I was thinking about conspiracy theories last night. In the garden of the forking paths that is internet research, that led me to read up on the Kennedy assassination. It’s not as though I was previously unfamiliar with the facts. … Continue reading →
During my recent bout with infirmity, I dusted off some old videotapes of the 1970 BBC series “The Six Wives of Henry VIII” and watched it. I had fond memories of it from my original viewing over forty years ago, … Continue reading →
Ever wonder about the perspective of the children President Bush was reading to when he first got the news of the 9/11 attacks? They’re ten years older now, and here’s a followup to that story. Their opinions might surprise you. … Continue reading →
At 16, Jacqueline Kennedy had a sophisticated wit, and was a surprisingly stylish writer as well. And that was just in letters to her then-boyfriend. No wonder he kept them!
Continue reading →It’s been thirty years since President Reagan was shot by John Hinckley, and this piece contains some interesting and previously unknown facts about the incident, including how very close Reagan came to dying. His Secret Service agent that day, Jerry … Continue reading →
RFK’s assassin Sirhan Sirhan is up for parole today. It’s the 14th time this has occurred, and the hearing is likely to go the way of all the rest and end in denial. When I heard the news, my first … Continue reading →
I keep revisiting events in Iran in 1979, as a reminder of what can happen in those other countries in upheaval today in the Muslim world (which is not necessarily what will happen, of course). Here are some selected quotes … Continue reading →
A couple of weeks ago I had some fun with poetic voices of the past, and in the comments section “Beverly” alerted me to the fact that a recording exists of Alfred Lord Tennyson reading his poem “Charge of the … Continue reading →
While doing research on political assassins of the past for this PJ piece of mine, I looked up the case of Herschel Grynszpan, a Polish-German Jew who had shot and killed the German diplomat Ernst vom Rath on November 7, … Continue reading →
If I were Jimmy Carter, I think I’d keep my mouth shut on the subject of the current Egyptian unrest. But being Carter being Carter, that’s not happening: Former President Jimmy Carter said Sunday that Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak will … Continue reading →
I’d heard this excerpt from the LBJ audio tapes before, but I forgot about it till Ed Driscoll reminded me. Here’s a man who pay attention to detail. So folks, does this qualify as civil discourse? Put This On: LBJ … Continue reading →
The sad news of the suicide in Boston of Alireza Pahlavi, the youngest son of the late and last Shah of Iran, is the most recent chapter in the sorrowful saga of the family. Here they are in happier days. … Continue reading →