History
The Houthis in our midst
by David Benjamin “The great question that has never been answered, and which I have not yet been able to answer, despite my thirty years of research into the feminine soul, is “What does a woman want?” — Sigmund Freud, to Marie Bonaparte NAPILI POINT, Hawaii—Once, in the course of writing a novel, my…
Read MoreThe Hinauslehnen Hundred
by David Benjamin “Movies are so rarely great art that if we cannot appreciate great trash we have very little reason to be interested in them.” ― Pauline Kael MADISON, Wis.—My favorite movie maven, Nick Hinauslehnen, who publishes a film periodical called Flashback, poses an annual question for readers. This year, he asks, “What movies…
Read MoreEpitaphs for thirty-odd presidents
by David Benjamin “I did not have sexual relations with that woman.” — Bill Clinton MADISON, Wis.—Listening to the news the other night, I heard an oft-repeated phrase that seemed to encapsulate what an ex-president had said and done, what he meant to America and how he’ll be remembered. Ideally, this handful of words…
Read MoreGo-o-od night, Afghanista-a-a-an!
by David Benjamin “So the British chose plan B — the insane one; they decided to abandon Kabul and march out of the country over the Hindu Kush on foot in January. They left on the 6th… a long column of 4,500 active troops and about 12,000 wives, retainers, servants, camp followers, and whatnot… A…
Read MoreThe tragic hero and the outlaw (with personality)
by David Benjamin “Dick Clark, the producer and host of the immensely popular television show ‘American Bandstand,’ decided that the lyrics of ‘Stagger Lee,’ which involved gambling and ended with a fatal barroom shooting, were too violent for his show. Mr. Price, ever the savvy businessman, recorded a new version in which the song’s rivals…
Read MorePandemic notes 6.0: The Chernobylization of Covid-19
by David Benjamin “This… ‘mutant swarm,’ this ‘quasi species,’ had always held within it the potential to kill, and it had killed. Now, all over the world, the virus had gone through roughly the same number of passages through humans. All over the world, the virus was adapting to humans, achieving maximum efficiency. And all…
Read MorePandemic notes 5.0: Mutant swarms and Nashian furfurs
by David Benjamin “In plague, fear acts as a solvent on human relationships; it makes everyone an enemy and everyone an isolate. In plague, every man becomes… a small, haunted island of suspicion, fear and despair.” — John Kelly, The Great Mortality MADISON, Wis. — The Covid-19 pandemic has swollen the English lexicon and turned…
Read MorePandemic notes 4.0: The Murray Hamilton effect
by David Benjamin “Life on earth is an endless chain of parasitism which would soon lead to the complete annihilation of all living things unless the incorruptible workers of the vegetable kingdom constantly renewed the supply of suitable nitrogen and carbon compounds which other living things can filch… In the last analysis, man may be defined…
Read MoreArmball: The ancient roots of soccer
Armball: The ancient roots of soccer By David Benjamin “If God had wanted man to play soccer, he wouldn’t have given us arms” — Mike Ditka MADISON, Wis. — Ever since I played two-line soccer at recess in grade school, I’ve been puzzled by the anomaly that soccer is the only team sport that doesn’t…
Read More"Devious pathways"
“Devious pathways” By David Benjamin “Sharp social race separation of whites and blacks has shown itself to be necessary in the United States of America, even if it leads in certain cases to human hardness, as when a mongrel of predominantly white appearance is nevertheless reckoned among the niggers.” — Third Reich teacher’s guide, 1934…
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