Essays by Larry Barnett
“Escape From Freedom” is a 1941 book by the psychiatrist Erich Fromm. If I’d read it twenty years ago, I’d have found it an interesting account of authoritarianism and the rise of Fascism in Germany. Having read it recently, I found it pertinent and alarming.
Fromm’s psychological analysis includes… Read the rest
Having moved from the unconscious existence of pre-human animal life governed by biological drives and hereditary instinct, we find ourselves faced with power and the freedom of choice in how we rule our lives, both individually and collectively. Ruling ourselves is an inescapable human predicament… Read the rest
I find the behavior of Matt Gaetz, Marjory Taylor Greene, Lauren Boebert and Kevin McCarthy reprehensible; I hate it. These four MAGATS and many other so-called republicans are pursuing policies and positions that damage our democracy; the only reason I can see for how they behave is their love of power… Read the rest
Is today’s anti-woke movement just a continuation of the anti-hippie movement that began in the 1960s? At that time, the collision between Flower Power and Pentagon Power split America into two cultural camps that have been at odds with each other ever since.
The divisions in our nation were clearly… Read the rest
The recent decision by the U.S. Supreme Court to affirm that a web designer is entitled to refuse to create a website for a same-sex couple’s marriage on religious grounds is problematic. Not only were there no actual clients who requested the web designer’s services, no services were denied. The court’s… Read the rest
Seventy-five million Americans voted for Donald Trump in 2020 and remain fiercely loyal to him, this despite, or rather because of, his bad boy behavior. Trump’s appeal lies not in his grasp of difficult policy issues nor his ability to think clearly; to the contrary, his clumsy buffoonery, inarticulate… Read the rest
The first amendment to the U.S. Constitution famously bars congress from infringing on personal free speech or that of the press. In other words, it bans government from preventing expression but does nothing to constrain private enterprise from doing so, however.
The public often complains when… Read the rest
I know it sounds like the title of a 1940’s one-reel 3-Stooges movie, but America’s flirtation with Fascism ain’t no slapstick comedy. At the mention of Fascism nowadays, most people flash on Hitler and Swastikas and concentration camps, which is too bad, because Fascism is so much more than that.
There… Read the rest
One could easily conclude that mankind is warlike; some would even argue that warfare is a natural, even beneficial activity, an opinion shared by Homer, General George Patton, and today’s bevy of nationalistic leaders. War and its competitive derivatives – economic, cultural, and religious… Read the rest
In her remarkable book, The Reproduction of Evil, psychologist Sue Grand highlights the role of the onlooker. Evil, she points out, is often the result of harm inflicted on a propagator, trauma and abuse endured by the propagator at the hands of others that gets passed on to new victims, some of whom go… Read the rest
“Glad mom and dad are not alive to see this,” my sister Gina and I agreed during a phone call the other day. We were speaking about what’s going on in America right now: a Supreme Court dominated by right-wing, religious conservatives simultaneously upholding Federal protection for gun rights while … Read the rest
America has always had reactionaries, people highly resistant to cultural change and determined to undermine the forces underlying such change. Such reactionaries currently appear under a variety of names: social conservative, pro-family, traditional values voter, new right, and now, anti-woke.… Read the rest
According to a new book, General Mark Milley, Chairman of America’s military Joint Chiefs of Staff, was so alarmed at Trump’s behavior leading up to the transition of power that he referred to the former President’s comments as sounding like Adolph Hitler. He conferred with other members of the military… Read the rest
While on my daily walk I happened upon a box of free books and sitting atop the stack was a paperback copy of George Orwell’s 1943 Animal Farm. I first read Animal Farm in the mid-sixties while in high school and remember it fondly. In the form of a fairytale, it tells a story about animals on a farm in England… Read the rest
In his observations of America during the latter part of the 20th century, social and media critic professor Marshall McLuhan observed a curious effect of electronic media, what he called the increasing “tribalization” of culture. In effect, the tribalization he noted was a re-tribalization –… Read the rest
Only rarely has a political ideology been tagged to an individual politician. Argentina’s autocratic leader Juan Peron engendered Peronism, but until Donald Trump, his was among the very few cases of politico-ideological cultism. Autocrats around the world have achieved cult status, such as North… Read the rest
When the likes of Marjory Taylor Green, the newly elected representative from Georgia, starts spouting her QAnon nonsense about Jewish space lasers and baby-eating democrats, it’s easy to dismiss her as simply “looney” (as Mitch McConnell did) or a shameless publicity-seeker. Either or both of … Read the rest
