Preserving American Values

Our nation stands under attack … not from without but from within. American values, our politics, and our culture have been corrupted.

recent posts

about

Websites: www.westillholdthesetruths.weebly.com; www.preservingamericanvalues.com; www.thepracticalbuddhist.com. A graduate of Brown U. and U. of Chicago Law School, I’ve had a varied career as a legal aid lawyer, survey researcher, nonprofit executive, management consultant, composer, teacher, and author. I have authored 7 books on topics as varied as Buddhism, child rearing, and politics, the latter of which received a pre-publication endorsement from James Fallows, National Correspondent, The Atlantic. My Buddhist blog was selected as one of the top 50 Buddhist blogs on the web.

Category: American Culture

  • The Case for Civil Disobedience

    Millions of disheartened people across the country and many organizations are trying to figure out how to respond to the recent election.  The common denominator for most seems to be anger.  Some want to protest.  Some seek to prevent Democrats in Congress from working with Trump in any way, regardless the worth of the project.…

  • A Plea to the Conscience of Conservative Republicans and Independents

    The question for you on Tuesday is:  do you vote for Donald Trump because he’s the Republican candidate and just hold your nose, or do you vote for Hilary Clinton because, although she’s a Democrat and a disliked Clinton at that, her presidency would clearly be in the better interest of the country than a Trump…

  • The Unspoken Scourge of Not Feeling Respected

    Much has been written and spoken about the problem of increased income inequality in this country.  It has caused huge distress in the lives of many people and has weakened the social fabric of our society. But there is another type of inequality which is just as prevalent and perhaps even more devastating … the…

  • The Presidential Election: Where Is Our Country Heading?

    The purpose of democratic government, as stated in the Declaration of Independence, is to secure the rights of the people to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.  We may have never pursued this perfectly, certainly not for all the people.  But we have now, unfortunately, reached a point in our history where the best…

  • Understanding Rage and Bringing Us Back from the Brink

    Many people would look at the phrase “understanding rage” as an oxymoron.  To them rage is irrational.  It’s craziness.   And because it’s not a rational state, it cannot be understood.  It’s true that there is no reasoning with rage.  The rational forces of democracy are not only helpless to hold it in check, the…

  • Is There No End to Mass Violence?

    In just the past few weeks we have witnessed the mass shooting in Orlando, the suicide bombing at the Istanbul airport, the shooting and machete attack in Bangladesh, and now a bombing in Iraq … a total of more than 250 people dead, and as many injured.  And ISIS is connected either directly or indirectly…

  • We Can’t Change People, But We Can Control Access to Guns

    Why is gun control essential?  Because people are people; many suffer and lash out, some become violent. We can’t control people’s psychology and what they do or say.  But we can control the availability of weapons that enable them to kill and injure. The tragedy in Orlando raises many questions, the most basic being whether…

  • Incompetent Response by Police in Orlando?

    At 2 am, the gunman started shooting in an outdoor area.  At some point not too long thereafter, the timing has not been indicated, the uniformed security officer on site and several police officers opened fire on the gunman who then retreated into the club, apparently holing up in a bathroom with numerous hostages. Three…

  • Understanding Why America Is No Longer, and Perhaps Can Never Be, As Great As It Was

    People either go on about how great America is, or they lament that America is not as great as it used to be.  In the first case, people typically ignore reality.  In the second case, they often ignore fundamental factors.  When people say that America is great, they are either referring to the strength of our military…

  • The Warehousing of the Elderly – Cruel But Usual Punishment

    My mother is 106 and in a nursing home.  Around the time she turned 90, she went to live in a life-care community, first in independent living, then assisted living, then the dementia unit, and now the nursing home. As I visit her frequently during her lunch, I have had ample opportunity to observe the…