Category Archives: Uncategorized

Equity at the Expense of Empathy

Did you know that the Sierra Club has a handbook called the “Equity Language Guide?” They are not alone. The American Cancer Society, the American Heart Association, the American Psychological Association, the AMA, National Recreations and Parks Association, and University … Continue reading

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Human Evolution Begets Labor Day Travel

Humans are wanderers by nature. Our innate drive to explore—and conquer—has driven us to invade every corner of our earth, adapt to inhospitable environments, and now that we’ve run out of earth-bound frontiers, dive deep into the sea and reach … Continue reading

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TURTLES

As the world revs up to back-to-work and back-to-school, I want to share this delightful—and sage—piece written by E.B White (author of Charlotte’s Web and other books). It was first published in The New Yorker on January 31, 1953. We … Continue reading

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Adventures in Gender-Free Bathrooms

It’s August! Let’s be silly! After blogging for over a decade, I am humbled to admit that the most popular post I ever wrote was about squat toilets: Personal Hygeine Tips from the Developing World. Published in 2014—so long ago … Continue reading

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No Way to Level the Playing Field

One for the first things an aspiring civil engineer learns how to do when seeking a flat surface upon which to construct a road or a building, is to balance cut and fill. Analyze the topography in three dimensions and … Continue reading

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Everybody Loves…

A few weeks ago I watched Six by Sondheim an HBO (kind of) documentary, and (totally) kitsch love poem to the late, great Stephen Sondheim. The accolades to Mr. Sondheim’s talent were eclipsed only by the accolades—from everyone—for Stephen Sondheim … Continue reading

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How Oklahoma House Bill 1775 Could (Hopefully) Backfire

Victor Luckerson’s new book, Built from the Fire, a history of the 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre and its reverberations through the last hundred years is unlikely to enjoy wide readership in any Oklahoma Public School. Why? Because Governor Kevin Stitt … Continue reading

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While the World Searched for the Titan Submersible..

For over three days in June, the world was mesmerized by the loss and implosion of the Titan Submersible launched by the private company OceanGate Expeditions, to explore the remains of the sunken cruise ship, Titanic. Five people died in … Continue reading

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Ten Million Cured…forever?

Fifty years ago, in 1973, the American Psychiatry Association (APA) made a diagnostic change at their annual conference, declaring that homosexuality is not a psychiatric disorder. Instantly, ten million Americans were cured of the disease our society had inflicted upon … Continue reading

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Brokeback Albany

In celebration of Pride month, I offer this glimpse of Gay America a mere eight years ago, in an essay I wrote in 2015. Next week, I will offer a view from today. I drove out to Albany to see … Continue reading

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