Lessons of Recent History

Israeli officials obtained Hamas’s battle plan for the Oct. 7 terrorist attack more than a year before it happened, documents, emails and interviews show. But Israeli military and intelligence officials dismissed the plan as aspirational, considering it too difficult for Hamas to carry out. Underpinning all these failures was a single, fatally inaccurate belief that … Read more

Fool Me Thrice

NOTE:  I have been working on this entry since Israel greenlighted military operations in Gaza.  But was unsure of the intended message until today when I learned that China, which now chairs the UN Security Council, plans to introduce a resolution calling for a permanent ceasefire between Israel and Hamas. I trust you are familiar … Read more

The Found(er)ing Fathers

James Madison and the Philadelphia Gang of Six have taken quite a beating lately.  Recent tirades have focused more on amendments to the Constitution than the original document.  Particular topics of debate include: The establishment clause of the First Amendment. The right to bear arms in the Second Amendment. Section 3 of the 14th Amendment … Read more

Demand Side Economics

We hear a lot these days about the effects of inflation on average Americans (whoever they are).  And we see a lot of finger pointing when it comes to the causes.  Greedy corporations.  Supply chain disruptions resulting from the lingering effects of the pandemic.  Federal Reserve policies.  The growing federal debt.  You know what we … Read more

Not Rocket Science

If nothing else, Joe Scarborough is consistent when it comes to his schadenfreude over Donald Trump’s promise to his followers, “You will get tired of all the winning.”  Before viewing the following Tweet or tuning into today’s edition of “Morning Joe,” I knew how he would begin his recap of last night’s off-year elections. He … Read more