My voting is done. It felt almost anticlimactic, filling out my ballot at the dining room table, signing it, and slipping it into the dropbox, which I'm sure is secure. Many years ago I was young and dumb enough to sit out an election. But if I had to, I'd stand in… Continue reading One man, one vote
A pandemic diary: Sex and violence and then some
July 29, 2020 Six feet apart beats six feet under. Apart: Good. Under: BAD. Repeat until you're saying it in your sleep. Want to liven up a Zoom call? Say, “Raise your hand if you’re wearing pants!” Those who reject masks, vaccines, and science should be required to wear tinfoil on their heads at all… Continue reading A pandemic diary: Sex and violence and then some
A pandemic diary: The view from the cheap seats
June 7, 2020 Back in 1974, during the first impeachment crisis of the modern era, I rode a bus all night from Ann Arbor, Michigan to Washington. We arrived just as the sun rose over the National Mall, where many thousands of us gathered to demand that President Nixon be thrown out of office. Several… Continue reading A pandemic diary: The view from the cheap seats
A pandemic diary: Notes from the bullseye
April 30, 2020 Another grocery pickup today. We found toilet paper with no trouble but didn't get all the meat we ordered, which is ominous in light of all the recent warnings about shortages. We at least came away with two big fresh whole chickens. Even they might be in short supply in Georgia soon.… Continue reading A pandemic diary: Notes from the bullseye
Insanity
One afternoon in 1978, I walked into the radio newsroom where I had my first reporting job and found myself in the middle of a huge, fast-breaking story: a multiple shooting. The killings in El Paso and Dayton have brought back memories of those times, when these awful events were still rare—and of my own… Continue reading Insanity
A statesman speaks
When you're a reporter covering Congress, you listen to an awful lot of speeches. Many of these breathless bulletins concern vital issues like National Cub Scout Month and the renaming of post offices. Speeches can be pompous, sanctimonious, badly reasoned, highly partisan, dull, hypocritical, long-winded, or all of the above. They're sometimes thoughtful or heartfelt.… Continue reading A statesman speaks
A bad spell of whether
It’s official. We’re in a national crisis. You don’t have to take my word for it. Plenty of more authoritative authorities than your Uncle Grumpy have exposed the shocking truth: the White House can’t spell. In Washington, you know you’re in trouble when two big stories about your problem surface like enemy submarines on the… Continue reading A bad spell of whether
Alternative Dave
"A top aide to President Trump said the new White House is using new metrics to assess the size of Trump's inauguration:' alternative facts'" – USA TODAY, January 22, 2017. In the spirit of bipartisanship and cooperation with our new president, I humbly offer these alternative facts about myself: I possess a full head of… Continue reading Alternative Dave
I approved this message. Please listen.
A polarizing Republican, both loved and reviled for his views and his record, widely suspected of dark misdeeds. A game but weakened Democrat, lacking the passion and charisma of other Democrats and struggling to overcome campaign blunders. A young voter unhappy with those choices. I know this sounds too familiar. But I'm not talking about… Continue reading I approved this message. Please listen.
