Category Archives: Uncategorized

Recycling a Call to Action

A few nights ago, my mother, my friend Shelley Feldman, and I went to a concert entitled “Women of Woodstock”.  I imagined beforehand that the songs would be a nostalgia trip, prompting in me, perhaps the urge to sing along.  … Continue reading

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American Republican Politics – Scary

A few nights ago, I forced myself to listen to the two Republican debates on television.  The first debate consisted of the four least popular candidates, as determined by polls; and the second displayed the 11 most popular.  Having 15 … Continue reading

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‘Open Access’– a Quagmire or a Panacea?

Having lived in the ‘Developing world’ or the global ‘South’ for about half of my life, I am very aware of the paucity of research materials available to would-be researchers there.  I have welcomed the idea of ‘open access’ publishing … Continue reading

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On ‘The Invention of Wings’

I had no idea what I was getting in for when I innocently picked up The Invention of Wings (2014, Penguin Books, New York) in an airport bookstore. I needed something to entertain me on a couple more flights.  I’d … Continue reading

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Anticipating a Visit from the Elders

The elders, three of them, arrive in a few hours.  They include my 91 year old mother and her two friends from the UK, one 90 years old, the other 80.  As I approach 70 myself, I am struck by … Continue reading

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A Prisoner’s Memory Strikes a Chord

“It struck me that day that kayaking on the lake was a good analogy for the way I wanted to live my life on this planet:  powered by my own efforts, gliding in harmony with the forces of nature, moving … Continue reading

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On Pets and Morality

When I returned to the US a few years back, I found myself very disapproving of the common American fixation on pets.  Many of my friends and relatives were spending vast amounts of money on their pets, even tens of … Continue reading

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An Ode to Bathing

I stood in the shower, the warm water cascading over my body.  Random thoughts came to mind:  My mother, telling me, as a pre-teen, that one of the tests of ‘lying’ on psychological tests was ‘Do you like to bathe?”.  … Continue reading

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A Beautiful Moment

O, look, a wedge of the sky, between the trees and the house next door is a lovely pink, just a few inches above the horizon. Will it spread and fill the sky? Now I see it due East as … Continue reading

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On Warriors, Men and Gender Studies

The word ‘warrior’ isn’t one that has rolled off my tongue very many times, but in recent months, it seems to be appearing more and more in daily discourse.  I’ve heard about ‘Wounded Warriors’ (people who used to be called … Continue reading

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