Still crazy after all these years

Redskins vs. Caucasians Political correctness or just denigration? A few years ago I argued that Indiana University of Pennsylvania (IUP) should not change its nickname from the Indians to anything else. My argument, and the title of the article, was "Political correctness run amok." The change of the nickname for the IUP athletic teams was ludicrous. They live in a town called Indiana. They live in an educational community called Indiana University of Pa. The U.S. has a state called Indiana.  Were these communities demeaning Indians by use of the name? Of course not. The town is still called, Indiana, Pa. N ow that IUP has changed its nickname to the Hawks,  the town is not called "Hawksville."  IUP is still Indiana University of Pa. No one in the state of Indiana is pushing to change the name. My basic premise was that the name Indians was never intended as a denigration of the Indians who roamed thes...

Okay, Vladimir, bring it on! Dear Vladimir (Putin), I know that these last few weeks have been a little tough for you what with your being accused of stealing the Super Bowl Ring from the owner of the New England Patriots, Robert Kraft, and you being hammered by President Obama and the other G8 leaders in Northern Ireland.  As for the ring fiasco, as a Steelers fan, I say, "Go, Vlad!" If Kraft was stupid enough to allow you to try it on and then walk away with it, that is really gutsy.  However, I am writing to you about something much more vital to national security -- or at least, my security.  I am concerned that someone in your country has been following me. We know about the NSA spying in this country, but I have no idea why he would find with my communications interesting. However, I have been informed that one of my blogs, aptly entitled "Still crazy after all these years," is being followed by someone in Russia. Think KGB, dude. Accordi...

The power of positive … bigotry? Norman Vincent Peale vs. JFK As a young man approaching the age of 40, I picked up a book that I had heard of before but never read: The Power of Positive Thinking by Rev. Dr. Norman Vincent Peale.  I read through this book and thoroughly enjoyed it. In fact, I realized that I did not have enough positive people in my life when I was a youngster. I was immediately drawn to the book by its emphasis on the positive aspects in a person's life. I enjoyed some of his expressions like these:  " Forget the mistakes of the past and press on to the greater achievements of the future. Give everyone a smile. Spend so much time improving yourself that you have no time left to criticize others. Be too big for worry and too noble for anger.”  Another that I liked was a very simple one: “When you get up in the morning, you have two choices: either to be happy or to be unhappy. Just choose to be happy.”  I even inco...

Bin Laden won this war                                                     and stole our heart and our soul Just before Easter, as I stood waiting at the Pittsburgh airport in the interminable security lines that were creeping along at the pace of a terrapin, I said to a stranger from Texas, "Bin Laden won this war." She smiled. I did not. I was serious. She just wanted to reach Galveston by nightfall. That exchange occurred before I was forced to remove my shoes and my belt, placing them -- along with my wallet and change, and along with my Macbook and iPad, in the ubiquitous, ugly grey container. Finally, I raised my arms in a gesture of submissive defiance while being viewed by one of Big Brother's henchmen behind the iron wall. Yes, we can talk of privacy, but since the 9/11 debacle, we really have little.  In f...

Repeal the Patriot Act Return the right to privacy to Americans Yes, the revelations last week that the government has been spying on Americans by securing data about whom we call on our phones or whom we talk to in e-mail messages is outrageous.  However, what is really hilarious -- were it not so serious -- is the reaction of people like Wisconsin Rep. James Sensenbrenner, who brags about being one of the "authors" of the Patriot Act (a misnomer if there ever was one). Now, Sensenbrenner complains that some of the act should be changed. Sensenbrenner is wrong: We should repeal the entire act and start over with some consideration about the right to privacy and freedom of speech that all Americans were provided in the Bill of Rights. Some of us who are concerned for personal liberty complained in 2001 that the Patriot Act expanded the powers of the government beyond what was necessary to capture terrorists. The law was passed after the devastating attacks of Sept...

Tony Joseph's "Angry God" Cliff Notes version Forgive Tony Joseph if he sounds like Jonathan Edwards. Edwards was the Puritan preacher who delivered the sermon, "Sinners in the hands of an angry God," in 1741. He was a fire and brimstone clergyman, which was common in New England at that time. Joseph's editorial diatribe today about God and against homosexuality focuses on how God is omniscient, but will listen to us until he should no longer listen to us.  If that makes no sense, then read Joseph's piece in the June 3 Tribune-Democrat: <http://tribune-democrat.com/editorials/x1374706275/Tony-Joseph-Hopefully-God-isn-t-listening?fb_comment_id=fbc_182101858622399_532385_182182051947713#f1d8c74934>. Be forewarned: His piece does not follow a logical sequence, neither inductive nor deductive. Just ranting. Before I start, I applaud Mr. Joseph for his ministry and for his willingness to stand up for his beliefs. However, I do not condon...

F ather Andrew Greeley: Priest, writer, sociologist, intellectual  My favorite priest of all time has passed. Father Andrew Greeley was a cantankerous child of Irish immigrants with a first-class intellect. He wrote voluminously and never feared his nominal superiors in the Catholic Church who were often the target of his criticism.  Father Greeley passed away on May 30 in Chicago at the age of 85. I read his column in the Sun Times religiously each week until a horrific accident almost five years ago left him with a brain injury that stilled his tongue. While he was critical of his own religion, often writing scathing pieces about its woeful American leaders, he believed that Catholicism was a singularly special religion. He praised all aspects of it and defended it vigorously against its many critics. He was also a strong proponent of Catholic education, while also defending the practice of celibacy in the church. Father Greeley loved the Second Vatican C...