Craig's Corner

I left Syracuse in May of 1987 as flurries fell.   I missed my own graduation I was so anxious to cross the country and start my post-college life (and escape the never ending snow).   I have not returned to my alma matter nor to the city which seems fortuitous since to enter the city via the airport you now need TSA authorization.   According to both NBC News and the Daily Mail passengers can’t leave the arrival area at Syracuse airport without approval from the TSA.   Passengers must now enter a pod and wait for the TSA to electronically authorize them to leave the terminal – from which they can’t return.      Way back in the last century when I would go from Boston to Syracuse I flew the nascent airline People’s Express before Continental ate them up only to later merge with United.   The flight attendants would come up and down the aisle collecting payment and all the fares were fixed and flat.   (Bit of trivia: They were also the first airline to charge for che

I’m a child of the post-Camelot America, being born a year after President John F. Kennedy was assassinated.    This week the world notes the 50 th anniversary of the murder, and with it come reflections, analysis and not a few conspiracy theories.   There’s little debate, however, that November 22, 1963 in Dallas marked the death of hope for a generation.     The rest of the 1960’s were marked by often violent clashes between groups – whether it was over issues of war, poverty or a rash of other issues as America broke free of its 1950’s constraints.   More assassinations followed so that the death of an inspirational leader (like Martin Luther King and Robert Kennedy) became part of the landscape of America. In February of 2008 in the midst of the primary campaign Barack Obama was suddenly surging ahead of then front-runner and expected nominee Hillary Clinton.   I remarked to a friend: “I hope he don’t win.”   My friend, expecting a rash of policy invective fr

Millions of Americans took at least a moment on Monday, November 11 to salute Veterans on the day originally set aside to remember the World War I Armistice, later known as Armed Forces Day and now celebrated as Veterans Day.   The social network messages were authentic – and on my feed I learned about family members of friends who bravely served the U.S.   Veterans are those men and women who have served the United States militarily – in a range of roles and purposes over a variety of wars, military conflicts and interventions.   They have taken orders and fought for the principles of freedom and democracy.   My own pacifism and abhorrence of war does not mitigate my appreciation, respect and honor for those who have served.   Unfortunately the very government that lauds their service has undermined their contributions while basking in their bravery.     Nearly gone from this week’s celebrations is the 2013 summertime discovery  that some 600,000 Veterans have up

26 years ago the hit movie RoboCop envisioned a near-future where humans and machines would come together to create the police force of the future and save the world.   It’s a half-man, half-machine story that spawned two sequels, a TV series, two animated TV series, a mini-series, video-games and a slew of adaptions/crossovers.   The essential idea that the good guys need to be super-human, a combination of the best of machinery and the best of humanity to beat back the evil bad guys.   It’s a classic Hollywood story and makes for an amusing way to while away time.   Life is now trying to imitate fiction.   Drone warfare (half-human, half-machine) is a missile remote controlled by people and has been quite effective at eliminating scores of people.  President Obama is quoted in the new book Double Down by Mark Halperin and John Heilman.   In CNN’s review the President ”once told aides that he’d gotten ‘ really good at killing people .’” The President keeps a