William Burroughs once wrote,  “The aim of education is the knowledge, not of facts, but of values.”  Which begs the question, does the American education system create the space where differing philosophies are presented and collide, where a wide variety of...

English isn’t the world’s most-spoken language but it is universally accepted as the planet’s lingua franca, i.e., the language used as the common language between speakers whose native languages are different, as well as the language anyone who wants to get ahead in...

The Celsius temperature scale was created in the mid-18th century and is part of the metric system.  It’s also the planet’s “official” form of temperature measurement and has been adopted by the majority of countries around the world. Who among us doesn’t recall...

While on safari in Kenya my wife and I were on an evening game drive when we came across the local pride of lions (the Enkoyeni pride) comprising 2 big males, 8 females, and 10 sub-adults.   Our guide Pingua (Ping) told us the pride hadn’t eaten in a few days and were...

Ninety percent (90%) of Americans say they know someone who is lesbian, gay, or bisexual.  At the same time just 16% say they personally know someone who is transgender.  Considering there isn’t an over abundance of scientific study on the matter, unless an individual...

Last summer I purchased a book titled The Life –Changing Magic of Tidying Up by Marie Kondo. Ms. Kondo’s book isn’t nearly as entertaining as A Tale of Two Cities, J.R.R. Tolkien’s Lord of the Rings or the Harry Potter series, but her book had an enormous impact on my...

Fearing their students might suffer long-term emotional distress and mental anguish because Donald Trump was inaugurated, as the 45th President of the United States, college administrators across the country have created “safe spaces” on their campuses for students...

Many years ago, actually make that many, many years ago, while serving in Vietnam I had an experience that left an indelible impression on me.  No, it’s not what you might imagine. Of course I had a few colorful experiences, but being a helicopter pilot was still far...

On a recent trip my wife and I happened upon a kiddie playground replete with swings, horizontal monkey bars, slides of various sizes, a whirl, etc. The playground was vacant but as we walked we spied a series of warning signs alerting people to the dangers that...

Do you remember your first time?  I sure remember mine.  The year was 1955 when my Uncle Joe asked my parents if I could join him to visit my paternal grandparents in Pasadena California. For a 10 year-old fifth-grader the notion of boarding a commercial airliner for...