Reactions to the Proposed Triumphal Arch

The National Park Service is receiving public comments on the Triumphal Arch President Trump wants to build in the District of Columbia. The arch is clearly a vanity project that will surely not beautify Washington. I began writing my thoughts about the arch about a week ago. Before I had gotten very far, however, I decided to write a poem about this proposed monstrous undertaking, in part because I wanted new material for the upcoming Open Mic Night at Sulfur Books. (You can read my poem “Triumphal Arch” here.)

Having completed my poem and facing a NPS July 30 deadline for citizen comments, I returned to my original project. I completed an essay about the proposed memorial and submitted it. You can also read my thoughts about the arch, “Trump’s Triumphal Arch,” on my Web site here.

As always, comments, which you can leave below, are welcome.

Facebook Proves Maddening Once More

Yet again, Facebook has taken down one of my posts for no rational reason.

I saw the following post on my news feed:

I was attracted to this post because (1) I am interested in railroads, and (2) the fires in Ontario Province, Canada, have been affecting air quality here in Ontario County, New York, U.S.A. I thought it was reasonable to repost this story for the benefit of Facebook friends, particularly those who live in or near Clifton Springs.

I posted the original URL directly from the Trains Web site with the comment:

Smoke from Ontario fires continue to darken skies in Clifton Springs.

Almost immediately—I’m sure no human was involved—I was informed that my post had been deleted because my post “goes against our Community Standards on spam.” In particular, I was told:

The post may use misleading links or content to trick people to visit, or stay on a website.

I was not trying to trick anyone. I immediately challenged the ruling, but I could only check boxes to describe my position. I could not write an actual defense. Facebook provided the following:

Seeking more information, I thought I should see the rule that was supposedly being invoked. I then saw this:

If my post was spam, why wasn’t the original post from Trains spam? I frequently post links to my Web site and blog or to news reports from The New York Times, NPR, or other news organizations. I have no idea why my post was deemed objectionable. I was provided with this unhelpful information:

Facebook later offered this threat after telling me that my post was not being restored:

If you have a high tolerance for bureaucratic self-righteousness, you can read the full (I think) Facebook policy on spam here.

I use Facebook because it’s useful, but, in so many respects, it is maddening. Some features are poorly chosen, and the platform keeps changing how things work, seldom for the better. (The latest general annoyance is the appearance of ads in the middle of even relatively short reels.)

You can read some of my previous complaints about Facebook here.

Two Language Observations

I listen to NPR a lot. I have come to expect mostly well-spoken English on the network. Two pronunciations have surprised me of late, however. I have heard these on NPR and elsewhere.

First, there is the word missile. The word came up a lot in coverage of the Trump-Netanyahu war against Iran. I have always heard this word pronounced as ˈmi‑səl, but I was repeatedly hearing it pronounced ˈmi‑sīl. When I looked the word up in the dictionary, I was surprised to learn that this latter pronunciation is the usual British one.  As it happens, many of the reporters I was listening to on NPR were, in fact, British. Mystery solved!

Another oddity I have noticed lately is rather more annoying. It involves the simple word a. Almost always, I expect this word to be pronounced as ə—or if you prefer, uh—as in a beautiful beach. This is the usual adjectival use of the word. Normally, it is only pronounced ˈā when the word is used as a noun (i.e., to refer to the letter A) or, more rarely, as an adjective for emphasis on the singularity of the thing it modifies (e.g., ā very big deal). Recently, however—I heard an example of this usage on the ABC news tonight—a long A is being used in phrases like ā mix of sun and clouds. My guess is that announcers are trying too hard to enunciate, even when a natural pronunciation is actually called for and a long A pronunciation simply seems stilted.

Autographs

I am not a collector of autographs. The other day, however, I was reminded that I have accumulated a few over the years.

