Dying Alone During Coronavirus
Sunday, September 20, 2020 10:32 PM
My children, my grandchildren, my friends.
You weep; you try to smile; you blow one more kiss goodbye.
I am dying alone so that you may live.
(photo: David Ryder, Reuters}
Republican Health Care Failure and Scottish Soccer
Friday, July 28, 2017 10:49 AM
As the Republican Party failed to pass a health care replacement to Obamacare, I was reminded of an old soccer joke. Keep in mind that since it was enacted in March 2010, Republicans in the House of Representatives have voted more than 60 times to either repeal, water down or otherwise alter the Affordable Care Act. Then, in January 2017, their dream came true. Republicans controlled the White House and both houses of Congress. So, here’s the old soccer joke, updated.
An American in France: Why Did Marine Le Pen’s Trumpian Campaign Lose in a Landslide?
Monday, May 8, 2017 10:41 PM
Marine Le Pen of the National Front party modeled her French presidential campaign after that of Donald Trump, yet she lost by a margin of 66% to 34%, a bigger landslide than in any presidential election in U.S. history, going back to the beginning of popular elections in 1824. So why did what worked for Trump in the United States fail in France?
Sylvia Wallace: A Woman Ahead of her Time
Saturday, February 18, 2017 4:31 PM
February 18, 2017, is the 100th anniversary of the birthday of Sylvia Wallace, my mother, a woman who was ahead of her time.
Academy Awards 2017—Foreign Language Films
Thursday, February 16, 2017 12:26 AM
This year, a record 85 countries entered films in the Foreign Language category for the Academy Awards. I saw 82 of these films. 1. Normally, there are few comedies entered in this category, but this year was an exception. I attribute this to Sullivan’s Travels Syndrome, named after the classic 1941 Preston Sturges film. When times are hard and people are struggling to keep their heads above water, a good laugh goes a long way.
Irving Wallace: 100th Birthday
Tuesday, March 22, 2016 8:55 PM
On March 19, 2016, the popular novelist Irving Wallace—my father—would have turned 100 years old. Instead of honoring my father by presenting a review of his achievements and recalling what a generous, warm-hearted person he was and how much enjoyment he brought to millions of readers around the world, I have decided to look at some of the developments he would have most appreciated if he had lived to be 100, instead of dying at the age of 74.
Republicans Release Presidential Policy Platform
Monday, August 3, 2015 5:10 PM
In a move that caught the media by surprise, the Republican National Committee (RNC) announced that it had gotten the approval of every one of the 17 leading declared Republican presidential candidates to publish a comprehensive platform for the 2016 elections.
Academy Awards 2015—Best Foreign Language Film
Thursday, February 19, 2015 8:05 PM
When I tell people that, over a two-month period, I watched films from 83 different countries, the most common reaction is…a blank stare. Most people don’t even ask me what my favorites were. But I have to say that I had a wonderful time. Not only were most of the films at least “good”, but even the bad ones usually provide an insight into what is going on in another part of the world.
Best Picture Nominees—Selma, American Sniper and the Distortion of History
Thursday, February 12, 2015 1:36 PM
Bradley Cooper, who portrays Kyle (and does a great job, by the way), has said that American Sniper is “not a movie about the Iraq War….It’s not a political movie at all.”
I beg to disagree. Any film that does not question the rationale behind the war it portrays by default accepts the correctness of that war.
My Sister Died of an Overdose of Prescription Painkillers
Sunday, August 10, 2014 2:36 PM
After four years of being President Barack Obama’s “drug czar,” Gil Kerlikowske suddenly discovered the prescription drug death crisis. By this time, prescription drug overdoses had become the leading cause of accidental death in the U.S., surpassing gunshot wounds and automobile accidents. “We weren’t paying attention to it,” he told a House of Representatives subcommittee. Tell that to ER workers and law enforcement agents around the country…not to mention Americans who lost loved ones.
50 Years of Keeping a Daily Diary
Monday, January 6, 2014 11:03 AM
I would not have realized how much we unconsciously edit our memories if I did not have contemporaneous accounts of each day of my life for the last 50 years. Most of these alterations are minor and harmless. But there is one false memory that had a major effect on my life. The incident began on October 16, 1979.
Inaugural Address 2013: If I were President
Sunday, January 27, 2013 2:11 PM
Every time a President of the United States takes the oath of office and gives an Inaugural Address, it is a time for reflection about what our nation stands for. I believe it would help if more Americans considered what they would say in such circumstances. If I were elected President of the United States, this is the speech I would give at my inauguration.
11 Secret Documents Americans Deserve to See
Thursday, December 13, 2012 12:55 PM
Many documents produced by the U.S. government are confidential and not released to the public for legitimate reasons of national security. Others, however, are kept secret for more questionable reasons. The fact that presidents and other government officials have the power to deem materials classified provides them with an opportunity to use national security as an excuse to suppress documents and reports that would reveal embarrassing or illegal activities.
AllGov France Launched
Monday, May 21, 2012 1:35 PM
It is with great pleasure that we announce the launch of AllGov France, the first expansion of AllGov outside the United States. Like allgov.com, allgov.fr is built on a foundation of hundreds of trustworthy, well-researched articles about a wide ...
Last Message from Ecotopian Ernest Callenbach
Wednesday, May 9, 2012 7:21 PM
During my first semester as an undergraduate at San Francisco State College (now San Francisco State University) in 1967 I signed up for a class in Film Theory taught by Ernest Callenbach. For the first few weeks I didn’t find the class as inter...
Academy Awards 2012—Foreign Language Films
Sunday, February 26, 2012 6:04 AM
I saw 50 of the 63 films entered in the Best Foreign Language Film category and I am happy to report that this was an exceptionally good year. If there was no single masterpiece that stood out, there were a couple dozen good films that I would ...