A LITTLE PAIN

My students are on drugs. A few years ago, most of the students in my class were on drugs, mostly a cocktail of prescribed anti-depressants. Seriously. I know this because they told me themselves. Most were taking drugs prescribed for them by local doctors or therapists. More recently, several students told me that they too, …

COLLEGE ADMISSIONS

Soon after I entered the University of Washington in the 70s, my mother returned to work. She was an admissions officer at the UW through the 80s. Foreign students were a significant and invaluable presence when I was there. That diverse presence ended soon after I graduated because the State insisted on favoring local students. …

THIS IS HOW OLD I AM

I remember when there was only one Starbucks across the street from the Public Market and it also sold chocolate from Belgium and spices in little baggies as if cumin were something that could get you high and maybe it did. I remember when Nordstrom only sold shoes. I remember when the Smith Tower was …

Abdul Aziz

Abdul Aziz doesn't think he is a hero. Allah had not chosen that time for him to die, and he believes he did what anyone would have done in that situation. May he be blessed for his courage and honor grace his steps. These have been days it has been difficult to stay off social …

QUOTE

Screenwriter, television producer, television director, comedian, and comic book writer, John Rogers: "There are two novels that can change a bookish fourteen-year old's life: The Lord of the Rings and Atlas Shrugged. One is a childish fantasy that often engenders a lifelong obsession with its unbelievable heroes, leading to an emotionally stunted, socially crippled adulthood, unable to deal …

WHAT I KNOW ABOUT GUNS

On NPR, a high school senior talked about how his “support for the 2nd amendment” had not changed after the death of his sister at the hands of a gunman a year before. I wondered about that capacity for changing my mind. My personal experience suggests that people are foolish to place faith in guns …

Abortion is not a dirty word and Planned Parenthood isn’t a McDonald’s and the GOP can go F**K itself

From my favorite opinionated "Margaret and Helen": via Abortion is not a dirty word and Planned Parenthood isn't a McDonald's and the GOP can go F**K itself

PIE DAY

She said she'd gotten into the program because she was from a Brahmin family and had gone to Scripps. "He's sorry now," she told me. "I'm not what he expected, and now he won't even talk to me." The young woman had relocated thousands of miles from home for the program, but realized all too …

“REVERSE RACISM”

When white people complain about "reverse racism", it's generally because they have been badly treated by a person of color. "I’m not arguing that racism doesn’t exist, it’s more obvious than ever now. My statement is regarding reverse racism, which some people argue doesn’t exist."—on Facebook I would agree with those "some people." Set aside …

SLEEPING IN THE DARK

    People are arguing again about DSL. They are talking about it in Congress. We went to bed late on Sunday night, hoping to trick our bodies into more quickly accepting the time shift to Daylight Saving Time. I had set my watch forward before going to bed on Saturday and Gary was still …