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The long rise of the new Democratic Party

Can I claim to have predicted, way back in 1988, the result of Michigan’s fiercely contested Democratic primary for U.S. senator this week? The developments that have made Abdul El-Sayed — who lost the 2018 gubernatorial primary to Gov. Gretchen Whitmer (D-Mich.) by 20 percentage points — a winner over Rep. Haley Stevens were visible in the 1988 contest for Michigan’s delegates to the Democratic National Convention, in which Jesse Jackson ran far ahead of eventual nominee Michael Dukakis by a 24-percentage-point margin. Let’s flash back 38 years to see what I mean. Then, as ...

Trump’s hubris rivals the fallen heroes of ancient Greek mythology

In January, the New York Times asked President Donald Trump if there were any limits on his global powers. “Yeah,” the president responded, “there is one thing. My own morality. My own mind. It’s the only thing that can stop me.” That was eight months ago, but fortunately Christopher Nolan’s blockbuster adaptation of “The Odyssey” has made ancient Greek literature newly relevant. Before that window closes, I’d like to talk about hubris. Today, the term mostly means excessive pride or arrogance. That’s part of what the Greeks meant by it too, but the meaning was ...

Dear Annie: A will worth fighting?

Dear Annie: I’m 37 and the oldest of four siblings. We lost our mother to cancer 15 months ago, and then about a month ago, our father died very unexpectedly at 60. We never expected to be orphans this young, and the whole thing has been a shock for us. But we were in for an even bigger shock. After Mom died, Dad apparently rewrote their will. We always assumed any inheritance would be evenly distributed four ways. As the lawyer went over the will with us, he said, “This will likely surprise and upset you.” The inheritance is divided FIVE ways! The fifth person is someone ...

Different colored glazes are a complex topic

The richly colored glazes of Chinese porcelains have enthralled collectors and inspired artists for hundreds of years. They are often given descriptive names, like the dark red “sang de boeuf” or “oxblood”; the famous peachbloom that inspired the late Victorian craze for two-tone pink ...

Socialism in the open and on the right

The Democratic Socialists of America released their platform last month, and let’s give them credit for candor. They want public ownership of large corporations, the abolition of police and prisons, a defunded Pentagon and open borders. Conservatives read that document and saw the future they have been warning American voters about: the government seizing the commanding heights of the economy and becoming owner rather than referee. Their alarm is warranted. The socialist program would be a catastrophe. So, here’s an awkward question: Why is a Republican administration quietly doing ...

The normalcy of American Wars

The war in Iran is unlawful and unconstitutional, but in post-World War II America, it is normal. Here is the backstory. When President Donald Trump decided to begin bombing Iran last June, he did not state a coherent or lawful reason for doing so. His director of national intelligence and his own CIA had publicly told him that Iran did not possess a nuclear weapon and had ceased building one in 2005. His secretary of state told him that Iran and Israel had threatened each other, but he could not articulate how Iran imminently threatened the United States. Yet, since Israel planned ...