{"id":73,"date":"2026-05-25T05:08:20","date_gmt":"2026-05-25T05:08:20","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/atlaslivingmedia.com\/?p=73"},"modified":"2026-05-25T05:08:20","modified_gmt":"2026-05-25T05:08:20","slug":"a-note-from-a-reader-and-a-nation-son","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/atlaslivingmedia.com\/?p=73","title":{"rendered":"A Note From a Reader (and a \u2018Nation\u2019 Son)"},"content":{"rendered":"<article>\n<div>\n<div>\n<article>\n<header>\n<div>\n<ul>\n<li>Politics<\/li>\n<li>April 6, 2015<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h1>A Note From a Reader (and a \u2018Nation\u2019 Son)<\/h1>\n<h1>A Note From a Reader (and a \u2018Nation\u2019 Son)<\/h1>\n<h2>\n<p>Reliving distant memories of the 1950s, in <em>The Nation<\/em>\u2019s archives and in Cuba.<\/p>\n<\/h2>\n<\/div>\n<\/header>\n<section>\n<time>April 6, 2015<\/time><\/p>\n<div>\n<p>It seems to be true of both the Mafia and the Hotel California that you can never really leave. Add to this estimable list the family that has developed over the decades around <em>The Nation<\/em> magazine.\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n<p>We were recently sent the following letter from longtime reader James E. Kemler of Boston, Massachusetts. His father, Edgar Kemler, was the magazine\u2019s Washington correspondent in the dark days of the mid-1950s. Links to Kemler <em>p\u00e8re<\/em>\u2019s articles in <em>The Nation<\/em> appear below references to them. <em>\u2014Richard Kreitner<\/em><\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p>My childhood memories of wrinkled pages in a scrapbook with the bold <em>The Nation<\/em> headline are hazy and jumbled. Without the author to explain their significance I never really read them at the time, rather just skimming the passages and glancing at the cartoon drawings. Edgar Kemler, my father, who had died when I was 3 years old, had written for <em>The Nation<\/em> from 1954\u201356, covering Washington, DC, for the magazine before I was born. My mom had explained that this was a liberal publication, in sync with our family values. Beyond that, I didn\u2019t understand much of the magazine\u2019s context while growing up outside of DC.<\/p>\n<p>Fast forward five decades and I am again looking at these same articles, but now on pristine laser-printed pages downloaded from the <em>The Nation<\/em>\u2019s archives. I was bringing them with me on <em>The Nation<\/em>\u2019<em>s<\/em> educational program in Cuba in February 2015. The happy coincidence of signing up for this trip was an opportunity to meet the publication\u2019s present-day management and renowned journalists. What struck me as I carefully read a number of my father\u2019s articles were the freshness of the topics and relevance to current political issues. His writing style conveyed the subjects with intelligence, clarity and common sense\u2014which continue to be so present in the magazine today. In addition to numerous pieces , my father\u2019s topics included , , a debate on a ,  related to free speech, and a story about the military\u2019s plans for .<\/p>\n<p>Reliving these distant snapshots of then-relevant Washington news feeds gave me a fresh insight into my father\u2019s perspective and communication style. That I was surrounded by his current colleagues collectively experiencing the historic events of today in Cuba\u2014which itself has elements frozen in time from my father\u2019s era\u2014was a true gift. I am thankful to <em>The Nation<\/em> for providing this double-edged opportunity\u2014to reach back to my father\u2019s professional contributions and to share in a memorable and historic change in US-Cuba relations. This was a very unique and rewarding family reunion courtesy of <em>The Nation<\/em>.\n<\/p>\n<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>Did one of your friends or relatives write for <em>The Nation <\/em>back in the day? Write to us at rkreitner [at] thenation [dot] com.\n<\/p>\n<p>Read more <a href=\"https:\/\/atlaslivingmedia.com\/?p=42\">GLP-1s and the Limits of Knowing Better<\/a><\/p>\n<\/p>\n<p>Read more <a href=\"https:\/\/atlaslivingmedia.com\/?p=71\">Can Black Lives Matter Win in the Age of Trump?<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/section>\n<footer>\n<ul>\n<li>\n<p>                Submit a correction<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li>\n<p>                Send a letter to the editor<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li>\n<p>                Reprints &amp; permissions<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<div>\n<div>\n<h2><i><span>Your support makes stories like this possible<\/span><\/i><\/h2>\n<p><span>From illegal war on Iran to an inhumane fuel blockade of Cuba, from AI weapons to crypto corruption, this is a time of staggering chaos, cruelty, and violence.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>Unlike other publications that parrot the views of authoritarians, billionaires, and corporations, <\/span><i><span>The Nation <\/span><\/i><span>publishes stories that hold the powerful to account and center the communities too often denied a voice in the national media\u2014stories like the one you\u2019ve just read.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>Each day, our journalism cuts through lies and distortions, contextualizes the developments reshaping politics around the globe, and advances progressive ideas that oxygenate our movements and instigate change in the halls of power.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>This independent journalism is only possible with the support of our readers. If you want to see more urgent coverage like this, please donate to <\/span><i><span>The Nation<\/span><\/i><span> today.<\/span><\/p>\n<p>Read more <a href=\"https:\/\/atlaslivingmedia.com\/?p=40\">This Week in \u2018Nation\u2019 History: Want to Know What NAFTA Teaches Us About the TPP Fight?<\/a><\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div>\n<p><span> Back Issues<\/span>Guided tours through the archive of America\u2019s oldest weekly.\n<\/p>\n<p>\n<\/div>\n<p><input\/><br \/>\n<input\/><br \/>\n<\/footer>\n<\/article>\n<p>Ad Policy<br \/>\n<!-- <a class=\"inifiniteLoader\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"\/images\/new_infi_loader.gif\" alt=\"\" \/><\/a> -->\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/article>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The Nation Magazine<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":72,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-73","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.6 - 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