The Importance of Family Stories

               My eldest cousin recently passed away, and I had the great fortune of sitting with him about a month ago. During my visit he and I shared family stories, and my cousin had a reputation for being a great storyteller. He did not disappoint me, as he spun quite a few stories about our […]

Of doofuses and kings

                Merriam-Webster defines doofus as: stupid, incompetent or foolish person                 It seems like a good time to introduce you to a group of doofuses who just happen to be a picture perfect fit for the definition.                 Congress recently passed a resolution to award a Congressional Gold Medal to the combined police forces who […]

Pledges and Prayers

                I have seen a lot of memes on social media recently that have had a focus on the Pledge of Allegiance and the Lord’s Prayer. The memes suggest that if these two things were still in public schools, then the society would not be troubled – as the people posting these memes seem to […]

Aunt Jemima meets Doctor Seuss

                When I was about eight years old, the grocery store that was across the street from my home had a promotional visitor in the store. The visitor was a black woman portraying Aunt Jemima and the store was making pancakes to be given away to customers. Of course, you had to use Aunt Jemima’s […]

Black Lives Matter…and other slogans

                Many slogans have flooded social media in the last few years. They have some things in common, and they also have differences.                 In the mid 1980’s worry about climate and concern for the health of our planet were prominent. A slogan that came out of this period was “Save the Rainforest”. Most people […]

The Killing of Walter Wallace Jr.

                The killing of Walter Wallace Jr. has brought turmoil and unanswered questions about justice and accountability to the streets of Philadelphia. We must acknowledge that this shooting is part of a pattern of shooting black men and women that is occurring with increasing frequency in this society.  Every time there is a police shooting […]

Buying a House Can Teach You…..Things.

                Carol and I bought our first house five years ago.  We knew the house would require work and money, and we have replaced the roof, the furnace, the hot water heater, the main electrical panel, and done many other repairs during that time.                 I am presently reading “Caste” written by Isabela Wilkerson, in […]

Corruption in the time of the coronavirus pandemic.

I have been reluctant to write about politics and current issues during this pandemic. Out of respect for the health and economic concerns of people, I have held my voice yet may events have been happening that clutch at my conscience. I have chosen six events that jump out for me, fully realizing that you, […]

Catching a Bird for Thanksgiving

And, no, it is not a turkey. These words were spoken to me by my daughter, Zeneba, when she and her husband, Matt, called us this morning on a Thanksgiving call from Soriano, Italy. She said them to me after I was telling her the following story on that phone call. The encounter with the […]

The Proud Boys are in our midst.

I wrote a letter to the editor at the Inquirer but it appears it will not be accepted so I decided to make a blog entry about it. I was responding to an op-ed article written by Christine Flowers. Some of you locally may recognize her as a frequent contributor to the Inquirer and she […]