It's hard to put into words why this short video, "Where The Hell Is Matt?," touches something so visceral, but one tends to feel hopeful when watching it. Yeah, it's only a man taking his silly dance across the world, but there is a sense of unity, an acknowledgement...

On the one hand, I considered Scott McClellan's revelations better late than never, but then upon further consideration, I began to become angry. Yes, it's redeeming and validating to have the Bush administration's ineptitude confirmed--not that anyone really should need it confirmed--but why now? Why not then? I think the...

Several months ago, I wrote here about the possibility of my being able to buy back the home that I had to sell due to a divorce agreement. Presently, though, there is one particular roadblock hindering me from making the transfer: namely, it's a buyer's market, which is making...

Recently, a friend gave me a bookmark with the Desiderius Erasmus quote, When I get a little money I buy books; and if any is left I buy food and clothes. My friend knows just how important books are to me and that I'm not content unless I'm surrounded by...

When someone mentioned the cover of this week's The New Yorker during a meeting I was attending, I thought it a curious non sequitur. I'm a committee member of The New York Round Table Writer's Conference and we were finalizing the line up for our upcoming fourth conference...

In 1807, when Thomas Jefferson was president, Aaron Burr acquitted of treason, and poet Henry Wadsworth Longfellow was born in a country a baby itself, there was a man named Charles Wiley who opened a print shop in New York City. What is astounding is how that print shop managed...

In their recently published books, two authors claim responsibility for where we are politically as a country. Stephen Marks and Frank Schaeffer didn't work in tandem, but both admit because of their assistance--one as an opposition researcher and the other as an organizer for the political efforts of religious fundamentalists--our...

My dilemma is wondering under what category I should post this blog. See, Henrietta Yurchenco was more than just an ethnomusicologist. She was also a political activist who entertained those around her with stories of her travels to find music that might otherwise never have been exposed to the outside...

How is it someone so close to the Bush administration couldn't discern truth from fiction when so many Americans saw the fabrications? Apparently, readers will be told how in former White House Press Secretary Scott McClellan's forthcoming book, What Happened: Inside the White House and What's Wrong with Washington. A...

On this Veteran's Day, let's be sure to wear our American flag pins in honor of our war heroes. In addition, let's drive our gas-guzzling vehicles to the mall, pull out our over-extended credit card, and spend money we don't have on a new mattress or an upgraded DVD player,...

Whether a writer is part of the Guild or not, it's true we are an underpaid lot; all one needs to do is check out the posts on Craigslist.com for writing gigs and that is apparent. Many publishers will take advantage of those trying to break into the business by...

It's been quite some time since a book of poetry has truly excited and inspired me, but that is exactly what occurred recently. When I got my hands on Poetry Speaks Expanded (Source Books), I immediately cracked it open and began leafing through the pages. There is something nourishing...

After three years of being suspended somewhere between Limbo and Hell, I may finally be able to get back to the only place that means home for me. A divorce was the impetus that first forced me from my roomy sanctuary and into a cramped upstairs apartment where the downstairs...

Even though a year has passed, I still feel a profound sadness for the Amish in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania; not only for the way they lost their little girls, because that in itself is incomprehensible, but also for the way the world suddenly invaded their simplistic way of life.

I've been reading about a new book that was just published by New Press titled How to Read the Bible and I'm intrigued. Years ago, during the "born again" stage of my life when I was young, vulnerable, and searching, I quite likely would have rationalized that the author, James...

A new report doesn't bode well for books. According to an Associated Press-Ipsos poll released recently, one in four adults read not a single book last year, which explains the significant drop in book sales over the last few years, but doesn't explain why superstores, like Barnes & Noble...

Fellow blogger Timothy Ferriss here on the Huffington Post recently wrote about his book hitting number one on the New York Times and Wall Street Journal business bestseller lists. First, a hearty congratulations to him, since that is no easy feat. Hours after having read his post, I was...

It's not an exaggeration to say we as a country have changed after 9/11. One of the mainstays, however, is that we are still immersed in a plethora of tabloid sensation while Osama bin Laden has yet to be caught. Yes, the terrorists, namely al Qeada, brought war to the...

Years ago, a friend of mine was thrilled that Walter Mondale selected Geraldine Ferraro as his running mate; without question, my friend planned to vote for the duo and based it solely on the fact that she was eager to see history being made. I agreed that it would be...

After Tony Snow said that the Iraq government was taking the month of August off for a vacation because it was difficult for them to work in such heat, there were a number of protests and the question that if the troops are still expected to do their mission (even...