Revisiting the Foundations of Democratic Self-Governance
Virginia Tech (VT) President Tim Sands shared a thoughtful letter with the faculty, staff and students of the institution he leads on March 30, 2018. His comments concerned an incident earlier in that...
View Article“Seeking What No Other Man has Found or can Find”
I had coffee recently with an old friend and our discussion soon turned to the dangers now facing our Republic and other democracies around the world. As we shared our concerns, we both observed that...
View ArticleIn Memoriam: Wolfgang Natter, May 22, 1955-April 29, 2018
My friend and former colleague Wolfgang Natter died suddenly on April 29th. He was serving as Vice President of Academic Affairs at The College of St. Scholastica in Duluth, Minnesota at his passing. I...
View ArticleMax Stephenson is taking a break.
Max Stephenson is taking a break. Soundings will next appear on June 4, 2018.
View ArticlePondering Kintsugi and Community Change in Appalachia
On April 21 I traveled to Whitesburg, Kentucky, a small community of fewer than 2,000 people located in Letcher County, in the mountains of the eastern part of the state, with a group of gifted...
View ArticleThe Fearsome Power of Hate
I have been reflecting on the apparently limitless human propensity for hatred and cruelty, especially as so many illustrations have been under discussion in recent days. I want to share two examples...
View ArticleAn “Infestation” of Lies [1]
While Donald Trump is now well known for persistently lying to the American people about matters large and small, I was nonetheless surprised to read that he had sought to defend his ruinous and cruel...
View ArticleProphetic Imagination and the Current American Governance Crisis
An acquaintance likes to describe the Old Testament Hebrew prophet Amos as the “truck driver” of the Bible’s seers, as he was straightforward, plain-spoken and fierce about his values and views. Those...
View ArticleRationalizing Trump: A Strained and Strange Mixture of Fantasy and Fear
One of the great puzzles of the Trump presidency is why his supporters and his adopted political party continue to accept his ludicrous lies and assent to whatever he argues, however fantastic. Logic...
View ArticleA Calculated Attack on Human Rights and Dignity
Sometimes we need to remind ourselves of the obvious and occasionally we read something or converse with someone who shines a spotlight on the proverbial elephant in the room. I had just such a moment...
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