Dan Rodricks

In Act 4 of Shakespeare’s “Henry V,” the young king cries out, “I was not angry since I came to France until this instant.” The instant is his discovery, immediately following the battle at Agincourt, of the French army’s massacre behind the lines of the English camp boys. “Kill the poys and the luggage!” says … Continue reading Putin’s war crime is the war itself.

The Raoul Middleman Studio Museum will open for its inaugural exhibition, Raoul Middleman: Life in the Studio, on Sunday, April 3 from 11 am until 4 pm. It will be a memorial tribute on what would have been the prolific artist’s 87th birthday. Middleman died last fall at his home in Baltimore.After a decade establishing … Continue reading The Raoul Middleman studio becomes a museum

Here, for all to read, is a link to The Baltimore Sun's deeply researched editorial on the newspaper's history of racism, going back to its founding nearly two centuries ago. (Here is a link to a note from our publisher and editor-in-chief, Trif Alatzas.) I hope you take time to read it all, either online … Continue reading Apology and Response: The Sun’s editorial on its racist legacy, and a thoughtful reaction to it

In my Wednesday column in The Baltimore Sun, I follow up with more detail about the case of Mrs. Bratcher, the 87-year-old woman who was the victim of a check theft that has cost her $175,000, almost all the money she had for her quarters and expenses at an assisted living center in Carroll County, … Continue reading A special place in Hell

My neighbor Bernie keeps leaving cookbooks on my front step. He’s either been hitting the thrift stores again or he’s dumping his collection on me. I think we’re up to six Bernie books in the last month. He knows I like to cook, and I appreciate that he wants to provide me with ideas for … Continue reading Better a perfect meatball than bad pad thai

Henry Wong, the longtime impresario at An die Musik on Charles Street, in the heart of downtown Baltimore, has kept musicians performing and music lovers entertained throughout the pandemic with his series, An die Musik Live. Sunday night, there was another live-stream, featuring the Phil Ravita Jazz Group. Impressed with his commitment to arranging these sessions, … Continue reading Playing through the pandemic: 428 live stream concerts and counting from An die Musik, Baltimore

Whenever I relate a story about my hometown in Massachusetts, it’s important to remember that these are renderings from the first third of my life, and while they might sometimes seem idealized, I try to sketch with the candid perspective that comes with time. I have not lived in East Bridgewater since the age of … Continue reading Small town, great man: Bob McCarthy of East Bridgewater

“60 MINUTES” LISTINGS FOR SUNDAY, FEB. 6 DEATH IN TRAINING – Lesley Stahl investigates accidents during training involving military armored vehicles. 60 MINUTES found that in recent years, more servicemembers were killed in training accidents than in combat, and a large percentage of those accidents involved military vehicles: from Humvees to light armored vehicles to AAVs. … Continue reading Maryland couple who lost Marine son in ‘preventable training fiasco’ on 60 Minutes tonight

If you want to support the families of the three Baltimore firefighters who died on duty on Jan. 24 -- Paul Butrim, Kenny Lacayo and Kelsey Sadler -- you can make a donation to the Baltimore City Fire Foundation. It was established for that purpose. In my weekend column in The Baltimore Sun, I propose … Continue reading Proposed: A lasting tribute to Baltimore firefighters