February 28, 2019

President Trump finally got bogged down in Viet Nam. Like Nixon, he will probably declare victory. Who could have seen this coming? President Trump traveled half way around the world with no preparation and no agreements in place, and, as a result, had to walk away with nothing. How bad is it that our president is watching television and Tweeting about Michael Cohen during a nuclear summit? How bad is it that the president banned reporters from a dinner because they asked inconvenient questions? How ironic is it that this happened in North Korea? Once again, Trump has embarrassed all of us on the world stage. Polls show that our international standing has fallen dramatically. I guess Donald Trump’s Nobel Prize will have to wait.

February 15, 2019

For the last few years, I have been struggling to learn Italian. It seemed like a useful brain exercise; I am Italian; and it served to justify my five years of Latin. I also wanted to travel to Italy. It has not been easy. Just ask my teacher. As it turns out, you actually have to study. Osmosis is not a pedagogical concept. Being bi-lingual is not easy.

Which brings me to immigration and immigrants. I believe that the majority of immigrants coming to the United States are either fluent in English, or can speak some English. The workers fired from Donald Trump’s golf resorts could speak English.

We should do a better job of welcoming non-raping, non-drug dealing, and non-gang banging immigrants into the United States. They want to work, and they speak our language. If more of us spoke another language, we might have a deeper understanding of the world around us? maybe we would not be as likely to sever international agreements? The question, then, should not be why can’t they speak English like us. They already do. We should be asking why more of us don’t speak a second language as does much of the rest of the world.

February 24, 2019

“It takes two plus a dance teacher to tango.”

October 20, 2018

The New York Times ran a front page article today titled, “Once Secret, Harvard’s Admissions Process is Unveiled in Federal Court.” This refers to an ongoing lawsuit filed on behalf of Asian students, who feel they have been discriminated against by the admissions process. I have been interviewing Harvard applicants for over forty years on behalf of the Harvard Schools Committee. I have interviewed students from wealthy schools, poor schools, private schools, public schools, and technical schools. I have interviewed Caucasian students, African American students, Asian students, international students, and Hispanic students. I have no first hand knowledge of how the admissions process works so I cannot pass judgement on the merits of the lawsuit. However, I can say uncategorically that the future of America is in good hands.

The high school students I am fortunate enough to talk to are incredibly bright, hard working, personable, and creative. I get exhausted just listening to all the things they accomplish in the course of a day. Their schedules are demanding, and their workloads are daunting. The good news is that there are far more qualified students applying than Harvard or any other college can possible admit. Only a small percentage are not ready for the experience. The percentage of students who get admitted is small, maybe five percent, which begs the question of the lawsuit, who gets admitted and why?

I do not know. I am a very poor predictor of who gets in, but it is a very complicated process. I receive no direction or mandates from the admissions office on what Harvard might be looking for, or how to write up my interview notes. I know nothing of the student’s background before the interview, or what his or her admission status might be. Harvard, as does most schools, professes to attract a diversified student body. The theory is that students will learn as much from each other as they will from their course work. I am not looking just for what prospective students are able to take from the college, but, more importantly, what they can bring to the college community. Will the students be able to contribute significantly to college life? This can be a very subjective process, and “therein lies the rub.” Does Harvard need pre-med students or scientists; does the orchestra need a first violinist; does society need more humanists; or does the football team need a quarterback? Sometimes, timing is everything.

I try to explain to students that the process can be opaque and subjective, but not to worry. Regardless of what happens, they are extremely talented individuals, and there are many outstanding colleges. They will be accepted to an excellent school, and they will be well-prepared to make a significant contribution to society. As I said before, our future is secure.

February 16, 2019

We just celebrated the first anniversary of the Parkland slayings. We honored the deaths of all those children by doing actually nothing. The only thing that really came out of it was a dramatic increase in gun sales. This typically happens after every mass shooting. The theory is that the government is going to take our guns away so we better buy more guns to be safe. You just can’t be too safe.

