In "The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich," William Shirer relates events for which he was present at Godesburg September 22-23, 1938, crucial days when the fate of Czechoslovakia was determined. Shirer related what a German companion told him:  "And he explained that Hitler had been in such a maniacal mood over the Czechs the last few days that on more than one occasion he had lost control of himself completely, hurling himself to the floor and chewing the edge of the carpet. Hence the…

   Four major polls released in the past few days show the American people do not favor military action in Syria. (Pew: 29% favor/48% oppose/23% undecided; Washington Post/ABC, 36/59/5; NBC 42/50/8; Huffington Post 25/41/34.) One would think the opinion of the American people to be important when the country's political leaders consider important issues. Yes, that would be in a fantasy world.

   On the other hand, the House and Senate leadership of both parties support military action…

   In "Even Cowgirls Get the Blues," author Tom Robbins occasionally notes the International situation was desperate, as usual." The situation in Syria brought that observation to mind as I read Senator McCain's judgment. We must bomb Syria or lose credibility.

   From what I have read of international views of United States foreign policy over the last 50 years, "we" have little credibility, give or take bombs dropped on Syria. One who is "credible" is "worthy of belief or…

   In her blog this weekend, Sheila Kennedy pointed out that "The Onion" might have the best commentary in regard to the current crisis in Syria. "The Onion" ran a fictional letter to the United States from Assad of Syria, basically saying the United States is screwed any way we go when it comes to Syria, a nation created by those same geniuses at the end of World War I whose efforts, in part, brought us World War II.

   A fundamental question we should consider is: are we morally…

   In "The Guns of August," Barbara Tuchman depicts the ways in which European powers blundered into what became World War I. A plot to kill Archduke Ferdinand while he visited Sarajevo, first botched, succeeded by the weird luck of one of the assassins rounding a corner at the same time as the Archduke's open-air car. Germany wanted an opportunity to use its military to gain hegemony in Europe. Various members of royalty wanted their countries to fight, as if war were a simple game for…

   Our Show today will focus on the efforts by some in the Indiana General Assembly to amend the Indiana Constitution to define marriage as between "one man" and "one woman." This week I have advanced arguments against the amendment, also opposed, amongst others, by major corporations (e.g., Eli Lilly, Cummins) that do business here. Earlier in the week, I invited several proponents of the measure to be guests today. Unfortunately, those folks ether are out of town on vacation, out of town…

   The IRS has announced that same-sex married couples will be treated as married for income tax purposes even if the State in which a couple resides does not recognize marriage equality. As our friend Gary Welsh points out at "Advance Indiana," this presents a problem for Governor Pence and the General Assembly. Indiana generally follows Federal income tax procedures. If the "marriage is only between one man and one woman" is adopted by the Indiana General Assembly, filing of income tax…

   When local mega-businesses like Eli Lilly and Cummins support a progressive position on an issue, one tends to take notice. This is not an ALEC pose on a matter of social issues. 

   The word "progress" and derivations of that word have been given pejorative connotations in recent years. As a noun, "progress" means "a proceeding to a further or higher stage, or through such stages progressively."  American College Dictionary, 1962 ed., p. 967.

   Why would large corporations…

   The existence of an Indiana State constitution was mentioned vaguely in my high school Indiana History class. The United States Supreme Court was in the headlines a lot back then, in the 1960s. Of course, the Court is in the headlines (or blogosphere or other appropriate parallel to "headlines") today. In the 1960s, and early 1970s, the headlines usually seemed to indicate a Court that advanced rights. I knew when "Dragnet" aired any given week, Jack Webb would highlight a new criminal…

   A panel show that aired Friday night took an interesting twist near the end of the broadcast. The host mentioned, in passing, that all three members of the panel were gay. In years past---maybe only as recently as five---an entire panel of lesbian and gay guests would at least have received some promo. There might have been commentary in a few newspapers or on some blogs. This occurred with little fanfare.

