Monthly Archives: August 2023

If you remember 1968 at all, you will remember that it was a time of political turbulence. Consider only these four: Martin Luther King Jr. and Robert F. Kennedy were both assassinated; there were riots of a distinctly racial character … Continue reading →

Kwame Anthony Appiah writes a column called “The Ethicist” for the New York Times. In the August 20 edition, he published his reply to a question from a man who was considering attending the memorial service of his father—a man … Continue reading →

I know that title doesn’t send you to any clear destination. I intend to contrast it with being the victim. I am not thinking of victimhood as requiring victimizers. I am perfectly capable, on a bad day, of feeling that … Continue reading →

It’s hard to keep up with changes in the language. In the little language village where I live most of the time, it really doesn’t change that fast, but I know that there are places where it does and every … Continue reading →

Analogies are funny things. They are often said to provide insight into a less familiar object or relationship by comparing it to a more familiar one. But I wonder if it might not work as well to compare a less … Continue reading →

In grad school, I did a lot of reading about how we know what we know. I gained a great deal of wisdom from that literature—nearly all negative. If I were to begin a line of question with “How can … Continue reading →