I opened my ACLUmagazine, recently, to read a young woman’s statement:  “I realized that I didn’t want to work within the system anymore.  I wanted to help reform it.” (Activists in Conservative Country,” by Tim Murphy, ACLUmagazine, Winter 2019, pg. .) I understood her wo

The beginning of a new year is a good time to take stock of the human race.  Frankly, I’m surprised we’re still around, having been in one conflict or another for the past 2000 years.   Beyond that, we spend a good deal of time thinking about money and are willing to gut the pl

A few days before Christmas, I sat down to lunch with a friend of many years who is religious.  He’s aware I’m an atheist, but that gives piquancy to our conversations.   As we were sitting amidst holiday decorations, he seemed unable to refrain from saying, “I don’t know h

The week of George Herbert Bush’s funeral showed us an America divided.  Republicans, the party of disgruntled whites, lionized the deceased president in an effort to reclaim the moral high ground.  Democrats spent their time pointing to the gaping disparity between the conduct of

“You look better in person than you do in your blog picture,” said a former high school student of mine from 40 years ago.  He was in town for a class reunion and looked me up.  His remark I took to be gracious rather than true.  The blog  picture is me at 72.  At 82, I’ve

I am  sick of Facebook.  I’m tired of its cutesy messages.  I don’t want to celebrate the fact that Rudolf Valentino and I have been friends for 3 days. Nor do I want reports on the number of “likes” my comments receive in a week. Frankly, Facebook, I don’t give a damn. 

What frightens me about the generation that is building technologies to exploit the internet is its youth.  I fear these visionaries are too inexperienced to be left in total control.  Mark Zuckerberg’s motto, “Move fast and break things,” reflects the same rebellious attitude

An article popped up on my computer the other day which suggested we live in a Matrix. Like the film by the same name, our lives may be no more than a dream which we are allowed to think is real. (Click) A few scientists have given the idea enough credence to propose experiments to d

I came across an excerpt from Barbara Ehrenreich’s latest book, Living with a Wild God, recently.  (“Zapped by the Invisible World,” The Baffler, Vol. 25, 2014, pg. 13.)  I’ve  never read her any of her works but this segment spoke to my interest in mystical experiences. Sh

A funny thing happened on the way to the theater the other night.  A friend was driving and while we sped along the darkened streets, she admitted her vision wasn’t as good as it used to be.  Like me, she’s in her 70’s so I wasn’t surprised by her confession but noted it was