Donald Trump has probably done more to recruit converts to the political process than any politician in a long time. While his support base remains fixed, those in opposition to his policies are a rising tide. Many of them, as writer E. J. Graff points out, are new to citizen activism

Hope springs eternal.  While Donald Trump and Kim Jung-un are playing chicken with life on the planet as we know it, two good outcomes follow.  First, Trump’s rhetoric diverts us from thinking about his Russia connection, and second, young men, ages 20-25, who want to look good in

As the saying goes, “It’s an ill wind that blows no good.”  Despite the war of nerves Donald Trump is playing with  North Korea’s leader, Kim Jung-un, bad political news means good business for some.  Since North Korea launched a missile that could reach the United States,

When I wrote the latest version of my will, my attorney noted I’d made no provisions for my ashes.  Nonplussed, I asked, “Doesn’t the funeral parlor dump them?” As the deceased-to-be, my lawyer’s question struck me as impertinent.  I don’t pay taxes once I’m dead.  Wh

The memoir I’m writing touches upon my travels in Africa in the 1960s.  In it, I admit never having seen a lion in the wild.  I did hear one, once, under unpleasant circumstances.  But that story is yet to be written.  I can only remark that in the veld, a lion’s roar carries

While the U.S. government sits on its hands and does little to regulate tech monopolies, (Blog 8/16/17) Europe takes an aggressive stand.  For example, The European Commission has hit Apple with a claim for $13 billion in back taxes; Uber faces criminal charges for unlicensed taxi 

As I noted recently, tech monopolies are a growing concern in Europe, though not in the United States. (Blog 8/10/17). American consumers are content because: 1) a variety of merchandise is available with a mouse click; 2) purchases arrive at the speed of light; and 3) those purchases

I’m friends with a couple about to set off for Paris for their first visit. How I envy them.  My upcoming memoir looks back fondly to my first days in Paris.  If there is magic in the world, it exists there.   Though the man and wife who are about to fly there  are retired, I’

In the writers’ pecking order, the author with a publisher stands taller than the one who is self-published.  Having a publisher implies someone other than the writer believes in the work enough to commit hard cash to producing it. Nonetheless, after working with 4 publishers, I’

On several occasions, I’ve blogged about technological advances in robotics and how androids could disrupt our society. What I hadn’t considered was the way large tech companies could become a threat in themselves.  I’m talking about monopolies.  Not the traditional kind, like