Most of us grew up and were educated in a world in which classical physics ruled as the basis for understanding reality. Of course this does not mean we all took high school physics class, but the scientific cornerstone for how we think of reality has been established in traditional classical physics. Sure, we knew quantum mechanics was a thing out there among the brainiac set, but it was too esoteric for us normal everyday people to seriously consider. After all, quantum mechanics has a well deserved reputation for being hard to understand. It is beyond rocket science. It is ...
In an act of fear, malice, and desperation and with a desire to anesthetize themselves against a changing world Americans chose Donald Trump as the 47th president. Our nation's march toward normalization of zealotry, bigotry, vileness, and deceit is now more entrenched. We are no longer Reagan's "Shining City on a Hill". We traded that imagery for one that is now no more than a blemish on a pillaged landscape. Elections are usually about forging a more hopeful future. We are accustomed to expect optimism and promise following a national plebiscite. However, in the electoral debacle which just occurred it ...
With five weeks to go until election day in the U.S. I am compiling some short opinion essays I prepared over the past several months challenging the legitimacy and merit of the Make America Great Again or MAGA populist movement of Donald Trump's. This collection is dynamic and I expect more pieces to be added to this group between now and election day. I will let the individual pieces speak for themselves without any preparatory explanation. The Key Fault of Trumpism I begin with a premise. It is that freedom and equality are the two pillars of what our country ...
A fascinating philosophical school of thought posits that reality can only be determined by a mind. An observer with enough sentience to at the very least sense, and in more sophisticated instances perceive its environment, is required for any reality to exist at all according to this view. Idealism stands in stark contrast to realism, the notion that a reality prevails "out there" and does not require an observer exercising some degree of mentality in order to substantiate the existence of this reality. This tug-of-war between idealism and realism has been among the dominant debates in philosophy for centuries. One ...
It is like something to be me. It is like something to be you. But I will never know you as you know you. And you can never know me as I know me. We share with our fellow humans limited access and a narrow degree of understanding of our own private and unique realities. As best as we can determine, we each carry our own singular sense of self — our own subjective existences. In fact, I can only speak for myself in making such a declaration. I can only assume you exist within your ...
Sometimes in life we find that what initially appear to be separate and discreet interests can converge to form a compelling composite which begs to be explored. When this occurs in the context of trying to live an examined life, then a stimulating and energizing endeavor is launched. For me lately, by which I mean the past three years or so, that is occurring at the intersection of philosophy and physics. Let me explain. As anyone who may have taken any time over the last couple of years to read my essay posts, it is likely obvious that I have ...
The morning dawned cold and rainy. I fastened the buttons of my coat, pulled my green wool cap over my head, and tightened my red plaid scarf around my neck. Did I wish the weather on that Belgian morning had been more agreeable? Sure, I did. But I was heading to Flanders Fields and the site of what was once known as the northern part of the Western Front during World War I. During the years of 1914 until the end of 1918 this was a place of unspeakable horror for hundreds of thousands of young men. So, no. I ...
My understanding of the founding of the United States, by which I mean the "1776" founding as opposed to the "1619" founding, is that the European Enlightenment inspired our founders to build a new democratic nation upon the fundamental values of freedom and equality. In the Declaration of Independence Jefferson wrote a line that has resonated throughout American history encapsulating these core beliefs — "We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness." Clearly, ...
"Toby! Toby! Where are you? Come here Toby!" Toby was standing in the driveway of his family's home gauging the wind speeds that morning by staring at the tops of a nearby stand of white pines. This meant he was close enough to hear his mother's cries even with the windows closed. As was often the case, Mrs. Pelgren's plaintive and desperate pleas were unrelenting once they started. "Toby! I can't do this alone. Come here, Toby! I need you!" Toby pivoted and slower than usual went for the side door of the house which let him into the kitchen ...
I do not go out of my way to engage in political discourse with others as much as I used to when I was younger. This is especially true for people I do not know well. That said, my political radar is always up when interacting with people I have recently met by assessing their comments in an attempt to discern their political leanings. It's a bad habit, perhaps, but that is the way it is with me. I like to size people up. One such instance arose during the 2020 election season. A hard working builder, who was excellent ...
