Some of Minnesota Congresswoman Ilhan Omar’s comments are disconcerting at best, damaging and divisive at worst. Equally troubling, she is allowing herself to be used as a tool by Donald Trump to drive a wedge in the Democratic Party. The Somali immigrant’s comments are fuel to his incendiary style, which often incites violence against immigrants …
Biden behavior outdated but not disqualifying
Talk to some politicians and they're always looking over your head to see if there's someone better in the room upon whom to bestow their attention. Not Joe Biden. He looks you square in the eye, exudes warmth, is generous with hugs to both men and women. Politics, he says, is about connecting with people. …
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Anti-vaxxers jeopardize more than their own children
Apparently having their unvaccinated children barred from school since December wasn't enough to persuade some New York area parents to get their kids inoculated against measles, mumps and rubella. So Rockland County, just north of Manhattan, has now barred those under 18 years of age and not vaccinated from being in public places. And that's …
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On impeachment: should pragmatism Trump principle?
The thought of impeaching Donald J. Trump is enticing, especially because my preferred approach, drawing and quartering, became illegal in the mid 19th century. Despite the allure of impeachment and despite its having been a pledge on which some new members ran for Congress in 2018, Nancy Pelosi was right to say she is against …
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Trump shares blame for white supremacist attacks
Whether he admits it or not, Donald Trump's explicit summons to hate and his dog-whistle signals have helped to encourage white supremacists at home and abroad. Worse, his administration is undoing programs designed to deal with the problem. The gunman who slaughtered 50 people in two New Zealand mosques was allegedly motivated by online white …
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Daylight Saving Time leads off Sunshine Week
Running around the house yesterday, looking frantically for the directions to set my clock radio forward to Daylight Saving Time, I thought about how stupid it is to have to go through this twice a year. Why not just go on daylight saving time year-round and call it, er, a day. Florida Senator Marco Rubio …
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Fiction suggestions, as promised
Regular readers of my blog have expressed their displeasure that, when I wrote my last blog on non-fiction books, I promised a follow-up blog with my recent adventures in fiction but failed to do so. In the spirit of some unnamed Virginia politicians, I apologize for the lapse and humbly offer the following. The Orphan …
Klobuchar coverage distorts her total package
Remember how folks despaired that the Democrats had “no bench?” As it turns out, there is significant strength in the cluster of presidential candidates coming forward. I don’t just say that because Donald Trump has lowered the bar on what it takes to be president or because, as the bumper sticker says, “Any Functioning Adult …
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I wouldn’t want to be Robert Kraft
Shock, disgust, schadenfreude, anger and pity for the mighty one who has fallen due to his own flawed character. Shock, because I still remember the Bob and Myra Kraft who lived modestly in Newton decades ago, always opening up their home to good liberal causes. Disgust, because of the tawdry nature of the allegations and …
When public policy meets private patient
“She's just been moved into recovery,” the nurse told the obviously concerned husband of the patient. “She came through it well,” she added reassuringly. “I think you should know that her first words after coming out of the anesthesia were ‘ is the trump administration over?’” The nurse and my husband laughed, and she added, …
Marjorie Arons-Barron 