Mike Pilewski writes about life, politics and culture in the United States
On several recent occasions, I’ve noticed how my American students have redefined the word “kid”. It’s now a neutral way of referring to a man of college age, as in, “that kid in the yellow shirt” or “the kid who’s studying biology”. It’s long been common for older people to refer to their own offspring as kids for years after … >>
The next Star Wars movie is months away, but its second “teaser trailer”, out since mid-April, has already got fans excited. Those of you not very familiar with Star Wars may at least recall how the overwhelming popularity of the “original trilogy” — Episodes IV through VI, which came out in 1977–83 — contrasted with general disappointment at the “prequels” … >>
March 10 marked the 15th anniversary of the death of a famous American whose life was devoted to advancing our knowledge about language. He was, unfortunately, a controversial individual prone to drug use and violent outbursts, and wound up spending most of his life behind bars. He also liked bananas. I’m talking, of course, about Nim Chimpsky (1973–2000), the second … >>
“You two are going to be in a room alone with Kim [Jong-un], and the CIA would love it if you could take him out.” “Hm?” “Take him out.” “For coffee? Dinner? For kimchi?” “No, uh, take him out.” “You want us to kill the leader of North Korea?” “Yes.” In a nutshell, this dialogue with a CIA agent (played … >>
Recent news events have made clear just how easy it is for America — or shadowy, undemocratic entities that claim to act in its interest — to panic. This emotion isn’t just the product of 9/11, however. It was always there: fear that the Native Americans would attack; fear that the slaves would revolt; fear of crop failures and bank … >>
Have you noticed? Nearly all of the big movies coming out of Hollywood seem to be sequels based on cartoon characters, animated figures, toys, video games or superheroes. This summer has seen Iron Man 3, Despicable Me 2, Star Trek: Into Darkness, and Fast & Furious 6. A new Superman movie is out, and it’s never long between Batman films. … >>
American filmmaker Oliver Stone is fascinated by history and those who make it. His JFK, Nixon, World Trade Center and W. have attempted to fill the gaps in our knowledge of what happened and what may have happened at key points in US history. Now he’s filled the gaps in his own timeline in an ambitious documentary called Oliver Stone’s … >>
There was a time when I could have been a consul or an ambassador. No joke. An American consul in Germany said I had the makings of a diplomat, and he tried hard to convince me to join the foreign service. It was a tempting offer: excellent pay, a high level of responsibility, and an opportunity to see the world. … >>
There have been three generations of Batman on the screen. There was the comedic Batman of 1966–68 (one of the first TV series in color); the movie Batman of 1989–97 (which suffered from a lot of bad acting); and the dark Batman of 2005–12 (which explores the origins of the title character). Inspiration came from the original Batman comic from … >>
Pay attention: There will be a quiz! This Sunday, July 1, is an important day for America’s northern neighbor. It’s Canada Day. Happy Canada Day, everybody! I wish I could tell you how Canadians actually celebrate this, but it’s one of many things about Canada that Americans know nothing aboot — I mean, about. Aside from a few clichés about … >>