Posts

-
Image
Trump Wants His Name Everywhere               #399 By Hank Silverberg    Commentary It's not unusual for airports, train stations or buildings to be named after famous people. There's Lincoln Center, Ronald Reagan Airport, and the Washington Monument.  All those names came after the person they were  named for was dead, and someone else wanted to honor them.   But our current president, with the ego the size of New York Harbor, seems to think he can put his name on everything. The folks in Palm Beach, Florida obliged by renaming their airport after Donald J. Trump. And Trump is now trying to get Penn Station in New York City named after him.  But there is pushback. Some people don't want to fly into Trump airport, and a United Airlines memo indicated that people could get ticket changes to go to Ft. Lauderdale instead. But that was later clarified  after it hit the internet  that the name change was not...
Post a Comment
Read more
-
Image
  The Dangers  of AI                                    #398 By Hank Silverberg                                                                                                                Commentary  Remember the old 1970's commercial "It's not live, its Memorex"? The iconic slogan was designed to convince people that Memorex tape quality was as good as hearing the music live.  Well, the audio was good quality. But it was not as good as live music.   I think now we ought to cannibalize that slogan with "It's not alive, its AI!" If you regularly get email that you need to respond to, you migh...
Post a Comment
Read more
-
Image
  A Presidential Address                                                                    #397 By Hank Silverberg  Commentary   Did you watch the President's "address to the nation" the other night? There has been some controversy because some of the broadcast and cable networks refused to carry the speech.  First, let's make one thing clear. The TV networks, both broadcast and cable, have no obligation to give any president air time just because he requests it.  Usually, such addresses are of national importance.  Examples include John F. Kennedy's speech in October of 1962 about the Cuban Missile Crisis, which almost lead to World War Three.   Primetime air spots have also been given to presidents for times of tragic events that affect the entire country, like the explosion of...
Post a Comment
Read more
-
Image
The Right To Vote                                  #396 By Hank Silverberg   Commentary   If you are a U.S. Citizen and you have registered to vote and have voted in the past, you have nothing to worry about as the federal government makes moves to change the voting system. At least that's the narrative that the Trump Administrat ion would like us all to believe as we move into the midterm election cycle this fall.  But I am not so sure. First, the White House tried to  federalize how Americans register to vote, but the Constitution got in the way with Article 1, Section 4 specifically saying, "The times, Places and Manner of holding Elections for Senators and Representatives, shall be prescribed to each state by the Legislature thereof."    And that same section says only Congress (not the president), can change that.   But now, Donald Trump has fired the ...
Post a Comment
Read more
-
Image
Patriotism Comes In Many Forms                           #395 By Hank Silverberg  Over the last week we have seen a massive celebration of the 250th anniversary of our country.  Many of the celebrations were traditional fireworks and parades, but the oppressive heat dimmed the fun for much of the U.S.  We are living in a great country. No, not "great again", but simply great. From the day the Second Continental Congress signed the Declaration of Independence (actually on July 9th) until this day, democracy American style has been a great experiment with ups, downs, and at times stagnation. You probably heard a lot about that experiment this past weekend. And that was a good reminder that as great as we are, we are not perfect as a nation and probably never will be.    You also heard a lot about patriotism. And that is where I get annoyed.  What is patriotism?  It's not just flying or...
Post a Comment
Read more
-
Image
Happy Birthday, America!                          #394 By Hank Silverberg  In 1787, as Ben Franklin was walking out of the Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia, a woman named Elizabeth Willing Powell asked him what kind of government we were getting.  Franklin replied, "A republic, if we can keep it." Those words have come back into the public mind often over the last 250 years, and as we approach the big birthday celebration at the end of this coming week, it has become more than just a history lesson.  (Liberty Bell, Courtesy of National Park Service)  There will be celebrations in big cities and small towns across the country leading up to July 4th, but somehow those usually patriotic and uniting celebrations have seemed a bit sour this year.   Why? Well, let's look at the Great American Fair that opened on the National Mall  in D.C. this week.  It was supposed to include boo...
Post a Comment
Read more