The Other McCain

"One should either write ruthlessly what one believes to be the truth, or else shut up." — Arthur Koestler

Carry Me Home to See My Kin

An unexpected road trip suddenly looms, as I just got word that my Aunt Joanne (actually a second cousin, but we kids called her “aunt” by courtesy) has died at her home in Montgomery, Alabama. Joanne’s mother was my maternal grandmother’s younger sister, and Joanne was especially close to my mother’s younger sister, Barbara Ellis. […]

The Greatest Legal Mind of Our Era

MADISON, Wisconsin As mentioned previously (“God and Man at UW-Madison”), a distinct #resistance attitude prevails among faculty here, and yesterday’s law school commencement ceremony included several expressions of unmistakably progressive sentiments, uttered with an apparent certainty that everyone in attendance shared these feelings. Amid such provocations, I maintained my composure, and probably no one noticed […]

God and Man at UW-Madison

MADISON, Wisconsin Today is the big day for son Jefferson and, because of what’s called “diploma privilege,” his graduation from the University of Wisconsin Law School means he automatically qualifies for the state bar, without having to pass a bar exam. However, he plans to practice in another state, so he’ll still be going through […]

A Happy Week for the Family

BERRIEN SPRINGS, Michigan Apologies for the lack of blog content this week, but my wife and I have been on the road, and won’t return home until Tuesday. On Sunday, our youngest daughter Reagan graduated cum laude from Andrews University, with a double major in history and Spanish. Her senior honors thesis was, “The Significance […]

Tim Walz Lies About Everything

Before we talk about Tim Walz’s latest “gaffe” (which is what the media call it when a Democrat gets caught lying) can we first talk about the underlying issue? Human reproduction is not complicated, and requires no medical assistance. Generations of our ancestors, stretching back to the dawn of history, successfully reproduced without any more […]

The Star Treatment

My wife and our youngest daughter, Reagan, returned from Argentina last night. Reagan said that after the plane landed, she removed her sweater and fixed her hair because she knew — from previous experience — that as soon as they emerged from the gate at baggage claim I would be snapping photos. “Paparazzi Dad” is […]

Will You Still Feed Me?

When I get older, losing my hair, Many years from now, Will you still be sending me a Valentine? Birthday greetings, bottle of wine? If I’d been out till quarter to three, Would you lock the door? Will you still need me? Will you still feed me, When I’m sixty-four? Turning 64 is an auspicious […]

How Am I Related to Pocahontas?

Having traced the ancestry of my paternal grandmother Perlonia McCain (née Bolt) all the way back to Rollo the Viking — seriously, that’s what the Internet says — my son Jefferson also took a look at the ancestry of my maternal grandfather, Hermit Eiland Kirby, whose father was William Thomas Kirby. His father, William Terry Kirby, […]

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