2024: Return of the Man Who Can
The Man Who Can is the most potent and most pragmatic of my alter-egos, the one who solves problems and gets things done, but he has been unavailable, hors de combat for much of this past year. Two overseas trips — to the U.S. in June and Italy in October — interrupted my, and his, work. … read more »
Chile: The coup and I
The coup in Chile on September 11, 1973, was a tremendous shock — not because it was unexpected, which it wasn’t, but because it was so much more violent and murderous than we, or at least I, had imagined, in a country long known for its civility, its culture, and its rational and orderly manner … read more »
How Naziism arose
The Death of Democracy: Hitler’s Rise To Power by Bnjamin Carter Hett My rating: 5 of 5 stars This is the clearest and most concise of all the books I have read (many) to understand how Germany, known for its philosophers, scientists and artists, and with the largest social democratic party in Europe or anywhere … read more »
Les émeutes en France
Like many of my friends, I too have been appalled by the scale of the rioting in France, which can’t be explained entirely by the police killing of young Nahel. I’ll say something obvious, which is pretty much what French and other opinion writers must be saying: 1st, there is a lot of deep resentment … read more »
The Black Power Mixtape
The following is a message I sent recently to a group of my college classmates on The Black Power Mixtape, a film that I’m sure they will all want to see. Our group meets weekly on Zoom to discuss current issues, including frequently issues of race relations and conflict in the United States. We just … read more »