Talking Chicken
New Castle, Kentucky. "Simplify, simplify," said Henry David Thoreau in one of his more peaceable moments, and I repeat it through gritted teeth as...
Capitalism as an Unnatural System
Ever since capitalism made its appearance in the late Middle Ages and came to dominate both production and politics in the late 18th century,...
Michael Jackson’s Front Porch Moment
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xmXP9Y1HdWE Okay, so he never did go back to Indiana, back to where he started from. And it's too bad the Jackson 5 didn't...
Teenagers, Gratitude, and a Culture of Affluence
Holland, MI. Like many readers, or perhaps more accurately, like many readers with children, I read with great interest Mark Mitchell’s piece on “Cultivating...
Robert Nisbet’s Quest
Seattle, WA Robert Nisbet's 1953 book The Quest for Community has rightfully achieved that rare and estimable status of "classic." What Nisbet saw more...
Searching for a Usable Past
JEFFERSON COUNTY, KANSAS. My review of Richard Quinney's Of Time and Place, originally published in the University Bookman:
The American experience has always existed in...
Descartes, Algebra, and Alienation
Democratizing eighth-grade algebra promotes social justice. (Brookings Institution)
Money, mechanization, algebra. The three monsters of contemporary civilization. Complete analogy. (Simone Weil)
Mt. Airy, Philadelphia. ...
Play Ball! Tell Stories!
BURNED-OVER DISTRICT, NY---The Muckdogs open tonight against the cursed Auburn Doubledays. It's seventy years now that we've had a professional baseball team in Batavia,...
Is the Devil From Paris?
Irving, Texas. Is the devil from Paris? Many people seem to think so. And if not the devil himself, then at least a particular...
So: Are We Hypocrites?
Claremont, CA. A student has confronted me about Front Porch Republic. So now I'm writing the post that I've known I would have to...