I’ve spent the past five days glued to the impeachment hearings, an event with an obvious conclusion before it ever began. It’s no surprise that Donald Trump was found not guilty by the Senate; for me what was the most significant moment happened after the vote, namely the concluding speech by Minority… Read the rest
I’m unhappy about the number of times I hear the word “fight” invoked in political discourse from representatives on both sides of the aisle. “I will fight for you” has become standard fare for politicians seeking public support, along with “fighting for legislation,” “fighting for your rights,” … Read the rest
I was fascinated the other day, while watching interviews with a few of the insurrectionists during the siege of the Capitol building on January 6th, at their inability to explain why they were there and what they hoped to accomplish. One middle-aged gentleman, if I may be permitted to call him that, … Read the rest
It’s worthwhile remembering that America has not always been a “one person – one vote” democracy; our founders offered voting privileges to white, male property owners only, and it remained that way for generations. It was only until the 20th century that women secured the right to vote, along… Read the rest
The recent events at the nation’s capital are receiving, deservedly, a great deal of attention. The role of the President is being widely discussed, as instigator, incendiary and inciter of the mob that broke into the Capitol Building, broke windows and ransacked the offices of The Speaker of the House.… Read the rest
I grew up being told that democracy is messy; the events of this year certainly prove it. The freedom to vote is not – and has not been – a “human right;” rather it’s a privilege bestowed upon particular groups of people deemed eligible. As we know, America’s eligible voters were originally… Read the rest
America’s fear of socialism has bred some pretty wild reactions, not the least of which was the McCarthy-inspired fear and sloganeering of the 1950s. “Better dead than red” strongly supported the idea that communism, seen as analogous to socialism by many at that time (and today as well), was a system… Read the rest
During my many years in local politics and as a community activist, I’ve been subject to plenty of criticism, some of it in print and some of it in person; it’s the price I pay for speaking out and taking action. I’ve been called a “socialist,” “manipulator,” “chain store bigot,” and a variety of other epithets… Read the rest
When I try to imagine where America is going, what sort of social, economic and political system will dominate its future, I find myself thinking about feudalism, the system of hierarchy that dominated Europe until the 14th century. If Donald Trump’s presidency represents anything, and he’s so all-over-the-place… Read the rest
Buddhism advises we not spend our time pondering others, and that if spare time for pondering is available, pondering self is more valuable. Such advice, like most of its kind, is offered precisely because it speaks to how we generally behave and what behaviors get us and others into repeated trouble.… Read the rest
The 17th century religious reformation in Europe unleashed a world-conquering power: Christian capitalism. On the heels of Martin Luther and anti-Catholic Protestantism, the writings of French cleric John Calvin in the 16th century and his belief in salvation through the grace of God – we… Read the rest
America loves sitcoms, short for “situation comedy,” a scripted series with recurring characters who find themselves in awkward and unexpected circumstances. And, you gotta hand it to him; The Donald Trump Show has the highest ratings in history. In the entertainment industry, ratings… Read the rest
The moment That Fly landed I turned to my wife and declared, “there’s a fly on Pence’s head!” From then on, I knew, the Internet would be abuzz with comments and reactions and a new meme had been born. Within minutes, images of Biden and Harris holding fly swatters appeared online,… Read the rest
The announcement that Donald Trump has tested positive for Covid-19 has a quality of inevitability. From the beginning of this pandemic, Trump has minimized its health risks, downplayed its severity, boosted quack treatment theories, ridiculed wearing a mask, argued with administration health… Read the rest
In 1923, Adolph Hitler and a small group of malcontents staged an uprising in the city of Munich, Germany, an event that later became known as the Beerhall Putsch. The violence of the event was quickly… Read the rest
I happened upon an interview the other day between Chuck Todd and Chad Wolf on NBC’s Meet the Press. Wolf is the Acting Secretary of the Department of Homeland Security, although even that job designation is in question now that… Read the rest
Belief is a choice, and human belief systems vary widely. Presently, belief in scientific rationalism is dominant in developed societies but this choice is culturally determined and not universally accepted. History and the imperatives of religious belief continue to challenge the materialism… Read the rest
I found the congressional hearings this week illustrative of the inability of the Democrats to develop and coordinate effective strategy. The testimony of Attorney General Bill Barr, which was a golden opportunity for the Democratic house to make points during this election year, instead was largely… Read the rest
