The iPINIONS Journal

Welcome! This is an unapologetic, agenda-free zone. Just commentaries on current events that’ll move you to think, laugh, rage, and even cry.

© Copyright 2005-2024 (Images appear pursuant to 17 U.S.C. sec 107)
You are here: Home / Archives for 2019

Archives for 2019

Mueller Report: No Collusion Conclusion. But Our National Nightmare Is Far from Over.

Monday, March 25, 2019 at 5:48 AM
Written by Anthony L. Hall

I was wrong. The day after the Justice Department appointed Robert Mueller, I wrote the following in “Special Counsel to Investigate Trump-Russia Ties. Checkmate!” May 18, 2017: ____________________ With past being prologue, it could take months, if not years, for Mueller to complete his investigation. Alas, [Republican] congressional committees will continue their dog-and-pony investigations, and… Read more.

UPDATE: New Zealand Bans Assault Weapons. US Should Take Heed.

Saturday, March 23, 2019 at 8:18 AM
Written by Anthony L. Hall

Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern of New Zealand on Thursday announced a national ban on all military-style semiautomatic weapons, all high-capacity ammunition magazines and all parts that allow weapons to be modified [the way the Las Vegas shooting did to carry out his massacre]. … Ms. Ardern is expected to encounter little resistance to the weapons… Read more.

Ban Anonymous Comments to Save the Internet

Friday, March 22, 2019 at 7:47 AM
Written by Anthony L. Hall

I have been among those crusading for years for every online platform to ban anonymous comments. This, based on the self-evident truth that people would be less inclined to bully, insult, lie, harass, defame, etc. if they had to own their comments. I disabled the comments feature on this site years ago. Far too many… Read more.

A Tale of Two Floods: Nebraska and Mozambique

Wednesday, March 20, 2019 at 8:43 AM
Written by Anthony L. Hall

Nebraska Ice chunks the size of small cars ripped through barns and farmhouses; baby calves were swept into freezing floodwaters, washing up dead along the banks of swollen rivers; farm fields were now lakes. The record floods that have pummeled the Midwest are inflicting a devastating toll on farmers and ranchers at a moment when… Read more.

‘Dying of Whiteness’ Explains Why Poor Whites Support Trump

Tuesday, March 19, 2019 at 7:53 AM
Written by Anthony L. Hall

Unlike some commentators, I am loath to recommend books. Not least because I suspect I’m already pushing my luck by expecting you to read my commentaries. But I am recommending one today because it explains the cult of Donald Trump – just as Helter Skelter explains that of Charles Manson. And, understanding what makes the… Read more.

Brexit, No Exit…?

Saturday, March 16, 2019 at 8:25 AM
Written by Anthony L. Hall

British MPs have voted for a delay in the Brexit process for three months or more, after struggling to agree on what terms the UK should leave the European Union on 29 March. You might think, after months of division, infighting and uncertainty that surely, surely, this means everything will go smoothly from here. Well…… Read more.

A ‘Very Fine’ White Supremacist Massacred Muslim Immigrants in New Zealand…

Friday, March 15, 2019 at 8:47 AM
Written by Anthony L. Hall

And you have every reason to fear that another one might be in your midst, lying in wait to do the same. I explained why in commentaries like “New Normal Comes to New York City…,” October 21, 2017, and “Norway’s Timothy McVeigh Perpetrates National Massacre,” July 23, 2011. The latter includes this excerpt: ____________________ What… Read more.

‘Varsity Blues’ Over Affirmative Action for Rich White Students

Thursday, March 14, 2019 at 7:23 AM
Written by Anthony L. Hall

Congress intended affirmative action in school admission and workplace hiring to help poor Black folks. Yet, it has helped rich White women most of all.  Affirmative action for rich white students This deviant strain of affirmative action shows its perverse impact is worse than generally realized.  It is a narrative ripped from a Hollywood script, and, fittingly, it… Read more.

Netanyahu Says Israel Is for Jews Only. And Rep Omar’s the Problem…?

Tuesday, March 12, 2019 at 7:53 AM
Written by Anthony L. Hall

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says Israel is the homeland ‘only of the Jewish people,’ in a new jab at the country’s Arab minority ahead of April’s election. … Arabs comprise about 20 percent of Israel’s 9 million residents. They have full citizenship rights but have faced decades of discrimination. (The Associated Press, March 10, 2019)… Read more.