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Posts published in January 2011

The Court System

Many Americans labor under the mistaken belief that our legal system functions effectively and fairly. They have confidence in and respect for court personnel, including the judges, and in the efficacy of the judicial process…

Immigrant Raids On The Rise

While the criminalization of undocumented people in Arizona continues to draw headlines, the actual punish­ment of workers because of their immigration status has become an increasingly bitter fact of life across the country. The number…

The Greatest Pianist Ever

It’s almost impossible to evoke good music in print, especially the dazzling and extraordinary sound of the world’s greatest pianist, Art Tatum. But, that’s not for lack of trying. Here’s a sampling of what fellow…

Beverly Hills Shrink: Med Board v. Dr. Frankel, Cont.

Imagine having to attend a public hearing at which a psychiatrist to whom you told the unguarded truth dis­courses on your “anti-social personality disorder.” That was Allan Frankel's plight as his fitness to practice medicine…

Mendo Arts…Living Treasures

“Living Treasures” are those elders in a community recognized as having special knowledge, learned over a lifetime, that they share with others. These folks usually aren’t rich or college educated but they possess a mental…

Cancer

In December 2005 I was diagnosed with 4th stage squamous cell carcinoma, tongue base, after a young resident at U of Wisconsin medical center noticed two lumps on my neck when I was in for…

On Memory & Forgetting in Wine Country

Soon after I became outspoken in my criticism of the regional wine industry, I began having conversations with local people for whom this issue is deeply personal. Across recent decades, the sprawling North Coast booze…

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