Category Archives: Commentary

How to drain the swamp

Posted on January 6, 2017 by Jim

What’s most appealing about Donald Trump’s victory (with apologies to my friends who believe he’s the incarnation of evil) is the prospect of long-overdue government reform. His “drain the swamp” campaign pledge resonated because 75% of Americans believe there’s widespread … Continue reading →

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The national civics lesson

Posted on December 21, 2016 by Jim

Americans may be deeply divided by the 2016 presidential election, but we’re getting one helluva civics lesson. Until this year, most of us gave little thought to the Electoral College,  the Federalist Papers or even the Constitution. Now we’re getting … Continue reading →

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The culture shock of alien tribes

Posted on December 13, 2016 by Jim

The transition to the Donald Trump administration is an exercise in culture shock. Trump himself is a shock to the system, of course, and it’s reasonable to expect the losing party to bitterly oppose anyone he appoints. Where the culture … Continue reading →

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Election observations

Posted on November 14, 2016 by Jim

At the risk of contributing to the post-election drama, here are a few observations. If you insult me I am not going to vote for you. Calling Donald Trump a racist is not unreasonable, given the incendiary things he has … Continue reading →

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They’re really smart. So why can’t they govern?

Posted on October 22, 2016 by Jim

One of the more interesting aspects of the presidential campaign is watching the expertise of the campaign organizations. The Democrats, anyway. President Obama’s campaigns in 2008 and 2012 made innovative  use of data analysis, audience targeting and social media. Both … Continue reading →

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Why classified information is a big deal

Posted on September 8, 2016 by Jim

It’s been amusing to watch the news coverage of Hillary Clinton’s email woes and apparent lack of understanding of government rules for handling classified information. Especially when politicians and media pundits say it’s not a big deal. Classified information was … Continue reading →

Posted in Commentary, Sea Stories | 2 Comments

Watching the media hissy-fit

Posted on August 17, 2016 by Jim

Media-watchers and pundits have been debating liberal bias in the news media for decades. Now the debate is over. The national media are in full empire-strikes-back, hissy-fit mode in an increasingly hysterical campaign to not merely cover Donald Trump, but … Continue reading →

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Where’s Ellis Island when we need it?

Posted on July 30, 2016 by Jim

The immigration issue in this year’s presidential campaign boils down to two extremes: “Build a wall” and “let everybody in.” I keep thinking of the Casey Stengel quote: Can’t anybody here play this game? The United States used to be … Continue reading →

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It’s the economy, stupid

Posted on July 24, 2016 by Jim

Donald Trump’s acceptance speech at the GOP convention got lots of criticism for presenting what was described as a “dark” view of the state of the nation. Trump struck a nerve on the economy (among other things) because he contradicted … Continue reading →

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Self-driving cars and Darwin

Posted on May 17, 2016 by Jim

Self-driving cars are in the news these days as the technology starts to gel and businesses begin to make strategic investments. It’s certainly an exciting breakthrough. Self-driving cars have the potential to reduce traffic jams and use the road system … Continue reading →

Posted in Commentary, Idle Ruminations | 2 Comments