Category Archives: Blog
Technology’s State of Crisis Demand Crisis Management
San Francisco Chronicle, September 16, 2018, p. E7. Make no mistake about it, technology is in a state of crisis of its own making. Technology has betrayed our deepest sense of trust and well-being. It has allowed itself — indeed, … Continue reading
Posted in Crisis Management, Philosophy + Systems
Tagged crisis management, technology
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Ethical Technologies? A Pipedream? My Love/Hate Affair with Social Media
I believe that in far too many cases, social networks pander to the worst impulses of our society’s juvenile, obsessive need for instantaneous, narcissistic gratification. That said, in the case of the horrific Boston bombings, I also recognize they played an invaluable role in apprehending the perpetrators. Continue reading
Posted in Blog, Media + Politics
Tagged Boston, cyber bulling, Facebook, social media
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The Banality of Evil Arguments, Part II
Immediately after the parents of the children who were killed in Newtown met with President Obama and Senators in Washington DC in an attempt to win support for new gun control legislation, the Right-wing began its scurrilous attacks. Listening to the sickening “arguments” — if they can be called that — the following question immediately crossed my mind, “How should the Newtown parents have responded such that they would have satisfied the Right?” The “answers” I came up with constitutes in effect an evil argument. Continue reading
The Banality of Evil Arguments
In April 17, 1775, Boswell recorded one of Samuel Johnson’s most famous lines, “Patriotism is the last refuge of a scoundrel.” If he were alive today, I believe that Johnson might well say, “Evil arguments are the first and last refuge of scoundrels.” Continue reading
Posted in Blog, Media + Politics, Philosophy + Systems, Sociology
Tagged arguments, background checks, gun control
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Want to End Gun Violence? Write A Good Bumper Sticker!
One of the reasons why the NRA and rabid gun “enthusiasts” are so effective in getting their ideas across is that they’ve perfected the art of writing bumper stickers. Continue reading
Posted in Blog, Media + Politics, Philosophy + Systems
Tagged gun control, gun violence, NRA, violence
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Treating Gun Violence as an Addiction and a Cult
If as I believe that an obsessive need for guns is akin to an addiction and therefore cannot be dealt with by means of conventional arguments (after all, many alcoholics know “rationally” that alcohol is killing them but they are still unable to resist its near total control over their lives), then I believe that we need to stop beating around the bush and treat the obsessive need for guns as a major form of addiction. Continue reading
Posted in Blog, Crisis Management, Media + Politics, Psychology
Tagged 12 Step Program, addiction, cult, gun control, gun violence, guns, NRA
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Let No Factor Go Unheeded: Treat Every Causative Factor in Gun Violence as Aggresively as Possible
There are at least two widely differing positions in treating gun violence that surface every time there is a horrendous tragedy like that which happened in Newtown, Connecticut. Indeed, they are always just beneath the surface of any argument pertaining to gun control. Continue reading
Posted in Blog, Psychology
Tagged gun control, gun violence, Sandy Hook, Sandy Hook Elementary School Shooting, violence
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Deadly Assumptions: When the World Is Shattered
From the standpoint of assumptions, no matter how unalike they are on their surface, crises are eerily alike. Continue reading
Enough Is Enough: It’s Time to Get Tough on Organizations That Involve Children in Any Form or Manner
Whether we are experiencing an “actual, real epidemic” of child abuse or because of the overwhelming presence of the media we are just more aware of it is beside the point. What is not beside the point is that some of the most important and highly esteemed organizations have not only engaged in serious cases of child abuse, but engaged in concerted and repeated actions to protect and/or shelter those guilty of committing abuse. Continue reading
Posted in Blog, Media + Politics, Philosophy + Systems, Sociology
Tagged abuse, BBC, Boy Scouts of America, Catholic Chruch, child abuse, media, Penn State, public trust
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Big Bird And Mister Rogers Are Not Just For Kids: We Need Their Wisdom More Than Ever
Even though the news has obviously moved on, it’s still important to correct a common, and dangerous, misperception that lies at the root of Mitt Romney’s expressed desire to terminate funding for Big Bird and PBS — that they are solely for kids and liberals. Continue reading
Posted in Blog, Media + Politics
Tagged Big Bird, Fred Rogers, Mister Rogers, politics
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