by admin | Aug 29, 2015 | Blogging, Disaster, History, Resilience
For the first time since launching this blog, I have invited a guest author, Stephen D. Villavaso, a New Orleans native, urban planner, and land-use attorney, to comment on today’s tenth anniversary of Hurricane Katrina’s landfall on the Gulf Coast. I was heavily...
by admin | Jun 21, 2015 | Civil rights, Government, History, Public safety, Racism, Religion
Less than three weeks ago, on June 2, a Chicago Transit Authority (CTA) bus mysteriously crashed a red light on Lake St. during the evening rush hour, jumped the curb on the eastern side of Michigan Ave., and killed one pedestrian while injuring several others. The...
by admin | Jun 14, 2015 | Activism, Civil rights, Disaster, Environment, History, Housing, Travel, Urban Planning
There is something mildly disconcerting about visiting an intriguing city several times without having the spare time to go tourist. I first visited Charleston, South Carolina, in 2003, for a business meeting with the National Fire Protection Association, for which I...
by admin | May 3, 2015 | Books, Chicago, History, Journalism, Writing
Yesterday (May 2), a modest crowd celebrated 100 years of the Society of Midland Authors with speakers, panel discussions, and readings of authors past at the end of Society of Midland Authors Week, as declared by the Chicago City Council. Unfortunately, the event had...
by admin | Jan 19, 2015 | Activism, Civil rights, Government, History, Movies, Political philosophy, Racism
On this weekend of the Martin Luther King Jr. holiday, my wife and I spent last night watching the movie Selma before going out to dinner. Produced by Oprah Winfrey, who also plays the part a Selma protester, the movie focuses on Dr. King’s leadership of the March...
by admin | Oct 18, 2014 | History, Literature, Political philosophy, Religion
This is the sin against the Holy Ghost: – To speak of bloody power as right divine, And call on God to guard each vile chief’s house, And for such chiefs, turn men to wolves and swine:- To go forth killing in White Mercy’s name, Making the trenches...
