Monthly Archives: August 2011

Assad Came Down Like a Wolf on the Fold

By Robin Bates | Published: August 4, 2011

The Syrian president’s assault on his people reminds me of Lord Bryon’s poem “The Destruction of Sennacherib,” where a superior force is defeated by the cause of justice. Time will tell whether this is no more than a fantasy.

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Rhinos and RINOs, Both Endangered

By Robin Bates | Published: August 3, 2011

Rhinos are killed for their horns, which are falsely believed to be a powerful aphrodisiac. Knocking off RINOs, or Republicans in Name Only, is proving an intoxicating political sport of its own.

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The Black Honey of Summer

By Robin Bates | Published: August 2, 2011

My son’s marriage proposal to his Trinidadian girlfriend has become bound up in my mind with a Mary Oliver poem about blackberries.

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Freedom (a.k.a. Irresponsibility)

By Robin Bates | Published: August 1, 2011

Jonathan’s Franzen’s “Freedom” is written in the John Cheever-John Updike-Tom Wolfe-Don DeLillo tradition, an up-close look at American middle class culture. But it leaves out some of the heroic struggles that are going on.

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