Wishful thinking is in the air: this presidential incompetence is intolerable, it cannot last. Let us take bets on how long Donald Trump will last before he is evicted from the Oval Office by those who cannot put up with his trigger-happy tweeting, his brazen exploitation of the highest office in the land for personalContinue reading “The Donald Trump Impeachment Fantasy”
Category Archives: Politics
Sporting Ability Does Not Correlate With Virtue: The Superbowl Confirmation
It was pretty easy cheering against the New England Patriots yesterday. I’m a New York Giants fan, and the Giants specialize in breaking Patriot hearts, in shattering Patriot dreams–think Superbowl XLII and Superbowl XLVI; the Patriots are a New England team, and New Yorkers dislike all New England teams; the Patriots and their coach, BillContinue reading “Sporting Ability Does Not Correlate With Virtue: The Superbowl Confirmation”
Fighting The Gorsuch Nomination Is A Lost Battle; Fight It Anyway
Rather predictably, news of the Gorsuch nomination to the US Supreme Court has been greeted by considerable head-scratching among Democratic Party–and associated progressive–circles: should we fight or should we roll over, keeping the proverbial powder dry for the next battle? ‘Pragmatism’ and ‘realism’ apparently bid us to not fight this already lost battle, to notContinue reading “Fighting The Gorsuch Nomination Is A Lost Battle; Fight It Anyway”
John Forbes’ ‘Love Poem’: War As Entertaining, Compensatory, Lullaby
Reading Kath Kenny‘s wonderful essay on the Australian poet John Forbes–a personal and literary take on his life and work–reminded me that because I was introduced to Forbes’ poetry by his close friends, I came to feel, despite never having met him in person, that I had acquired some measure of personal contact with him.Continue reading “John Forbes’ ‘Love Poem’: War As Entertaining, Compensatory, Lullaby”
The Trump-Bannon Executive Order ‘Strategy’ And Its Rhetorical Value
The flurry of executive orders signed by Donald Trump since January 20th was designed to accomplish several objectives. First, on attaining office, establish continuity between the ‘campaigning candidate Trump’ and ‘President Trump’ by acting to ‘implement’ the most visible campaign trail promises–the ones packing the most rhetorical punch. This should be done without regard toContinue reading “The Trump-Bannon Executive Order ‘Strategy’ And Its Rhetorical Value”
Action As Antidote To Political Anxiety
The spring semester has started today and it is no exaggeration to say that I’ve not gone into any previous semester–over a period extending to the fifteen years I’ve spent here at Brooklyn College–feeling quite as unsettled as I do today. Perhaps it was the third cup of coffee, perhaps it was just the stage-frightContinue reading “Action As Antidote To Political Anxiety”
A Mere Taste Of The Refugee’s Desperation
In 1990, my visa status in the US changed from ‘student’ to ‘skilled worker’; in the alphanumeric soup of visa designations, I went from being F-1 to H-1. This was occasion to celebrate; I could now legally work in the US, and earn more than the minimum hourly wage. There was a glitch though: theContinue reading “A Mere Taste Of The Refugee’s Desperation”
The Tethered Eagle And The Refugee Refused Entry
A little over fourteen years ago, in the fall of 2002, shortly after I returned to the US after finishing my post-doctoral fellowship in Australia, I went to see the Yankees play at the old Yankees Stadium. I had arrived in New York City just a couple of weeks earlier; the Yankees were in contentionContinue reading “The Tethered Eagle And The Refugee Refused Entry”
Fascism And The Problems With A ‘Glorious Past’
I grew up in India, a land of considerable antiquity with a long and rich history. All around me, there were monuments to this past; sometimes they were physical, tangible ones, like buildings built many years ago, or books that recounted tales of magnificent civilizations and fantastically accomplished cultures with their philosophy, art, music, sculpture.Continue reading “Fascism And The Problems With A ‘Glorious Past’”
The Democratic Party Is Not Your Ally (Won’t Be; Never Has; Etc)
Here are some highlights of the stubborn, block-by-block, street-fighting resistance that the lionhearts in the Democratic Party are putting up in the face of an administration that these same worthies described as dangerous, a threat to American democracy, its values, and indeed, the very existence of this great republic: Senator Elizabeth Warren has voted forContinue reading “The Democratic Party Is Not Your Ally (Won’t Be; Never Has; Etc)”
Samir Chopra 