In January, the New York Times published the results of one of its "Opinion Page Focus Groups." This weekly feature brings together "subsets of Americans and explore assumptions that others might have — digging deeper into them, challenging them, in some cases stamping out stereotypes." This focus group was made up of 11 law enforcement … Continue reading Are you a ‘friendly wave’ or a ‘flip him off’ person? →

"If there is another world war, this civilization may go under." These were the words of J. Robert Oppenheimer in a 1950 interview. Oppenheimer, considered the "Father of the Atomic Bomb," is the subject of a biopic directed by Christopher Nolan, which opened July 20. As of Aug. 6, "Oppenheimer" had grossed $500 million worldwide. … Continue reading The Bomb →

A couple of weeks ago, I had the privilege of watching Sister Nancy Murray, O.P. perform her one-woman show on St. Catherine of Siena. It was probably one of the best programs I've ever seen. Murray, a native of Chicago and the biological sibling of comedian Bill Murray, is an Adrian Dominican Sister and St. … Continue reading Sr. Nancy Murray presents St. Catherine of Siena →

Next July, Tecumseh will celebrate its bicentennial, marking 200 years as a community. While there likely aren't any residents who remember the centennial, a fair number of us can recall bits and pieces of the festivities from 1974. I was turning 16 that summer. I was a sophomore at THS, and working at the Dairy … Continue reading Tecumseh will celebrate its 200th birthday in 2024 →

March Madness. For as long as I can remember, this has been a "thing" every spring.  I don't really follow basketball, but if I had to pick one sport (besides golf) that I will watch, it's college basketball and usually during March Madness.  I'm not sure why, but there is something almost hypnotic about the … Continue reading March Madness →

Originally published in The Tecumseh Herald, Sept. 9, 2021 It was akin to something out of a Bruce Willis "Die Hard" flick, those images of jetliners hitting the World Trade Center--the two most powerful symbols of the U.S. economic prosperity and globalization--gone in minutes along with the lives of more than 2,300 people. The attack … Continue reading ‘America’s Darkest Day’ 20 years later: What’s changed? →

Originally published in the Tecumseh Herald, October 21, 2021 Last weekend, I had the honor of witnessing the induction of  Mr. Gordie Theisen into the Siena Heights University Athletic Hall of Fame. Theisen and I were classmates at Siena back in the late 1970s and later on became pretty good friends. I mention Theisen because … Continue reading An inspiration– Gordie Theisen: Coach, dad, friend →