Provocations All Drunks are skid row bums living in donated tents under bridges. All Trump supporters are racist backwoods rednecks. All Techies are self-obsessed nerds with no social skills. All Lefties are self-righteous, insular, uncompromising prigs. All Children are whiny, self-interested, unsophisticated brats. All Pro-gun nuts are fearful, paranoid, faux courageous extremists. All People of color are lazy and unreliable and always looking for a hand out. All Whites are privileged, wealth hoarding, power hungry aristocratic wannabies. All Christians are holier-than-though, intolerant, nationalist, white supremacists. All Suburbanites are socialist sympathizing and corporate consuming phonies. All Democrats are bleeding heart, atheistic, ...
A seminal event in the development of machine learning occurred over a two-month period during the summer of 1956—about a half-hour drive from where I am now writing—at Dartmouth College in Hanover, New Hampshire. The year before, an Assistant Professor of Mathematics at Dartmouth, John McCarthy, generated the idea of compiling an eclectic group of talent who were to be tasked with conducting an original type of prognostication in an area so new that he needed a fresh term to describe it. Professor McCarthy coined a label for his proposed conference's topic...Artificial Intelligence. Although a decade before Gordon E. Moore ...
Eyes flicker open. Another day dawns. The window reveals the morning sun breaking through what remains of the rain clouds. They have dominated the skies over the past few dreary days. Hope and possibility again seem likely. That familiar spark of energy is again kindled. My mind adjusts by reviewing and making plans with renewed enthusiasm and vigor. It is what gets me to stand up, stretch, and step forward. This cycle has repeated itself countless times. It has led to much productivity and a feeling of purpose, in large part defining who I am. But today is different. This ...
The 2020 election is finally over. The feeble claims of election fraud by the Republicans have been shunted to the background of most Americans' minds, at least for now. For most, getting past a year of Covid deaths, infections, and restrictions to an eagerly anticipated vaccinated future of health and socialization is looking to be a much more appealing topic. But of course with me politics never really takes much of a break, so now seems like a good time to assess the current condition and purpose of the Democratic Party. My main interest today is in offering my take ...
Between the lunch and dinner shifts I would be allowed a break from my dish washing duties at the Kittansett Club in Marion, Massachusetts. This was during the summer of 1973. If the weather was sunny, but with a light breeze, I would often choose to sit among the boulders, which were closely packed together where the end of Butler Point meets Buzzards Bay. For many of these days I carried with me a worn paperback book with a bright blue cover entitled Future Shock. I was among the many readers and neophyte futurists to gobble up that book, starting ...
Trail Cat Walking steeply down a hilly and remote Scottish footpath On a glorious sunny Spring day When below us emerging from the wood and crossing the stream Appear two women with several young children But wait! What is that? Trotting determinedly along behind the last child Like a loyal dog Was a cat! A trail cat Yes, a cat was marching with the women and children A sleek, gray, attentive, and unusually compliant cat The troupe climbed the hill toward us and we stepped aside Ascending slowly but dutifully up the hill the cat panted Uncommon sight it is ...
My heart had finally settled back to its natural rhythm a short while earlier. My mind on the other hand had not. It had been about an hour since the near miss on NY Route 67 as it neared Interstate 87 north of Albany. The fright I experienced once I realized my tires were starting to be overpowered by the shoulder's soft sand was a slap to my psyche. An oncoming van drifted into my lane forcing me to the right. Thankfully, the van's driver snapped to in enough time to center the vehicle within its lane, but not before ...
The most precious inheritance that parents can give their children is their own happiness. — Thich Nhat Hanh Introduction Deciding on a guiding set of principles to live by with the intention of getting the most from life sounds like a good idea. Perhaps I should say, the idea of experiencing happiness and purpose in life sounds like a good idea. I mean a purpose beyond just feeling good most of the time requires some structure or framework comprised of values, beliefs, and ethics which can provide a life affirming center or grounding while navigating the tempestuous comings and goings ...