After World War II, the remaining leaders of Nazi Germany were held to account in the city of Nuremberg, where trials were conducted judging the guilt of those who held responsibility for government conduct… Read the rest
In describing the bureaucratic workings of Fascism, political theorist Hannah Arendt famously referred to “the banality of evil.” She was making reference to the workaday style of Adolph Hitler’s genocide machine, an apparatus of many ordinary parts employing ordinary people… Read the rest
Should it be Joe & Amy 2020 or Joe and Gretchen? Biden-Warren is uncomfortable on the tongue, too hard to say and both names end with the same sound. Without doubt, the significant decision the democrats will have to make this year is how things look and sound on a lawn sign.
Lawn signs are natural for… Read the rest
The ideal of a stable society has preoccupied humankind for a long time, perhaps forever. In order to promulgate social stability, diverse methods have been attempted by various systems of governance and leadership ranging from autocratic to democratic, communal to sovereign, hard-fisted to liberal.… Read the rest
It’s deeply ironic that Joe Biden, who as Senator deflected and dismissed Anita Hill’s allegations of sexual harassment by then Supreme Court nominee Clarence Thomas, now finds himself and his campaign for president distracted,… Read the rest
The coronavirus has reportedly killed over 60,000 people in America as of April 30th – probably far more – a large number but still a small percentage of our total population. It’s effects on life, on the other hand, have affected all 325 million of us. Jobs have been lost, family life… Read the rest
Super Tuesday appears to have provided the likely answer to the question of who will be the Democratic Party’s candidate for President this November, and it ain’t Bernie Sanders. Despite his win in California, the combined votes for Biden and Bloomberg in this … Read the rest
Each of us are born into The System, a social organization of rules and conventions developed and deployed by our fore bearers. Having been progressively adopted in the past, The System is always obsolete and in need of tinkering; the assumptions upon which The System was developed never quite match… Read the rest
Given what’s going on in the world, to simply classify people trying to cross our border as “migrants” or “illegal immigrants” is inaccurate. The reality is that many people, often entire families, are more properly refugees, desperately seeking to escape depredations… Read the rest
Is the 2020 presidential election coming too soon or not soon enough? Still in the midst of recovering and adjusting to the realities of Trump, we now find ourselves already in the throes of an active primary season filling with Democratic candidates and murmurings of GOP challengers. Politics is a … Read the rest
Put people together and you’re sure to find trouble. Families, husbands and wives, siblings, cousins, politicians; no matter how you find them, people always have trouble getting along. Human society reflects just how terribly difficult … Read the rest
There seems to be a persistent impression that the City of Sonoma has run out of land for new housing. If we’re talking about tens of acres of undeveloped land for tract housing, that’s correct, but Sonoma decades-ago rejected construction of large-scale tract-housing development on… Read the rest
I left the City Council candidate’s forum at Andrews Hall last week feeling uncomfortable. It’s not that the candidates did not conduct themselves well or acted inappropriately; to the contrary, as a group they were polite, friendly, good-natured, well-spoken and heartfelt. Yet, … Read the rest
Justice relies upon blame, and blame relies upon declaring effective cause. Effective cause is one of four types of causation, according to Plato, the others being material cause, formal cause and total cause. When to comes to matters of human affairs, effective cause is the type that draws a line between… Read the rest
Many people feel that politics is a bore and during most days, such people don’t think about politics at all; it’s just not that important to them. They get up and go to work to pay the bills for food, clothing and shelter, and as time permits, seek entertainment. Except as presented to them… Read the rest
For almost the entirety of human history governmental systems have not been democratic. Though we in America like to think of Ancient Greece as the birthplace of democracy well over 2,500 years ago, even that’s more fiction than fact; the Greek city-state of Athens, with its remarkable stable… Read the rest
“Many consider the elevation of Voice of America (VoA) to the status of the official domestic news organ of the United States as emblematic of when authoritarianism became fully established in America. Quietly, and without much notice, the Trump administration had been actively recruiting… Read the rest
I once wondered how a modern, 20th century country like Germany morphed into an amoral, industrial-style genocide factory during Adolph Hitler’s Third Reich. At the time, conditions in Europe were politically unstable; the aftermath of World War One left economies in shambles, and politics… Read the rest
As we witness the clown-like leadership circus happening in Washington D.C. it’s worthwhile to reflect on the leadership of our own locally elected officials and how well, or not, they are behaving and serving the public interest.
We have four major publicly elected boards or councils in our… Read the rest
When President Dwight Eisenhower famously warned Americans about the Military-Industrial Complex he added a new metaphor into our cultural frame of reference, namely the emergence of collusion between government and industry systemically embedded within and affecting everyday lives. His prophetic… Read the rest
The City of Sonoma has always had oligarchs, powerful people of great wealth and the inclination to use it. First among these was General Mariano Vallejo, the Mexican General who owned much of Northern California, including the town of Sonoma. He laid out the city, subdivided the land and was, by all … Read the rest
America was founded from within a state of paranoia, the persecution experience of the Puritans and other Christian sects in England. Coming to the shores of North America was envisioned by them as their refuge from paranoia, but instead of escaping it, they brought it with them, where it was variously… Read the rest
The hallmarks of civilization are order and bureaucracy, the institutionalization of humanity into concrete rule-bound systems, balanced budgets, statistics, financial analysis, and the businesslike conversion of human beings into calculable units. The governing rationale of civilization… Read the rest
Sonoma Valley’s close proximity to eight-million people is a physical reality. That our valley happens to be exceptionally beautiful, contains historic and charming villages, and offers some of the finest agricultural land and growing conditions in the world is also true. Yet, combine these… Read the rest
The Trump administration’s dissing of opponents reminds me of comments made by Richard Nixon’s Vice-President, Spiro Agnew, who criticizing the opposition, condemned the “effete corps of impudent snobs.” Agnew, forced to resign due to evidence of bribery and corruption,… Read the rest
Authoritarian regimes use threats of force, coercion and intimidation to cow the populace and force it into submission to that regime’s imperatives. Enlisting the aid of those who wield weapons – military and police forces with the power to arrest and incarcerate – regimes bent… Read the rest
The Statue of Liberty famously beckons “Give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to breathe free”, certainly one of the kindest welcoming messages any country has employed. And yet, I’ve been wondering why America can be so mean.
I’m not saying American’s… Read the rest
America’s political flirtation with a temperamental, impulsive, emotionally undeveloped political leader has blossomed into a full-blown crisis of faith in our systems of government and democracy itself, and comparisons between America in 2017 and George Orwell’s… Read the rest
When the Greek city states of Athens and Sparta found themselves allied against the massive armies of the Persian king Darius and his son Xerxes (Circa 460 BC), they established a narrative about the “Barbarian” people threatening Greek society. Later, the very same narrative was adopted… Read the rest
Leaked documents detailing urine-play in a hotel in Russia are spattering the reputation of Donald Trump. It’s been a while since “night water” has been in the news, but historically the… Read the rest
In 1895, Alfred Jarry’s play entitled Ubu Roi (The King Ubu) was performed in Paris for its first, and until very much later, its last time. Public reaction to the farce was so extreme that a riot ensued. Jarry, who never wrote another play, had no idea that a century-and-a-quarter later his theatrical… Read the rest
By the measuring stick of capitalism, Donald Trump has won the game. He has attained the pinnacle of American business success, namely power; his finger on the nuclear button, Donald Trump is now the most fearsome businessman in the world. He has vanquished all enemies and proven his top-predator status;… Read the rest
An Environmental Impact Report (EIR) responds to the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA), legislation intended to asses and address the environmental impacts of large developments, such as air-quality, construction debris and dust, noise and other factors. It takes only a few minutes… Read the rest
Much is being made of the angry white men of America, men who have lost jobs, lost wives, and have lost hope. That lost hope has been replaced with anger – anger at women, at minorities, at immigrants and politicians. It’s a troubling and complicated situation, and a dangerous one as well;… Read the rest
TRIGGER WARNING: I’m about to go all Jungian on you. If actualizing your archetypes causes you difficulty, you might choose to stop reading here.
Are you in touch with your inner Ares? Donnie Trump sure is. And Hillary’s inner Athena? She’d… Read the rest
There have always been competitive ones among us; from brute physical aggression to sophisticated strategic thinking, the ambitious make waves in the fabric of society. For much of human history, competition ended in death, and it ends in death sometimes even today. In… Read the rest
The rise of Donald Trump has many people shaking their heads in disbelief. How, they wonder, can a man who is so brutish and nasty rise to the Presidential candidacy of the Republican Party?
The form of this query betrays a fundamental error: Trump is not the cause of hatefulness, but a symptom of hatefulness… Read the rest
Much is being made of current research indicating that the Glyphosate in Monsanto’s herbicide RoundUp is a likely carcinogen. A laboratory-made, liquid life-killing poison that turns dandelions to brown, withered husks in a day; that it probably causes cancer should surprise no one.
Weeds… Read the rest
We live in complex, trying times. We know more about what’s happening in the world than any people who have ever lived before; much of it is disturbing, and about which we can often do little or mostly nothing.
Closer to home, the emotions being stirred up in this election year are alarming. Whatever… Read the rest
Those who dissent or speak out are often dismissed derisively as members of “a vocal minority.” This happened during the 2013 Measure B election to limit the size of new hotels in Sonoma, even though that measure lost by less than one-percent. Now I’m hearing the same complaint about… Read the rest
There’s so much in a name. I’ve written before about the ways names evolved alongside manners or occupations, resulting in families of Tanners, Archers, Barbers, Fowlers and the like. In what may be one of the most amusing current surnames on everyone’s lips is, sorry to say, Trump.… Read the rest
Human experience is primarily regional. We are members of a family within a community located regionally first and foremost, and only secondarily are we members of a nation. The rise of nationalism as we know it today is a fairly recent social development, and truly came of age only during the last two… Read the rest
We praise democracy, but we don’t seem to like it very much. Voting rates in America are terrible, and voters seem to prefer established families or Reality TV stars to experienced politicians. Most people agree that our democratic electoral system has been corrupted by money, but there doesn’t… Read the rest
Only in America could an arrogant businessman who inherited substantial wealth from his father become elevated to celebrity status and then leverage that fatuous fame to run for President of the United States and lead the polls in the Republican primary race.
