Category Archives: Dwight D. Sutherland, Jr.

“The words of the prophets are written on the subway walls.  And tenement halls…..”  Simon and Garfunkel may have had it right when they wrote “Sounds of Silence” almost 50 years ago.  Nowadays, you find pearls of wisdom in chat … Continue reading →

One of the saddest figures in recent American history is Major General Edwin Walker… A West Point grad with a brilliant war record in both World War II and Korea, he was the officer ultimately responsible for seeing that Little … Continue reading →

Well over a hundred years ago (in 1902), the philosopher William James wrote a book called “The Varieties of Religious Experience.”  The thing that struck him the most was that all the different religions he studied had a number of … Continue reading →

Even if the founders of Kansas City had stuck to their initial plan to name the town after our favorite native creature, one suspects André Maurois, roving intellectual, French patriot, and all-round good guy would have still been as fulsome … Continue reading →

BOOK REVIEW “IF I HAD A SON,” BY Jack Cashill (Race, Guns, and the Railroading of George Zimmerman)   Local author Jack Cashill has done a yeoman service in setting the record straight on what actually happened in the Trayvon … Continue reading →

Rarely does the staff of the Star show why they qualify as the “short-bus” riders of political intelligence so succinctly. In an article by Yael Abouhalkah (“Abacadabra”), he decribes how there is “trouble in Johnson County’s paradise.”  He does this … Continue reading →

 It was not a good year for KU Professor Katherine (“Kate”) Stephens. .. The sixty-nine year old professor emeritus of Greek had two staggering blows to contend with in 1922. First of all, a long forgotten boyfriend had managed to … Continue reading →

In response to a series of postings I’ve done about various acts of ethically challenged behavior on the part of various local politicos and their backers, I’ve been hit with the familiar, “You’re just attacking them out of mean-spirited partisanship!” … Continue reading →

Huck and his runaway slave companion, Jim, are drifting on a raft down the Mississippi when they fall in with two con-men, “the King” and “the Duke.”  These two know only too well how to fleece the hapless denizens of … Continue reading →

 I went through some boxes of books up in my attic the other day and was amazed at what I found…  Culled from the libraries of various family members and friends, all now departed, I see that I have enough … Continue reading →

Dr. Alexander Smith Senior Leverhulme Research Fellow Department of Sociology Coventry CV4 7AL United Kingdom   RE:       The Voices of Moderation (a.k.a. “The Vital Center”) Dear Alex: On Tuesday night, September 3rd, there was a vote taken by the Prairie … Continue reading →

Woody Allen’s new movie, “Blue Jasmine,” has been called a “mash-up” (“a song or composition created by blending two or more pre-recorded songs, usually by overlaying the vocal track of one song seamlessly over the instrumental track of another,” Wikipedia).  … Continue reading →

To: Alex Smith Senior Leverhulme Research Fellow, Department of Sociology University of Warwick, Coventry, England RE:   The Land of “Ahs” Dear Alex: Thank you for your note.  I can’t wait to “break bread” with you upon your return to these shores. The … Continue reading →

The most consistent criticism of my posts is that I’m airing “ancient grudges as topical political insight.” And my response is:   1)  It’s a Scottish thing, you wouldn’t understand! 2)  Only someone on the receiving end of a politician’s … Continue reading →

Even a movie that is so dated that it’s painful to watch can contain some insight or observation that gives it current day “redeeming social value” (to use the words of the Supreme Court re works of art that would … Continue reading →

There is a local lawyer, who is a little older than I am, who came back from college on the East Coast with that absurdist line in his repertoire.  (I think it is from some long forgotten TV show in … Continue reading →

It’s been sixty-five years since George Orwell wrote “1984,” his classic description of the totalitarian mindset.  Thanks to local ideologues like Dr. Robert Meneilly and his church militant, the hate group formerly known as The Mainstream Coalition (like the artist … Continue reading →

I got a video from Mark Helprin which was an interview in Chicago about his new book and I’ve transcribed it here for you.  I sent Helprin some of my posts last week and he sent me a You-Tube video of his … Continue reading →

I have a friend who was a professor at UMKC Law School, Peter Kostant… He’s one of the best read people I’ve ever met and is always able to recommend new books to me that I will enjoy and learn … Continue reading →

 I’m delighted that the 1998 incident at the Precious Moments Park & Exhibition Center in Carthage, Missouri still has so much interest for KC Confidential’s audience… I’m particularly touched that so many are interested enough to post comments to say … Continue reading →