Muse on News by Ben S. Pollock

Month: December 2011

Havel and Me

Post author By Ben S. Pollock
Post date December 20, 2011
1 Comment on Havel and Me

Copyright 2011 Ben S. Pollock I met Vaclav Havel once, while he was president of Czechoslovakia. We were in a castle. Oh, and I avoided shaking hands with him. Now, he’s dead. Not that I’d ever had a chance to renew the, uh, acquaintance. In September 1992, I was in Europe for a traveling journalism […]

The Course of Words

Occupied or Vacant, Engaged or Vacant

Post author By Ben S. Pollock
Post date December 1, 2011
2 Comments on Occupied or Vacant, Engaged or Vacant

An excerpt of this long-form column first was published as the “President’s Message” in the December 2011 newsletter of the National Society of Newspaper Columnists. Rick: How can you close me up? On what grounds? Captain Renault: I’m shocked, shocked to find that gambling is going on in here! Croupier: Your winnings, sir. Captain Renault: […]