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So, Where to Now, America?

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The Middle East Showed Me a Window into America That I Did Not Wish to Look Through.

Some years ago, I had the opportunity to travel throughout most of Israel, and with a bit of deliberate violation of the strictures of my passport, some areas of Lebanon under Hezbollah control.

I was with an international group of military officers, not a US group, and so I travelled pretty much a different path than most American tourists.

I went through the myriad of checkpoints, wandered through Arab neighborhoods, spoke at length with Israelis and Palestinians.

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Capitalism? Socialism? Something Else?

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Our Choice of a Socio-Economic System Determines About Everything

 

Something New for Agents of Reason – A Four Part Series

Well, We Do Pick Easy, Simple Topics Here, Don’t We?

 It’s summertime, so I thought, “What the heck! Let’s pick something easy to deal with. How about choosing a socio-economic system for the US going forward? That shouldn’t take more than a couple of weeks.”

 Kidding aside, this is a conversation going on in fits and starts around the country, and its one we need to have.

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All of the Bad News is Real. But There is Some Good News

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The Corona Virus Has Legions More News to Come. But Not All of It is Bad.

In the Age of the Corona Virus

By now, we are all feeling saturated with talk of the Corona virus. It seems to permeate everything, and we are just beginning to deal with this. We have some long days ahead. As with any major effect like this, there are side effects and spinoffs. Some of them are actually good things.

None of this outweighs the pain and misery of a pandemic. The slow start and remarkable missteps of the Trump administration are going to harvest a bitter fruit.

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What Does the Immigration Fight Say About Us, America?

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Sometimes Events Call Out Who We Are. This is One of Those.

 

Framing the Issue

Reasonable people can disagree on a lot of important issues. There are many components to what is happening on our Southern border. People can argue about them, with good points all around.

To be clear up front, I am not an open borders fan. The slogan “no person is illegal” has always struck me as naïve at best. I find it inaccurate from both a practical and moral perspective. Should we not be concerned about terrorists or criminals who wish to cross the border?

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How Do We Choose Our Personal and National Priorities?

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This is a Missing Link in What Passes for National Dialogue and Personal Reflection

What We REALLY Are Asking…

I learned an important lesson a long time ago. It’s one that comes to mind today as I look at how we talk with each other as a nation. The lesson? People often ask a leader “What is the number one priority I should focus on?” What they were often really asking me was “Give me one thing I can focus on and drop everything else.”

I see a variation of that on a national level now.

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We Stand With Four Rivers All Around Us – Sink or Swim, America?

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In every period of history, people living at that time feel “We have never had so many challenges.” We are no different today – many of us have that exact feeling right now.

We have had great divisions in our past (we did have a civil war, after all). Still, one could make the case that critical factors are now coming to bear in dangerous ways.

It feels as though we as a nation are standing on a piece of ground surrounded by four mighty “rivers.” Rivers are powerful and full of potential to nourish, clean,

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Murder in Minneapolis

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Murder, And So Much More

We all would rather talk about anything other than what is going on in Minnesota and elsewhere, but we really do not have that option, do we? This cannot stand and only the citizenry – you and I – can stop it.

As Bad As It Could Be

Renee Nichole Good was shot 3 times and denied medical assistance as she died in the front seat of her car.

Alex Pretti, an ICU nurse at the local VA hospital was shot as many as 10 times. When medical personnel arrived,

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A Dozen “Guideposts” to a Better Life

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Life Has Its Challenges. Here Is My List For Making It Better

What?! No Politics?

Yeah, I thought it might be a good thing to talk about something other than political and social justice issues for a change, even if only once in a while. So today, let’s talk about something besides what passes for our national government – at least for today.

I hesitated to print this list. It sounds a bit arrogant to be saying something along the lines of “I have figured out life. Follow my guidelines.” That, of course,

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Three Old Blog Posts Came Back to Haunt Me This Week

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Where Are We Heading? What Does July 4th Mean? The Key Questions Call Us Out

What Started This Blog in The First Place?

This little blog came to life in June of 2018. The first post raised the issue of how we could relate to each other going forward as fellow Americans:
Of Tribes, Truth, and Our Country –
 https://agentsofreason.com/of-tribes-truth-and-our-country/ .

This was followed the same week by a sobering reminder of what I saw on the ground in trips to the Middle East – Countries that had lost the ability to talk among themselves,

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Too Much Choice!

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“Too Much Choice” is Not a Phrase I Use Often. But Three Examples Drive Me Nuts. You?

I Like Choice, A Lot 

 Choice is a great thing. It increases the odds that you will get the product or outcome you seek. Choosing empowers you as a consumer. Choice exercises your mental powers of discretion and of choosing wisely.

Most of us who might read this posting live in a world of abundant choices in most areas of our lives. That is a delightful thing, something to appreciate and celebrate. I love having options and making choices.

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