PinnedMember-onlyComedy and Antisemitism — and Dave ChappelleJews and the Dearth of the Cool I’ll be frank if not funny. American Jewish culture has never been cool culture. Over the course of the twentieth century, it has been greatly politically engaged and outsized in its intellectual and cultural influence, but it has never been cool. Jews often attached themselves to cool culture, from jazz…Dave Chappelle12 min readDave Chappelle12 min read
PinnedMember-onlyFrom My New Collection of Poetry, Waiting for Word, a poem, “Impolitic Manifesto”After four years, I almost don’t remember what I used to talk about politically besides Donald Trump. I exaggerate, but only to tell a…Poetry6 min readPoetry6 min read
Published in Curious·Sep 21, 2020Member-onlyExistential Choice in the Time of Trump: Conscience and Human JudgmentOne might think that a reasonable knowledge of the history of human barbarity would leave little room for further disillusionment. A similar knowledge of human experience also tells us that such a statement as that holds no place either at the dinner tables of young families, the town halls of…Donald Trump10 min readDonald Trump10 min read
Published in AfroSapiophile·Jun 14, 2020Member-onlyThe Dark History of White Reaction to Black ProtestThe Dark History of White Reaction to Black Protest As we observe what I will call the Trumpian conservative and white moderate reaction to the current Black Lives Matter (BLM) protests and movement, it helps to contextualize historically the nature of that reaction. When we do, we find that conservative and moderate white reaction is persistently critical of, and…BlackLivesMatter7 min readBlackLivesMatter7 min read
Jun 11, 2020Member-onlyTom Cotton, The New York Times, and the People Who Just Don’t Get ItFor some time now, leading anti-Trump journalist David Frum has offered as the pinned tweet atop his Twitter page, the prediction, “When this is all over, no one will admit to ever having supported it.” …Tom Cotton8 min readTom Cotton8 min read
Aug 21, 2019Member-onlySummer of 1969, A Memoir: Part 2, Goodbye and HelloMany songs seem emblematic or emotionally reminiscent of the 60s, but for me, none is more so than Goodbye and Hello, by Tim Buckley and Larry Becket, with its marriage of folk lyricism to Kurt Weill, Wiemar theatricality. O the new children dance — — — I am young All…Travel14 min readTravel14 min read
Aug 15, 2019Member-onlySummer of 1969, a Memoir: Why Don’t We Sing This Song All TogetherAnn-Margaret was dancing down the middle of Sepulveda Boulevard. We were watching her from an overpass above. We were 17 and 19, and we had just walked out of Los Angeles International Airport. We had worked the first part of the summer to afford this first ever trip on our…The 60s7 min readThe 60s7 min read
Jul 28, 2019Member-onlyUnexceptional AmericaIn the aftermath of the alarm-raising dud that were the Mueller congressional hearings, some observations are in order. We need to see clearly where the nation stands. The first misfortune in post-election resistance to Trump was a GOP congress during the first two years. Unlike Watergate, the developing, synergistic drama…2016 Election4 min read2016 Election4 min read
Published in Arc Digital·Sep 17, 2018Member-onlyThe Dimensions of Free SpeechSteve Bannon was recently disinvited from the New Yorker Festival. What should we make of that? — The concept of free speech has emerged as a surprising ideological battle ground in 21st-century liberal democracies. Extremist left and right parties like Marxists and fascists have always stood outside the free speech framework, but now, emergent political tendencies within liberal democracy challenge it as well.Society11 min readSociety11 min read
Published in Arc Digital·Aug 27, 2018Member-onlyThe Lost Humanism of Political DiscourseOn the duality of human experience — Once upon an academic time in literary studies (what undergrads and lay people in the United States call “English”), students learning to analyze works of literature were directed to consider the presence of thematic dualities. In the admixed relationships found between love and hate, good and evil, or idealism and…Politics9 min readPolitics9 min read
