In the face of persistent ridicule from his wife, Jackie Gleason’s Ralph Kramden was known to bluster, “One of these days, Alice. Pow! Right In The Kisser!” Of course, the gentle bus driver had no intention of making good on his threat, but he went on record as objecting in the strongest terms. And we… Read More
Category Archives: Connecticut
Suds This Sunday?
For the first time since anyone can remember, this Sunday Connecticut residents won’t have to travel out of state to pick up a bottle of booze or a six-pack of beer. The silly law that prohibited Sunday sales of alcohol on-site was repealed by the General Assembly in the recently completed session. Hallelujah! I’m in… Read More
Mother And Son Come To Terms
On this Mother’s Day, nothing will make me happier than to hold forth on two columns about abortion. I know that sounds foolish, given the fact that abortion is a highly unsettling issue that hardly lends itself to a celebration of motherhood. But if you want to see an example of how mother and child… Read More
Johnny (Rowland) Fever
Much like that fever blister I had on my lip last month, Johnny Rowland just won’t go away. The disgraced ex-governor, driven from office in 2004 and into federal prison on a corruption conviction, hungered for redemption after his release. So he mostly behaved like an exemplary ex-con, wearing an ankle-bracelet monitor and speaking to… Read More
5th District GOP Debate: JFK, Weicker, But No Rowland
Click here for my latest for CT News Junkie. I really do think the 5th-district congressional debate Monday in Torrington contained a few surprises. Most of them, however, had less to do with policy than with style: If I’d told you before this week’s 5th-district GOP congressional debate that John Rowland, the crooked ex-governor, would… Read More
Obama And Malloy
As I observed in my latest column for CT News Junkie, Gov. Malloy is often compared to chief executives of neighboring states (e.g. New York’s Andrew Cuomo and New Jersey’s Chris Christie). But in Gov. Malloy’s insistence on action in the realm of education reform, I see some similarities with President Obama’s insistence on raising… Read More
CT NPR Affiliate Continues Its Assault
Just as a clown’s pancake make-up eventually wilts under the heat to reveal a sad sack on the verge of a breakdown, so too has the boss of our local radio station been unmasked as an emperor whose clothes (and nerves) are fraying. Veteran broadcaster Marshall Miles, who presides over the self-described “smallest NPR station… Read More
Blumey To The Rescue
What would we do without Dick Blumenthal? Just when we thought we’d gotten rid of him — banished from Hartford and consigned to the polished halls of the U.S. Capitol — Blumenthal reminds us why his camera-mugging tenure as the state’s attorney general was so profoundly irritating. In the state of Connecticut, where they almost… Read More
Donovan: Open Mouth, Insert The Union Label
There’s an old quote about keeping quiet and being thought the fool rather than opening one’s mouth and removing all doubt. For Democrats in Connecticut’s 5th congressional district who want to keep that seat out of Republican hands, Chris Donovan is the walking, talking embodiment of Shelley’s maxim. Since announcing his run for Congress last… Read More
A Personal Take On Tenure
It occurred to me in the comment thread of a recent CT News Junkie column by my colleague Sarah Darer Littman that, while teacher tenure isn’t the root of all evil in the public school kingdom, there is one very compelling reason to get rid of it. And it ties directly into Gov. Malloy’s proposal… Read More