“Even creeps have hopes, dreams, aspirations. Even creeps have a story and perhaps a brief moment in their toddler years when they were cute.”
Unforgiven Sin as the Key to Understanding Modern Politics
Introduction: Our central political problem today is that nobody has any idea of how to drain the vast reservoir of guilt that has been slowly and steadily growing for the last half century or so. It is now a massive reservoir, and all of us are living downstream from the towering dam of our constitutional …
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The Overshare Challenge
“Shannon thought her mother was shouting the word impotence and looked up at her second use of it to see that Chad the waiter was right there, right on time, to take their order. He stood there, looking as solemn as a judge, for which the girls were thoroughly grateful. He attended a small charismatic church in the area, and for him, dealing with overshare was a way of life, an art form.”
Epistolary Encomiums and Exhortations
Not about any letter in particular. Letter to the Editor: Regarding "Boris, Brexit and Great Balls of Fire," Doug, you're a great writer in English. IN ENGLISH. Sprinkling your stuff ...
So to Speak
“Michelle’s grandmother, a grand dame of the old school in Mississippi, would have said that Michelle was about to go stepping in high cotton.”
Boris, Brexit and Great Balls of Fire
Introduction: To hear some people talk about it, the rambunctious state of politics in the English-speaking world is merely about the various presenting issues—as in, whatever the next vote is going to be about. And of course, in some sense we have to grant that the issue, whatever it is, is the issue. But the …
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And Probably Ponderosa Bark
“They were within walking distance of a number of upscale eateries and had no trouble picking out a little bistro with espresso and ferns, the kind of place that served exotic little art sandwiches with bark still in the bread”
Probably Not
And There Are Quite a Few of Those
“She wasn’t really going to church anywhere, but she remained a contemporary evangelical to the back teeth. She had lost her faith while still managing to hang on to all the platitudes.”
But Other Than That . . .
“Johnny’s eyes were round, like a couple of trash can lids, only a different color.”