Author Archives: hessd

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 →

“Every talented and qualified student deserves an opportunity to attend the college of their choice. Affirmative Action existed to support that notion. Legacy admissions exists  to undermine it.”  So says NAACP President Derrick Johnson, pictured below. I don’t think he … Continue reading →

Earlier in my blogging history, I looked around for some way to get as much forward motion as I could, now that my horsepower seemed to be declining.The model I finally settled on was “intelligent four wheel drive.” (I-4) [1] … Continue reading →

Thomas Edsall’s penultimate paragraph in his New York Times column this morning was this: “The belief that Donald Trump was denied the White House in 2020 because of Democratic Party fraud is arguably the greatest challenge to the legitimacy of … Continue reading →

I have had more simple enjoyment watching Netflix The Diplomat than I have had watching any show since The West Wing. It is not coincidental, really, since Deborah Cahn, who did a good deal of writing for The West Wing … Continue reading →