Every once in a while in America’s consumer society, a company, product or service rises above its mere utility to achieve iconic status in the culture. Its very novelty, innovation, or just manufactured “cool” allow it to enter the daily American lexicon. As nouns, brands like Kleenex (facial tissues), Rollerblade (in-line skates), or Coke (any soft […]

That giant sucking sound you may have heard last week was the last vestiges of American unilateralism spinning down the drain. Perhaps barely noticed in the din and drumbeat of the Reagan commemoration, the short and unhappy life of President Bush’s policy of “America Alone” mercifully came to an abrupt halt. In securing passage of a U.N. […]

Now that the orgiastic collective mourning of Ronald Reagan is complete, we can from the distance of a week honestly reflect on the legacy of Ronald Reagan.  Here is a look back at the man and the myth, in his own words and those of who (threoretically) admired him. Ronald Reagan's Halo Former President Ronald Reagan […]

Once is a rare while, conspiracy theorists get it right. In the case of Enron, this occasional conspiracy theorist and ex-Californian hit it right on the head in 2001. As the audiotapes of its traders released by CBS News clearly show, Enron clearly manipulated the newly deregulated California energy market to extract outrageous – and illegal – […]