Confronting Mediocrity

9/18/2018 Dear Senator Young, As a distinguished graduate of the US Naval Academy, a former Naval intelligence officer with a top secret clearance, and a former leader of the VMU-2 intelligence department, I want to know what you think about Trump’s broad and indiscriminate declassification of information related to the Russia probe. If you can, … More An open letter to Senator Todd Young regarding declassifying documents related to the Russia investigation

It’s been nearly a month since an August 9th airstrike by the Saudi coalition destroyed a school bus in Northern Yemen. Over 40 children were killed in the attack by a bomb made in America. Initially, the Saudi’s claimed the bombing in the Saada province had targeted missile launchers, but they have since acknowledged the strike … More The Military-Industrial Complex at age 57: A bomb made in Pennsylvania obliterates a school bus in Yemen.

August 31, 2018: “The results show that insects will cause significantly increased grain loss across many regions of a warmer world.”[1] July 26, 2018: “Trump administration to freeze Obama-era fuel standards for cars, light trucks”[2] These two, recent headlines caught my attention and reinforced to me that humans are failing to put the climate change … More EPA deregulation accelerates the demise of our species. Or, killing humanity is just dumb.

Spoiler Alert- Brooks (R): $1,705,504 Thornton (D): $29,042 Axios published an article on August 28, “Most campaign contributions come from outside candidates’ districts,”[1] that has an interactive map showing the source of campaign contributions for US Senate and House candidates. The data for the map is from the Federal Election Commission (FEC) data repository.[2] The map is a … More Representative Susan Brooks: Campaign finance in Indiana’s 5th congressional district

Let it fall rather, though the fork invade The region of my heart. Be Kent unmannerly When Lear is mad. What wouldst thou do, old man? Think’st thou that duty shall have dread to speak When power to flattery bows? To plainness honor’s bound When majesty falls to folly. Reserve thy state. When William Shakespeare … More Attention, US Senators and Representatives: “When majesty falls to folly. Reserve thy state.”

To Senator Todd Young, United States Senator from Indiana: You are a Senator of the United States of America with the power to shape the country’s future. You can’t do that by being subservient to the executive branch or to Mitch McConnell or to lobbyists. How sad it would be for you to look back … More An open letter to Senator Todd Young -Preserve John McCain’s America

I must confess that I’m growing weary of hearing Trump’s critics expressing their incredulity at his actions. The refrain from this group is that Trump’s actions are irrational and are almost always at odds with the facts. I couldn’t agree more, but at some point, it’s important to understand that no amount of fact checking … More How to understand Trump and his base? Begin by dismissing facts as neither absolute nor relevant.

But only if the country survives his presidency.    It’s possible that Trump may end up making America stronger, but only in the way an infection with a deadly virus can strengthen its host. In both cases, the outcome is binary. One either survives an Ebola infection and gains immunity or one dies. The same … More Trump could make America greater

I have always said that I write these pages not because of any great impact it will have, or that I have delusions of being an especially insightful writer. Rather, it is something I must do. I expect no great readership of these pages, and the lack thereof is liberating because it affords me great … More Remembering Leonard Goldstein – when a life exceeds the sum of its parts.