This is Memorial Day. Today we remember our fallen warriors. I’d like to introduce to you Captain Benjamin Lewis Salomon, a dentist with the 105th Infantry Regiment. He’s one of only three dentists and twenty-seven Jews to have been awarded the Medal of Honor. Salomon was born in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, on September 1, 1914. He…
The soft bigotry of low expectations
March 12, 2015
One of the legacies of President George W. Bush is his quotability. He has a natural wit, and he hired great speech writers. The phrase that instantly and permanently entered my memory banks is from a speech that Bush gave to the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP, pronounced “N-Double-A-C-P”) at their…
Lip service, posturing, and striking poses
December 9, 2014
Today Senator Dianne Feinstein spoke about the report on CIA interrogation and detention polices written by the Democratic majority of the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence. Feinstein is Chairman of the committee, and her words are a masterpiece of lip service paid to lofty notions that play no part in her existence. This report is…
What happens when a missile hits an airliner?
July 18, 2014
Yesterday Russian separatists in the Ukraine shot down Malaysia Airlines Flight 17, killing all 298 people on board. In the comments I read on multiple Websites, readers expressed horror at what the passengers must have experienced. One of the things I try to do is alleviate suffering, so I’d like to explain what happens when…
The price of denial
June 10, 2014
In 2013 neither of my parents would acknowledge the seriousness of their illnesses. For them the price of denial was their lives. Today the Iraqis are seeing what happens when you refuse to face reality and change your ways to accommodate unpleasant truths. Iraqi City of Mosul Falls to Jihadists. BAGHDAD — Islamic militants overran…
Thomas Wictor unfettered
October 15, 2013
In a recent post I said that I was now unfettered, and that people who had done bad things would be held accountable. I knew that at some point, I’d write a post like this; I just didn’t think it would happen so soon. Scott Thunes said he wished he could see me really let…