Time to Think

Passing the Torch                                        #158     by Hank Silverberg “Let the word go forth from this time and place, to friend and foe alike, that the torch has been passed to a new generation of Americans, born in this century, tempered by war, disciplined by a hard and bitter peace, proud of our ancient heritage, and unwilling to witness or permit the slow undoing of those human rights to which this nation has always been committed, and to which we are committed today at home and around the world. Let every nation know, whether it wishes us well or ill, that we shall pay any price, bear any burden, meet any hardship, support any friend, oppose any foe to assure the survival and the success of liberty.”   --  John F. Kennedy's Inaugural Address 1961  , When John Kennedy spoke those words 60 years ago, he was picking up the torch of libe...

  The New Politics                                                                                       B y Hank Silverberg                                                                         #157 We have all been finding things to do as we huddle at home during the pandemic. Streaming services have helped, but after a while all those made-for-streaming movies and TV shows seem to have the same plot.  So I decided to do something I have always wanted to do and never seemed to find the time to do. My hobby is collecting political campaign buttons and other items like bumper s...

World War Three                                          #156 By Hank Silverberg We are at war. There's been no political assassinations, no Pearl Harbor, no 9-11. But over the last year more than 423 thousand Americans have been killed by a ruthless enemy. That's more than the number of U.S. military deaths in the four years of World War Two (405K).  Worldwide, the war against this enemy has taken the lives of more than 2.1 million people.   Coronavirus Death Toll and Trends - Worldometer (worldometers.info) The enemy is not a nationalist state with a murderous ideology, or a brutal group of religious fanatics.  (The Enemy)  It is a microscopic virus that has impacted everything from the global economy to the way we associate with  our friends and relatives.  And now, a year after the devastation began, America has a leader who has done what the la...

Note to Readers: I wrote this blog on Saturday and Sunday before I had seen the video released by a reporter for The   New Yorker.  He was right there inside the Capitol Building as it was ransacked by the riotous mob. Until I saw that video, it was not clear to me just how bad this invasion of the People's House had been. As a journalist, I always try not to use inflammatory words or exaggerated examples and try to put things in perspective and context. Please read what I had written prior to seeing The New Yorker  video. My changed perspective and the video is at the end of the blog.    ------------------------------------------------------------- The Peaceful Transition of Power        #155  By Hank Silverberg                                  A s he exited Independence Hall at the close of the Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia...