Blog 3 Columns

Young Minds Are Undermined by Today’s Fashionable Philosophies 0
- Culture
- August 14, 2018
Rates of teenage depression and suicide in America are rising. Attempts to explain this increase have centered around ideas that are now pervasive in academia and entertainment media: identity politics, victim-culture, the unearned “self-esteem movement,” and the dreaded post-modernism (as it applies to philosophy and the humanities, not the arts). I contend that a lot
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What Putin is Doing Right… and What the West is Not Doing at All 0
- International
- August 14, 2018
This weekend’s Wall Street Journal featured an interesting article about Hungary, a former Soviet bloc country that fled to NATO after the collapse of the Soviet Union, and is now moving closer to Putin’s Russia. As the article mentions, it is one more example of the break up of the Cold War anti-Soviet alliance, and
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The Legacies of Robert Mueller’s Investigations 0
- Politics
- August 14, 2018
Some 450 days ago we were treated to melodramatic announcements from the media about the start-up of Robert Mueller’s “dream” and “all-star” team. Reporters gushed in the general hysteria of the times that Mueller would no doubt soon indict President Trump, some of his family, and almost anyone else in his campaign—and therefore end the
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Revered College President Explains What Parents Miss in Preparing Their Children for College 0
- Culture
- August 14, 2018
Packing up the car and taking a kid to college is always hard. Mom holds back tears and worries about the health of her “baby.” Dad checks and rechecks to make sure Johnny has what he needs and knows who to contact if he doesn’t. And then the goodbyes are said and Johnny is left
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A Night Enforcing Immigration Laws on the US-Mexico Border 0
- International
- August 14, 2018
Since the beginning of his presidential campaign, the U.S.-Mexico border has been a focus of Donald Trump’s anger and political appeal. That border is where more than 18,500 of the country’s 19,437 Border Patrol agents work, trying to stop people from crossing illegally into the U.S. For all the heat and headlines around this border,
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Why a Nation in Turmoil Must Choose Civility 0
- History
- August 13, 2018
In 1961, I participated in what one newspaper in Richmond, Virginia, called “one of the most ambitious experiments in race-mixing the South had seen.” With the nation in turmoil, 25 other black students and I helped integrate an all-white junior high school. Outside the school, we faced angry crowds determined to prevent us from getting
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I Spent a Week Teaching High School Kids How Government Works. Here’s What I Discovered.0
- Education
- August 13, 2018
I spent the past week at a camp teaching teens about the legislative process. Among other things, the teens learned about American history, government, and worldview, while also role-playing as senators, representatives, and media. The week ended with a final debate on the house floor of the Minnesota Capitol. Here are five interesting things I
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Climate Change is Not a Pressing Concern for People. Why?1
- International
- August 13, 2018
In a recent interview with the Vatican News service, former U.S. Vice President Al Gore again claimed “the climate crisis is now the biggest existential challenge humanity has ever faced.” Gore boasted, “I have been fortunate to be able to pour every ounce of energy I have into efforts to contribute to the solution to his crisis.” Ironically,
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A Psychologist Explains the 4 Things Gambling Does to Your Brain 4
- Culture
- August 13, 2018
To call gambling a “game of chance” evokes fun, random luck and a sense of collective engagement. These playful connotations may be part of why almost 80 percent of American adults gamble at some point in their lifetime. When I ask my psychology students why they think people gamble, the most frequent suggestions are for
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Young Minds Are Undermined by Today’s Fashionable Philosophies 0