Author Archives: hessd

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About hessd

Here is all you need to know to follow this blog. I am an old man and I love to think about why we say the things we do. I've taught at the elementary, secondary, collegiate, and doctoral levels. I don't think one is easier than another. They are hard in different ways. I have taught political science for a long time and have practiced politics in and around the Oregon Legislature. I don't think one is easier than another. They are hard in different ways. You'll be seeing a lot about my favorite topics here. There will be religious reflections (I'm a Christian) and political reflections (I'm a Democrat) and a good deal of whimsy. I'm a dilettante.

Retreat, Hell…

Posted on August 4, 2020 by hessd

In 1952, a movie about the Korean War was released with the riveting name, Retreat, Hell! Or, more properly, “Retreat? Hell…” The rest of the line in “We’re just attacking in another direction.” For a military force that is entirely … Continue reading →

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Parables: The Power of What Is Not There

Posted on August 4, 2020 by hessd

If the irony weren’t too heavy, I would  say that I love reading the work of scholars because it gives me a chance to ask really simpleminded questions. I think of “scholarship” as digging ever more deeply into the technical … Continue reading →

Posted in Biblical Studies, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

Virtue Signaling

Posted on July 26, 2020 by hessd

I am sorry to be coming so late to the party. “Virtue signaling” is a term I heard for the first time today. I know. I ought to get out more. It seems to me that “virtue signaling” is an … Continue reading →

Posted in Communication, Living My Life, Political Psychology | Tagged , , , , | 1 Comment

That government is best…

Posted on July 23, 2020 by hessd

It’s always the dots that get you, isn’t it? What was there, you wonder? That’s where we are going. Please be patient. You have often heard the half-maxim [1] “That government is best that governs least.” I have seen it … Continue reading →

Posted in Political Psychology, Sustainability | Tagged , , , , | 1 Comment

Turn the Other Cheek

Posted on July 15, 2020 by hessd

The controversies over this text abound, very likely because following out the literal meaning is quite often inconvenient.  But there are worse things than inconvenience to say about the literal compliance with such a text.  We might say, for instance, … Continue reading →

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Racial defensiveness

Posted on July 12, 2020 by hessd

The topic for today is “racial defensiveness.”  I’m against it.  The Russian spy (Mark Rylance)  who was captured and tried in the movie “A Bridge of Spies” had a recurring line that made me like him immediately.  In the first … Continue reading →

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July 4 Virus Thoughts

Posted on July 5, 2020 by hessd

We are celebrating, today, the independence of the North American colonies of Great Britain from the rest of the British Empire. We had devised, here, the beginnings of a single political system and we proclaimed that it “was, and of … Continue reading →

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A Klan of “Karens”

Posted on July 2, 2020 by hessd

You may have heard about the fuss kicked up by Amber Lynn Gilles at the Starbucks in San Diego. The short version is that she didn’t wear a mask, as store rules required her to do, and was not served. … Continue reading →

Posted in Living My Life, Sustainability, Uncategorized, Words | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

And he lies scarcely at all…

Posted on June 22, 2020 by hessd

Scene 1: Saint Peter and a few angels are performing the daily ritual with some dice and a chart of the cardinal sins. They throw an 11, look at the chart and see what vice is on special today. Scene … Continue reading →

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Juneteenth, 2020

Posted on June 20, 2020 by hessd

I think I’d like to pay some attention to Juneteenth this year. I remember hearing about it before, but only from a distance. Since last June, I have been thinking about the increasingly wide divisions in this country and how … Continue reading →

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