When I saw Justin Timberlake’s rousing opening dance number at the Academy Awards, I have to confess I’d never heard it before. I usually don’t watch the Grammys because, while I recognize some of the artists, I’m embarrassed to say I hardly know any of the songs. Growing up in the sixties, I knew every song because we listened to the radio and bought records. But that was long ago. I thought Timberlake’s nominated song, “Can’t Stop The Feeling”, was a great, feel good song. I then found out it was from the movie “Trolls”, which of course, my wife and I had not seen. We were too busy seeing all the adult nominated films like “Moonlight”, La La Land”, “Lion”, and “Hell or High Water”. I really didn’t know what I was missing until we went to visit our two granddaughters in Texas over this past weekend and entered the world of seven and four year old girls.

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There are big milestone events in everyone’s life. Going off to college. Starting a career. Getting married. Having kids. They grow up and get married and give you grandkids. Retirement. Now, I want to add moving. In today’s mobile society, people move more than ever. We have only moved three times. The first time, after about six months, from our first apartment to a house in New Jersey. We stayed there for four years. We then moved for a new job in Philadelphia in 1979. We’ve been here ever since. We raised two sons. I even rented a studio apartment and commuted on weekends for a job in New York for over five years while we lived here. Our sons are married, and they and their wives have given us four beautiful granddaughters.  My wife and I both dealt with elderly parents who would not move when their health declined, and they couldn’t live alone, or care for a house. Both sets of parents lived two and three hours away. It made a difficult situation worse. When they passed away, we were stuck cleaning out their houses. We had to dig through the history of their lives and ours. We had to throw away things that had a lifetime of meaning, but suddenly were junk that no one cared about anymore. We decided we would not put ourselves, or our sons, in that position.

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One of Donald Trump’s favorite phrases is “fake news” which is any news that he doesn’t like, or is critical of him. He doesn’t use the term when he makes up fake or “alternate facts” to justify his position on anything. He uses this charge to attack the main stream news media when it calls him out on his ridiculous rhetoric. But recently his accusations against journalists have taken an even darker turn. Trump admits he doesn’t read, so it’s no surprise he isn’t a student of history. The term “enemy of the people” was used by people like Hitler and Stalin. Hitler used the phrase “lugenpresse” or “lying press”. He eventually took over any publications that opposed him so he could spread his philosophy of hate without the resistance of a free press. “Lugenpresse” was even designated non-word of the year in Germany in 2015 by Nina Janich, a professor at the Technical University Darmstadt . She was head of a panel that evaluates words. She said the word was “contaminated by the Nazis.” In the Soviet Union, when you were branded an enemy of the people by Joseph Stalin you usually ended up dead.

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It’s happened to all of us. It robs us of time we will never get back. It’s frustrating. It’s maddening. I think it would be easier to communicate with aliens from another planet. It’s the phone call you never want to make. You’ve probably guessed. You’re getting aggravated just because I’m bringing it up. Dealing with the cable company, specifically Comcast. It’s the largest broadcasting and cable company, by revenue, in the world. It is the largest cable TV and home internet provider in the country. It’s headquartered right here in Philadelphia. It’s notorious for its terrible customer service. It’s even been voted “The Worst Company in America” twice by The Consumerist. The company never stops proving why it has earned such a distinction.

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The long holiday weekend honoring presidents is here. Growing up we used to have two president’s birthdays in February. Lincoln on February 12th and Washington February 22nd. Washington’s was a federal holiday because he was the first guy to hold the job, and many feel he was the greatest and most important. Lincoln never got a federal holiday, but many states honored him with a holiday. But in 1971, the Uniform Monday Holiday Act combined the holiday to the third Monday in February, and we are suppose to be honoring all presidents. The weekend also marks the one month anniversary of the Trump presidency. He says it’s been great. Most people who have a grip on reality are worried about how long we can go on like this. The only president with a worst first month was William Henry Harrison who caught pneumonia on inauguration day, and died after a month in office.

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It always seems easier and more convenient to fly out of smaller airports. Easier parking. Fewer people. Getting through security is much quicker, especially if you are lucky enough to get TSA pre-check. So this past week my wife and I flew out of Atlantic International Airport for a vacation in Florida. Since it was a 6am flight, we expected to quickly get through check-in and security. When security opened at 4:30am, we were among the first to go through. While TSA pre-check sounds good, the only thing you don’t have to do is take your shoes off. But as we were going through, I heard the two words you don’t want to hear at that time and place, “Bag Check”.

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It has taken a few days for the words to sink in. I have read many reactions and analysis of Donald Trump’s inaugural address. I’m still shocked by the breathtaking crudeness of its language and its delivery. I completely disagree with Trump on just about everything, and don’t think he’s qualified to be president, and have cringed at his speeches since he started running for president. But given the time and moment of this occasion, this stands by itself. Inaugural addresses are supposed to be about healing, unity, the brightness of the future, and the vision of the new president, and how he is going to rally those both for and against him for the good of all. There should be beauty and eloquence to the language. This speech was snarled at us. It was an apocalyptic vision of America.

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You start to notice the beauty even before you get there. As you head west from Las Vegas, you have to cross the Spring Mountains. The day my wife and I set out, it was clear and bright. But as we approached the mountains, we could see dark, brooding clouds overhead. We were concerned that rain would ruin the trip. But once we got over Spring Mountain summit, the sky cleared. We passed through the Red Rock Conservation Area and the Ash Meadows National Wildlife Refuge. We then came into one of the most uniquely named towns in America, Pahrump, Nevada. The vista on the horizon as you drive through Pahrump tells you nature is in charge here, and you should just try to take it all in. When State Line Road meets Route 190 at the Amargosa Opera House, you turn left to enter a place like no other, Death Valley. (more…)

This is the time of year when journalists and writers look back and tell us what they thought was the best and worst of everything. I’ve tried to make this space about the four things that I feel are important issues, and can be viewed as a common denominator for many of us. Journalism, politics, language, and life cover a lot of ground.  The idea behind these pieces starts with journalism, to which I devoted a career, and helps me express my thoughts and opinions on the practice of the profession and the three most important areas it teaches us about.

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It’s coming. In the middle of our preparation for Christmas and ringing in the new year, it starts to cast its long, dark shadow. Many of us are distracted by the colorful lights, wrapping gifts, going to see Santa, the aroma of Christmas cookies, hoping all the relatives get along that we don’t see it looming. But next week, at 5:44am on Wednesday, December 21st the longest three months of the year arrives on the shortest day. Winter. The sun will rise at 7:51am. You may even see it if it’s not cloudy, or raining, or sleeting, or our biggest fear, snowing. It only stays around for a little more than eight hours, and sets at 4:36pm. But the kids will be starting their Christmas vacation. They will be excited about the big day coming. Parents will be crazed shopping, decorating and trying to keep the kids under control. The following week many people take vacation, and it’s the run up to New Year’s eve and parties. College football playoffs, and New Year’s day bowl games. But we all have to wake up January 2nd.

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