As I write this essay the Covid-19 pandemic of 2020 is ongoing. This pandemic is breaking all of the rules. Among them is the enormous impact the contagion is having by upending national economies and the day-to-day lifestyles of many millions. To a greater extent however, we are being shaken from our oblivious slumber to suddenly find ourselves facing long term consequences of how global functioning and our individual lives are to continue as a result of this catastrophe. Unlike most news events in the modern era that seem to captivate attention dramatically, but briefly, before being swept aside by ...
The Virtue of Nationalism by Yoram Hazony Basic Books, New York, 2018 The term Nationalism, as a descriptor of political philosophy, cultural identity, and governance methodology has been undergoing a reexamination in recent years. This evaluation is resulting in political lines being starkly drawn around how civil and partisan engagement is to be exercised among the citizens of 21st century sovereign states. The significant emergence of populist right-wing movements in a number of western countries during the 2010s is forcing us to review the advantages and disadvantages wrought upon societies and economies concerning the manner in which globalization's interactions and ...
I haven't written much over the past three months. Some, but not as much as I expected to given I had a three-month period with precious few things needing productive attention and which were largely months that were mine to use as I chose. I can't point to my lack of output to a busy schedule, or identify others as making too many demands of me, or even claim I was the victim of a damnable unexpected obstruction life sometimes throws across our paths without warning. Instead, I think I'll blame it on Spain. After all, this is where those ...
Short story from late 2019 I have seen you closely. I have seen you from afar. Your story reverberates in a continuous loop that saddens, warms, and captivates me. I can’t and won’t turn away from you. Ever. You clearly remember the whoop of excitement ringing out from your colleagues working closely by you in the kiln test pit the group was carefully revealing. One group member, Madeline, called to you by name urging you to see the pottery sherd they had just discovered. It was a reddish jagged ceramic fragment measuring about 12 cm by 7 cm and clearly part of a larger work ...
An opinion written during the fall of 2019 The great challenge for the people of the United States as we move deeper into this century is to extend the privileges of democratic engagement, economic opportunity, and the capacity to shape cultural assimilation and definition within an increasingly complex and diverse citizenry. For more than 240 years America has been continually faced with an epic mission presented to us by the nation’s Founders. It was simply to create a government “of the people, by the people, and for the people”. Doing just this, however, has been anything but easy. Demonstrating democracy with its inherent need for ...
Wanting A child Sees the clear difference Between what she and others have Material riches, self-worth, dignity Not sure what is wrong But something definitely is wrong Work hard. Be like us. The message others give Nighttime hunger, outgrown clothes No new shoes at the start of school Fatigue, vagueness, fog, indignation Hard to be what they want me to be Depression, misbehavior, stern looks from teachers Why not? Life is unfair Living from rental to rental to rental Despairing parents Missing future Absent opportunity She stares into space Dying Brain takes command as always to prepare ...
A reflection written during the summer of 2019 The day begins as many do with the making of coffee. While the water is heating to a boil and during the time it takes for the hot water to drip through ground coffee, I begin to arrange dishes, cups, glasses, and silverware, which have been air drying overnight onto and into their respective places on shelves, drawers, and cupboards. While sipping caffeine my mind turns to the day’s tasks before me. Clothes need to be washed, dried, folded, and arrayed in dressers; the house needs to be cleaned and made to look ...
A reflection written during the Spring of 2019 My earliest political memory is from the early evening of Tuesday, November 8, 1960. It was the night John F. Kennedy won the presidency. My mother needed to run out to a store of some sort and I sat in the back seat of the car. It was cold and dark. I was seven years old and living in Lenox, Massachusetts. My mother’s nervous energy and intense concern were palpable. She and my Massachusetts Irish Roman Catholic Democrat father wanted very much for Kennedy to win. The car radio crackled, because my ...
A reflection written during the Spring of 2019 I live in the hills of western New Hampshire. Rocky and forested it is a place of lakes, ponds, and rushing streams. Especially in the late winter and early spring. The hills of western New Hampshire are sparsely populated. Of the 3,000 plus square miles that make up this region there live around 200,000 people. We’re pressed up against the megalopolis, but not subsumed by it. At least not yet. Someone wise once said your paradise is where you choose to make it. I take this to mean one need not travel ...