I’m not sure what racism is, but I am sure no one else does either. I know it’s a term of opprobrium, like ’sexism’ or ‘fascism’ or ‘colonialism’. But what exactly is the accuser accusing the accused of? A racist can’t be just a realist about race, in the sense of thinking there’s a mind-independent fact … Continue reading SOME PUZZLES ABOUT RACISM
Everything You Wanted to Know About What’s Going On in the World But Were Afraid to Ask
INDIGENOUS EXCEPTIONALISM
In early May of 1463, a full twenty-nine years before Columbus ‘discovered’ what was to the Europeans the ‘new world’, a boatload of Mi’kmaq from what is now Cape Breton Island in Nova Scotia, set sail – actually they rowed - eastward into the open Atlantic. Some say it was a storm that took them … Continue reading INDIGENOUS EXCEPTIONALISM
DEFUNDING THE POLICE
There’s a movement afoot in America, one that predates the current fuss over the George Floyd killing, to defund the police, if not entirely then certainly by some amount in excess of just a little. If we want to reduce crime against persons or property, goes the argument, transfer the money to social programs designed … Continue reading DEFUNDING THE POLICE
AMERICA’S BEST
The German people can be forgiven for electing Hitler in 1933. They didn’t know. Perhaps even he didn’t know. After all, events have a way of overtaking themselves. But we’re told they’d have ratified that choice as late as April, 1945. And for that they cannot be forgiven. Likewise, then, given the polyester pant-suit alternative, Trump seemed … Continue reading AMERICA’S BEST
TRUDEAU’S 21 SECONDS OF SILENCE
I thought nothing could outdo Martin Luther King’s “I Have a Dream” speech, until ... The other day, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau was asked by a reporter what he thought of Donald Trump’s words and actions in response to the protests over the murder of George Floyd. For 21 secondsof excruciating silence, Trudeau stared at … Continue reading TRUDEAU’S 21 SECONDS OF SILENCE
AMERICA’S POLICING DILEMMA
The question, I suppose, is this. At what point should the penny have dropped for the Jews of Europe? When should they have started shooting the authorities at the door rather than come along peacefully? It’s easy to say in retrospect, but retrospection wasn’t widely available until about the time of the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising. There’s … Continue reading AMERICA’S POLICING DILEMMA
LET HOTTER HEADS PREVAIL
Some of you may remember the cult classic Billy Jack from 1971, and if so, the title character’s remark that, “When policemen break the law, there is no law!” That might be a bit too strong. Policemen are people. People break laws. Sometimes people break the law when they’re on the job. So that Derek Chauvin … Continue reading LET HOTTER HEADS PREVAIL
THE LEGACY OF GEORGE FLOYD
A law that’s impossible to obey isn’t a law. A law that’s impossible to disobey isn’t a law. A law that’s impossible to enforce isn’t a law. And a law that isn’t enforced isn’t a law. The most it can be is entreaty. And very often it’s not even that. What shall we say, then, of … Continue reading THE LEGACY OF GEORGE FLOYD
PATIENCE, GRASSHOPPER
The number of American soldiers who’ve died in Iraq since George W. Bush declared victory from the deck of that aircraft carrier has been many times the number who died before that declaration of victory. So it’s not always clear that victory is something to celebrate. Likewise, I conjecture, those who’ll die from Covid 19 after we reopen … Continue reading PATIENCE, GRASSHOPPER
SCHADENFREUDE
Covid 19 has divided the human world into four distinct camps. There are those who’ve already lost - or are about to lose - their lives to this thing. That’s probably going to end up being about a half million people. There are those who’ve already suffered - or are about to suffer - a … Continue reading SCHADENFREUDE
