Daily Blues & Views

  I heard about a reemergence of stoicism this this morning on NPR.  Apparently there is real interest in this philosophical school of thought that dates back to the 3rd century.  Given the current state of the world I can see why.  In case you forgot, Stoicism, as a philosophy is opposed to the belief that everything is the way it's supposed to be and will work out just fine.  It emphasizes accepting reality and examining one's judgments and thoughts. The ultimate goal is to direct your thoughts toward what you can control. That ability to accept the things you can control and not waste energy with what you cannot has been around for a long time.  Easy to see why.  It's attractive because we all would like to be able to easily make that distinction.  Not so easy in reality.   Some folks think that a stoic is one who stays calm and faces life's challenges  in a serene state of consciousness.  To be a stoic about that which causes gr...

 One look at the make-up of the current Congress reveals why nothing gets done.  There was a time when real leadership graced the halls of the people's law-making branch of government.  Today, some of the dialogue and exchanges resemble the worst of reality TV, i.e. those Housewives shows.  I wonder if those folks know the impact that can have on young people.  Imagine trying to role-play Congress in a US Government.   For years, the Social Science department at the school where I taught incorporated a "mock Congress" as part of the curriculum for all government classes.  In this activity, students would take the role of prominent politicians in all political party and role play the House and Senate going through the steps of trying to get a bill they wrote through the process of law-making.  What better way to learn how the Congress works.  Writing a bill is challenging enough, but trying to get it through Congress with all its committees an...

 With the recent rise in civil disobedience and demonstrations on college campuses all over the nation, it's not surprising that many of my generation want to weigh in on the lessons learned from the 1960s. Of course there are similarities but also glaring differences.   Back then, there was no social media and the is the most glaring difference.  Communication at rapid speed with cell phones makes for a very different experience.  Those demonstrating against the Vietnam War, the draft, the lack of civil rights like voting, and police brutality today are not as impacted by those issues as protesters in 1968.  Of the 100,000 people in the street during the Vietnam moratorium, most were directly affected by that war, either by being drafted to fight that war, or as the family of those killed or severely injured in this most unpopular "brushfire war."  I wonder how many of those arrested at Columbia, UCLA, Portland State...et.al. are actually students there. ...