Donald Trump just declared a national emergency on our southern border. Everyone except his loyal base knows this is a hoax. My question, however, is if the base really believes like the president that we have a national emergency, why are they not going out and buying more guns? I cannot support this rhetorical question with hard data known as facts, but I have not seen any reporting about increased gun sales in the face of a foreign invasion of drug dealers, rapists, and gang members.

My conclusion is that there is a segment of the population that is apparently more afraid of its own government than it is of a real emergency. You can draw your own conclusion about what this means. I have obviously drawn my own.

February 12, 2019

The basest of Trump’s base love him because he just doesn’t give a damn about anything. He is the personification of an FU to the establishment. He shatters standards, norms, guardrails, democratic values, and anything else he can get his small, little hands on. His peeps love it. He lies, they know it, and it makes him stronger. He invites them to chant “Build the Wall,” and they are happy to obey. Like Pavlov’s Dog, they scream “lock her up.” He prostrates himself before Putin, and they prostrate themselves before him. They do this because they believe that Trump is a latter day Robin Hood. He steals from the elite, and gives to real Americans. However, Trump is no Robin Hood. He is a Robbin’ Hood, who steals from anyone he can and keeps it for himself and his friends.

Trump tried to steal healthcare from his followers, who are the very people who need it the most. He tried to do it in plain sight. His followers were beguiled because they never believed that anyone would be so bold as to chisel you to your face. Then he promised a tax cut for all while diverting trillions of dollars to corporations and the wealthiest Americans, bragging to his band of merry men at Mar-a-Lago about how much money he made them. Where was the base? They were being three card monte’d by the Mueller investigation and the corrupt media. Trump funnels government business to his own hotels, yet the base does not care because Trump claims that he is doing their bidding and sticking it to the man. The cruel joke is that he is the man, and he is sticking it to them.

The base will say that they have gotten someone who will protect gun rights and the right to life. What they do not understand is that Trump would easily cave on these issues if he received a better offer. He has no principles, and he certainly doesn’t care about theirs. He is an opportunist and a con man. He is stealing their ability to discern fact from fiction. He is stealing their environment. He is stealing their future.

February 12, 2019

In the immortal words of Richard Nixon, “Let me make one thing perfectly clear.” Or, rather, it is time for Democrats to make its agenda perfectly clear. There is a lot of noise out there from declared and undeclared Democratic presidential candidates alike about higher income taxes on the wealthy, asset-based taxes, Medicare for all, universal healthcare, a Green New Deal, free college education, and more. Democrats need to fine tune their message, which should not be as difficult as they are making it. The two defining issues of our time are healthcare and the environment. We need to take care of ourselves and our planet. There are numerous other issues to be concerned about, like immigration reform, gun control, women’s rights, rebuilding international relations, and so on, but, from a messaging point of view, Democrats need to keep it clear and simple

In terms of healthcare, Democrats should continue with what got them here, which is a laser-like focus on preserving coverage for pre-existing conditions, and strengthening the Affordable Care Act. This is what the polls say people want, and this is what Nancy Pelosi provided. Everything else is a distraction. While I do agree that, as a a major industrialized country, we should have universal coverage, I am not willing to sacrifice the next four years on that platform. I think most people agree with this concept in theory, but most of us on both sides are incrementalists. I do not think we have the political will or mandate for big ideas.

The biggest issues for younger voters are global warming and climate change. It obviously will affect them more than it will some of the rest of us. Regardless of what you call it, we need a major infrastructure plan focused on reducing our reliance on carbon-based energy. It should be a multi-pronged effort. It should include greater incentives for solar and wind energy. It should include major investments in rail service like a train from Springfield to Boston. High quality jobs will be created. More jobs means more money for the middle class. Good middle class jobs means less income inequality. More jobs means more people have private healthcare.

The biggest debate facing us will be how to pay for what is necessary. Taxes and entitlements have to be in the discussion. I am told that the trucking industry would gladly support a tax on gasoline if the money were directed to infrastructure improvements. Unfortunately, it faces resistance from Congress. There are people and organizations who want to do the right thing. It will be a lot easier if Democrats can just make one thing perfectly clear.