I was listening to an LP of Bach preludes and fugues yesterday. The organist was Marie-Claire Alain on a two-disc album. (I own recordings of all the Bach organ works played by Alain.) As I removed the first disc to play it, a program from a concert I attended nearly half a century ago fell out. Owning so many recordings by Alain, I was delighted to hear her play in person, and I had her sign my program, which I had saved in the album I was playing. (See the program at the left.)

I have never gotten an autograph from a politician or any other non-musician, but I have two other signatures from musicians. 

I have heard Judy Collins in concert two or three times. Before one of these, I bought one of her LPs at a record store—are you old enough, dear reader, to know about record stores?—where she was autographing purchases. She signed and personalized my album.

I have only one other musician’s autograph, that of Vladimir Ashkenazy. I had become a passionate fan of Sergei Prokofiev’s music after borrowing from the New Orleans Public Library a recording of his Second Piano Concerto, played by Malcolm Frager. While attending the University of Chicago, a friend who knew of my Prokofiev passion told me that Ashkenazy was playing the concerto at Orchestra Hall. I managed to obtain a seat at the concert in the nosebleed section. It was the most exciting concert I have ever attended; I was on the edge of my seat—quite literally—throughout the entire concerto. I was actually a bit tired from the tension when it was all over! Several years later, I got to hear Askenazy in Honolulu. I obtained his autograph, but I really wanted to see him to tell him how exciting I found that Chicago concert and to thank him for the experience.

I have since heard other pianists play the Prokofiev Second Piano Concerto. The piece is always exciting, but no performance has had the emotional power of that Chicago performance by Vladimir Ashkenazy.

Do you, dear reader, collect autographs? Whose signature has been most meaningful to you? Do you have autographs from people who are not musicians?

Arch Thoughts

Donald Trump is threatening to build a massive triumphal arch in D.C. A rendering of the proposed monument has been released:

Of course, even if the arch is built, it may or may not look like this. That details of Trump’s ballroom keep changing—not to mention his justification for the war against Iran—suggests that this project’s details are likely to be volatile.

Only yesterday, AP reported that the U.S. Commission of Fine Arts, a body now composed of Trump lackeys, has approved a design for the arch somewhat modified from the image shown above. The lions—which often represent royalty—are gone, and two gold eagles have been added atop the arch. Gold remains a significant surface finish consistent with the Trump nouveau riche aesthetic. The phrases “One Nation Under God” and “Liberty and Justice for All” are to appear on either side of the monument (in gold lettering, of course).

The most obvious criticisms of the Trump triumphal arch are that (1) it would be a major piece of architecture in our capital city reflecting the desires and aesthetics of a single man. (2) no source of funding for the arch has been identified, (3) there is no obvious need or constituency for the arch, (4) it is outrageously large (more than twice as tall as the nearby Lincoln Memorial and nearly half as tall as the Washington Monument), and (5) it interrupts the sight line across the Potomac River.

The inscriptions are curious. They are clearly taken from the “Pledge of Allegiance.” (I have problems with the Pledge, particularly with the invocation of God, but we can leave that aside for the moment.) Why should we prefer “One Nation Under God” to “In God We Trust,” which, unfortunately, is the nation’s official motto? (See my essay “A Matter of Mottos.”) The Pledge has no such official standing. Likewise, the Pledge-derived “Liberty and Justice for All” is an unofficial phrase. I would prefer simply “Liberty,” which adorns our coins. Arguably, true liberty, which is in short supply at the moment, implies justice.

Historically, triumphal arches are most often celebratory of military victories and/or the soldiers responsible for them. What is Trump’s arch for? Trump has suggested that the District of Columbia needs an arch to mark the entrance to the District. One has to ask why, however, particularly as the arch blocks significant sight lines. And where should such an entrance monument be?

According to Adam Gopnik, “When asked by a reporter whom the arch would be for, Trump said, ‘Me.’” According to Gopnik, bigness is the point of the arch. He pointed out that Hitler wanted to build an enormous arch in his proposed capital city for the Third Reich. I suggest that Trump’s arch really does celebrate a Trump victory, namely, the triumph of autocracy over democracy. (Our semiquincentennial is simply a convenient excuse to build a 250-foot tall arch.) Ironically, a gold, winged Lady Liberty adorns the top of the arch. She is, I suggest, ready to fly away from the United States.

