Well after eleven this morning, characteristically late by nearly half an hour, Khus Dihugami Dadamizo, Special International Policy Emissary of His Excellency President Hamid Karzai for the Embassy of Afghanistan to the United States of America, stumbled in. His eyes were glazed, his pupils tiny pinpoints. He sat down in the chair in front of… Continue reading Send in the Drones
What Do They Do On a Rainy Night in Rio?
Around four o’clock yesterday afternoon, Gretchen told me she had a totally distraught, sobbing man on Line Two. When I answered, it turned out to be Chicago Mayor Richard M. Daley. Daley: Hello, is this Tom Collins? Tom: Yes, Your Honor, it is I. Daley: Have you… heard what’s just happened? Tom: To tell the… Continue reading What Do They Do On a Rainy Night in Rio?
Walt Whitman Rises From Dead, Tells Press “No Relation!”
My eight o’clock telephone consultation today was a scheduled appointment, and I must say the hour certainly impressed me. That’s because my interlocutor, Meg Whitman, was calling from California, where it was only 5:00 a.m., and from the sound of her voice, she had obviously been up a while, too. Speaking with her, I had… Continue reading Walt Whitman Rises From Dead, Tells Press “No Relation!”
From Tiny Acorns Such Mighty Jamokes Do Grow
It was around eleven o’clock this morning that Gretchen ushered three earnest, clean-cut, very well dressed young folks into my office. “Representing the Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now,” she informed me, departing my office with a wink and nod: “Cash customers. They don’t wish to leave their names.” “No problem,” I assured my visitors, “you’re… Continue reading From Tiny Acorns Such Mighty Jamokes Do Grow
Mysterious Epidemic Sweeps America
Things were actually pretty quiet around here today – after all, I don’t decide when people desperately require my consultation, they do. And so, there are, as might well be expected, a certain amount of, shall we say, stochastic process variations to my appointment schedule. Not that I mind; in fact, considering how messed up… Continue reading Mysterious Epidemic Sweeps America