What's It All About?

A slap in the face triggered some thoughts on the risks of throwing social accountability to the wind, discarding the shackles of civility, and living like a disinhibited 10-year-old. Retaliation and self-protection may provide a level of personal relief, but it offers no secure foundation for our future as a society.

Some thoughts on how others treat us, how we are teaching children to treat others, and how we might respond...(4:45 minutes)

Some thoughts on personal identity and social constructs, and why gender-neutral pronouns can be liberating.  

Kids, it’s time for you to take control of things.  You may not be able to drink at 18, but you can vote.  And in many states, you can run for an elected office.  Please wrest control of the country.

Some thoughts on race from the White father of Black children.

I have lived with hate, and I can tell you, it’s so much easier to hate than love.  But what are the consequences?  

The first time I drove there, the red brick building with the white steeple and belfry looked like a 19th century private school, but, upon closer inspection, the barbed wire and barred windows revealed more of its true nature:  a New York State Correctional Facility.  I was a 21-year old teaching assistant about to embark on a life changing experience, discovering more about myself than I could have ever taught my ‘students’ --  inmates from whom I learned that, while two groups may appear superficially different, it is usually a matter of context and privilege, and the space between our lives is, in reality, hair-thin.