Gerry Goldstein

We’re deep into Black History Month, with culture wars continuing unabated, especially when it comes to what should be taught in the classroom. Arguments over curriculum are nothing new; the classic example played out nearly a century ago amid bombastic arguments by two of the nation’s premier orators and lawyers, William Jennings Bryan and Clarence […]

We’re just days away from an observance that usually slides by with only modest notice, so you know I’m not referring to the ballyhooed Feb. 2 appearance of a weather-predicting groundhog. A more solemn aura surrounds the memory of what happened 80 years ago Feb. 3, when a German torpedo slammed into the U. S. Army’s transport […]

Since I’m Jewish, you are welcome to wish me a Happy Chanukah. But if that spelling of the holiday doesn’t suit you (even though it’s my preferred one), you’re also welcome to wish me a Happy Hanukkah, Hanuka, Hannukah, Chanuka, Channuka, Chanukka, Hanukka, Hannukkah, Channukka, or Channukkah. Don’t fret about this, because the Encyclopedia Brittanica […]

There are still a few weeks to go before the Nov. 8 election, which means we’ll doubtlessly need to bob and weave as mudslinging continues apace. Possibly, though, this has already peaked in Rhode Island. How can you top the recent exchange in which the camps of Democratic Gov. Dan McKee and Republican challenger Ashley […]

You can be sure that even on a barnstorming tour, the Washington Bullets will never play basketball at the Dunkin’ Donuts Center in Providence. That’s because the Bullets traded that nickname for a new one years ago, and “The Dunk” has now done the same. This is all part of a changing world where, from […]

 Not to get personal or anything, but – are you happy? The question is fodder for long thoughts, especially considering the pandemic, inflation, insurrection, supply chain woes, weather disasters, racial injustice, the war in Ukraine, and our sharply divergent opinions on laws and politics. These days, we are not a happy nation. Or are we? […]

One could accurately say that history shifted because the late Bruce Boynton craved a cheeseburger. A Black law student at Howard University in Washington, Boynton was en route home to Alabama on Christmas break in 1958 when his Trailways bus made a rest stop at a terminal in Richmond, Va. Noting that the Black section […]

A holiday observance is almost upon us, and in view of testimony about “The Big Lie” at the Jan. 6 hearings, it couldn’t be approaching at a more appropriate time. But I’m not referring to July 4, with all its fanfare and home-grilled Whoppers. I’m talking about July 7, a day set aside for eschewing […]

Decades ago my daughter, Jennifer, brought home from elementary school a hand-made Father’s Day poster on which she had listed what she considered my attributes as a dad. Among these was a statement that summed me up in a fashion others might consider modest. Her assessment: “He is never rotton.” Aside from its rotten spelling, […]

With the pandemic running our lives the past few years, times have been tough for those wanting to marry amid festive ceremony — but a boom is anticipated for 2022, and June should be a busy month at the altar and in the courthouse. What’s the allure of June? Nice weather, of course, but more […]

On Facebook recently, a posting drew thousands of comments when it asked readers to “Kill me with one bad English.” This tortured request came – likely by coincidence – in April, which happens to be National English Language Month, an observance geared toward celebrating our Mother Tongue.  One responder pretty much-summed things up by advising […]

I’d be willing to wager – and I’m optimistic I’d win the bet – that you don’t know March is “National Optimism Month.” Websites galore make reference to it without mentioning how and when this low-profile annual observance got started, but it’s especially appropriate in 2022. So don’t take the pessimistic view that you’ve missed […]