On Charlie Kirk

 I do not approve of political assassinations (or any other kind of assassinations, for that matter.) I mourn for Charlie Kirk’s family, but I cannot grieve his loss. Kirk espoused racist and anti-gay views, and promoted unfounded conspiracy theories. His passionate support for so-called Second Amendment rights is ironic, given the way he met his demise. (He was quoted in The New York Times as having said: “I think it’s worth to have a cost of, unfortunately, some gun deaths every single year so that we can have the Second Amendment to protect our other God-given rights.”) Charlie Kirk was a talented propagandist, but he was a menace to the Republic.

It is a travesty that flags are flying at half-staff to honor Kirk’s memory. If he deserves such an honor, then so does every other gunshot victim. Were we to follow this logic, flags would fly at half-staff every day of the year. Perhaps sending a message that way would not be a bad thing.

Labor Day Haiku, 2025

Labor Day weekend
A time for Trump to rid us
Of public unions.

I added the above haiku to Lionel Deimel’s Farrago yesterday. You can read about it on my Web site here.

Advice to the President

President Trump wants to hold on to power through unconventional, mid-decade gerrymandering. An alternative strategy (and perhaps an even more effective one) would be to substitute attractive policies for his destructive and unpopular ones.

The Clock

My latest poem celebrates my Howard Miller wall clock purchased many years ago. (See photo below.) Howard Miller has produced many beautiful timepieces. My clock is modest when compared to the company’s grandfather clocks; it is lovely nevertheless.

My poem “The Clock” was a long time coming, but I am satisfied with the result. Do read it on my Web site.

Unfortunately, Howard Miller is going out of business. Apparently, a weak housing market has resulted in reduced sales. President Trump’s tariffs also contributed to the company’s demise. Howard Miller will not be the last company killed by our out-of-control president.

Thoughts on the Pending Paramount/Skydance Merger

Is CBS, in pandering to the tender sensibilities of President Trump to gain administration approval of the merger of its owner Paramount with Skydance Media, diminishing the value of the property and making the transaction less attractive to Skydance?

Summer Memories

Last night, at Open Mic Night at Sulfur Books, I read my poem “Summer Pleasures.” That poem evokes various experiences of my childhood in New Orleans. Members of the audience had childhoods different from my own, of course, but I had hoped that my poem would inspire them to think of their own childhoods.

One woman told me that “Summer Pleasures” did indeed cause her to recall her own childhood memories. She raised the question of what sort of memories present-day children and teenagers will have to look back on when they become adults. Will they recall playing video games and texting friends on their cellphones? Or will they remember being driven by parents to organized activities like soccer practice and soccer games? Will their memories and, in fact, their childhoods be impoverished in comparison to those of their parents or grandparents? Or, perhaps the joys of a present-day childhood are merely different from those of a less technological age but somehow wonderful in their own right.

Bring the War to Russia

What if, on December 8, 1941, President Roosevelt had gone before Congress and asked for an increased military budget to build more weapons to defend against Japanese aggression, rather than asking for a declaration of war against the Empire of Japan?

Would enhancing America’s defenses have been a reasonable action in 1941? Or did the nation do the right thing by mobilizing for total war against Japan?

If you believe that active military action against Japan was indeed the proper response to Pearl Harbor, then why do we limit military shipments to Ukraine to defensive armaments? Can the war in Ukraine possibly have a satisfactory resolution—not simply the “peace” that President Trump seems to desire, but a victory for the West and punishment of Russia for its aggressive expansionism—if the war is never seriously taken to the Russian homeland? Why are Russian civilians not experiencing the daily horrors being visited by Putin’s military upon the civilians and the civilian infrastructure of Ukraine?

It’s time to ensure a Ukrainian victory against Russia, not simply a holding action that can only result in Ukraine’s ultimate defeat and the country’s annexation by an expanding Russian empire.