It is sobering to realize that when he gave the nation's first-ever State of the Union address on January 8, 1790, George Washington offered 1,089 words, about as many as I used yesterday to discuss Millard Fillmore, the remarkably undistinguished 13th president of the United States. To honor his brevity and wisdom, today's #stampoftheday is one …
Topic: Contemporary Issues
Discussing the pandemic, 2020 politics, and other recent happenings
If you're going to wrestle with the weight of American history, Sam Houston is a good place to start. The namesake of the nation's fourth most populous city, Houston - who is pictured on today's #stampoftheday, a 5-cent stamp issued on January 10, 1964 - was a key leaders in the decades before the Civil War. …
Of necessity, we distill our stories to the simplest facts. But when we do so we sometimes remove all the things that not only make them worth telling but also obscure the lessons that might be embedded within them. Consider, for example, Joshua Humphreys (who I'm writing about because he died on January 12, 1838). He was …
As the United States lurches towards the end of the Trump Administration, I'm looking forward to a time when our leaders again think about working with the leaders of other countries, particularly other democracies, to advance shared goals. Today's #stampoftheday - a 2-cent "Nations United for Victory" stamp issued on January 14, 1943 - highlights that …
Today, three days before Joe Biden takes office, is a good time to take a moment to reflect on one of the more shameful episodes in American foreign policy-the overthrow of the sovereign government of Hawaii on January 17, 1893. To mark that anniversary, the #stampoftheday is a 3-cent stamp, issued in October 1937, that …
"Our long national nightmare is over," said Gerald Ford, moments after he was sworn in as president after Richard Nixon resigned in disgrace. "Our Constitution works; our great Republic is a government of laws and not of men. Here the people rule." Tomorrow, barring an extraordinary series of events, another "national nightmare" will end. Joe Biden …
Like many people, I cried more than once today. I cried so much, that I can't remember everything that caused me to tear up. I cried when I watched the videos of the women who sang "Amazing Grace" and "Hallelujah" at yesterday's memorial for those who've died from COVID. I choked up when I saw President-elect Biden …
Four years ago today my wife, several neighbors, and I drove to the Alewife MBTA station to take a Red Line train to the Women's March protest in downtown Boston. Although we tried to get an early start, the station's lobby already was full of people trying to buy Charlie Cards, go through turnstiles and get …
I haven't seen the eyes of Isabella Gibbons, which look out from the exterior wall of the new Memorial to Enslaved Laborers at the University of Virginia. But reviewers say they are haunting, in part they are so lightly etched in the stone that they are only clearly visible at dawn and dusk. They also are …