March 2019

Uncommon Common Sense By Bill Frayer Leapfrogging Past the Evidence   When George W. Bush decided to invade Iraq in 2003, he used the argument that Iraq was a danger to the United States and its allies. He made the case that Sadaam Hussein had a stockpile of dangerous weapons which he could unleash on […]

Where Were You In 1958? (You should have been in Ajijic!) Courtesy of Kay Borkowski   MEXICO CITY (AP)-Feb. 2, 1958—Worried about retiring on that pittance of a pension? Well, perk up! You can live in Mexico for as little as $50 a month! On $90 a month, you can even have a servant. On

LIMITATIONS ON FREEDOM OF SPEECH: A Canadian Perspective (Republished by Request) By Roderick MacDonald   Watching CNN of late, it’s hard for a Canadian to get caught up in the hoopla about the recent US midterm election. Nearly everything else of interest was eclipsed by exhaustive (if not exhausting) reports on polls, probabilities and proclivities

An Outside Curve By Michael McGrath(Republished by Request)Reply to Jim Tuck’s Bleeding Heart Liberal Article   Whoa back, Friar Tuck! It seems to me that in your last “Inside Straight” (Ojo, Nov. 2009), you are advocating the burning of another “witch.” We more or less gave that up as a country when we adopted the

Stars By Kathy Koches   I lie on my bed, gazing out the window at the night sky, and I am filled with wonder at the beauty spread out before me. The twinkling stars seem to kiss the mountains and sparkle off the waters of Lake Chapala. I feel as if I can reach out

Intercultural Communication By Tracy Novinger   (Ed. Note: What follows is an excerpt from Ms. Novinger’s excellent book. It was published by the University of Texas Press, sells for $16.95 and can be purchased from amazon.com) Communication between the United States and Mexico will always be difficult but never impossible. The successful U.S. corporation Corning

Fiction By John Ward, himself a fictionswazijohn@icloud.com   Fiction. Life is a fiction. Not even a well-written fiction. Who authored this drivel? Some say God. Some say Nature. Still others say the Thetans that sprang from L. Ron’s dementia and greed. I’d like to know the truth but the likelihood of truly discovering the truth

Order In The Court? By Jim Rambo   (Ed. Note: This is the second in a short series of columns about the author’s experiences over his long career as a prosecutor up in the “old country.”) THE JUDGE SUMS UP During jury selection in a murder trial before Judge Carl Goldstein, the prospective jurors were

There Are Always Consequences By David Moss   The phone rang a few minutes ago. My friend said he was canceling our lunch together. “It was just too cold,” he told me, “to go out.” We made the usual global warming jokes and wondered who had had the bright idea to hold an international meeting