Ronald E. Yates's Blog, page 17
January 25, 2024
The Orwellian Assault on Our Past Continues
History is important. It is a road map to our past. It takes us to places and times that can teach us important lessons about ourselves and those who came before us. It helps us understand our nation—its strengths and assets, as well as its weaknesses and imperfections. But when ...
January 22, 2024
Who Says Border Barriers Don’t Work?
Ever since Donald Trump promised to seal our southern border with a massive border wall, his Democrat opponents and others who believe in open borders insisted walls don’t work. They incessantly pooh-poohed the very idea of a physical barrier and called Trump’s border wall a fiasco. They were wrong. Allow ...
January 15, 2024
Is the sun setting on the American Empire?
At its height in the 1920s, the British Empire was the largest empire the world had ever known—surpassing even the Roman Empire. In fact, the British Empire was so far-flung it was said that “the sun never sets on the British Empire” because its global span guaranteed that the sun ...
January 7, 2024
The Myths of Systemic Racism & White Privilege
Racism, Racism, Racism, Racism, Racism, Racism, Racism, Racism, Racism, Racism, Racism, Racism, Racism, Racism, Racism, Racism, Racism, Racism, Racism, Racism, Racism, Racism, Racism, Racism, Racism, Racism, Racism, Racism, Racism, Racism, Racism, Racism, Racism, Racism, Racism, Racism, Racism, Racism, Racism! There. I‘ve said it 39 times. I could say it another ...
January 4, 2024
Harvard’s President is Sacked but not for Plagiarism or Anti-Semitism. Was it Racism?
The good news is that Claudine Gay has resigned as Harvard’s president. The bad news is that she is still on the faculty, drawing a $900,000 annual salary and teaching students. The world knows that Gay’s downfall began during a House hearing on the rise in campus antisemitism related to ...
December 31, 2023
Now Is Not The Time To Play Possum
Today, I am turning my blog over to Erin Geary, a fellow Substack columnist, who has penned a wonderful reflection on the tradition of making (usually futile) New Year’s resolutions. Enjoy! Now Is Not The Time To Play Possum: Making New Year’s Eve Resolutions for 2024 By Erin Geary We ...
December 23, 2023
A Christmas Gift to my Followers: A Little Fun With Words
A “lexophile” is a lover of words–one who derives pleasure from the various uses of words, who appreciates the nuances surrounding different words, and who is alert to synonyms, antonyms, homophones, anagrams, palindromes, and homonyms, often using them for effect, sometimes in humor. The New York Times even holds an ...
December 11, 2023
George A. Patton chases Pancho Villa
I have always been fascinated by Gen. George S. Patton, the audacious commander of the 1st and 2nd Armored Divisions in North Africa during World War II. “Old Blood and Guts,” as his troops called him, ruled with an iron fist. He was famous for his formidable aggression in battle ...
December 4, 2023
Artificial Intelligence: The Final Nail in Journalism’s Coffin?
Once upon a time, newspapers and magazines were physical products you flipped through as you read them—not microelectronic cybernetic versions of themselves that you squinted at on a cell phone or other hand-held wireless device. You could pick up, fold, and stick newspapers and magazines into a briefcase or backpack. ...
December 1, 2023
Restrictive Rules of Engagement + Women in Combat = Disaster
NOTE: I wrote the following post in 2015 as America was heavily involved in its war with the Taliban in Afghanistan and the Obama administration was hell-bent on its social engineering campaign of the U.S. military—namely, the inexplicable determination by military brass to insert women into combat. As you will ...