Celebrating and Pandering

Throughout the twentieth century, steam locomotives were mostly black, with lighter smokeboxes, whose working temperature made the use of ordinary paint impractical. Rarely did they sport other colors—sometimes blue, green, or, in the case of the famous Southern Pacific GS-4s, red, orange, and silver.

The advent of diesel-electric road locomotives brought more color to the rails. The diesel’s largely flat sides facilitated decoration that the complex appliances outfitted to its stream predecessors never did. The new locomotives were billboards of color—silver, red, yellow, orange, purple, and others. Locomotive liveries usually advertised the operating railroad or, less frequently, the locomotive builder. No one could see the red, yellow, and silver warbonnet paint scheme on a GM locomotive and not know that it was motive power of the Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe Railway.

Infrequently, individual diesels were painted to celebrate an event, cause, or program—the Salt Lake City Olympics or Operation Lifesaver. In a time when consolidation in the railroad industry has eliminated so many famous names, successor railroads have taken to painting locomotives in the colors of railroads they had swallowed up. These “heritage” locomotives have been quite popular with the public, even if the liveries of the “fallen flags” had never been seen on more modern motive power. 

Lately, railroads have been painting engines to celebrate the nation’s 250th birthday. For example, Canadian Pacific Kansas City locomotive 1776 is mostly red with white lettering. Its undercarriage and trucks are blue, and four white stripes interrupt the red forward of a solid blue rear. Additional markings, including the America 250 logo and a tiny American flag, tastefully adorn the locomotive body.

Then there is the Union Pacific. It has a locomotive numbered 1776 that it decorated on the cheap. It is painted in UP’s standard armour yellow with silver trucks. There is a large American flag on each side, a design element similar to one that has appeared on its locomotives in the past. Like the CPKC’s commemorative locomotive, the America 250 logo appears on the side nose of the engine.

Then there is UP 4547. This locomotive, according to the railroad’s Web site, “was built in partnership with [locomotive builder] Wabtec,” though UP has provided only a drawing, not a photograph of the unit. The left and right sides of this engine are shown in this UP graphic:

Although UP 4547 is supposedly celebrating the nation’s 250th birthday, in reality, it is celebrating Donald J. Trump, whose name appears on both sides in gold lettering. The road number, of course, refers to Trump as the 45th and 47th president. The left side shows a gigantic, waving Betsy Ross flag; the right side shows a similarly depicted current U.S. flag. Where CPKC 1776 placed the America 250 logo, this locomotive displays an eagle derived very loosely from the Great Seal of the United States. The America 250 logo is nowhere to be seen.

Remarkably, UP CEO Jim Vena has insisted that this locomotive is simply honoring the nation’s 250th anniversary. “We’re actually celebrating America. We are not celebrating any individual,” he is quoted as saying. It is difficult to take this pronouncement seriously.  UP has been seeking government approval to buy Norfolk Southern. Its first merger proposal was rejected by the Surface Transportation Board as inadequate. A revised merger proposal was submitted to the STB on April 30. It is difficult to see locomotive 4547 as anything other than an attempt to win Trump’s favor by appealing to his ego.

Donald Trump regularly conflates his person with the United States itself. This is appalling and contrary to the spirit of the Constitution. It is equally appalling when a railroad does the same thing. Unfortunately, to get this administration to do what one wants it to do, it has become necessary to bribe the chief executive either by putting money into his pocket (or into the pockets of his family) or by appealing to his inflated ego. We are used to seeing this kind of pandering in banana republics; it is heartbreaking to see it in the United States.

A Proposed Peace Agreement

Everybody knows the war is over,
Everybody knows the good guys lost.
            — Leonard Cohen and Sharon Robinson

One may quibble about who has won or lost the Trump-Netanyahu war against Iran. (Were there any “good guys”?) What is clear is that the world is worse off because of the war.

