Mike Pilewski writes about life, politics and culture in the United States
Three weeks ago, this column expressed the opinion that Barack Obama was wasting his time trying to get Republican support for his health-care reform bill. And, lo, in the historic vote held close to midnight on Sunday, not a single Republican voted for it. All Obama needed to do was concentrate on appeasing conservative Democrats — but even that was … >>
You’ve read it here first: Barack Obama is nuts. My diagnosis is based on the popular American saying: “Insanity is doing the same thing over and over but expecting different results.” In the past 13 months, Obama has sat down several times with the Republican opposition to try to get some agreement on matters of national importance. He’s visited Republican … >>
Haufenwolke, a reader of this column, says I don’t deserve to be nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize. So I’ve decided to step up my efforts. Like most people, I wish for peace on Earth on December 24. But wishing alone won’t stop the inconsiderate behavior of others. Actions must follow. So here are 20 simple suggestions that could be … >>
For most of August, America’s representatives in Congress were back in their home states, meeting with their constituents. Many of these voters were angry because of plans to reform the health-care system. “This is about the dismantling of this country,” one woman shouted at Pennsylvania Senator Arlen Specter. “We don’t want this country to turn into Russia!” A woman carrying … >>
I remember the swine flu. It came around in 1976, when I was a kid. We were all going to die. The parallels to the 1918 influenza, which killed between 20 and 100 million people, did not go unnoticed. Soldiers fell ill at a military base. The virus attacked young people. The symptoms were particularly severe. If the flu spread, … >>