Essays
1091 results
Page 64
A Kensington Christmas tragedy, 1950
A Christmas tragedy and a lesson in manhood
It was a Christmas like any other in Kensington, until an unexpected tragedy undermined all my father's hard work. But my father's response to it left an indelible impact on my six-year-old mind.
Essays
7 minute read
On throwing stuff out
The wordsmith's dilemma
As a writer, I have no paintings or pots to my credit. All I have to show for my life's work is my words. So why do they take up so damn much space?
Essays
6 minute read
The Pope's Tweets
The Pope's Twitter mentor, aka God's go-to guy
When I learned that Pope Benedict had joined Twitter, I sensed a job opportunity as the Pope's Twitter mentor. In the process I secured for myself the highest— and pretty much only— celebrity follower I've ever had.
Essays
3 minute read
Is there life after basketball?
When the cheering stopped: Saying farewell to basketball
Do the lessons of organized sport prepare you for the adult world? Or is it all nonsense? Two former college basketball players who played half a century apart sat down recently to ruminate about their subsequent lives.
Essays
9 minute read
Physical fitness fascism
Fitter-than-thou? But can you read?
A sound mind in a sound body is a great idea— if only exercise weren't so boring, not to mention a waste of valuable time.
Essays
4 minute read
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The real Petraeus scandal
Something about a soldier
A juicy sex scandal was the missing ingredient in the Obama administration, now happily supplied for us by Generals Petraeus and Allen. But the real scandal is a military that plots new wars even as it loses the ones it's fighting, and Americans' 200-year infatuation with generals and admirals.
Essays
4 minute read
The age of euphemism
Time to call a spade a spade
How can modern society, with its bandying about of the F word and its graphic depiction of sex in theater and film, be so squeamish about language?
Essays
3 minute read
2012: An election post-mortem
Stop the presses! Tweedledum defeats Tweedledee!
After a seemingly endless campaign, a 50-50 election has ratified the economic polarization of our 99-1 society, in which an elite as small as any Old Regime aristocracy controls nearly half the nation's wealth. Until Americans deal with this problem, our politics will remain on a symbolic level only.
Essays
5 minute read
The Brits in America: A Veterans' Day thought
Remembrance of wars past, and a message from my ancestor
My ancestor fought in America's War of Independence and went out of his way to stress the notion of defensive war to George Washington. In that spirit, I have a Veterans Day message for all presidents who send U.S. armies overseas.
Essays
4 minute read
Waiting for Sandy in Cape May
Denial and destiny by the sea
To every life comes a moment of truth. Mine arrived Monday as Hurricane Sandy approached Cape May, where my family had summered for more than a century. Should I flee or should I stay?
Essays
3 minute read