Ben East Books

Category: Politics

  • House of Cards, Sleight of Hand

    House of Cards, Sleight of Hand

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    Ben East
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    Think the opening credits for House of Cards is just some anodyne tour around the nation’s capital? Not so. One minute into the 90 second clip the camera pans desolate tracks. It’s night. All is still, the music foreboding. A locomotive blows through timed to a sudden guitar chord—sound and vision merged for a dramatic…

  • The Run

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    Ben East
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    My son’s offering his services as my campaign manager. More than the trappings of power, I think the third grader’s hooked on creating slogans. ‘Want the Best? Vote the Beast.’ Beast is a nickname I picked up in Jr. High. It was my sister’s fault. A clever P.E. teacher pegged her first initial against her…

  • Calling Mr. Robot

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    Ben East
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    If the leadership really wants to improve our healthcare insurance, they should start with a phone call to Blue Cross Blue Shield. In 12 seconds or less they’ll learn that legislating insurance can only make America great again if it kills the robots taking our calls. I’m sorry, I did not understand your response. ‘That’s because you’re a…

  • Supporting the Women’s March on Washington

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    Ben East
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    I may not be marching, but I refuse to be silent. The cause is just and the timing right. I will be counted among the marchers by rolling up my sleeves at home. A list of ways you can do the same: 1. Make the signs. 2. Airport/train/bus pickup for out-of-towners. 3. Pack their lunch…

  • Billy Lynn’s Long Thanksgiving Slog

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    Ben East
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    Thanksgiving. The most American day of the year. More American, perhaps, than the Fourth of July. Throw in a hyperbolically American venue—Texas stadium, home of the Dallas Cowboys—and you’ve got Billy Lynn’s Long Halftime Walk (also now in theaters). For the heroes of Bravo squad, barnstorming the U.S. on a brief victory tour to rile up…

  • The Anatomy of Political Implosion

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    Ben East
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    Top 10 list requiring no preface or introduction— 10. Bubba. She enabled him. He enabled her. Until they didn’t. 9. BO. The Affordable Care Act. Its moral necessity was lost on the selfish many. 8. Vlad. Great spook. Spooky guy. Data thief. Exposer of secrets. 7. Gowdy (hair!) & Chaffetz. Drawn out hearings to reveal nothing again…

  • The Literary Excellence, III

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    Ben East
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    My nominations for The Stephen T. Colbert Award for The Literary Excellence continue. Boy, this effort is really lifting my mood! In Preston Lang’s The Sin Tax a female baddy flashes her gun at a male ex-con baddy: “You have to jump through a lot of hoops to get a carry permit in New York. It’s insane. But once…

  • The Literary Excellence

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    Ben East
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    Seriously, wake up America. These are the times you live in now. “Heroes, by buying and reading this book, you’ve proven you get it–and are therefore now members of the nominating committee for The Stephen T. Colbert Award for The Literary Excellence.” Use the medallions below to nominate any book that you feel embodies the values of…

  • UN-der Woman

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    Ben East
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    Last month the high-flying poobas of the world donned their UNGA-wear and boarded private jets to attend the United Nations General Assembly. Oh! How they did clog the streets of Gotham in pursuit of… What exactly is it they pursued beyond a display of wealth and power? And now the UN—it’s very name suggestive of nothingness, the opposite…

  • Debate Predictions

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    Ben East
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    With an hour til tip-off, here’s how my money rides. The number of times Trump does the following ten things: Sniffs the mic: 120+ Makes a tiny circle with his thumb and forefinger: 30+ References rigged elections: 20+ Notes Hillary’s lies: 15+ Notes Hillary’s corruption: 15+ Says “Crooked Hillary”: 12+ Lauds his business smarts: 12+…