General
A Lost Soul
We don’t know much about him – he grew up in a village on the coast of Long Island, bowled in high school, sang karaoke, got two college degrees, moved to St. Augustine, Florida. His mother, struggling with pulmonary disease, died – he wrote, “I am proud to say she navigated the awful challenges of…
Read MoreThe Least Harm
Siena College took a poll, Biden crept up, gaining 4 points: Trump 45%, Biden 44%. The New York Times went to work interviewing people who were polled: An Independent voter, a hairdresser, said she saw Trump and Biden as ‘just blah,’ added she saw Biden as ‘the lesser of two evils’: “You can recover from…
Read MorePost-Christian America
‘8 in 10 Americans Say Religion Is Losing Influence in Public Life,’ the headline roared. The report – by the Pew Research Center – announced ‘religion’s role in American life is shrinking,’ went on the say only 13% of Americans think Biden is ‘very religious,’ just 4% think Trump is very religious. Next the Pew…
Read MoreFooling Voters
Leading Jesse Helms’ campaign back in 1990 Tom Ellis asked pollster John McLaughlin: ‘Who do we want to win the Democratic primary?’ John opened his poll. Turned pages. Looked straight at Tom Ellis. ‘You want Harvey Gantt – not Mike Easley.’ Gantt would be easier for Jesse to beat in the General Election. Jesse’s campaign…
Read MoreBack to Even: The Latest Polls
There’re not many media polls you can trust these days – media polls are done to give newspapers a reason to write stories their readers like. But there are a few reliable polls still around – and they’re showing a strange change in the race between Trump and Biden. For months, Trump’s been leading Biden.…
Read MoreHoops Joy – and Fear
I’m as passionate about NC State basketball as I am about Democratic Party politics. So, I’m celebrating the men AND women making the Final Four. I also have a nagging fear about college basketball this year. It stems from the explosion of sports gambling, which came to North Carolina the same time as March Madness.…
Read MoreAmerican Trauma
An American history textbook published in 2050 might call the first quarter of the 21st Century “Time of Trauma.” “Trauma” explains a lot about our politics today. It started with 9/11, a shocking attack on the homeland. Briefly, we rallied and came together. Then we embarked on two misguided, misbegotten and ill-fated overseas wars that…
Read MoreA Simple Question
Hamas stormed into Israel, killed men, women, and children. Shocked Israelis thought, We’re no longer safe. We can’t live in the same world with Hamas. Hamas must be destroyed – invaded Gaza to crush Hamas. Biden said he was 100% behind Israel but, before Israel crushed Hamas, tap dancing, Biden told Israel, Stop. Make peace.…
Read MorePlagues
Plagues have been around since the time of the Pharaohs: What caused the plague that killed a million Americans? Bad luck? Nature, the result of germs morphing in bats in caves in Wuhan? A blunder by scientists in labs making biological weapons? The Good Book tells us in ancient times God allowed plagues to show…
Read MoreAn Angel Shows Up
Reagan’s voice turned softer, the room fell silent, people leaning forward on the edge of their chairs to hear – remembering the ‘tap, tap, tapping’ of Neville Chamberlain’s umbrella on the cobblestones of Munich Reagan said détente was a mistake – like appeasement had been a mistake. Sitting in the White House Gerald Ford went…
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