Author Archives: steinharterm

Ours Was the Shining Future

I just finished this fine book by David Leonhardt, a New York Times writer who has won the Pulitzer for his commentary in the past. It’s hard to imagine that a book about the history of America’s economy would be anything other than a text book type of read. He covers organized labor, immigration, theContinue reading “Ours Was the Shining Future”

Customer Service at its best

Every once in a while we encounter a business that provides outstanding customer service, and it’s marvel. First I must caveat that I myself have never done business with easyplant nolita, based on Spring Street in NYC. I’ve never been there and the odds are low that I will visit anytime soon…though I am nowContinue reading “Customer Service at its best”

America First is America Only

All this chatter about America First is of course isolationism. The people who believe in it just want America Only. The only priorities we should have – they seem to think – are priorities deemed important for America. Why should we be helping others around the world anyway? (Let’s leave out how we are treatingContinue reading “America First is America Only”

Why do I post about politics?

A friend of mine – someone who’s opinion I value – recently asked online why anyone would post about politics? He wondered – would someone expect to change minds? Is it just to publish one’s views publicly? engage in debate? I think it is a good question, and it made me think about it, asContinue reading “Why do I post about politics?”

A speech for the ages?

This is the transcript below of an incredibly powerful and deadly accurate speech in the French Senate two days ago by Mr. Claude Malhuret. This may some day take its rightful place alongside the best of Sir Winston Churchill and President John F Kennedy.Brace yourself: “President, Mr. Prime Minister, Ladies and Gentlemen Ministers, My dearContinue reading “A speech for the ages?”

What is a conservative, anyway?

Allow me to oversimplify the world for a minute…let’s divide the world into conservatives and progressives. Progressives tend to downplay the importance of traditions and existing (old school?) institutions, calling for change, claiming they know how to remake social structures for the better. Conservatives tend to be more cautious. They say that things are moreContinue reading “What is a conservative, anyway?”

We have a mafia boss in charge

Here’s what it looks like to me….Trump is acting like a mafia boss trying to carve up the world with Putin the way heads of crime families operate. We can have Greenland, Canada, and Panama and Russia gets Ukraine and who knows what else. Russia can have the oil in the Arctic but in returnContinue reading “We have a mafia boss in charge”

The Populist Assault

This is the title of one subsection of a chapter in Yuval Noah Harari’s latest book, Nexus: A Brief History of Information Networks from the Stone Age to AI. The book was published last year, before the latest presidential election in the USA. However, this section about populism scares me….some excerpts from the book below:Continue reading “The Populist Assault”