Posts by D C

Recently, I’ve heard people who claim to be in the know make predictions about how AI (Artificial Intelligence) will change life in the future.  Specifically, I’ve heard claims that AI will do many of the jobs that we humans now do. Some people I respect, particularly those in the arts, are alarmed at the coming…

In the months before Thomas Merton entered the Trappist monastery of Abbey of Gethsemani, he went there on a retreat.  This was right before the US entered World War II, a time much like our own that was filled with uncertainty and fear.  In those anxious days, the young Merton made a surprising observation.  While…

We live in turbulent times, times especially exhausting if you are a political junky like I am.  With the internet bringing news from anywhere on the globe to our computers within minutes, and with so much tension between nations rising and falling every day, the world can feel too much with us. There are many…

We are all in uncharted waters as President Trump pushes to take over Greenland.  Greenland belongs to Denmark, one of our allies, so the most obvious conclusion is that the US is threatening one of our friends.  Since the beginning of the Cold War, all the countries of Western Europe have faced a threat from…

Is there a special love that grandparents have for grandchildren?  I think most grandparents would say yes.  The fact that there is a generation between my two grandchildren and me doesn’t mean that I love them less than I love their parents.  I believe it does mean that I love my grandchildren differently from how…

How do we approach this new year of 2026?   Yes, we had our traditional celebrations to ring in the new year, but how many of us shuddered inwardly when we thought of all that could happen in 2026?  China is poised to attack Taiwan.  Europe is seriously preparing for war with Russia.  Iran is in…

Readers of my generation will have no trouble remembering Walter Cronkite.  He was a plain-looking, partially bald “newsman” unlike the Hollywood-attractive news presenters found today on every channel.  Cronkite rarely smiled, and I can’t remember him ever delivering one of the feel-good stories that are woven into newscasts today to balance the darker news stories.…

As I was thinking of all the topics worth writing about this week, one global, national, and personal concern after another came to mind.  In a few moments, I had a long list of issues to ponder, but then I asked myself if readers deserved a break this week from more worries.  I’m sure the…

If our recent snowfalls had come at the end of March or the beginning of April, we probably wouldn’t have enjoyed the unusual weather of last weekend.  But several inches of snow this close to the Holidays brings back snow memories for those of us who are older.  I remember trudging through knee-high snow when,…

One of the largest and greatest art museums in the world is the Uffizi Gallery in Florence, Italy.  When my wife and I used to take students to Italy during the January term, we would always include a guided tour of the Uffizi.  There are literally hundreds of masterpieces on view which celebrate the artistic…