The Unfettered Curmudgeon

A DIFFERENT FOURTH OF JULY The July 4 th holiday is upon us with its barbecues, parades, fireworks, as well as its grand auto and furniture sales! To be quite honest, I really resent that! My patriotism does not include buying a sofa or a pick-up truck on the 4 th and I am tired of being bombarded by TV advertisements to buy things as if were my patriotic duty! That having been said, especially of late, my thoughts on the 4 th of July have extend in a different direction ― more toward considerations of our War of Independence, the Declaration of Independence and the promises it held, and the Constitution, particularly the Preamble . I have been doing a lot of research for a novel I am writing, a western novel, which has its roots not in the Wild West but actually in the Civil War, and it is because of this research that my thoughts today, and over the next few days this year, will, focus more on that; particularly on the Battle of Gettysburg. In early 1863 the Army...

PROFILING FOR THE POLITICAL OBSERVER      During my career, I had the opportunity to learn some techniques to interpret (read) the meaning of various forms of body language displayed by persons being interviewed - profiling if you will - but certainly not to the same extent as one might see on such television programs as "Criminal Minds." There are subtleties in ones facial expressions, eye movements, stance, that can be used to understand a suspect's or witness's state of mind and whether they are being open, honest, or closed, dishonest, obstructing.      One of the prime gestures one might look for is the classic crossed arms. Simply put, the arms crossed at the chest is considered by psychologists as universal and interpreted with the same defensive or negative meaning - displayed by persons who feel uncertain, insecure, and yes...who are lying. Both arms, folded together across the chest is an attempt to place a barrier between that per...

AND THE MARIE ANTOINETTE AWARD FOR 2018 GOES TO...      In his 1980 book entitled You Are What You Wear, author William Thourlby redefined both casual and  business wear; for example, how to maintain respect and authority when one "dresses down." In her 2012 book, similarly titled You Are What You Wear: What Your Clothes Reveal About You, author Jennifer Baumgartner focuses on the link between one's internal and one's external self as expressed on the clothes one wears. What one wears tells people a lot about themself before they even open their mouth to speak. Research shows that more than 80% of what someone remembers about an encounter is related to non-verbal communication, a large part of that being one's overall appearance (their clothes) and their demeanor.     Behold First Lady Melania Trump on her "surprise" trip to Texas to see for herself the plight of undocumented immigrant children. The jacket she chose to wear was a $38...