Living in Society
Politics mostly social commentary.
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Election day was not a big deal in Big Grove Township as only 51 of 1,222 registered voters cast a ballot in the school board races. Locals realized the inevitability of two incumbents running for two positions they held the last term or longer. If people wanted to vote, fine. Most realized a single vote… Read more
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It was a long time getting to Letters from the Country by Carol Bly. My copy is a discard from the Lake County Indiana Public Library where I picked it up from a used book shelf. We moved back to Iowa in 1993, so the purchase was more than thirty years ago. Attracted by the… Read more
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“There comes a time maybe every six, eight generations where the world changes in a very short time. We are at that time now, and I think what happens in the next 2-3 years is going to determine what the world looks like for the next five or six decades.” ~Joe Biden, Nov. 2, 2023… Read more
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Content creator is an upcoming profession that employs many according to a Washington Post article titled, “Millions work as content creators. In official records, they barely exist.” Authors Drew Harwell and Taylor Lorenz assert, “Millions have ditched traditional career paths to work as online creators and content-makers, using their computers and phones to amass followers… Read more
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Democracy Awakening: Notes on the State of America by Heather Cox Richardson is a must read for anyone following the contemporary discussion of conflict between the liberal consensus and movement conservatism. If you don’t know what those two things are, Richardson takes the reader through how they came about, beginning with the founders. She explains… Read more
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The election is three weeks away and it will be anti-climactic in Big Grove Township. There are two candidates for two open school board seats and that’s it. The incumbents are competent people and they earned my support this election. We haven’t decided when and where we will vote, yet in all likelihood it will… Read more
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Editor’s note: This post is from Nov. 10, 2008, written after helping close down the county Democratic party campaign offices. It captures the hope of that time. Hope remains, but is a mere ember these days. Electing Barack Obama president changed my life and those of many others. We must keep hope alive. Even I… Read more
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There is political action in the county this weekend. The university homecoming parade was Friday and the county Democratic party had an entry. Today is the prep day to set up tables and chairs at the fairgrounds for the annual fundraiser. Sunday is a day for canvassing, followed by the annual fund raising barbecue. The… Read more
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Banned Books Week, sponsored by the American Library Association, is ongoing. At the same time, states like Montana, Missouri and Texas severed ties with the 150-year old institution as part of a public debate over what and how to teach about race, sex and gender. Like with public attitudes about vaccines and climate change, the… Read more
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Signs along Interstate 88 in Illinois mark the Ronald Reagan Memorial Highway. Officially designated as the Ronald Reagan Memorial Tollway, whatever it is called, it is one of the better-maintained, low traffic roads in the Midwest. I made a day-trip to Chicago using I-88 on Tuesday. Partly because of that highway, a day trip to… Read more
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