Category Archives: history

A major court victory for the new Confederates (Happy 4th!)

Posted on July 4, 2021 by oddmanout215

Just in time for the holiday, the U.S. Supreme Court further divided the country with a 6-3 ruling that finished neutering the landmark Voting Rights Act of 1965. As a writer for The Atlantic put it: Republicans will understandably view … Continue reading →

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For the People Act was dead on arrival. What now, Dems?

Posted on June 29, 2021 by oddmanout215

I was in a quandary, like other non-Trumpers who are watching the Republican Party’s full-scale effort to strip voting rights from as many Democrats as it takes to ensure future elections are won by extreme right-wingers. One might assume this … Continue reading →

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Not forgetting is hard work (a history lesson)

Posted on June 4, 2021 by oddmanout215

“When was the last time you thought about history?” I said to Swamp Rabbit, who was playing a video game on his phone. “Here, check this out.” I made him read the laughably creepy anecdote that starts Milan Kundera’s The … Continue reading →

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The GOP insurrection has only just begun

Posted on May 31, 2021 by oddmanout215

It was 80-some degrees but not too humid, a perfect day for swamp creatures great and small to put off work and laze in the sun. Swamp Rabbit was bored, of course, and determined to find news that would put … Continue reading →

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Tech changes. Cop culture doesn’t.

Posted on April 23, 2021 by oddmanout215

Swamp Rabbit was yapping about the Derek Chauvin trial. “Too bad he was wearin’ a mask. I wanted to see the look on his face when the judge read them guilty verdicts.” I recalled watching Chauvin on TV last May, … Continue reading →

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‘The Troubles’ in N. Ireland pale in comparison to ours

Posted on April 18, 2021 by oddmanout215

I was reading about the possible renewal of “the Troubles” that wracked the north of Ireland in the last three decades of the 20th century: The instability has been accelerated by the withdrawal of the United Kingdom from the European Union. From … Continue reading →

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Voting rights expansion vs. the filibuster

Posted on March 31, 2021 by oddmanout215

We were watching the filibuster scene from Mr. Smith Goes to Washington, a hit movie in 1939 and a great example of director Frank Capra using his corny genius to convey big, inspirational ideas. His hero in this one is … Continue reading →

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South Dakota lawmaker channels ‘founding fathers’

Posted on March 24, 2021 by oddmanout215

“Check this out,” Swamp Rabbit said. It was the sort of message you might see from a grumpy old white guy at a run-down barroom in, let’s say, South Dakota: “Wait a minute,“ I said. “This guy is really a … Continue reading →

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‘Philly-delphia’ lawyer stars in impeachment farce

Posted on February 15, 2021 by oddmanout215

Farce — a comic dramatic work using buffoonery and horseplay and typically including crude characterization and ludicrously improbable situations. We were still arguing about Donald Trump’s impeachment farce. I thought the crowning moment came when Mitch McConnell condemned Trump as … Continue reading →

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Common ground with Republicans? On Mars, maybe.

Posted on January 31, 2021 by oddmanout215

“If Joe Biden keeps seeking common ground with Republicans — or unity, as he sometimes calls it — he’ll miss his chance to achieve his stated policy goals. Then Republicans will blame Democrats because the country is still a mess, … Continue reading →

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