Category Archives: Civil Liberty

(Un)Free for All

1/19/2012 – 3:56 pm

I’m on Rick Santorum’s side – in a narrow, limited sense.  The former senator from Pennsylvania is not my kind of politician.  There may be a few issues on which we agree, but I’m not inclined to seek them out.
That said, Mr. Santorum meets the qualifications to run for president of the United States.  He’s [...]

By floegel | Also posted in Commentary, Electoral Politics | Tagged , , , , , , , , | Comments (0)

To Appease the Gods

12/29/2011 – 11:25 am

So the last Americans pulled out of Iraq, eight and a half years later, leaving an uncertain nation with an even more uncertain future.
As I watched the video of the last trucks crossing the Kuwait border, all I could see were the black hulls of the Greek ships sailing away, gray smoke still hanging in [...]

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

Shut Up and Pay

12/1/2011 – 4:31 pm

New York Times columnist Joe Nocera hinted Monday at something that’s been on my mind for a while, but he didn’t come right out and say it.
His column was on the European money crisis and the gist of his argument is this: it makes economic sense for Germany (Europe’s economic powerhouse) to bail out Greece [...]

By floegel | Also posted in Commentary, Economy | Tagged , , , , , | Comments (0)

Still America

11/17/2011 – 1:53 pm

The teenaged girl did not want to attend the Democratic mayoral caucus with me, but I didn’t give her a choice.
Burlington will hold a mayoral election the first Tuesday of March, town meeting day.  Four candidates put themselves forward for the Democratic nomination.  Vermont caucuses and primaries are open to all registered voters in a [...]

By floegel | Also posted in Commentary, Electoral Politics | Tagged , , , , , , , | Comments (0)

Duty Now for the Future

11/10/2011 – 6:41 pm

My neighbors seemed to hit on a 21st century harvest ritual last Sunday.  It was the first dusk of standard time and was getting dark around 4:40.  It had been a beautiful days and we’d all been closing our gardens for the season, when I noticed fires burning in a few backyards.  It seemed a [...]

By floegel | Also posted in Commentary, Economy, Global Warming | Tagged , | Comments (0)

Zero to Seven Billion

10/27/2011 – 4:11 pm

When I heard the seven billionth person is due to be born Monday, I thought I must have made a mistake a few years back.  “Didn’t I just write a commentary on the six billionth person?  Was my math wrong?”
My math was not wrong.  I wrote that commentary the first week of October 1999.  What [...]

By floegel | Also posted in Commentary, Economy, Energy | Tagged , , , , | Comments (0)

How to Read the Washington Post

10/20/2011 – 1:17 pm

Sunday, the Washington Post published “Obama allies’ interests collide over Keystone pipeline,” which on its face is a news story.  It’s also a guide to life in our nation’s capital.
The gist of the story is that when it comes to the proposed Keystone XL pipeline, the White House is pinched.  On one side are environmentalists, [...]

By floegel | Also posted in Commentary, Oil | Tagged , , , , , , | Comments (0)