Raftus Ramblings

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Racism - The 3rd Rail of American Society - Published 12/08/14 Providence Journal

Racism – The 3rd Rail of American Society – Published 12/08/14 Providence Journal

Jim Raftus: Have we become too complacent about racism? Published: December 08, 2014 01:00 AM Comments 1 BY JIM RAFTUS Invariably, amid the heated arguments surrounding the killings of Michael Brown, Eric Garner and 12-year-old Tamir Rice, many statistics will be used to justify a position — percentage of crimes committed by blacks, ratio of white police officers vs. minority population in a…

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Fair Warning by Michael Connelly (Published in rinewstoday.com om 3/13/2021) FAIR WARNING by Michael Connelly What happens when a best selling novel tangentially becomes part of a real life conflict?Does a reviewer just review the book or should they explore the background which created the current controversy? Well, Jack McEvoy, the protagonist in Michael Connolly’s newest work, Fair…

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THE VANISHING HALF

Book review published in rinewstoday.com. by Jim Raftus THE VANISHING HALF by Brit Bennett Pigmentation. Orientation. Assimilation. Three prime elements in the formula that can determine one’s life.What race do you belong to?Who do you love?How are you accepted? Brit Bennett brilliantly dissects these questions in her latest novel, The Vanishing Half.Twin sisters, Desiree and Stella, born…

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THINGS IN JARS by Jess Kidd (Published in rinewstoday.com on 1/09/2021) Author Jess Kidd demands your total concentration, but rewards your effort. Her third novel, Things In Jars is her most ambitious and complex work. Set in London the action flits back and forth between 1863 and 1841. In 1863 a strange six year old child, Christabel, who lives secluded in her father’s English manor, is…

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A time for mercy

A time for mercy

A TIME FOR MERCY - JOHN GRISHAM Review published in rinewstoday.com on 1/2/2020 John Grisham had an amazing streak of twenty eight novels consecutively reaching number one on the best seller list. Nine of his works have been made intosuccessful movies. He is, obviously, one of the most popular writers of our time. A majority of Grisham’s books are courtroom related as he mines his own…

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stimulus money - a modest proposal

stimulus money – a modest proposal

(Published in the Providence Journal 12/28/2020) STIMULUS MONEY – A VERY MODEST PROPOSAL It appears a second stimulus check will be sent to a majority of Americans. No matter your political view of this government largess you will have a personal decision to make. What will you do with the money? Last April my wife and I received a total of $2,400 in stimulus money. We used the new Visa card…

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ANXIOUS PEOPLE (Book review)

ANXIOUS PEOPLE (Book review)

ANXIOUS PEOPLE (BOOK REVIEW) Swedish novelist Fredrik Backman’s newest novel Anxious People captures the angst of modern life through the lens of a botched bank robbery, an accidental hostage taking and a single day going really, really sideways. Oh, possible suicides also hover. It is a comic novel for folks with neurosis. Backman’s earlier works, such as A Man Called Ove and Britt-Marie Was…

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ONE OF US – 9/11

(PUBLISHED IN BostonGlobe.com on 9/11/2020)

ONE OF US - 9/11/2001

It was mid-afternoon of September 11th, 2001 and Tom Brokaw spoke these words,… We have the first identifications of victims and it is one of us. David Angell, co-creator of NBC’s Frasier, and his wife Lynn were aboard American Airlines Flight 11…..

A picture of my cousin David and Lynn flashed on…

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The Empty Stoop (RINews 6/10/20)

The Empty Stoop (RINews 6/10/20)

Today June 4th, 2020 for the first time in over thirty years there was no Providence Journal delivered to my doorstep. Yesterday I cancelled my print edition and activated a digital only subscription.

To describe me as a life long newspaper junkie would be accurate. My early addictions were columnists; Art Buchwald, Erma Bombeck, Jimmy Breslin, Mike Royko and Studs Terkel. Their wry, often…

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THE BEST MEDICINE (published rinewstoday 4/13/20)

THE BEST MEDICINE

King James Bible Proverb 17:22, “A merry heart doth good like a medicine.” Seems to be a precursor to the modern, “Laughter is the best medicine.”

Sitting at my desk on this 17th day of self quarantine I face the yawning gap of hours to fill. Based on the biblical advice I decided to revisit some of the moments which have made me flat out laugh. I discovered a wide range of…

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Providence Youth In Peril From Jump

Providence Youth In Peril From Jump

PROVIDENCE YOUTH AT PERIL FROM THE JUMP (Published in Providence Journal 8/23/19)

Providence, our Renaissance City, has suffered another black eye with the August 16th assaults and harassment of innocent bystanders by nearly 100 local juveniles. Many of these youngsters were riding stolen Jump rental bikes. Incidents on South Water and Killington Streets plus at India Point included physical…

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Oppositional Research

OPPOSITIONAL RESEARCH

I’m now several years retired. Starting to get bored. Thinking of running for public office. My main concern is the increasingly harsh nature of political campaigns. Candidates dive deep into rivals backgrounds looking for dirt. It is now called operational research.

Pondering this first ever candidacy I try to anticipate skeletons buried in my closet. I may have some issues.

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Closing The Church

CLOSING THE CHURCH 1.

Because I’ve not been a regular church goer for almost five decades I reluctantly consented to attend the final Sunday mass at the soon to be shuttered St. Leo’s in Pawtucket. My reluctance was based on the fact that I knew attendance for this mass would be overflowing and I felt current parishioners and long time St. Leo’s attendees should not lose a seat because of me.…

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Will Clooney's "Catch - 22" Be A Bomb?

Will Clooney’s “Catch – 22” Be A Bomb?

WILL CLOONEY’S “CATCH – 22” BE A BOMB? 1

Joseph Heller’s classic novel Catch -22 has sold 10 million copies since 1961. It appears on almost every “best of” literary list. I’ve read it five times. Late in Heller’s career he tired of answering why he had never written anything to surpass it. He’d reply, “Who has?”

Having flown 60 missions as a bombardier in WWII Heller wrote from deep experience.…

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The Last Pass (Book review published in ProJo on 11/23)

The Last Pass (Book review published in ProJo on 11/23)

THE LAST PASS – (A BOOK REVIEW) For seven seasons Boston Celtics teammates Bob Cousy and Bill Russell blended their disparate skills to form a devastating force on the basketball court. Two talents who appeared to share one vision of the game which almost always ended in warm celebratory embraces after another championship.

Surprisingly, historian Gary M. Pomerantz new book, “The Last Pass”…

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A 9/11 Legacy (Published in the ProJo) 2018

A 9/11 Legacy (Published in the ProJo) 2018

A 9/11 LEGACY

Seventeen years ago on September 11th the world lost the energy, potential and love of 2,977 souls. The families of those killed knew of their dreams as well as their accomplishments. Untold good works and unfulfilled ambitions all also died that tragic day.

Shakespeare in Julius Caesar famously wrote, “The evil men do lives after them; the good is oft interred with their bones.”

On…

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APEX REMEMBERED

APEX REMEMBERED

The late Norman Fain, one of the principal owners of the Apex stores, would only occasionally visit his properties. Most times it would be at night about an hour or so before closing. Mr. Fain was a quiet, unassuming man and I think very few of his employees even knew who he was as he wandered the aisles dressed in a conservative, grey suit with a fedora perched on his head.

“Good…

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