Education | Unexpected Leisure

July 29, 2012May 6, 2013

On the Duty of Fiscal Disobedience

OWS stated implicitly and explicitly that Washington, DC though full of sound and fury, signifies nothing. The nationâ€™s true political center of gravity is no longer Washington, but Wall Street. Read more [...]

October 23, 2011

The True Message of Occupy Wall Street

Occupy Wall Street is telling the powers that be, "We can make a better society than you can, and here's how to do it!" Read more [...]

September 27, 2011

Can you Make It on 8 Bucks An Hour?

Next time one of your smarmy friends or family members tells you how lazy the poor have it, how they get by with doing nothing and don't need to get any help from government, challenge them to walk that talk--digitally. Read more [...]

March 7, 2011

What if Education Isn’t the Answer?

Today's New York Times OpEd section features a typically thoughtful piece by Paul Krugman that challenges a truism that I have held for many years, in spite of evidence all around me that it might not reflect reality. Read more [...]

February 22, 2011

The Diversified Skills Portfolio

Skills are capital, but the market does not always recognize them as such. Indeed, the ability of the market to make use of skills found among us seems to be getting worse, not better. Even when people go back to school to learn some new subject or skill or trade, too many of them find that the market can't find them a job as promised or, the job they do find is too little to support them. Read more [...]

February 12, 2011

What Happens When a Community Connects

An article that appears in a recent issue of Yes! magazine caught my attention this morning. The article talks about how consumerism has caused families to weaken by prompting them to turn over more and more tasks that were once the province of the family to professionals and how in the process the authors believe something has been lost. Read more [...]

February 2, 2011February 2, 2011

Toward a New Aesthetic of Ostentation

The imperative to keep up with the Jonesâ€™ has driven many a consumer to spend beyond their means. Purveyors of stuff, particularly expensive stuff know this and pitch their wares accordingly. As a culture we have seen an entire set of standards developed and imposed on us to dictate what we buy and why we buy it. Read more [...]