By Brian R Alexander

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Brian Alexander

I'm the author of seven books, all non-fiction, including Glass House, and The Hospital. My new book, The Mayor, will be out later in 2026. I write about America and American culture, and I try to give voices to people who aren't heard often enough.

A Washington Post Post Including Reader's Digest Condensed Books, Book-of-the-Month, My Kidhood, and What to Do Now

Today the Washington Post announced that it was firing 300 staff. Three hundred. This comes after more than a year of staff firings and departures. Reporting indicates that sports, international coverage, and the books section are being spiked. There's a lot to say about this and many people

Dumping on Chester

Dumping on Chester

This past week, the mayor of Chester, Pennsylvania, Stefan Roots, stood in front of the Philadelphia city council and asked those council people to please stop dumping garbage on his city. Philadelphia sends its trash to nearby Chester where it is burned in the largest trash-to-steam incinerator in the United

Wall Street Comes to Fayette: Update

Here's a quick update on my January 16 post about Eagle Machining, First Brands, Fayette, Ohio, and Wall Street's effect on small places. First Brands founder and CEO Patrick James was arrested yesterday morning in response to an indictment. The press release issued by the U.

Mrs. Hanabeck

Mrs. Hanabeck

I am looking at an extract of my grandfather's birth registration. Thomas Alexander was born in Paisley, Scotland on November 21st, 1885. He was the son of John and Mary Alexander. John was a journeyman iron turner, which meant he machined iron and other metals. They were young,

Bloody Big Shots and the Rise of the Amoral State

Bloody Big Shots and the Rise of the Amoral State

MLK in Chester

MLK in Chester

Just a quick note to show you Calvary Baptist Church, in Chester, Pennsylvania. Martin Luther King, Jr. preached in this church while living in Chester and studying at the Crozer Theological Seminary. Here's a little essay written a few years ago by Stefan Roots. He's now

Springfield and Minneapolis Echo.

Springfield and Minneapolis Echo.

See the newspaper clipping, above? That comes from the Lancaster, Ohio Eagle, later known as the Lancaster Eagle-Gazette, my hometown newspaper where my first attempts at journalism were published. (I was a high school kid, editor of the school paper, the William V. Fisher Catholic Irish Pen, which was published