Columnists

As a kid, I wasn’t big on sports, but I played them. That’s what boys did in the ‘70s and ‘80s. I joined pee-wee football despite my diminutive stature; I was serviceable in soccer but participated more for the camaraderie with teammates. I was actually...
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In “How to Convince Americans to Abolish the Death Penalty,” Amherst College Professor Austin Sarat asserts “important lessons about how abolitionists can be successful around the country” can be learned from New Hampshire – which just last month became the twenty-first state to abolish capital...
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I’ve been seeking imaginary companions this summer. No, I’ve not gone “Big Bird” and sought out woolly mammoth buddies. I’ve been reading books. Yes, gentle, reader, I can imagine what you’re thinking. “Is Snuffleupagus a woolly mammoth? And is he the best analogy you can...
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I know of a woman who knits only one sock. I’m no longer an absolute beginner, but the more I know, the more I know I don’t know. That’s life and no matter how old I am, there’s always someone who has more to offer...
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Third grade, my teacher Mrs. Taffy Dela-Cioppa said to me, “Oh, there’s something in your eye!” I couldn’t feel anything. What was she talking about? “Oh! It’s just your eye!” I went home that day, went in to the bathroom, lifted up my eyelid, and...
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Children dying in the care of United States government officials. Donald Trump’s racism, misogyny and hate and hate and hate. It’s like nothing I’ve ever experienced or seen before. What to do? How to act? How to be hopeful? Time to talk to my mom....
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“We have a Republican party with no principles, but a spine, and we have a Democratic party with principles, but no spine.”— Allan Lichtman, author of The Case for Impeachment Surveying the wretched hellscape of the American presidency and the Democrats’ efforts to combat the...
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I’ve never been one to predict the future, but the aging process and its impact on my hair has given me a glimpse into divination. It will happen on week two or three of the fall semester. I’ll finish lecturing, and a back-row student will...
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