When in 2014 I cycled across southern California I passed near Mt. Baldy, where Cohen spent years in solitary pursuit of Zen enlightenment. Gazing at the snow-capped mountain not far from L.A., I smiled remembering Cohen's observation that he spent endless hours there shoveling snow.

Since it's not easy for faithful conservatives to answer questions about climate science, gun violence, mass deportation, and Obama's economy, among others, they often resort to several rhetorical tools to sway credulous audiences. This enables lazy commentators and defensive Republicans to dismiss serious criticism by asserting that "both sides do it."

Presidential candidate Jeb Bush has confessed, given what we know now, he would not have authorized the invasion of Iraq, as his brother did. A politician with integrity should have followed that comment with an apology to the Iraqi people.

My favorite moments are the girls preparing for the dance, particularly selecting their gowns in a local bridal boutique. The fashion moment plays with our standards of beauty and self-image.

The New Yorker magazine just tried to destroy Henry David Thoreau in an article by recently hired Kathryn Schulz. Her only book is Being Wrong and this article adds to her authority on that subject considerably.