Philando Castile was shot and killed by St. Paul, MN, police officer Jeronimo Yanez on July 6, 2016, during a traffic stop for non-working tail lights. Officer Yanez was charged with second-degree manslaughter and acquitted in a jury trial last Friday. The verdict is being referred to as a “legal lynching” once again raising questions […]

To Speak, or Not, of War In the aftermath of the Manchester bombing, UK government officials and the press refer to the incident as a “terrorist attack” while those killed and injured are “victims”, who, according to at least one source, were “murdered.” They fail to employ the language of war even when that is […]

Sexual Rage and Deadly Racism Last week, James Jackson of Baltimore, an Army veteran, traveled to New York and stabbed Timothy Caughman to death on a city street “in order to launch a campaign of terrorism” according to Cyrus Vance, Jr., the Manhattan DA. The Washington Post reports, “Police said Jackson left no doubt about […]

Ivanka Trump, the president’s daughter, has taken to twitter decrying the rise in anti-semitic acts across the country. “America is a nation built on the principle of religious tolerance. We must protect our houses of worship & religious centers. #JCC” Mrs. Trump is married to Jared Kushner, an Orthodox Jew and has converted to Judaism […]

“An Incredibly Inclusive Group” Today’s news may be dominated by Trump’s bungled attempt to institute a religiously based ban on Muslims entering the US, but as New York Magazine (NYM) points out, the White House offered up a  “Jew-less Holocaust Remembrance” on Friday, a nice bit of airbrushing. Perhaps the team over at the White […]

Jordan, Robinson and Obama There’s a video circulating on the web entitled, “Farewell Video to President Obama.” During the video, Michael Jordan, when speaking of the President, mentions the legendary Jackie Robinson which caused me to note that, “When Michael Jordan references Robinson he connects 65 years of Civil Rights history and reminds us that […]

The Stereotype I read of the tragedy last week in New York, where two young girls were killed when a radiator malfunctioned and they were scalded in their city-funded housing for families. I created an image in my head of the family and they were black. I was wrong and their story upends a box […]

There was a horrible accident in the Los Angeles area this past weekend when a large tree fell on a wedding party killing one person and injuring others, including a young child. Perhaps it’s the circumstances, a wedding celebration, and the “struck by lightning” nature of the event that is both compelling and repelling at […]

Lives Wrecked The Guardian reports that the prestigious medical journal Lancet Psychiatry has published an article detailing the potential harm associated with gaming the wee ones over Old Saint Nick. It’s about the moral compass, you see. They say, “lying to children, even about something fun and frivolous, could undermine their trust in their parents and […]

Sergeant Bill Mohr Out touring with high school seniors from Kansas yesterday on a crisp and glorious Fall afternoon, we walked from the White House down to the World War II Memorial with the Washington Monument beginning to glow in the setting sun. Down at the Memorial I spied a Veteran in a wheelchair, blanketed […]