It seems likely, though by no means certain, that the war, as it involves Iran directly, is largely at an end. Although President Trump seeks to impose his own set of demands on Iran, Iran has other ideas. Unless Trump actually bombs Iran back “to the Stone Ages”—a move that would affirm the United States’s role as despised international pariah—a resolution of the war will require give-and-take among all parties. For each side to get something it wants, it must give up something it would rather not. Such is the nature of negotiations generally and of peace negotiations specifically.

Below, I propose an outline of peace terms that seem reasonable. (An actual agreement would require additional details.) Explanatory comments appear below.

1. Ships of all nations shall be allowed to pass through the Strait of Hormuz unimpeded and without payment of any toll. Neither the United States of America nor the Islamic Republic of Iran nor the State of Israel shall interfere with the passage of vessels transiting the strait.
2. To facilitate the return of the Strait of Hormuz to its status quo ante, the United States and Iran shall coöperate to remove any mines that may be present in the vicinity of the strait.
3. The United States will immediately lift the blockade of all Iranian ports and will not reimpose such blockades in the future.
4. Iran shall cease and refrain from military action against other sovereign states unless it is itself attacked. 
5. Iran shall disclose all enriched uranium in its possession. It shall not retain uranium enriched to more than 60%. It shall not increase its current quantity of enriched uranium. Iran shall submit to international inspection to verify compliance with these provisions.
6. All international sanctions against Iran shall be removed.
7. Iran shall not engage in any activity aimed at destroying or interfering with the software assets of other nations or of physical assets that rely on such software assets.
8. Iran shall not attempt to kill any citizen of another nation on foreign soil, either directly or through the agency of third parties.
9. Neither the United States nor Israel will attack Iran as long as it abides by this agreement.

Readers, particularly Republican ones, may find these provisions insufficiently draconian. More severe terms are likely to be rejected by Iran, leading to a stalemate or to renewed hostilities. Most important to the world at large is the resumption of normal transportation by sea and the limitation on Iran’s enrichment of uranium. (In fact, Iran might agree to even stronger restrictions, but maybe not.) Iran, of course, would like to demand reparations. (Good luck with that!) It will, however, welcome provisions that allow it to earn money from commercial operations. The devastation visited upon Iran will limit that country’s ability (and, one hopes, inclination) to export weapons in support of client organizations such as Hamas. Iran’s manufacture of drones and missiles will likely be the subject of much negotiation. It will be difficult to prohibit and police. More subtle activities are explicitly prohibited. Admittedly, the agreement is unbalanced in that the United States and Israel have recourse if Iran does not live up to the agreement; Iran is allowed no similar recourse.

Alas, neither the United States nor Israel has sufficient leverage to impose a more democratic government on Iran or, barring that, to protect its citizens from the depredations of its current regime.

Terms such as those I have proposed are not ideal, but, given the hostilities foolishly embarked upon by the United States and Israel, they may represent the best the aggressors can expect.

Fortuitous Listening

While performing domestic chores this afternoon, I had been listening to the CD “The Best of Tom Paxton.” In fact, I played the disc more than once.

I looked up at the clock and saw that it was nearly 9 o’clock (EDT). It was time for “Folkstage” on WFMT. I seldom hear all of “Folkstage,” though I often hear the end of it when I tune in to hear “The Midnight Special,” which airs at 10.

As fate would have it this night, the “Folkstage” program was a rebroadcast of a 2015 concert with Tom Paxton and Janis Ian performed at Chicago’s Old Time School of Folk Music. Obviously, I like Tom Paxton. And Janis Ian is one of my favorite singers. I knew and loved many of the songs sung on the program.

What an unexpected treat!

