Posts by David Benjamin
Rules for well-fed romantics
Rules for well-fed romantics by David Benjamin “Paris is a place where, for me, just walking down a street that I’ve never been down before is like going to a movie or something. Just wandering the city is entertainment.” — Wes Anderson PARIS — Lisa, who’s much younger than I and naturally contrarian, leans toward…
Read MoreHail, hail Freedonia
Hail, hail Freedonia! by David Benjamin “The last man nearly ruined this country./ He didn’t know what to do with it./ If you think this country’s bad off now,/ Just wait ’til I get through with it!” — Rufus T. Firefly PARIS — The latest burst of palace intrigue in the Trump White House sent…
Read MoreHow it should be done
How it should be done by David Benjamin “Real life is slow; it takes professionals time to figure out what happened, and how it fits into context. Technology is fast. Smartphones and social networks are giving us facts about the news much faster than we can make sense of them, letting speculation and misinformation fill…
Read MoreAlone and palely loitering, among the deviceniks
Alone and palely loitering, among the deviceniks by David Benjamin “The spread of automation could cause some Asian countries to lose eighty percent of their textile industry jobs. What on earth are they going to do? How will they support their families? What will they do with their time?” — Jim Yong Kim, President, World…
Read MoreGet out of the kitchen
Get out of the kitchen by David Benjamin “Can you see why some of us are whispering? It is the sense of viciousness lying in wait, of violent hate just waiting to be unfurled, that leads people to keep their opinions to themselves, or to share them only with close friends.” — Katie Roiphe PARIS…
Read MoreA few questions for the populist in chief
A few questions for the populist in chief by David Benjamin “People who boast about their IQ are losers.” — Stephen Hawking Not long ago, Donald Trump spent years demanding that President Barack Obama produce his birth certificate and prove that he was a natural-born citizen. Trump also wanted to see the president’s college transcripts,…
Read MoreWith apologies to Dangerous Dan McGrew
With apologies to Dangerous Dan McGrew by David Benjamin MADISON, Wis. — This week marks the 40th anniversary of the Blizzard of ’78, a thousand-year northeaster that buried New England under four feet of wet snow in a span of a little more than 24 hours. The vortex of that storm was a little town…
Read MoreOverheard at the pinnacle of tremendousness
Overheard at the pinnacle of tremendousness by David Benjamin “Putin has shown the world what happens when America has weak leaders.” — Donald Trump One of the most shocking revelations in recent days was a leak, verified by more than 75 eager sources inside the White House, confirming that Donald Trump has taken Dick Nixon’s…
Read MoreChuck, the assassin and the crazy aunt
Chuck, the assassin and the crazy aunt by David Benjamin “I expect the majority leader to fulfill his commitment to the Senate, to me and to the bipartisan group and abide by this agreement. If he does not, of course — and I expect he will — he will have breached the trust of not…
Read MoreTalking the talk is not enough
Talking the talk is not enough by David Benjamin The family of the Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr., has asked Americans to honor the slain civil-rights leader on his birthday by some act of public service. My gesture this year consists of a letter, mailed on 15 January, to Congresswoman Mia Love (R-Utah) who has…
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