We're now at the halfway point in sanctioned Democratic presidential debates, thank God, having completed the third of six this past week in Houston. Who won? Well... Once again a lower-tier candidate risked going after the front runner, and once again it had mixed results. People who follow these things will recall that Kamala Harris … Continue reading Whatever these are, they’re not debates →

The lunatic is in the hall The lunatics are in my hall The paper holds their folded faces to the floor And every day the paperboy brings more -- Pink Floyd, "Brain Damage", 1973 The lunatic of the day is an as-yet unnamed individual in West Texas who, upon being pulled over on Saturday afternoon … Continue reading And every day the paperboy brings more →

Is it absolutely necessary for national political parties to sanction so-called presidential debates? Do they have to back candidates in House and Senate primaries? The 2016 cycle was undoubtedly a mess, with primaries leading to the nominations of two highly polarizing candidates and ending with the election of a deeply unpopular president. For 2020 the … Continue reading There must be a better way →

I'm a resident in a medium-sized city in the great state of Iowa, home of the first-in-the-nation Iowa caucuses. As such, I've had a lot of opportunities to see, hear, and meet presidential candidates. Since I'm kind of a political junkie and there are literally dozens of semi- to extremely recognizable candidates running around Iowa, … Continue reading Joe Biden loses it →

I used to love fireworks. When I was a kid, especially, I loved watching them on the 4th of July or sometimes other occasions like New Years Eve. I loved setting them off -- smoke bombs, snakes, firecrackers and bottle rockets were personal favorites. I'm lucky to have all my fingers (no kidding) and fortunate … Continue reading Next 4th of July, leave the guns at home →

“[A]s we know, there are known knowns; there are things we know we know. We also know there are known unknowns; that is to say we know there are some things we do not know. But there are also unknown unknowns—the ones we don’t know we don’t know.” — Donald Rumsfeld, February 2002 This past week … Continue reading What Joe Biden doesn’t get and possibly never will →