   This is an example of how members of the LGBT community have been…

   January 20, 1981, was a pretty lousy day in American history. Since that Inauguration Day, the American economy has seen a redistribution of wealth---the middle class nearly has been eliminated and wages held in check to enable the one or two percent richest to grab more and more. There only are so many marbles on the table. The amount of wealth under United States control was phenomenal at the time. We controlled a lot of the marbles in the world. With only five percent (5%) of the…

   "By late 1785, Madison recognized that individual states would never regulate commerce fairly.  States with active ports could not resist taxing goods from nearby states, while their neighbors retaliated in any way they could.  When three New England states tried to win concessions from the British by restricting their trade, Connecticut undermined them by aggressively promoting its own trade with Britain." Stewart, "The Summer of 1787," 2007, p. 8.

   The Articles of Confederation…

   In the lead-up the passage of Medicare in 1965, some warned of the imminent Apocalypse. Ronnie Raygun always viewed "socialized medicine" as the harbinger of Marxist-Leninism. Those warnings were strident and loud. The bill passed. Earlier these year, when the far right rumbled about replacing Medicare with a voucher program in which a person would have a credit voucher for several thousand dollars to take anywhere she or he pleased---Gee, I wonder how many clinics would fashion their…

   Yesterday I addressed two areas of argument Ryan Ripley---libertarian, Libertarian, host of "The Shill Report" on Indiana Talks and my opponent in a debate on the constitutionality of Obama care we shall wage on Saturday's Show from 11 am to 1 pm---has offered opinion.

   One quick comment about yesterday's blog. Colleague and friend Paul Ogden pointed out the Supreme Court's decision on ACA held the Commerce Clause does not provide the basis for the Federal Government's ability to…

   On Saturday, August 24, from 11 am to 1 pm, Ryan Ripley, a libertarian (or is that Libertarian?) who hosts "The Shill Report" on Indiana Talks, will debate me on whether the Affordable Care Act is constitutional. Ryan debated in high school. We agreed upon a format in which each of us will give an opening argument, then proceed to polite interaction on several areas of focus. Ryan e-mailed to me areas he wants to address. (We agreed to make the discussion one of principles with focus on…

   A theory I have developed is that 38% of all people are assholes. A corollary to this theory is that all people have the tendency to be assholes. (Since Justice Alito announced two years ago that broadcast TV is dead and implied the rule against the "seven words" no longer holds, I shall continue on this topic.) By "asshole," I mean someone who is self-centered to the point that she or he would ruin someone else simply out of spite, at the very least verbally abusive to most people whom…

   We have pumped hundreds of millions of dollars into "sports" in Indianapolis over the past 30 years. The largesse has seemed most prolific in the past five years. One can point to the now-famed Pan Am Games in 1987 as some sort of hallmark. The flow of greenbacks began before that.

   Years before the disembodied voice spoke to Kevin Costner's "Ray" in 1989's "Field of Dreams---"Build it and he will come!"---the City of Indianapolis erected an edifice to professional football,…

   Next week's Show features a debate between Ryan Ripley, co-host of The Shill Report on Indiana Talks, and me. We shall debate whether the Affordable Care Act---a/k/a Obamacare---is constitutional. 

   October 1, 2013, is a date on which I shall rejoice. As many of you know from my past blogs, I have Multiple Sclerosis. That means I cannot obtain regular health insurance. I have to go through Indiana's high-risk pool. That ran me one grand per month---even though I have not had an…

   To those unaffected by disparage treatment, such treatment does not exist. Many advances in people's rights were made in the 1960s and 1970s, that people have presumed the inequities in the areas in which those advances were made no longer exist.

  The Equal Pay Act of 1963 was signed into law by President John F. Kennedy to end the "unconscionable practice of paying female employees less wages than male employees for the same job."  Inequality still exists in levels of pay between…

   With the show "Chicks on the Right" in the spotlight recently, we thought it would be a good idea to discuss women's equality---in the workplace and in the economy---and obtain perhaps a more accurate view than that advanced by the program just mentioned.

   I stopped using the word "chick," or variations of it, to describe female human beings when I was in college and was castigated by a female classmate who said I had used a sexist term. In a couple of the on-line dictionaries,…