Finally
dated 2010-03-23 | posted in columns | topic Politics | permanent link
This week, a majority of US Democrats (and one Republican) voted and passed the health care reform bill. That brings the USA into line with all other Western countries who have had, for years, health care as a guaranteed right for all of its citizens. I confess that I have not read the whole bill. It’s over 1,000 pages long and steeped in bureaucratic language. Nevertheless, enough people read, understood and voted “yes” on it to give health ca ...
At Last
dated 2009-01-28 | posted in columns | topic Politics | permanent link
At 4.30 a.m. on Tuesday, January 20, I huddled between a tree trunk and a woman who had driven through the night from Montgomery, Alabama to Washington, D.C. When I told her I’d flown in from Portugal she said she it was a long way to come, all the way from Spain. Then she looked at me and said, “Honey, you look cold.”
With that she opened her small purse (backpacks were prohibited) and gave me an unopened package that said “Warmers.” She ...
Obama Effect
dated 2009-01-13 | posted in columns | topic Politics | permanent link
Pre-Inauguration Intoxication
Immigration officials smiled when we entered the Newark International Airport, taxi drivers chatted , and even New Yorkers held doors open for others on their way in and out.
“Something’s different, “I told Don after our first day in the US for the holiday. And even Don, who admits to being only semi-observant, agreed that “The States seems changed for the better.” And all in the midst of what is certa ...
If Only ...
dated 2008-09-30 | posted in columns | topic Politics | permanent link
I wear my round Obama button on my right like a name badge. I hope, and truly believe, it won’t go the way of mine for Gore, Kerry and Hillary. So far, reactions from people abroad, from inside the airport in Paris to inside Jumbo have been overwhelmingly positive. “Who’s going to win?” the croissant maker asked at Orly last Monday afternoon. “I sure hope it’s Obama,” I said. With that he winked and gave me an extra pain au chocolate ...
Sarkozy
dated 2007-05-21 | posted in columns | topic Politics | permanent link
Ségolène Royal, the pretty face of the Socialist Party in France, but the distinct loser in the presidential election on May 6, prophesized riots on the streets of Paris if Nicolas Sarcozy won. She most likely foresaw her own doom and sought to spoil the fun the night before she lost to Sarko’s 53% majority. True, some cars burned near Bastille on election night and scattered clashes broke out throughout the country once the results were announce ...