In many ways, smartphones are a great boon to every culture. In other ways, however, they are seriously undermining the thinking process of millions of people. For example, consider the nature of Mapquest. This technological device is failsafe. Even if a desired address is in a new subdivision, and new streets are continuously being constructed, Mapquest somehow seems to know that, and it gives newly updated directions with the passage of each day, courtesy of Big Brother in the Sky.
Funeral, Memorial Service, Celebration of Life - - - Or Nothing?
Celebrations of life are both solemn and humorous, heavy and light, productive of tears as well as prolonged laughter. Families may resist having any sort of public acknowledgement of the death of their loved one, but everyone is also loved by others who are not related to the one who has died. They too need closure for how they feel and think about the death of a long-admired friend and confidant.
The Omnipresent Danger of the American Political Right
Rightists fear that the nation is always making too many concessions to the wrong kinds of people, while leftists think not enough concessions are being made. The difference between the two sides is that conservatives are far more inclined to take up arms to challenge government, while liberals only yammer incessantly, trying verbally to convince government to change its policies.
The Best Possible Outcome of the 2024 Presidential Election
Autocrats and Their New Capital Cities
Why do men engaged in such exorbitantly expensive urban projects? Whom are they trying to impress? Several groups of people come to mind, such as the Really Rich, who love to go to glittering new cities where none of their friends have gone, and to stay in their glittering hotels and spend scads of money in their posh restaurants.
A Glorious Fantasy, Or Fantastic Glory?
For those who still believe Trump’s stolen election claim, wouldn’t it be fitting if the AG were to indict the ex-president in the next week or so? It might convince thousands of Republicans in every state and congressional district that it would be folly to vote for any Trumplican candidates on Nov. 8 who, like Trump himself, claim that the 2020 election was fraudulent. Why would anyone want to vote for those who have convinced themselves that Trump’s lie is true? What other lies might they believe?
Something There Is That Doesn’t Love Black(s)
Mending Wall is one of Robert Frost’s most famous and beloved poems. He describes how, after the first spring thaw, he and his neighbor would set about to put the rocks back in place which had fallen off the rock walls between their fields. The most famous line in the poem says, “Something there is that doesn’t love a wall,/ That wants it down.”
With the many stories in newspapers and magazines about how Black people in America are facing increasingly difficult obstacles, especially in today’s toxic political climate, it struck me that it has become painfully more evident that something there is that doesn’t love black, including Black people.
What Joe Biden Needs to Do NOW
The Erosion of American Democracy
We need many millions of cool heads to go to the polls in November who have deeply pondered our current peril. It is not Democrats who will save democracy in the upcoming election, if indeed it is saved. It will be democracy which saves democracy, informed voters, people who understand the seriousness of the threat that is facing us, and who act on their concerns by flooding the polls with their votes.
SCOTUS and the New American Theocracy
SCOTUS: Three Decisions on Religion Gone Wrong
As a Presbyterian parson who has been preaching for nearly six decades, I think everyone should be free and even encouraged to hold whatever religious beliefs are dear to them. Nevertheless no jurist at any level of government should pass judgment on legal issues primarily or even tangentially on the basis of their religious beliefs. In terms of judicial equity, it is imperative for every judge in every court to bear that in mind.
Individual Morality and the Social Contract
A legal right is a right, and the Supreme Court in effect abrogated an important right for millions of women who happen to live in states that now or very soon will outlaw abortions under all or nearly all circumstances. That is clearly wrong; it is even immoral. In their Senate Judiciary Committee hearings, all three of the Trump appointees agreed that the Roe vs. Wade decision made that decision settled law, and all three lied. That wasn’t a very moral thing to do.
Republicans, Democrats, and the 2022 Election
The 2022 federal election will likely determine the major direction of the United States of America for at least the next six years. Most political pundits are predicting a Republican victory in both the House and Senate. If that happens, Donald Trump will probably be the Republican candidate for re-election as president, and the possible winner in 2024.
The First Hearing of the House January 6 Investigation Committee
It was very difficult to begin this essay: where to start; what to include; what to leave out. The entire proceeding brought back agonized memories, tangled emotions, relentless dread, and a deep concern for the future of our country.
The chairman and vice-chairwoman of the committee told us that in these hearings we would hear and see things we had not heard or seen before, and that was true. Eyewitnesses made new claims, and videotaped voices provided new evidence of a carefully orchestrated attempt to overturn an election by establishing the first autocracy in the history of our nation.
$5 Gasoline: A Small Price to Pay If Putin Gets Booted
Almost always when the price of gasoline rises quickly, it is because of political problems somewhere. This time Vladimir Putin is the problem. Because of his brazen war against Ukraine, most Russian oil has stopped flowing into Europe and elsewhere. Consequently, because of the law of supply and demand, there is a high demand for oil, as usual, but a lower supply. Hence it seems that every week the price of gasoline rises.
Hostages to a Long-Outdated Constitution and an Antidemocratic Senate
For decades the United States Constitution and the arcane rules of the US Senate have stymied American democracy in a variety of ways. We have become their hostages. Recently it appears that the expressed desire of a heavy majority of voters may yet again be thwarted in two important concerns of the American people: a permanent federal law upholding the Roe vs. Wade Supreme Court decision fifty years ago, and tighter gun control laws and universal background checks for every purchaser of guns.
How to Assist Our Allies in War While Avoiding War Ourselves
When Vladimir Putin invaded Ukraine on February 24 of 2022, none of the NATO nations, especially the United States, became engaged in the warfare. After all, NATO had prevented Ukraine from joining its ranks. Instead, NATO massively united to provide the Ukrainians the weapons, other materiel, and humanitarian assistance to enable Ukraine to thwart the Russians. The US has provided nearly a hundred billion dollars of military and other aid, and our western partners have contributed an equal or greater amount.
The Domestic Danger of Neglecting Foreign Policy
Now the United States finds itself in another period when its attention is largely directed inward upon itself and its own domestic problems, of which there is an abundance. President Biden is plagued by the plague and by his own declining popular support, the Congress is hopelessly catatonic because of its mean-spirited polarization, and the American people have fallen into a “woe is us” attitude.
This inward-looking stance places our nation and the world in acute danger because of the alarming rise of autocracy in many nations, including the USA. At the moment, Russian interference in Ukraine is the most obvious issue. But Vladimir Putin is not the only autocrat who represents a threat to democracy and world peace.
Joe Biden: President, Or Senator?
Joe Biden started out, it seemed, intending to be another Franklin Roosevelt. He had a major insurmountable obstacle, however. Roosevelt had a large majority in both the Senate and the House in 1932, and Biden has a bare majority in in the House in 2020, and an even split in the Senate. The tie-breaking vote of Vice President Kamala Harris is necessary in case of a tie in the Senate, of which one is too many, especially lately.
Politics, Politicians, and Insider Trading
A few years ago, Peter Schweizer wrote a book called Secret Empires. He is the co-founder and president of the Government Accountability Institute, which is an organization of investigative journalists whose primary aim is to expose various kinds of corruption among government officials. Secret Empires focuses particularly on insider stock trading among high government politicians and officials.