Israel And Palestine: On Hope and Possibility
This week’s Firelight Chat will be an interesting one. Throughout my career I’ve counseled couples, and rarely have I seen a troubled relationship – or been in one – in which one party was 100 percent correct and the other 100 percent wrong. In working with couples it is not my role to be judge […]
To say things that need to be said: Why Am I Running?
The fundamental economic problem in the United States has less to do with how much money we spend, and everything to do with what we spend it on. We spend huge amounts on things that reduce the life force of the nation: tax cuts for the wealthy, corporate subsidies, and war. Meanwhile, we withhold money […]
The Giant is Awakening
Having spent forty years traveling the country, and having run for president in the 2020 campaign season, I’ve seen an interesting trajectory. American consciousness seems to me like a sleeping giant now waking up. For decades our government has been giving our democracy like a gift to unfettered corporate forces. They’ve allowed corporate lobbyists and […]
A sobering development for the former President, and for all of us.: The Indictment Of Donald Trump
When Donald Trump was indicted for giving hush money to a porn star, I admit I pretty much rolled my eyes. Today’s indictment of the former President on charges related to the Espionage Act is an entirely different kind of development. A 31 count indictment is very serious, and all Americans – regardless of our […]
To Make A Peaceful Revolution Possible
In 2016, there were two candidates telling people their pain was legitimate and their rage was valid – that the system indeed had been rigged against them. They were Bernie Sanders and Donald Trump. Only one of them, however, wanted to do something about it. The other mainly sought to harness all that anger for […]
Transgender Americans Are Americans
A few months ago I received an email from an event organizer at East Tennessee University. He was asking if I’d consider speaking at a protest rally being staged the night before a draconian anti-drag show law was going into effect in that state. I went gladly, of course. I was impressed by how many […]
A Mindful Memorial Day
My grandmother’s brother died in WW1, and my father fought in WW2 but came home safely to his family. He once told me about the death of one his buddies in the war and said, “We should never forget those guys.” On Memorial Day, we make sure we don’t forget them. The earliest traditions of […]
Update On Ukraine
For those of us who have spent years opposing the influence of the military industrial complex on U.S. foreign policy, the war in Ukraine poses a peculiar challenge. It’s possible to believe the undue influence of the U.S. war machine is very real, and at the same time believe the Russian invasion of Ukraine is […]
We will continue to be a violent society until we choose to be a non-violent one.: Uvalde, One Year Later…
Dear God, May the lives that were lost in Uvalde be held safely in heaven. May those who grieve be comforted and their broken hearts be healed. May a wave of peace come over our hearts and show us another way to be. Amen.
The last thing we should be doing is bolstering a system already out of control: Cop Cities Do Not Belong in America
The United States has seen a pattern of deeply disturbing tragedies over the last month. On January 18th, a young man named Manuel Teran, called Tortuguita, was killed in Atlanta during a police raid on a group of environmental activists. The group was protesting the city’s razing of the 300 acre South River Forest in […]