As I sit to write this it’s the early part of May 2020. For the past few months the news has been dominated by the coronavirus and the resulting sickness, COVID-19. As part of one of my jobs, I have to update numbers on a website each morning and those numbers include the total number of infected, both nationally and worldwide, as well as the number of deaths attributed and the number of recoveries. I could write for hours about how these metrics don’t give us some of the most important information but that’s not what this entry is about. What concerns me this morning and why I’m pounding on my keyboard is this: some people are reacting based purely on their fear and they are sacrificing big chunks of their life not to mention, here in the United States, significant and important pieces of liberty. (more…)

It is an observable oddity of the American society that we sometimes act or behave exactly opposite to what is in our best interests. I know a great many people who act oddly when they are falling in love, but that’s not really a surprise is it? Some people say that a soldier who sacrifices himself for his fellow soldiers has acted oddly, but others understand the selfless sacrifice he made – and should be honored for. What strikes me this week that I’ll write about in this article is how our American society seems to be structuring itself to raise ever more pacifist citizens at a time in our history when we are most in need of warriors. (more…)

As happens all too often in my household, my son asked me a question that forced me to carefully think through my beliefs and values before offering an answer. I have to think carefully because I know, for sure and certain, he’s already trying to form that next question so if I’m not as specific and exacting as I can be, I give him huge maneuvering room to ask the more difficult questions. This week’s question really wasn’t so hard: “Dad, what makes an American an American?” The first and most obvious answer was, “Where he was born,” but that’s not what he was asking. He was looking for me to explain to him what values I felt that he, when he became an adult American, should have as part of his character. Long time readers know that such a conversation can’t be had without me sharing it, so here we go with an explanation of my answer. (more…)

A long time ago, a very wise man said this to me: “If someone asks you for a dollar, and it’s within your power to give it, it’s your duty as a human being to give it. However, if someone demands of you twenty-five cents and you don’t wish to give it, then it’s your duty to fight to keep your twenty-five cents. Always be charitable but never be a victim.” (more…)