Category: Society

Immigration, Refugees, & The Human Condition – Who Are “The Others?”

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We have Learned – or Relearned – Some Hard and Important Lessons

First, a Correction

A few days ago, I mentioned three areas in this subject domain that are especially egregious. One of these became known the day I published the blog. This was denying automatic citizenship to children born of US parents serving overseas.

Two days later, the policy was clarified. While still reprehensible and immoral, it is much more narrowly focused than originally thought. Read more about it here: https://www.npr.org/2019/08/29/755506286/what-do-new-citizenship-rules-for-kids-of-u-s-military-workers-abroad-mean  

Now, on to today’s discussion.

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It Has Come to This – And They Are Not Done Yet

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If What You Are About to Read Doesn’t Enrage You, Relook Who You Are

Immigration – Big Scale, Human Scale

We will be talking in the coming days about immigration writ large. Not just current issues, but the broader and deeper nature of this part of humanity and how we might think about it. That should be a conversation that is balanced and reflective.

But before we get to that, we need to call out the worst of what is going on now in our name. There is not a lot of room for balance and reason for what we will discuss today.

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Safe, Secure, Trustworthy Voting – It Is Here for the Taking

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Three States Show Us How It Is Done – Russians Be Damned!

We Know What Works

We have talked before about how Washington and Oregon have responsive, secure, and low-cost voting systems. This happened because Democrats and Republicans decided this was important. They worked together to make it happen. Voter turnout  is unimaginably higher than in other states. Stacey Abrams is continuing that effort in Georgia and nationwide, as are others.

Add to that list of states doing it right, Colorado, a state whose 2018 elections were models of effectiveness in every measurable area.

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And So, the Winnowing Begins in Earnest

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The Lists of Viable Candidates and Key Issues are Coming into Focus.

As expected, the list of those running for president is beginning to thin out. This is about on the timeline one would expect, although many were anxious for it to begin earlier. Most of us are eager for it to accelerate. Until we get a candidate (or a small handful of candidates), the issues and strategy will be ill-defined. So, let’s get on with it.

In recent days, we added a candidate (Steyer) and lost two (Swalwell and Hickenlooper).

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Words are Magic. Writers are Wizards

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Two Recent Events Remind of the Power and Universality of Great Writing


The title from this blog post comes from an anonymous source. Whoever first said these words has my undying gratitude. Truer words have rarely been spoken– or written. This phrase runs through my mind often. Partly as confirmation of a known truth, partly as a challenge to write better.

Two recent experiences underline this truism for me. I am thinking you can relate to both.

A Lesson Close to Home

The first is more local and personal. The community I live in has a small gathering once a month called Writers Read.

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Racism, White Nationalism, & Guns – We Know Where We Are.

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A Lot of Wise and Angry Words Have Flowed in Recent Days. They are Right.

 

You know those old movie scenes? The ones where you see a terrible crash coming in slow motion. Welcome to America, today. Racism and gun violence are not exactly new burdens for us as a country. But we have never, I would posit, been at a place like we find ourselves now.

Much of what follows is my attempt to cite some of the best I have seen written in recent days. I am glad to yield space to others who have spoken well for us all.

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Better Angels Brings An Interesting Challenge: Can We Talk?

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A Group Dedicated to the Proposition That We Should Actually Listen to Each Other


Are You Talking to Me? 

Last weekend I put in half a day or so with a group called Better Angels. This is a national group, although thin in many areas. The program I attended last Saturday was their first in the Western portion of my state.

Before I go any further, note that I will put a link to their website at the end of this post. You can see for yourself who they are and what they aspire to achieve.

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Music Hath Charms to Soothe the Savage Beast

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Music Is Surely One of The Most Unique and Ubiquitous Inventions of Our Species

The title of this blog post comes from the English playwright William Congreve. It is from Act I of his play “The Mourning Bride,” published in 1697. What was true then is no less true today. Indeed, it has always been so.

Different Music, Same Responses

I experienced a couple of really interesting reminders of this in recent weeks. A couple of weeks ago, I invested a week with the Chautauqua Institute in upstate New York. Part of the program there is a large dose of music.

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The Power and Peril of People in the Streets

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Recent Events Remind Us of History’s Lessons

 

There is a line in a Mel Brooks movie wherein someone comes in to alert the king, “The peasants are revolting.” To which the king, completely misunderstanding the warning, says “They certainly are.”

Well, the peasants are revolting around the world of late, and “kings” must take note. This is how the Arab Spring started. That movement did not end well, but leaders were toppled.

You may have noticed of late that people are protesting. They often times do so in staggering numbers,

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“I Think You are Great, But That is a Really Dumb Idea”

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We All Need Someone Who Can Regularly Tell Us Why We Might Be Wrong

As I have watched the Trump Show these last few days (the photo session with the Pakistan Prime Minister was amazing. I kept checking the TV to see if I had stumbled onto Saturday Night Live), and the Mueller hearings on Wednesday, I was reminded of an old truth that is as powerful today as ever.

If Everyone Agrees with You All the Time, You Need a New Circle of Advisors

Any time a leader surrounds himself or herself with Yes Men,

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