As a young Marine turned subway cop in ’66, the ’69 Woodstock gathering of flower people turned me off. It was essential to just support our troops. But as the decades passed […]
When We Come Together
Benches, Bombs and Baloney
Albert Einstein: “May the conscience and the common sense of the peoples be awakened, so that we may reach a new stage in the life of nations, where people will look back […]
Our Platinum Patriots
Less than one percent of Americans serve in our armed forces—put themselves in harms way—as do their families. It’s so easy to take these men and women for granted because they always […]
Brothers, Veterans and Whales
My brother died. Like an autumn leaf, Rod released his grip on our family tree. Many of us love the fall, but I never did. Yes, the air is cool and dry, […]
America, You Can’t Hide Your Heart
So much attention, so many horrific photos, show the grievous harm to America. I thought I’d show you the less noticed heart —that beats every day—in America. My hometown of Long Beach […]
American Grit
I didn’t yet know the hardened grit of America. We were in World War II—and I was only five years old. I only knew of playing with toy cars in the sand, […]
Christmas, On the Sea of Love
It was the same deep bark, a big-dog bark that I heard the last time I was here. I knew I looked eccentric, my hair wild, my eyes, red. I was on […]
Passions, Private and Profane
The beach of Long Beach is bordered by dunes, a boardwalk, and a palisade of high rises. Just over those high rises is Broadway, a busy thoroughfare that everyone in Long Beach […]
U S M C and Epiphany at Sea
Every day seventeen veterans die by suicide. Dept. of Veterans Affairs Esler Faulkner waited for “a thousand Japanese soldiers to come across the river and wipe our ass out.” And come they […]
American Heroes
Taylor Morris: “As soon as I stepped on it, I knew…Then I heard the blast. I felt the heat. I knew I had lost my legs. As I somersaulted through the air, […]
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