Note on White Privilege and Speedy Gonzalez
Here’s the thing about racism (sexism, ableism): the obvious stuff is easy. When an individual standing next to you at a bus stop says, “I hate your kind”, you know that some kind of ‘ism’ is at play. The latter happened to me at a bus stop in East Lansing a decade plus ago. But…
Comp 1 Memes
In an attempt to have my students learn about the rhetorical triangle (audience, writer, issue), I have them create memes (which are attuned, hopefully, to their audience). Here are a few from class today.
The “function of education”
Manifesto for the University of the Future
From the Manifesto: §20. In our universities, the nurturing of care and curiosity will be equally true of our teaching. Since research turns all answers into questions, it cannot be taught as if the questions were already answered. Truth is never given in advance; it is rather a horizon of attainment that ever exceeds our…
Some wise words from Terrence Malick’s Tree of Life
“I wanted to be loved because I was great; A big man. I’m nothing. Look at the glory around us; trees, birds. I lived in shame. I dishonored it all, and didn’t notice the glory. I’m a foolish man.”
Journal Article: Politics of Health: “Nature” at the Intersection of Religion, Disability and Ecology
LINK
Revealing boundary-breaking book review focused on the similarities between human and animal intelligences and the problem of anthropomorphism
Celebrating Martin Luther King Jr. Day
[What follows is a guest column I wrote for The Crescent News (Defiance, OH). It was published on Jan. 18, 2016.] While many celebrate Martin Luther King, Jr., his complexity has been largely erased from our memories. He has been sentimentalized to such an extent that the radical nature of his message has been lost. Even…
JSTOR Daily and my 2005 essay on The Big Lebowski
JSTOR Daily is featuring my 2005 essay on The Big Lebowski. You can grab a free pdf of the essay at this link. Enjoy.
Defying the Certainty of the Christian Right
Killing the Buddha has published my recent piece on “Defying the Certainty of the Christian Right.” Check it out.
An Act That Enabled Acceptance – The New York Times
“Certainly, the longevity of our union also owes a great debt to honest communication and creative problem solving. The wedding photo is a good example. We put it up only after we grew tired of deliverymen and repairmen and housecleaners asking if she was my sister, or my nurse. Some have even called her a…
FAITH: Atheism is Wasted on The Nonbeliever, by Richard Rodriguez | The Value of Sparrows
“I believe in Jesus Christ, the Christ who was a loser in human history — destroyed by this world — whose life reveals in its generosity and tragedy the most complete and challenging version of theism I know. What the New Atheists do not comprehend is that the crucifix cannot be mocked. It is itself…
My New Book, What Comes After Occupy?
I just published What Comes After Occupy? The Regional Politics of Resistance (Cambridge Scholars Publishing, 2015). Here’s the blurb from the back cover: Occupy Wall Street, as centered in New York City, received much publicity. Little attention, however, has been granted to the hundreds of Occupy groups in marginal locations whose creative politics were certainly not limited…
Knuckles Muldoon: Or, One Viewpoint on the Plural Nature of the Liberal Arts
What follows is an article focused on the nature of the liberal arts as it relates to the creation of knowledge. It will be published in the DC Magazine in the next few months. *** Meet Knuckles Muldoon. Knuckles has, yes, knuckles, but he is less a fighter than a lover at first glance. He is…
Alison Bechdel Draws a Fun Home Coda — Vulture
For my students in EN 290, who appeared to love FUN HOME: Alison Bechdel Draws a Fun Home Coda — Vulture.
