November 23, 2020
Once upon a time in America, when two people got together and discussed their political beliefs, there was a real chance that one or both of them might change their mind about something after listening to a different perspective. There was once a time when telling the truth mattered and “alternate facts” were simply called
In this time when Covid-19 is keeping us at home and political stress abounds, I find myself traveling through the pages of cookbooks. I’m a huge fan of Sam Sifton’s NYTimes.com Cooking column. While reading his suggestions for what to cook while coping with the 2020 elections, I learned about an article by Samin Nosrat—author
Unlike many of my Democrat friends, I did not celebrate the announcement that the Biden-Harris ticket had secured enough electoral votes to win the battle for the White House. Don’t get me wrong, I’m thrilled that they won. I really am. However, my enthusiasm was quickly tempered by the stark realization that many of my
Early in the morning, I open the iron door of the Buck Stove that breathes heat into the living room most days and evenings. Set into an existing limestone fireplace, the stove warms the living room where Kit and I gather each evening and talk about a world of things that affect our lives. I’ve
Every year in November, I write a column to bring attention to National Adoption Month. As the parent of two adopted children, the biological parent of their big brother, and the former foster parent of two of my wife’s great nieces (who were eventually adopted by their grandmother), I feel compelled to sing the praises
It snowed a week ago in Missouri. Fires are threatening enormous swaths of forested lands in Colorado and California. Arctic icecaps continue to melt. Tropical storms are battering the Southeastern coastal areas of the U.S. in record numbers this hurricane season. With Mother Nature’s weather patterns profoundly out of kilter, we approach the 2020
With this being my last chance to persuade you to vote one way or another in next Tuesday’s presidential election, you might assume that I would take this opportunity to do just that. Well, dear reader, in this case, you would be wrong to make such an assumption. Making assumptions about people is a generally
Following the spread of a deadly coronavirus pathogen from its source in Wuhan, China to countries around the world, a global surge in hunger has brought the impact of food insecurity into critical focus. The first confirmed case of the virus known as COVID-19 in the United States was in January 2020. In the months
Is America really more divided than ever? I could cite a few examples, right off the top of my head, that would cast doubts upon that oft-repeated (as of late) claim. During the American Revolution, there was a sharp divide between those who fought for independence from the king and those who remained loyal to
In this time of isolation, the sound of a train recently connected me to places where I have traveled across my lifetime. Since childhood, there has been something particularly magical about the experience of traveling by train. For me it’s an instant connection to distant places, a romantic nostalgia for bygone times, and a sense