The War on Iran

I often post comments to my Facebook account without posting or taking note of them here. I posted an earlier version of the above graphic on Facebook earlier today. The more I think about it, though, the angrier I am that our ignorant, narcissistic president has taken this country to war, endangering the world economy and perhaps world peace as well. I wrote an essay about this on my Web site a few days ago. I may have been less angry then. Anyway, I invite you to read it.

UFE

When Donald Trump, as soon as he regained the presidency, attacked DEI (diversity, equity, and inclusion), I assumed that he deplored the DEI offices found in corporations, universities, nonprofits, governmental entities, and elsewhere. I was wrong, which quickly became obvious as the administration began not only threatening such offices but also expunging the words “diversity,” “equity,” and “inclusion” wherever they could be found. The administration’s manic excisions even extended to those words on the World Wide Web appearing in contexts having nothing to do with DEI.

Dictionary.com offers a definition of DEI as good as can be found anywhere: “a conceptual framework that promotes the fair treatment and full participation of all people, especially in the workplace, including populations who have historically been underrepresented or subject to discrimination because of their background, identity, disability, etc.”

I suspect that many people—I would hope most people, including even Trump supporters—would endorse the objectives of DEI when presented with such an explicit definition. It is a fair assumption that Mr. Trump is not among that population. 

Mr. Trump knows exactly what his anti-DEI campaign is all about. He hates diversity. He favors American-born white, preferably male, people to those of other races or with conspicuous heritage from anywhere outside the U.S. (He makes an exception for white South Africans.)

Mr. Trump has no interest in treating all citizens, much less all people, equally. Only those people who can be useful to him are worthy of consideration. If you can make him money or kiss his ass in a politically useful manner, you become Mr. Trump’s friend, at least for the moment.

It follows, of course, that Mr. Trump has no interest in showing anyone special favors as compensation for historical injury, not only because he sees no personal gain in doing so, but also because he possesses the historical understanding of a slug.

I suggest that the president’s anti-DEI attitude can be properly characterized with another acronym, namely UFE. That stands for

• Uniformity: America for right-thinking MAGA white people
• Favoritism: Partiality is shown to the president’s friends
• Exclusion: People who are not useful to the president are of no account

Donald Trump, I submit, is the first UFE president.

An Upsetting Magazine Cover

I was shocked! Shocked! When I received my copy of the December 29, 2025 & January 5, 2026 issue of The New Yorker (see illustration). For as long as I can remember, New Yorker covers sported a narrow rectangle that served as the left border of the cover illustration. That rectangle was usually a solid color, though, on rare occasions, it included some sort of design.

I don’t know why that border exists, but I have always appreciated it. New Yorker covers are always attractive and interesting, and the border insures that the full cover illustration can be enjoyed by readers. In college, I took advantage of this fact to create a large collage of New Yorker covers from which I had excised the colored borders. I was upset when the magazine began pasting mailing labels on the cover, labels not easily removed and that detracted from the value of the cover as a decorative artifact.

I wrote to the magazine that another subscription of mine, Trains, mailed magazines using removable labels. I suggested that The New Yorker do the same. Only years later did the magazine begin employing such labels. My letter likely was not responsible for the change.

On the cover of the December 29, 2025 & January 5, 2026 issue, the illustration impinges on that ever-present border. Lorenzo Mattotti’s graphic “Goodbye to All That” would be damaged by cutting off the border. Rarely, and never recently—certainly not in my memory anyway—has the cover illustration impinged on that sacred border as it does on the cover of the current issue. For the benefit of future collage-makers in dorm rooms, I hope the current cover is an aberration. On the other hand, we live in a disorienting era, and one more innovation can contribute but a little to our already disturbed mental state.

Democratic Strategy for the Future

NPR, which has been interviewing Democrats about the future of their party, featured Maryland Senator Chris Van Hollen today on Morning Edition. Val Hollen said the obvious, namely that Democrats need to take back the House and Senate to advance a Democratic program. We need not only to say what (or who) we are against but also articulate what we are fighting for, he asserted. Democrats “will take on powerful, special interests in order to advance the public interest,” he explained. That’s all well and good, of course, but when asked about specific ideas, he spoke of a tax cut for lower- and middle-income taxpayers.

