Thank you to the editors who kept me mostly out of trouble over the years: Emily Hathaway, Lynn Medford, Elissa Vanaver, John Barry, Shelley Acoca, Glenda Wolin, Myriam Marquez, Juan Vasquez, Amy Driscoll, Luisa Yanez, Tracy Clark. Thanks to my current editor, Nancy Ancrum, who had to talk me in off the ledge an average of once a week during the Trump debacle.
Thanks to my brother from another mother, Howard Cohen, for great arguments.
Thanks to my former colleague Christine Dolen, who, with her husband, John, took me — whom she barely knew — my wife and our five kids into their three-bedroom house when Hurricane Andrew left us homeless.
Thanks to the Tribune Content Agency, my longtime syndicate.
Thanks to Dave Barry. When a column starts getting traction, a lot of weird stuff happens — syndication contracts, speaking engagements — that nobody prepares you for. Dave took it upon himself to tutor me. I no longer recall all the advice, but I’ve never forgotten the gesture.
Thanks to Judi Smith. My former assistant retired in 2019 but still insists on proofreading the column. I will miss sparring with her over what does and does not constitute an extraneous comma. I wrote this, sentence just, for her. (CQ)