We’ve known The Donald for a long… Read the rest
At last night’s Sonoma City Council meeting my appeal of the Planning Commission’s approval for a use permit allowing Williams-Sonoma to hold 15 events with as many as 80 guests in the garden at their retail location was upheld. This decision has an effect on Williams-Sonoma, of… Read the rest
The recent GOP debate made me want to vomit. That the state of American politics has fallen so deeply into a trench of ignorance is appalling, and leaves me feeling embarrassed and ashamed. Outright lies, intentional deception, bloated arrogance, false piety; all these and more were on display, along… Read the rest
The current crisis in Greece, the role of Germany in imposing austerity programs, and endless ongoing conflict in the middle east reveals how deeply the western world suffers from a case of mass-obsessive-compulsive disorder. Generation after generation these regions have been the focus of attention… Read the rest
Our fixed-city way-of-life has created a problematic situation: homelessness. Those who cannot afford to own or rent a home are left to wander the highways, alleys and shelters of our urban environments in search of safe spots in which to rest and sleep. The reasons for their poverty vary: personal … Read the rest
TV shows and Hollywood movies often portray elite government security teams as oafish incompetents around whom brilliantly evil criminals run rapid circles. The plots then center around a cat-and-mouse game played by the evil-doers and the one or two members of law enforcement who can see through… Read the rest
Countries have used a variety of excuses to go to war. Some cite the need for protection of people who speak their language, like Vladimir Putin is doing in the Ukraine or Adolph Hitler did before annexing the “Low Countries” adjacent to Germany in the 1930’s. Others, like the United… Read the rest
Our society is so permeated by commerce that business metaphors are regularly applied to non-business situations. Thus we “profit by experience,” “calculate our losses,” and “take stock in the situation.” Another common phrase concerns “the business… Read the rest
The idea of labor as a commodity, the creation of a class of people subject to competitive rates who can be bought and sold on the open market is inherently dehumanizing, but we live in a capitalist world addicted to consumption, increased productivity and shareholder profit.
Accordingly, though relegated… Read the rest
Boys like things that go “boom!” but it’s a far cry from the fireworks of July 4th to the destructive force of America’s most popular battlefield weapon, the Hellfire missile. Launched by helicopter, ship-based platforms, land-based installations and fixed-wing aircraft, the Hellfire is a $50,000… Read the rest
Everybody’s talking “transparency” these days. I used to think that transparent meant nearly invisible, like glass is transparent, but its meaning seems to have morphed into exactly the opposite. So when we talk about transparency in government today, what we mean is making the operation of government… Read the rest
Blame Grand Central Station. New York was once ready to tear the Grand Dame down and replace her with a glass-clad skyscraper. I was horrified by the idea, and still am. Penn Station had already suffered the ravages of the wrecking ball, and it seemed Grand Central was doomed to suffer the same fate. Jackie… Read the rest
In a society of over 300 million people efficiencies are needed, and representative democracy is how we choose to provide efficiency in the development and administration of governmental public policy. Other societies are organized differently but all governmental systems, whether democracy,… Read the rest
Those opposed to the Hotel Limitation Measure – Measure B, are lavishing their criticism on the prospect of unintended consequences. In acts of pure speculation, they proffer a list of the unintended consequences, displaying an uncanny ability to forecast the future as they see it. Miraculously,… Read the rest
A pervasive belief within Sonoma’s tourist serving businesses is that we must constantly compete for the attention of tourists. The recently formed Tourism Improvement District (TID) is spending $450,000/yr. on advertising of all sorts to “brand” Sonoma; placards on BART trains, billboards, … Read the rest
We speak about Sonoma’s “sense of place” as if such an idea is obvious, that character and the meaning of “small town” are self-evident. The idea of “Sonoma,” if it occurs to one at all, necessarily resides in the imagination as an abstract totality, while simultaneously existing to the senses… Read the rest
Like water circling the bathtub drain, our consumer society expends a lot of energy but ultimately spirals down a bottomless hole, and unless more water is continuously added, nothing but an empty tub remains.