A tax cut! Is that the best idea Democrats can come up with? Republicans might even be persuaded to vote for such an idea. But what about those “powerful, special interests”?

The biggest threat to our nation—well, other than Donald Trump, of course—is wealth inequality. Too much money is in the hands of too few who yield too much power both within government and in society at large. Is the idea of raising taxes, even on those who would hardly notice the increase, a new third rail of American politics? Does no one see that perpetually lowering taxes eventually leaves the government with no money at all and therefore unable to do anything to “advance the public interest.”

Democrats need to tackle the wealth gap head-on. They need to assert that the rich own too much and the rest of us too little. Giving peanuts to the non-wealthy, as Van Hollen suggests, will neither excite voters nor effectively ameliorate the wealth gap problem. A more radical and effective taxation scheme such is the one I suggested a few years ago is needed, a plan to raise more revenue from those most able to supply it. 

Trump was elected because he was perceived as being different. Democrats should use the same strategy of offering something different—something that will benefit citizens generally, rather that Trump and his superrich friends.

Three Kitchen Tips

I do a fair amount of cooking and lots of baking. Naturally, I have built up a repertoire of useful kitchen skills. I do make mistakes, however, and I would like to share a few rules I’ve learned from those mistakes. Here are three useful rules in order of increasing importance:

Don’t leave a drawer open below your work surface. My large teak cutting board, on which I do much of my prep work, sits on a counter above my silverware drawer. I have a bad habit of removing a spoon or grater from the drawer and leaving the drawer open. This is an invitation for food to fall into the drawer. It’s difficult to clean flour or other material from a silverware drawer. 

Don’t pick up and carry glass jars by their lids. It’s hard to clean up the mess created by dropping a jar of pickles on the floor. Enough said!

Don’t touch metal pans recently removed from the oven. We all learned as children not to touch hot objects, but the high temperature of a particular object may not immediately register in your brain. Although I always use oven mitts or potholders to remove a fry pan or cookie sheet from the oven, such an object sitting atop my range is indistinguishable from the same cold object sitting there. I have been known to touch the handle of a fry pan or cookie sheet I just took out of the oven. Try not to do that!

Waste, Fraud, and Abuse

The Trump administration has claimed that its cuts to the federal government are eliminating waste, fraud, and abuse. If this is true, where are the prosecutions for fraud? Where are the reports exposing abuses?

In fact, the cuts are all being made to activities deemed wasteful. Whereas determining fraud or abuse requires investigation and analysis if done conscientiously, waste is largely in the eye of the beholder. If Donald Trump dislikes an activity, it is, ipso facto, wasteful and subject to summary elimination. This is how monarchs operate under the divine-right theory of kingship.

But Americans do not elect kings!

November 2025 Voting Advice

Never in modern times has one political party been so philosophically monolithic as is today’s Republican Party. Never in modern times has a political party been so anti-democratic, bordering on monarchial, in its orientation.

On Tuesday, it is vital that voters distressed by the direction of the country set by President Donald Trump vote for all Democrats on their ballot and for no Republicans. This must be the case for every public office, from school board member to state supreme court justice and governor. The continued existence of our democratic republic requires it.

God save The United States of America.

Thoughts on Drug Advertising

Pharmaceutical commercials on television are required to list possible, often scary (or even deadly), side effects. (Not every conceivable side effect need be mentioned.) But the actors on such ads are always portrayed as smiling, happy customers, as if the dreaded list of possible side effects is more theoretical than real.

Perhaps some of the actor-patients in drug commercials should be required to portray patients whose clinical outcome is not the desired one. That might make drug advertising more realistic and discourage people from pestering their physicians to prescribe the advertised product.

Drug advertising, particularly for newly approved drugs, serves a useful function by informing people of the existence of a drug that might benefit them. Current advertising, however, raises hopes for improved health outcomes while downplaying possible drug dangers.

