I am heartbroken. We just got a letter from a small charity we support in Chicago, Jamal Place. Jamal Place provided social and vocational services for underprivileged young men, many of whom […]
A royal wedding
So, like two billion other people around the world, we’re still watching this on television. Imagine. Two billion people. That’s like, what, nearly one third of the world’s population? We have some […]
On Richard Pryor: It was something he said
The great medieval poet Geoffrey Chaucer created timeless characters in his Canterbury Tales; archetypal personalities such as the Wife of Bath and the Miller endure to this day. Through them Chaucer could […]
The Geek Manifesto
This hit my email a few minutes ago, and as a proud geek myself, I just had to share. The Geek Manifesto We are geeks, and we are proud to be. We […]
Hard times for the pure of heart: is it possible to live ethically in modern society?
I think we’d all love to live every phase of our lives in happy accord with high moral and ethical principles. We’d love it if we were never confronted by logical contradictions […]
In Defense of "Jesus Glasses"
The facts of my case are fairly simple. Chad Farnan, a 15-year-old self-described Christian fundamentalist student in my AP History class, sued me for a “pattern” of statements unconstitutionally hostile to religion. His claim was based on hours of illegal and surreptitious recordings. In my attorney’s opinion, the law was on our side, so he advised me to seek a summary judgment. I now believe that was a critical error…
The painted kipper (pt 2): John Reith, the melancholic optimist
Part 2 in a series. The original thought in writing this piece was to “resurrect” Reith, better to point to the problems that beset the BBC today – problems that are not […]
The painted kipper: Reith, the BBC, facing Modernity (pt 1)
Editor’s Note: S&R is broadening its reach and mission so as to present our readers with more in the way of thoughtful cultural fare. Today we launch part one in a series […]
The difference between the almost-right word and the right word is really a large matter with Twain's Huck Finn
Mark Twain is rolling over in his grave. I should know: he’s buried not too far from where I live. NewSouth books has announced that it will publish a censored version of […]
Writing for ‘new media’? The old still serves the new
As profs consider changing the names of their schools of journalism and (mass, strategic, public, etc.) communication, they are hurriedly reshaping writing curricula to reflect changes in the media of information delivery […]
