My friend Chelsea recently posed an interesting question on her blog: so, here’s a topic that’s been on my mind: blogs vs. reality tv, and how the two have a similar platform – a peek into someone else’s presumably ordinary life that is made interesting by the use of imagery, prose, camera work, etc. – and [...]
A recent article on Salon discussed at length the growing problem of American teenagers getting to college without basic writing skills. The article focuses on English classes, and how they are moving away from more traditional writing focus to more presentations, discussions, and other more “soft” teaching methods. The author, Kim Brooks, considers the possibility [...]
Today we have something positive to talk about for once. I know, hard to believe that something postive happened in the world. Even more unbelievable because this happened on the internet. But this is a true story. The subject today is the webcomic Darth and Droids. The writers are retelling the Star Wars movies as [...]
Death comes to all of us, religious and rational. As an atheist, I do not have the same rich collection of songs, poems, and readings to draw from that my religious counterparts do. I know this is something others struggle with as well. Which is why when this poem was shared with me, I knew [...]
I believe that a great deal of the problems in the United States are caused by problems in education. This is caused by the nature of democracy. In order for voters to made good choices, they need to have the proper information. Education enables them to not only be taught some information, but properly gain [...]
Last week, we discussed whether you should let children read ebooks (short answer: yes). If you decide to get an e-reader, either for a child or for yourself, there is a daunting selection available. I am going to break down what I think are the key items to keep in mind. Full disclosure: I own [...]