At one time, consumer-targeted drug advertising was not allowed at all. The current regulations, though helpful, are too permissive. Advertising should state what a new pharmaceutical can be used for and direct potential customer-patients to consult their own physician for more information and advice as to whether they could benefit from the medicine. As long as the drug is not portrayed as a miracle cure (suggested by a screenful of happy patients), it should be unnecessary to list potential side effects. The many television viewers who are not potential customers for the drug manufacturer’s product would appreciate the scaled-down ads.

Thoughts on Today’s News

Hamas may indeed be forced to accept the “peace” plan presented by Donald Trump and Benjamin Netanyahu today. It is a one-sided plan in Israel’s favor, however, and it does not guarantee that there will ever be a Palestinian state. Netanyahu continues to reject any Palestinian state, even though he has “accepted” Trump’s proposal that suggests that such a state is possible if certain unlikely conditions are, at some unspecified time, met.

It is ironic that the “Board of Peace” proposed to oversee the implementation of the Trump plan is to be chaired by Trump himself. This provision is meant to strengthen Trump’s case for receiving a Nobel Peace Prize. But Trump has supported Netanyahu with the ordnance  responsible for flattening nearly all of Gaza. Trump deserves indictment for war crimes more than a prize for peacemaking.

The most Hamas-friendly provision of the Trump proposal is amnesty for Hamas fighters. On the other hand, Netanyahu presumably never expects to be held responsible for his own war crimes. 

Hamas will not, I predict, accept Trump’s plan anytime soon.

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It appears that a government shutdown will be upon us in just over 24 hours, as Senate Democrats seem unwilling to support the House’s continuing resolution. Withholding their votes on the budget is virtually the only leverage the Democrats have in the current Congress and with the current president. Many Democrats, myself included, have urged Senator Chuck Schumer to demand rolling back some of the provisions of Trump’s “Big Beautiful Bill.” But I am concerned that the Democrats are demanding only healthcare-related concessions. They should be making more demands. Having more demands makes getting at least something in any future compromise. The GOP, led by Donald Trump, will reject any compromise unless widespread public demand for it materializes. I am reluctant to make predictions about that.

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Dolly Parton has announced that she is postponing her appearances in Las Vegas because of “health challenges.” I sincerely hope that her death will not come anytime soon, but the announcement made me contemplate losing a woman who can only be called a national treasure. Should that terrible thing happen during Trump’s term, Parton will not likely get flags flown at half staff or a posthumous Presidential Medal of Freedom, honors shown the supremely underserving Charlie Kirk. (I have called Kirk elsewhere a mendacious, heretical demagogue and a talented propagandist who was a menace to the Republic.)

Pencil Sharpener

I don’t use ordinary #2 pencils very often. I probably use them most often for marking walls when hanging pictures. For ordinary writing, I invariably use one of several mechanical pencils. I do like to maintain a reasonably complete home office, however, so my office has always contained an electric pencil sharpener. When I moved to Clifton Springs, I discarded an outrageously large sharpener and replaced it with a much smaller electric sharpener from Staples. That device was not very good and recently completely failed to perform its only function. I discarded it and ordered a similarly sized electric sharpener by Bostitch. That device arrived at my doorstep yesterday. It works great. (Ironically, between the time I ordered the new sharpener and when it arrived, I purchased yet another mechanical pencil.)

The photo below shows the front of the box my new sharpener came in:

In the lower left corner of the box are graphics that presumably describe features of the sharpener, but I have no idea what “Power Meter” means. There is no meter on the shapener. Why does the power meter picture show a pointer at 6?

Here is a photo of the bottom of the sharpener box:

I had purchased the sharpener knowing nothing about its warranty. I was impressed by the 7-year warranty promised on the box. My delight was diminished when I read the sharpener instructions:

Notice the section labeled “ONE-YEAR LIMITED WARRANTY.” Sigh!

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.