George Custer, E.E. Cummings, and Gratitude
Sean MurphyON THIS DAY IN HISTORY, 1868: Colonel George Custer massacres Cheyenne on Washita River Without bothering to identify the village or do any reconnaissance, Lieutenant Colonel George Armstrong Custer leads…
The Cruelty is the Point: Kristi Noem Edition
Everyone who follows politics, or current events, must have read or heard about this. If not, you unfortunately have to read it to believe it; to fathom that this is…
2/26/12: A Poem for Trayvon Martin
On this day in History: On February 26, 2012, Trayvon Martin, an African American teen walking home from a trip to a convenience store, is fatally shot by George Zimmerman, a…
Nick Cave & Empathy as the Antidote for Emptiness
Nick Cave continues to evolve into a sort of postmodern mensch, someone whose abilities and success have obliged him to dig deeper, and do more; not out of some sense…
Football and American Faith
Lots of well-deserved buzz surrounding this timely and important story by Dave Sheinin (read via the Washington Post here and more from the series here and here). This entire triumph…
Original Poem: Albert Ayler’s Vision
If it’s true a picture is worth a thousand words, this particular image seems able to conjure up entire books, libraries filled with stories of pain and pathos, apathy and…
The American System’s Dark Heart: Serpico at 50
Look at that dude. Pacino, clean-shaven and short-haired as the movie begins, sports the best ‘stache of the decade, then goes goatee, then gets full facial (hair and head), all…
Every Day is Veterans Day
I. Personal Remember when Born in the U.S.A. was ubiquitous? The album and the song. Springsteen was already a big deal, but he wasn't ubiquitous. (A lot more on how Bruce went…
This Day in History: “Porgy and Bess,” the first great American opera, premieres on Broadway
From History.com On October 10, 1935, George Gershwin’s opera Porgy and Bess premieres on Broadway. Porgy and Bess began its journey to the Broadway stage in 1926, when George Gershwin wrote a letter…
September 11
(From 9/11/21.) An absolutely gorgeous, cloudless September day, just like 20 years ago. I spent a couple of indescribably serene hours kayaking around the Katama Great Pond with my brother…