bergdahl

WHEN TRADE IS TRADITION OF WAR

“America cares about its POWs, without exception”, Ellis Henican Column, Newsday, June 8, 2014 You can’t say, “We don’t trade with terrorists.” What you can say is, “We say we don’t trade with terrorists.” There’s a big difference between the two. Ronald Reagan did it. Doubt me? Google “Iran-Contra affair.” Oliver North, the architect, is a…

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STERLING DEMENTIA

HE DIDN’T MEAN IT: THE DEMENTIA DEFENSE

“Could Donald Sterling mount a dementia defense?”, Ellis Henican Column, Newsday, June 1, 2014 Does Donald Sterling have an Alzheimer’s defense? We’re in tricky territory here. If you suffer from progressive dementia, you’re often the last one to know it — and the least equipped to marshal your last, best, possible defense. The 80-year-old owner…

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Cuban

CUBAN’S MAVERICK HONESTY A GOOD START

“Frankness about bias isn’t such a bad thing”, Ellis Henican Column, Newsday, May 25, 2014 OK, he could have chosen his words more carefully. The hoodie crack was unfortunate. But shouldn’t we all be praising Mark Cuban instead of blasting him for speaking honestly on the dicey topic of prejudice? Prejudice festers in the dark and the…

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petzel2

FOR VETS BLAME IS NOT THE CURE

“We have to do better in treating our veterans”, Ellis Henican Column, Newsday, May 18, 2014 It’s a solemn commitment: When we send our men and women into battle, we treat the wounded and sick when they return. Who can object to that? And here’s something else that’s indisputable: We’ve fallen down on the job. Deadly appointment…

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Benham

BENHAMS’ BELIEFS GET THEM THE HGTV BOOT

“Yanking Benham twins from HGTV amounts to silencing opinions”, Ellis Henican Column, Newsday, May 11, 2014 Do the Benham twins really need to be kept off HGTV? I don’t happen to share Jason and David’s old-timey views on marriage and abortion. But that doesn’t mean the brothers’ conservative outlook makes them unfit to host “Flip It Forward,”…

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jobs2

NEW JOB NUMBERS DON’T ADD UP

“Job numbers don’t tell real story”, Ellis Henican Column, Newsday, May 4, 2014 Live by the numbers, cry by the numbers. U.S. employers added 288,000 jobs in April. That’s good, better than the 218,000 analysts were predicting. The nation’s unemployment rate was also down, to 6.3 percent from 6.7 percent a month ago. And amid…

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swatnewsday2

SWATTING FOR IDIOTS

“Long Beach ‘swatting’ prank stupid — and criminal”, Ellis Henican Column, Newsday, April 27 2014 Some people are just idiots. I can give you a dozen other explanations — the adrenaline of hard competition, the numbing isolation of video games, the emasculating heartbreak of unexpected defeat. Those things may all have played a role in last…

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hillarybump

HILLARY EXPECTING BABY BUMP IN POLLS?

“Hillary’s poll numbers could be in for a baby boom”, Ellis Henican Column, Newsday, April 20 2014 Will Hillary get a baby bump? Oh, I know. Chelsea’s the Clinton who’s pregnant. But her mom’s approval ratings have suddenly started sagging. And a baby in the family might be exactly what the poll doctor ordered. Babies are…

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gracious

LATE SHOW OF GRACIOUSNESS

“Stephen Colbert inherits ‘Late Show,’ and so can you?”, Ellis Henican Column, Newsday, April 13 2014 That was quick. The epic struggle to replace David Letterman on the CBS “Late Show” lasted exactly one week. A week ago Thursday, Dave said he’d be vacating his host chair after 21 years. This past Thursday, CBS announced…

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flagblue

LI MINOR ASPIRATIONS ARE A SHAME

“Howie Rose calls ’em like he sees ’em”, Ellis Henican Column, Newsday, April 6 2014 It’s hard to have no reaction to Howie Rose’s on-air comments about the aging Nassau Coliseum and the sports-mad, peninsula-shaped island on which it resides. “You know,” the MSG play-by-play man said during Tuesday’s broadcast of the Islanders-Panthers hockey game,…

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