Thursday, May 22, 2025

News and Ideas Worth Sharing

HomeViewpointsPOEM: Spinal Tap!

POEM: Spinal Tap!

Spinal Tap! The Back Story of a Crippling Disease   When the article describing moral fibrosis, (including the protocol for diagnosis) appeared in the pages and under the aegis of […]

Spinal Tap!

The Back Story of a Crippling Disease

 

When the article describing moral fibrosis,

(including the protocol for diagnosis)

appeared in the pages

and under the aegis

of the New England Journal of Medicine a century ago,

 

who knew? who could possibly know

that the disease would wait latently

to break out blatantly

thanks to the appetite of a pudgy man

with golden locks and a wrap-around grin

 

who took extraction lessons from a vampire named Vlad,*

but, eschewing the traditional sucking of blood,

chose a diet of moral fiber instead,

which leaves the victim still kicking but essentially dead,

(as described by James Comey in his recent op ed).**

 

*Vlad, Vladi, and Vovaare all nicknames for Vladimir, as in Putin.Vlad III Dracula, known as Vlad the Impaler, was a fifteenth-century ruler of Wallachia, whose dynastic name and reputation for cruelty served as the basis for the bloodsucking protagonist of Bram Stoker’s novel, Dracula.

** “Accomplished people lacking inner strength can’t resist the compromises necessary to survive Mr. Trump …. Mr. Trump eats your soul in small bites.” Comey op-ed, How Trump Co-opts Leaders Like Bill Barr, May 1, 2019, New York Times

spot_img

The Edge Is Free To Read.

But Not To Produce.

Continue reading

LEONARD QUART: Observing the city from the seat of a walker

What I observe is the city’s daily activity, which at times merges with my memories of past days spent easily wandering and experiencing the city.

STEPHEN COHEN: The Emoluments Clauses, the corrupt Trump administration, and the connivance of the Supreme Court

Since Donald Trump has no shame and the Justice Department is now just an arm of his organization, it seems someone else is going to have to sue him to stop his selling of the presidency and the United States to any foreign government who wishes to bribe him.

I WITNESS: The problem with populism

In its most beneficial form, populism is a grassroots phenomenon, creating political movements that are of, by, and for the people. But populism has a dark side, as well.

The Edge Is Free To Read.

But Not To Produce.