Category Archives: Commentary

Opinion or analysis concerning whatever’s on my mind.

Two Ghosts Between Covers

Posted on July 23, 2022 by JMN

I converse from time to time with a bibliophile. It inspires me to recount a bookish tale. On the skids from academia I kept either of two books near me as a talisman, carrying one even to bars. They didn’t … Continue reading →

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The Seer and the Seen

Posted on July 21, 2022 by JMN

The musketeer —> the musked; the buccaneer —> the bucked; the mountaineer —> the mounted; the privateer —> the deprived; the profiteer —> the profited; the marketeer —> the marketed; the brexiteer —> the exited; the rocketeer —> the rooked; … Continue reading →

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Texas Made Him. The New Yorker Claimed Him

Posted on July 20, 2022 by JMN

What would John Bennet do? He’d keep it brief. (Nick Paumgarten, “John Bennet, Enemy of the ‘Blah Blah Blah’,” The New Yorker, 7-14-22) That’s how Nick Paumgarten starts his tribute to John Bennet, a New Yorker editor, recently deceased, who … Continue reading →

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‘Crypto Casino’ and ‘Derp’

Posted on July 18, 2022 by JMN

The way I see it, crypto evolved into a sort of postmodern pyramid scheme. The industry lured investors in with a combination of technobabble and libertarian derp; it used some of that cash flow to buy the illusion of respectability, … Continue reading →

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‘Blown Up’ by Gunfire

Posted on July 16, 2022 by JMN

An obstetrician who happened to be at the parade that day described the Highland Park massacre of July 4, 2022: The people killed were “blown up by that gunfire,” he said, “blown up. The horrific scene of some of the … Continue reading →

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Horns UP! The Ides of Texas Are Upon You

Posted on July 15, 2022 by JMN

Also the eyes. All the live long day. You can not get away. God help us. Still small voice.(c) 2022 JMN — EthicalDative. All rights reserved

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The F-Word Is Spawning

Posted on July 14, 2022 by JMN

When words turn flammable we call them “f-words.” They’re too hot to utter. F***. — The granddaddy of f-words. All f-words trace their ancestry to this one. It’s unsafe for print and held flammable by stare decisis until Alito. In … Continue reading →

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Robert Colescott: ‘Oh Wow… Oh [Expletive]!’

Posted on July 12, 2022 by JMN

My weakness for parody has emerged at easel in attempts to paint pictures that convey a profound disquiet over gun culture. I read (present tense) the paintings of Robert Colescott (1925 – 2009) with profound amazement, and Roberta Smith’s comments, … Continue reading →

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July Fourth Is All Year Long

Posted on July 11, 2022 by JMN

His mother graced me with this son on a fine Spring day. I salute him now, a Navy nurse coming off 5 years of service abroad to this land, his and yours and mine. Welcome home, Lieutenant! (c) 2022 JMN … Continue reading →

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Start with the ‘Z’s?

Posted on July 9, 2022 by JMN

“I think some of you might decide that this place isn’t for you, and that self-selection is OK with me… Realistically, there are probably a bunch of people at the company who shouldn’t be here.” (Meta CEO Zuckerberg’s message to … Continue reading →

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