Of late, the “water” being added is money printed by the Federal Reserve Bank, in the form … Read the rest
How is it that time after time governmental process and policy results in harm to the public? Hearings are held, reports commissioned, experts consulted, and yet decisions are constantly made that endanger health, despoil the environment, cause economic hardship and erode public confidence in … Read the rest
The wealthy and powerful expect to get what they pay for, and most often they do, spending billions on lobbying and campaign donations to guide the hand of government. Though lip-service is paid to the free market, tax rules, land-use law and public policy all favor “big money,” and for these reasons … Read the rest
There is a yogic practice in Tibet that takes place in a charnel ground, or what we call a graveyard. Graveyards in Tibet, which is mostly rock, are not the neat and grassy parks we have here in America. Tibetan charnel grounds are bone-scattered yards where the dead are dismembered and their body parts… Read the rest
A tremendous amount of energy and attention is focused on providing a path to citizenship for America’s many immigrants, and appropriately so. Citizenship provides, first and foremost, the protections of the Bill of Rights and laws granting access to legal representation,… Read the rest
All seemingly stable systems are subject to perturbations and disruptions; what we perceive as stability is only the temporary emergence of fixed patterns within a container of unfathomable complexity, or what we commonly call chaos. We begin to think we can control chaos by adapting ourselves to… Read the rest
If you’ve gone out to buy a coffee table or a dresser, you’ve most likely come across some with a “distressed” finish. Banged, scraped, rubbed, chipped, and worn, distressed furniture is new furniture intentionally made to look used and old. Setting aside the question “why not simply buy an old beat-up… Read the rest
“A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed.” So reads the Second Amendment of the Bill of Rights, one complete sentence expressing a complete thought. Despite grammar and punctuation which clearly… Read the rest
As income inequality continues to grow in America, with millionaires and billionaires increasing their record-setting ownership of the nation’s wealth, the sharp divide between haves and have-nots played-out in the reelection of Barack Obama. Despite record-setting expenditures, the haves… Read the rest
Sitting in the hot tub watching the afternoon wind whip a flag flying atop a 40-foot bamboo pole in my garden, I thought about waves. Flags wave in the wind, a convergence of weight, length, wind speed, and air turbulence. If the right… Read the rest
The presidential race is ramping up quickly, both sides having moved assertively into attack mode. Politics in America has degraded to the point that the billions spent on advertising are all about trash talk. It’s hard not to feel like one must choose the lesser of two evils when so much time and money… Read the rest
An economy in shambles with persistently high unemployment; wide income inequality; increasingly belligerent saber-rattling by political parties; street demonstrations accompanied by vandalism and violence on the part of both demonstrators… Read the rest
When Orwell penned this slogan in his book “1984” he was addressing political theory, not neuroscience, yet from the perspective of current brain research, he was spot on. Our consciousness is but a sliver of the operation of mind, the rest hidden from our awareness. Turns out “free will” is less of a … Read the rest
What, exactly, are we looking for, and why is it everyone is always telling us what we need and what to do? Need a new car? Of course you do and BMW has the answer. For that matter, so do Ford, GM and Chrysler. Need new clothes? Foolish question; just ask Penney’s, Target, or Nordstroms, they know. Salvation… Read the rest
Sitting here in the “land of the free” while much of the world struggles with democracy and reorganizing society, I can’t help but contemplate the meaning of freedom. Tossed around liberally by conservatives, freedom as a word seems to have morphed into a convenient catch-all political platform.… Read the rest
Orwell wrote “Who controls the present controls the past” and in light of the current state of politics in America, Orwell proclaimed truth. I’m referring of course to George Orwell, English writer of the dystopian “1984”, his eerily prescient vision of the contemporary world. In its “book … Read the rest
America’s extended political primary process has been dubbed the “silly season,” but given the pronouncements of this year’s Republican candidates, “stupid season” is a more appropriate moniker. The various GOP candidates talk trash about everything from the TARP bailout to the recent budget … Read the rest
Lucky for us the framers of the U.S. Constitution put happiness right near the top of the list, just under life and liberty. Had that not been the case, most of us would be in dead-end jobs we hate, buried in debt, beholden to others, taking anti-depressants and complaining most of the time. OK, I’m being… Read the rest
A recent report in the NY Times listed the 2010 CEO income from 200 of the largest corporations. The amount of compensation was stunning, of course, and ranged from a stratospheric $84 million for Phillip P. Dauman of Viacom, $70 million for Larry Ellison of Oracle, and $76 million for Ray R. Irani of Occidental… Read the rest
I must admit to feeling quite deflated by the recent Supreme Court decisions regarding the first amendment. To see liberal justices Ginsberg, Sotomayor and Kagen recently join Scalia and Roberts in deciding not to protect minors from videos filled with blood-spattering violence, torture and mayhem… Read the rest
Watching old films of the 40’s and 50’s explicitly reveals the underpinnings of our American cultural narrative. Produced before the rise of contemporary comic irony or social satire, these post WWII films feel more like “educational” dating or coming of age films that were shown in high school. Commentary… Read the rest
Lust is the great equalizer among men, the force that unites Republican and Democrat, foreign diplomat and President, in embarrassment and disgrace.
