Tag Archives: history

Not America’s Mayor

Posted on September 7, 2026 by 34orion

Rudy Giuliani was once called “America’s Mayor.”

It was a fine title. Grand, flattering, patriotic—and, as it turned out, issued before anyone bothered to read the fine print.

On September 11, 2001, he was my mayor, and in that terrible moment he gave New Yorkers something we desperately needed: steadiness, visibility and hope.

Twenty-five years later, history has had time to clear the smoke.

My latest: Not America’s Mayor. Continue reading →

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Trump Canal

Posted on August 30, 2026 by 34orion

Donald Trump’s proposal to rename Lake Ontario “Lake America” gets the history backward and the geography sideways. Ontario was named after the lake, while “America” comes from an Italian explorer who never saw the Great Lakes. If Trump is determined to rename something in upstate New York, though, Love Canal is waiting.

Welcome to Trump Canal. Continue reading →

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Willie and Joe

Posted on August 23, 2026 by 34orion

With Stars and Stripes once again becoming a political target, I went back to Mauldin and wondered what Joe and Willie might make of today’s Pentagon.
Turns out, eighty years later, the material is still embarrassingly fresh. Continue reading →

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The Powerball Presidency

Posted on August 16, 2026 by 34orion

I didn’t win the Powerball, but somewhere around the twentieth virtual floor of the Empire State Building, I realized America may be running a different lottery. The prizes increasingly flow upward, the ladders below keep disappearing, and the biggest jackpot may now come with an oath of office in Washington. Continue reading →

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The Marquee Mood Ring

Posted on July 11, 2026 by 34orion

Summer movies used to be an escape. This year, they’re a mirror. 🎬
Jaws taught us to fear the water. Jackass, Minions & Monsters, and Animal Farm are teaching us something else entirely — a pretty unflattering portrait of where we are as a country right now.
New on Tomahawk and Crown: what this summer’s blockbusters (and one very ancient odyssey) reveal about the nation we’ve become — and the one we might still get back to.
Read it here: [link] 🍿 Continue reading →

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The Department of His Justice

Posted on June 2, 2026 by 34orion

The Department of His Justice” — a cheerful little tour through weaponized prosecutions, loyalty payouts, and what happens when norms meet a narcissist with subpoena power. Continue reading →

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VE Day: The Thread We Lost

Posted on May 9, 2026 by 34orion

Seventy-five million people died in World War II. The men who stormed those beaches didn’t do it so we could debate eighty-one years later whether what’s happening here qualifies as fascism. They did it so we would know it when we saw it. Continue reading →

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Victory Day? Seriously? Well, F*.**

Posted on May 4, 2025 by 34orion

This week, Donald Trump proposed changing the name of Veterans Day to “Victory Day for World War I” and designating May 8 as “Victory Day for World War II.” His rationale? The United States, in his words, “did more than … Continue reading →

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Cherry Blossoms, The Garden State, and Presidential Role Models

Posted on March 24, 2025 by 34orion

People often get the wrong idea about New Jersey. The image they conjure when the state’s name is mentioned is that of the New Jersey Turnpike between the George Washington Bridge and the Outerbridge Crossing, which offers stunning views of … Continue reading →

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Salvador, A First Date, Michael Jackson and Brazil’s History of Slavery

Posted on February 24, 2025 by 34orion

Brazil’s history with slavery is shameful. Brazil imported more than 4.8 million Africans as slaves—almost eleven times more than the American colonies and the U.S. during its own shameful past. Even more shocking is that 50% of those who arrived … Continue reading →

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