Graduations and the Constitution
And so - our community awaits a decision.
We await the knowledge of whether or not the views of an anonymous few and the litigious intervention of a social activist group from our Nation’s Capitol, will overturn the clearly expressed desire of the overwhelming majority of our community.
Cause and Effect in Detroit
A few months ago I wrote a column about what Napoleon would have told Congress and executives of the auto industry about the state of GM, Ford, and Chrysler. Today I consider what a famous American might have said regarding this matter.
Mark Twain once acidly remarked that, “the only difference between a man and a dog is that a man WILL bight the hand that feeds him”.
Happy Father's Day
Despite the fact that I have been a father for fitteen years, for me today is always about my Dad.
To paraphrase Toqueville, my father was a great man because he was a good man. I had the honor of delivering his euology, and I read that document again today to remind me of him. And as I did, I reflected on the good fortune I had in having him in my life, and on the lessons he worked so hard to impart to me and my siblings.
Socrates and Churchill on the "S" Word
The first instruction that Socrates always gave to a new student was, "if you would speak with me - you must define your terms". He knew that meaningful dialog on any subject requires objectively defined terms, so that the people engaged would understand the references and logic of their associates.
Today we hear many people caught up in the debate of whether or not we are sliding into socialism. If we consider the admonition of Socrates, I don't understand that debate.
Michael Jackson and the Oprah-Fication of America
The King of Pop is dead, and the engines of our hopelessly adrift mass media are pumping out tsunamis of emotion into our living rooms, automobiles, and hand-held devices. Make no mistake about it - emotion is King in America today. Jackson's passing is clearly a sad and unfortunate event, but the seismic emotional reactions to it are off the charts, akin almost to those triggered by the assassination of John Kennedy.
I submit that while such tsunamuis of "feeling" have many causes, the High Priestess of this movement is none other than Oprah the Great. She has ushered in the Era of Emotion, concocting a carcinogenic cocktail mixed of medicine, psychology, and new-age theology, which The Wall Street Journal years ago insightfully labeled therapeutic feelingness.
