Like all lapsed Catholics, I still have a guilt complex: guilt drilled into me from priests and nuns and Christian Brothers, guilt from committing a mortal sin, ranging from thinking impure thoughts to telling lies in confession. It was a long time ago. These days the greatest guilt of all comes from a recurring nightmare … Continue reading I’m dreaming of a fallen Trump
US Politics
Leslie Seymour: The Everywhere Man — Have Camera Will Travel
“Who the hell is Leslie Seymour?” That’s what journalist and broadcaster Ray Martin asks facetiously in his foreword to the autobiography of Les Seymour, his long-time mate, and it’s a fair question. Unless you’re a veteran journo or a media junkie, you may not have heard about cameraman extraordinaire, Les Seymour. All he’s ever done … Continue reading Leslie Seymour: The Everywhere Man — Have Camera Will Travel
Scaramucci does his last fandango for the White House
Anthony Scaramucci is being divorced by his wife, was fired by the president and is now reportedly dead. Okay, rumours of his death have been greatly exaggerated as Mark Twain once said, but it’s been that kind of a week for the sacked White House communications director. The New York financier was removed from his … Continue reading Scaramucci does his last fandango for the White House
Jimmy Breslin: ‘Thanks for the use of the hall’
Jimmy Breslin was called the guru of shoe leather by his colleagues because he used a lot of it. Even in his late seventies and early 80s, the Pulitzer Prize-winning columnist still climbed stairs because, as he put it, “the story is never on the first floor.” Breslin was a reporter’s reporter, much loved in … Continue reading Jimmy Breslin: ‘Thanks for the use of the hall’
Mr Trump, Your time is up
One of my favourite Henrik Ibsen plays is An Enemy of the People about the doctor of a spa in a small Norwegian town who discovers the Baths are contaminated. The residents praise him as an activist until they learn the baths will have to be closed for several years, costing their jobs, and when … Continue reading Mr Trump, Your time is up
Donald Trump: Maintain the rage until the final tweet
I’m a big fan of Blue Bloods, a US TV series about an Irish Catholic family of police in New York City, featuring the Police Commissioner; his father, a former commissioner; his two sons, a detective and a patrol cop, and his daughter, an assistant district attorney – their blue blood runs deep. As well … Continue reading Donald Trump: Maintain the rage until the final tweet
Why I can’t trust Donald Trump
I knew it was time to chill out when I got into an argument at the TAB – the local betting agency – over Donald Trump. All I said was I hope I have better luck with my bets on the races than my vote against Donald Trump. Out of the blue, a bloke I … Continue reading Why I can’t trust Donald Trump
All I want for Christmas is for Donald to disappear
In the streets of Philadelphia where I grew up, if you didn’t get picked to play in a half-court basketball game, you might say: “I’m taking my ball and going home.” Of course, it would have to be your ball, and it would not make you very popular. Well, Donald Trump decided he was taking … Continue reading All I want for Christmas is for Donald to disappear
Hillary Clinton, watch your back: There’s a bully behind you
“Suppose they gave an election and nobody came.” Okay, that was a paraphrase of a 1970s movie title, but it popped into my mind about halfway through the second agonising, awful debate between Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton. I was sitting next to my wife, who was groaning nearly every time Trump spoke, and I … Continue reading Hillary Clinton, watch your back: There’s a bully behind you
I dream of Donald dropping bombs and building walls
I breathed a sigh of relief after watching the first presidential debate between Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton this week. The world is a safer place. There is a chance Hillary can still win the election. The braggadocious (a word he used to say he wasn’t bragging) billionaire didn’t win the debate, but he didn’t … Continue reading I dream of Donald dropping bombs and building walls
