Robert Putnam

Where's Tom Joad Anyway?

Craig Werner | Posted 04.25.2012

Read More: Robert Putnam, The Ghost of Tom Joad, John Steinbeck, Social Capital, The Grapes of Wrath, Individualism, Bruce Springsteen, College News
Craig Werner

This idea that the American Dream involves making as much cash as possible for yourself is well out of date, and the time has come for a change.

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Occupiers or Liberators?

Ed Crego, George Muñoz and Frank Islam | Posted 01.04.2012

Read More: Protests, Democracy, David Campbell, Tea Party, George Will, Robert Putnam, Occupy Wall Street, Business News
Ed Crego, George Muñoz and Frank Islam

Today a group in the U.S. that labels itself "occupiers" has taken up temporary residence on Wall Street and other cities across the country. In our opinion, these so-called occupiers also deserve the appellation "liberators".

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Don't Like Our Current Politics? Become a Christian Independent

Rev. Jim Ball | Posted 10.15.2011

Read More: Robert Putnam, Christian Independents, Independents, Debt Ceiling, Partisanship, Christian Independence, Religion and Politics, Political Parties, Religious Identity, Christianity and Politics, Religion News
Rev. Jim Ball

Being a registered Independent is a practical, tangible way to declare our independence from poisonous partisanship; it can also be an opportunity to consciously reaffirm our allegiance to Christ in all things.

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Do Atheists Belong In The Interfaith Movement?

Chris Stedman | Posted 08.14.2011

Read More: Friendly Atheist, Lyz Liddell, Or Rose, Kumbaya, Freethought, Jen Mccreight, Science Blogs, Tufts, Ashutosh Varshney, Skepticism, Valarie Kaur, Faith, Tufts Freethought Society, Center for Inquiry, Queer, Atheism, Jesse Galef, Josh Rosenau, Jen Bailey, Robert Putnam, Chris Latondresse, Interfaith Youth Core, Secular Student Alliance, Religion, Evangelical, p.z. Myers, Humanism, Ron Lindsay, American Humanist Association, Blag Hag, Interfaith, Christianity, Eboo Patel, Roy Speckhardt, Humanist Chaplaincy at Harvard, Religion News
Chris Stedman

In my experience, interfaith work doesn't require that people check their convictions at the door, and if the only thing keeping atheists from participating is a semantic disagreement with the word "faith," I think that is a missed opportunity.

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How, Or If, You Give Thanks Speaks Volumes

Posted 05.25.2011

Read More: Politics of Saying Grace, Prayer and Politics, David Campbell, Thanksgiving Prayer, Robert Putnam, Thanksgiving 2010, Prayer for Food, American Grace, Thanksgiving Blessing, Grace After Meals, Religion News

By Daniel Burke Religion News Service (RNS) Whether it's a mere "Rub a dub dub, thanks for the grub," or a more solemn supplication, millions of Amer...

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Do Religious People Make Easy Targets For Scams?

Posted 05.25.2011

Read More: Prosperity Gospel, Faith and Fraud, Scamming the Religious, Religion and Fraud, Robert Putnam, 2006 Faith Matters Survey, American Grace, David Campbell, Bernie Madoff, American Grace Fraud, Bernard Madoff, Religion News

By Nicole Neroulias Religion News Service (RNS) Convicted Ponzi schemer Bernard Madoff bilked billions of dollars out of thousands of fellow Jews, in...

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Americans Have More Friends, and Not Just on Facebook

Bella DePaulo | Posted 11.17.2011

Read More: Barry Wellman, Faux Friends, Friends, Sociological Analyses, Close Friends, Economic Disparity, Income, Emotional Sharing, Television, Relatives, Social Connections, Social Networks, Media Panic, Surveys, Robert Putnam, Claude Fischer, Neighbors, Internet Use, Nostalgia, Self-Disclosure, Confidants, Myths, Loneliness, USA Today, Education, Social Ties, Social History, Internet, Social Isolation, New York Times, Facebook Friends, Bowling Alone, Miller McPherson, Healthy Living News
Bella DePaulo

Remember the media panic from the summer of 2006 about lonely and isolated Americans? The publication of a sociological study had unleashed a cascade...

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What If Everyone On Twitter Read The Same Book?

Jeff Howe | Posted 12.12.2011

Read More: Gabriel Garcia Marquez, Neil Gaiman, Twitter, One Book One City, Robert Putnam, Books, Ray Bradbury, Bowling Alone, Nancy Pearl, Social Capital, One Book One Twitter, Books News
Jeff Howe

What if everyone in the world read the same book? We have the ideal technology at our fingertips--Twitter. All we need now is the book.

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It's Loneliness, Not Depression

Giles Slade | Posted 11.17.2011

Read More: Isolation, Social Media, Neuroscience, Depression, Depression Treatment, Social Networking, Robert Putnam, Women's Health, Science, Psychology, Bowling Alone, Social Capital, Medicine, The Inner Life, Healthy Living News
Giles Slade

Loneliness is murkier. It's less controllable. It says something about our lives today--about the lack of connection many of us feel---about the way social ties are fracturing like glass.

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Getting By With a Little Help From Our Friends (and Facebook)

Noah Baron | Posted 05.25.2011

Read More: Twitter, Social Networking, Robert Putnam, Internet Addiction, Facebook, Social Capital, 2008 Election, Barack Obama, College News
Noah Baron

Many young Americans have about the growing influence of technology. But no matter how new technology may change the manifestations of human relations, it will never eliminate them.

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Activism 2.0: New Yorkers for Marriage Equality Ready for 2010

Chrissie Brodigan | Posted 05.25.2011

Read More: Christine Quinn, New Yorkers for Marriage Equality, Julie Blitzer, Organizing 2.0, New-York-Marriage-Equality, Al Benninghoff, Robert Putnam, Bowling-Alone-Robert-Putnam, Activism 2.0, Bowling Alone, Chrissie Brodigan, Manhattan-Young-Democrats, Myd, Technology News
Chrissie Brodigan

The vote blocking New York Marriage Equality was among the most disappointing legislative upsets in 2009, was also paired alongside activists' implementation of some of the most innovating technology on the market.

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Diversity: Is It A Bad Thing?

Newsweek | Eboo Patel | Posted 11.17.2011

Read More: Diversity Good, Birds of a Feather, Diversity Bad, Bowling Alone Robert Putnam, Robert Putnam, Michael Jonas, Bowling Alone, Social Capital, Diversity, Healthy Living News

The first thing my wife and I comment on when we go to a restaurant or a park is the diversity. We generally want more. We're part of a generation of ...

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