United States

  • Preparing without Panic

    Preparing without Panic

    There has been a lot of talk lately about the possible use of extraordinary federal powers. The Insurrection Act is being mentioned more frequently, and that language understandably unsettles people. There are courts that are already preparing to challenge any misuse of it, and those legal fights matter. At the same time, people living in…

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  • A Moment for Conscience

    A Moment for Conscience

    I waited until Christmas was over to say this, because some things need room and the right moment to be said. As a son, a father, and a grandfather, I have been sitting with what has unfolded over these past weeks. The continued revelations surrounding the Epstein case, and the effort to minimize or obscure…

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  • SNAP and the Truth About Who Needs Help

    I keep seeing posts floating around about how people who collect SNAP benefits are lazy or do not want to work. Let’s deal with the facts. Right now about 42 million Americans receive assistance through the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program. That is roughly one in eight people in this country. Of those households, nearly 60…

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  • The America We Were Sold

    I wish I still believed in the United States of America we were sold when we were kids. You remember the one. The country built on the solid foundation of freedom. The place where all men were said to be created equal, and where anyone could achieve the American dream if they worked hard enough.…

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  • It Only Takes One

    The danger of what lies ahead feels familiar to anyone who remembers Kent State. On May 4, 1970, in Ohio, a group of college students gathered on the Kent State University campus to protest the expansion of the Vietnam War into Cambodia. They were young. They were angry. They were unarmed. The National Guard had…

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  • The Zeitgeist of Hate

    I came to an understanding recently. What we are dealing with in the United States is not political and should not be framed that way. It runs deeper than red or blue. Yes, people often line up that way and the extremes on both sides dominate the noise. But most Americans live in the quiet…

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  • Examining the gap between the Constitution’s ideals and lived reality Many will tell you the United States is a great country. In some ways, they are not wrong. There is a difference between the ideals written on paper and the reality lived by its people. For some, especially those who are white, straight, and Christian,…

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