The Editors
Articles by The Editors
Localist Roundup: Wendell Berry Interview
Apparently, it's Wendell Berry's 80th birthday today. In honor of that, here is an interview with him. Meanwhile, TIME speculates on Pope Francis's possible visit to the States. In other…
Happy Birthday, Mr. Berry
[Cross-posted to In Medias Res] Today, Wendell Berry turns 80. There is much which could and perhaps should be said in honor of him on the occasion of his birthday,…
Riverboat Pilots and Economists
In “Life on the Mississippi,” Mark Twain recounts his earnest desire to become a Mississippi steamboat pilot, and his struggles to master the pilot’s craft—a craft that demanded technical knowledge…
The Ailing Parson Malthus Project and the “New Sin of Pride”
Anyone who's had the good fortune to spend time reading Christopher Lasch might be able to identify with the specific experience of risable joy I feel when putting myself in…
Rising at Night
“…and when anything needs doing it ought not to be left undone, whether it be day or night. There are occasions when a householder should rise while it is still…
Localist Roundup: Little Free Libraries
This piece argues that the state of religion in the U.S. can be partially explained through the decline in traditional Catholic weddings. Meanwhile, this article describes efforts to support local textiles…
Rituals of Embodiedness
[or “Talking with Our Stuff,” or “Salvation by Coffee”] This spring I had to buy a new coffee mill. Facing the loss of both my electric coffee grinder and my…
The Good Man Must Himself Be a True Poem
The M.F.A. program in Creative Writing at the University of Notre Dame has just published an interview with me as part of its alumni series. There, I get to reflect…
Localist Roundup: The Best Solutions Are Local
This piece laments the loss of quiet in a technological age. Meanwhile, this article describes some approaches European cities are taking to encourage revival. In political news, Representative Paul Ryan has a…
Care for a Wife’s Health
“Seeing, then, that such care is lavished on the body’s food, surely every care should be taken on behalf of our own children’s mother and nurse, in whom is implanted…
Localist Roundup: Mild Electrical Shocks
This USDA press release outlines recent efforts to offer more support to the local food movement. Meanwhile, this piece explains the importance of restaurants for cities. Lastly, this article reports that, apparently,…
A Quaker for Peace
From The American Conservative, my remembrance of Robert D. Stuart Jr., whose family knew oatmeal.
Localist Roundup: Coping With Loneliness
According to this piece, millennials have some interesting tensions in their political views. Meanwhile, this article bemoans the way that parking has taken over cities. This article describes an epidemic…
Place and the Role of Planning
[This post is adapted with permission from “The Space Was Ours Before We Were the Place’s,” an essay in the anthology Why Place Matters: Geography, Identity, and Civic Life in…
Trust, Community Ties, and Letting Your Children Play
[Cross-posted to In Medias Res] The story has exploded all over the internet : Debra Harrell, a Georgia woman, dropped her 9-year-old child off at a park–not an isolated and…
What Will Make Me Grateful?
“The greatest benefits will not bind the ungrateful.” Aesop’s Fables The farmer, finding a frozen snake, pitied him and placed him in his bosom to thaw. The revived snake, unmoved…
Civic Engagement and the “Native Country”
[This post is adapted with permission from “Making American Places: Civic Engagement Rightly Understood,” an essay in the anthology Why Place Matters: Geography, Identity, and Civic Life in Modern America,…
Things Grow Better With Coke
The humble squash bug is truly a remarkable creature. The neonicotinoid pesticides that play such havoc with the fragile bees and birds have no effect whatsoever on the resilient squash…
Accreditation to the Rescue (for real?)
Hillsdale, Michigan. I am a little late to the surge of 1s and 0s in response to Peter Conn's less than tepid essay about faith and higher education. The gist…
Localist Roundup: Facebook Moderation
This article investigates tensions for Catholic businessmen trying to follow church social doctrine. Meanwhile, this piece describes a innovative local food option that is currently making its way from France…
Learning from the Bees
“Passing their lives under exalted laws, Alone they recognize a fatherland And the sanctity of a home, and provident For coming winter set to work in summer And store their…
Localist Roundup: NSA News
In recent news, the Wasington Post's analysis of leaked data has shown greater legally indefensible activity by the NSA than previous thought. Meanwhile, this article criticizes the modern employee-employer relationship. Lastly, this…
Localist Roundup: Fireworks and Urban Farms
This article laments the "intrusion of economics into everything else." Meanwhile, this piece highlights creative urban farm ideas from around the world. This article explains how some cities are finding…
Who Knew Independence Could Be This Easy?
Hillsdale, Michigan: While Americans are gearing up for fireworks, automobile sales, and burnt hot dogs, the Scots are debating whether to declare their independence from the United Kingdom. It…