Napoleon was indeed a dictator, though he came to power during a period of political chaos and initially enjoyed significant popular support. Sound familiar? Napoleon seized power through the coup of 18 Brumaire in 1799, overthrowing the Directory government (a lot like the January 6 insurrection attempt). He quickly consolidated authority. By 1802, he became Consul for Life, and in 1804, he crowned himself Emperor of the French (Trump probably has his playbook on his…
I have mentioned both before, but not in one story, but my two gurus these days are Heather Cox Richardson, the historian from Boston College, who lives in Maine, and Scott Galloway, the marketing professor who teaches at NYU’s Stern School of Business in New York, lives in London and hails from Los Angeles. The two of these great minds blend many of the life thoughts that have guided my life (I lived in Maine…
My daily writing generally has a flow based on what is going on in the world around me that most affects me on any given day. I have no quarrel with that approach since I long ago decided that I write for my own reasons and am decidedly not grinding any sort of axe with these blog stories. That said, anyone who knows me knows that I am a man of many opinions and am…
As I have mentioned in various past stories, I subscribe and read faithfully the National Geographic magazine. I find its array of stories extremely consistent with my interests. Those interests are about the world around us and especially about the history of our world and our species. My generation was taught Western Civilization in school and while that ethnocentrically ignored a great deal of world history (especially Eastern Civilization), it did tend to start with…
I’m on a United Airlines flight from Denver back home to San Diego and based on two United flights (to Denver and back), which are the first I’ve taken in some time, I have to say that United is not doing a great job in the customer service area. I normally fly Delta or Jet Blue and while I occasionally have problems in first class with them, its relatively rare. United doesn’t seem to be…
How do you weather a storm? You hunker down. “Hunkering down” means to settle in and prepare to wait out a difficult or challenging situation. It comes from the physical position of crouching or squatting down low for protection or stability. The phrase is used in several contexts. It is most commonly used in a weather-related context. Staying indoors and preparing for storms, hurricanes, blizzards, or other severe weather by stocking up on supplies and…
Names carry remarkable depth – they’re vessels of identity, history, and meaning that shape how we see ourselves and how others perceive us. At the most basic level, names serve as identifiers, distinguishing one person from another. But they’re so much more than labels. Your name often carries your family’s heritage, cultural traditions, and sometimes the hopes your parents had for you. Many names have etymological roots that reveal ancient meanings – David means “beloved,”…
“Aye aye aye” (often spelled “ay ay ay”) comes from Spanish “¡Ay, ay, ay!” – an exclamation expressing various strong emotions like frustration, pain, dismay, or sometimes even affection or admiration. The word “ay” itself is an ancient interjection found across many languages, likely stemming from a natural human vocal response to strong emotion. In Spanish, repeating it three times (”¡Ay, ay, ay!”) intensifies the expression and is even the basis of a popular Mexican…
There is one thing that Donald Trump is not and that is subtle. We often talk about politicians being so vague that they speak on and on without saying anything, and that is no accident. Being obtuse in a political skill that has its roots in survival instinct. Who doesn’t remember comedian and politician, Senator Al Franken of Minnesota being trolled and forced to resign his senate seat during the early days of the Me…
I’m in New York City this morning having arrived here at the Cornell Club about 12 hours ago. I was out of the air condition cab and had to walk about 10 feet to the air-conditioned lobby of the club and I must say I was surprised at how how hot and humid it was for that few seconds that I was outside. It was a good reminder of just how muggy it can get…