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By JON HUER
During the early part of the Roman Empire, triumphant rulers and heroes had an accompanying slave whose job it was to whisper “Memento mori” (“Remember mortality”) to the great men of the hour. In ancient Korea, kings appointed the realm’s most...
By JON HUER
There is a Chinese phrase “jintui-liangnan,” which means you are caught in a situation from which you can go neither forward nor backward. The phrase is an apt reference to the dilemma of the American republic which faces trouble either way: If we go...
By JON HUER
During the last three generations, the focus of our consumption changed from primarily material things for comfort (like shoes and cars) to predominantly “mental” events for pleasure (such as entertainment like TV, internet, social media). So did our...
By JON HUER
As a lifetime observer of American society and history, just now I am witnessing an astonishing historical event no human being has ever seen before: a nation voluntarily abandoning its democracy to welcome autocracy (very possibly fascism). On our...
By JON HUER
Whenever you are in the downtown area of Greenfield, it’s hard not to notice the usual downtown vagrants, mostly homeless and jobless. In our era of maximum consumption of comfort and pleasure, these people stand out conspicuously as the underclass of...
By JON HUER
Facing our choice of president in November, most American voters will cast their ballots for the candidate their hearts choose.Although it is an ostensibly “public” event — picking our nation’s chief administrator — neither the “nation” nor...
By JON HUER
It is universally agreed that we as humans are better off than dogs in America, in intelligence, dignity, health, etc. Two crucial facts contradict this notion. So, let’s get to these facts:FACT ONE: New York’s rich hotel heiress Leona Hemsley,...
By JON HUER
Democrats have been unhappy with the constitutional quirks that favor rural America, in which the GOP minority often outmaneuvers the Democratic majority. Three of the last four Republican presidential candidates won elections without winning the...
By JON HUER
My wife, who is my severest critic, says I think like a 10-year old, which I interpret as a compliment. True, I tend to be simple-minded and linear as a 10-year-old child would be. After nearly half a century of working as a sociologist, writing a...
By JON HUER
It’s uncommon for us to think that doctors, who help us out of trouble, could be in trouble themselves. Yes, they could be and, now behind the facade of prosperity and authority, they are in deep trouble. But, when doctors themselves are in trouble as...
By JON HUER
Putin rattles his nuclear saber again: The Associated Press reports, “Putin says Russia is ready to use nuclear weapons” [Recorder, March 14]. He has been making such threats for the past two years, especially against the possibility of the U.S. or...
By JON HUER
Three news events managed to grab my attention on March 1:Event One: Alexei Navalny was buried in Moscow. The most prominent political enemy and critic of President Vladimir Putin, he mysteriously died at a penal camp while serving his trumped-up...
By JON HUER
During the holidays, we hear much about giving. A strange thing about giving: We commoners simply “give,” but if a rich man does, it’s called “philanthropy,” literally “love of humanity.” It sounds noble and mysterious, but what really is...
By JON HUER
During this past Christmas, our son, who is an artificial intelligence expert for a Fortune 500 company, spent a week with us and convinced us that artificial intelligence’s involvement in our daily lives in America is much more extensive than...
By JON HUER
American society is now facing a choice between capitalist democracy (if Democrats win) and fascist democracy (if Trump wins). Whichever side wins, both capitalists and fascists —as advertisers do — count on one cardinal weakness that is abundant...
By JON HUER
On Oct. 7, Hamas, the militant faction of Gaza Palestinians, in a surprise attack, killed more than 1,400 Jews. Three weeks later, the avenging Israeli military has killed close to 9,000 Palestinians in Gaza, and counting. Such attacks and...
By JON HUER
Amid the uproar over Donald Trump’s indictment, I am awakened by a sudden revelation that Trump is the Dark Angel of Apocalypse sent from Hell to bring the cataclysmic destruction to America. He is the very personification of the Four Horsemen —...
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