Monday, Sept 9 2013 was a great day for learning. Millions of NYC school children returned to their classrooms. New Yorkers were preparing to exercise their right to vote. And in one classroom at Macaulay Honors College, Dr. David Petraeus, visiting professor of public policy at Macaulay Honors College for the 2013-14 academic year, taught […]
Responding to emails, calls, and more re @macaulayhonors #CUNY and the first day of our Professor #Petraeus seminar.
September 13, 2013 by
What’s a university good for….and other mysteries.
September 11, 2013 by
Our university is a place where complex issues and points of view across the political and cultural spectrum are considered and debated in the hopes that we might offer solutions to the problems in our world. In order to advance reasoned debate on such issues, it is important that multiple points of view be heard. Great […]
Greatest fireworks of all time…ok, maybe second best. And here’s why.
August 4, 2013 by
I think of fireworks as visually thrilling, but last night’s spectacular lights over the Great South Bay added another unexpected sense: SOUND. Watching from a rooftop deck in Saltaire, Fire Island, we were so close to the barge in the bay that we could hear every hiss and sizzle and pow-snap-pow as if the explosions […]
Letter from a Polish reader who is remembering my grandparents today, on the anniversary of the Warsaw uprising.
August 1, 2013 by
I have just read an email sent last night from a Polish reader of SALA’S GIFT and — call me crazy and call me naive — but surely the world is a better place for this woman, who is lighting a candle today, on the 70th anniversary of the Warsaw uprising, in honor of my […]
Dr. Petraeus teaching at Macaulay for $1, no typo there, just good will. Wonder if you know it when you see it?
July 15, 2013 by
Macaulay has been much in the news lately. So here is an update: Dr. David Petraeus, our Visiting Professor of Public Policy for 2013-2014, will be teaching his honors seminar, “Are We on the Threshold of the (North) American Decade?” for an annual salary of $1 per year. This was his decision, and it speaks to […]
A Father’s Day salute to Paul Soros: a remarkable man, brilliant and kind and compassionate.
June 16, 2013 by
Here’s the NYT obituary with the sad news that Paul died yesterday, and some details about his distinguished career. On top of his engineering genius, which transformed ports and shipping all over the world, he was an Olympic skier and tennis player? And a Hungarian refugee from the Nazis? Passport forger and entrepreneur? Hard to imagine […]
LADY gets the trifecta of reviews: USA TODAY, Wall Street Journal, and New York Times!
June 11, 2013 by
And aren’t I the most grateful author in town? I am, I am. Here they are in one place…..
USA TODAY, Deirdre Donahue
“Scrumptious is the only word to describe Ann Kirschner’s Lady at the O.K. Corral: The True Story of Josephine Marc…
Common Law Marriage at the frontier
June 3, 2013 by
In my last few talks, I’ve been asked about the history of common law marriages.
While I was writing LADY AT THE OK CORRAL, I asked Macaulay alumnae Mary Williams (‘2012) to prepare a white paper on common law marriage. As you will see, th…
If your marriage lasts long enough, somebody asks you for the secrets of success.
June 1, 2013 by
FOR ME, IT CAME IN THIS INTERVIEW WITH HISTORYNET. What do you believe was the underlying connection between Josephine and Wyatt Earp that kept them together for half a century? Love, laughter, and respect, ladies and gentlemen, kept Josephine and Wyatt together. I think those are the not-so secret ingredients of any long-lived marriage. Happy […]
That Earp Curse! I hope it didn’t follow me to Santa Barbara.
May 31, 2013 by
Leaving beautiful Santa Barbara this morning. Never thought of it as setting for one of my favorite dystopia films, though Day One: Saw the wild fires as soon as we landed, those beautiful mountains wreathed in black smoke. By the time I arrived at the hotel, the staff was busily sweeping ash off the outdoor […]