Yearly Archives: 2007

North America Goes South

2/22/2007 – 12:27 pm

I think it all goes back to NAFTA.  The 1994 North American Free Trade Agreement, was supposed to increase prosperity throughout the continent, instead brought economic insecurity to U.S. workers and a meltdown in Mexico.  The low-wage, assembly line jobs never got to Mexico; they left the U.S. and went skipping over the ocean to […]

By floegel | Posted in Commentary | Comments (0)

Skin Cell, Jail Cell

2/15/2007 – 11:12 am

As a word person, I resent the violence politics does to the English language.  It’s been going on for decades and it gets worse all the time.  The best-known recent example is the USA Patriot Act, which in fact is a vehicle for stripping the rights away from law-abiding citizens.  A new entry to the […]

By floegel | Posted in Commentary | Comments (0)

Gifts of Love

2/8/2007 – 9:51 am

It’s crunch week for American men. Payback time for all that lounging on Super Bowl Sunday. Valentine’s Day is less than a week away. Adrienne, bless her heart, does not expect me to take part in this bizarre mating ritual, but many men in America are expected to get out there and spend gobs of […]

By floegel | Posted in Commentary | Comments (0)

Smoke and Mirrors

2/1/2007 – 11:46 am

Tomorrow’s an important day. It is when the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) releases the first section of its Fourth Assessment Report. There will be no surprises: global warming is getting worse and it’s clear that our actions are responsible. Today, the Washington Post reports that the IPCC will state that in the increase […]

By floegel | Posted in Commentary | Comments (1)

Cheney’s Smirk

1/25/2007 – 1:36 pm

“You going to watch the State of the Union?” I asked a friend Tuesday. “I’m going to listen on the radio.  I want to hear it, but I don’t want to have to look at him.” Understandable, but by only listening, my friend missed the key to the speech.  Viewers might have missed it, too […]

By floegel | Posted in Commentary | Comments (1)

As Goes New Orleans…

1/18/2007 – 2:50 pm

I needed to talk and write about my experience in the flood zone when I came home from the gulf coast in October 2005. I fell into silence after a few weeks, because words were unequal to the experience, but the experience stays with me. One reason is simply the horror of the devastation visited […]

By floegel | Posted in Commentary | Comments (0)

The “New” Iraq

1/11/2007 – 1:05 pm

Meet the new boss, same as the old boss? George W. Bush announced his next phase plans for Iraq to the nation last night, sending “over 20,000” additional troops, many of whom will be dispersed in Baghdad neighborhoods. On its face, Mr. Bush’s plans seems likely to increase the pace of American casualties, unless all […]

By floegel | Posted in Commentary, Iraq Invasion | Tagged , , | Comments (0)