One would think wealth and power would be enough, but of course they are not, and for some… Read the rest
In the Middle East, authoritarian leaders in power for many decades are being challenged by the young and disenfranchised. During their rule, these leaders enriched themselves, their families and their friends while exercising police-state control over ordinary citizens. This accumulation … Read the rest
In the movie Minority Report, while the hero (played by Tom Cruise) walks through a subway corridor his iris’ are scanned and advertising specifically geared to his interests appears on video billboards visible only to him. While this seems mildly futuristic, I want to emphasize the word “mildly” … Read the rest
A few months ago Wikileaks released hundreds of thousands of government documents about the Iraq war, some of which reveal that not only did the U.S. military look the other way as Iraqis tortured and murdered Iraqis, but actually turned Iraqis over to the Iraqi torture squads. The other revelations… Read the rest
For most of modern history, wars were fought between nations – France against Germany, Italy against Austria, England against France, Japan against China, America against Germany, Japan, North Vietnam, and so on. While the nature and character of each war differed, what they all had in common… Read the rest
Of four basic human emotions – mad, glad, sad and scared – mad is the most problematic. It is from anger that people are hit, stabbed, choked, murdered, abused, hurt, punished, cursed, castigated, blamed, and objectified. To this list we may add “thrown out of office.”
Politics… Read the rest
In a 6-3 decision, the Supreme Court of the United States recently ruled that any action which can be defined as “material support” to an organization deemed “terrorist” is a federal crime. Material support, says the court, includes discussion and/or consultation about non-violence or peace, making… Read the rest
The U.S. Supreme Court has decided that the distribution of films or videos depicting actual animal cruelty is a protected form of free speech. The case at issue was prompted in part by a video showing a sexy model wearing pointy high heeled shoes walking on live kittens and stabbing them with her heels.… Read the rest
Now that we are in the midst of an election year, our political foibles are on great display. Not a week goes by that the lies or deceptions of one candidate or another hit the airwaves, and we voters are subjected to yet another round of “what I meant to say.”
I know what the pressure of a campaign can bring;… Read the rest
The wisest among us have always known of hate’s power to consume decency, and they have counseled us accordingly. “Love thine enemies,” Jesus is quoted in the Bible. The Buddha advises that one moment of hate destroys eons of accumulated merit. Mohammed teaches forgiveness above all else, the true … Read the rest
Profiling has been a hot topic lately, and the arrest of Harvard Professor Gates certainly stimulated a fresh round of examination of the topic. The issue is not whether or not people quickly form opinions of others; it is abundantly clear… Read the rest
Slowly but surely the “torture” debate inches closer to full disclosure and accountability. In what is most assuredly one of the darkest chapters in modern American history, our immoral use of torture to wrest “confessions and information” from “enemy combatants” and other suspects held in Guantanamo… Read the rest
As nuclear weapons technology has proliferated in non-western countries, Europe and the United States fulminate against authoritarian regimes viewed as a threat to peace and security. In some cases, like Pakistan, which is responsible for the spread of nuclear technology to the likes of North Korea,… Read the rest
According to Jigme Thinley, Prime Minister of Bhutan as quoted in the The New York Times, the cause of today’s economic crisis is “Greed, insatiable human greed.” I can’t think of a shorter and more concise analysis of our current condition that says it better.
The Times article is about Bhutan’s efforts… Read the rest
My daughter and her husband are on their honeymoon. They didn’t go to Paris or to London or to Rio de Janeiro. They went to Vietnam.
For those of you too young to remember, Vietnam is the place that many link to America’s only lost war and greatest military humiliation.… Read the rest
At his first post-election news conference, President-elect Barack Obama referred to himself as a “mutt.” Specifically, he said, “We have two criteria that have to be reconciled. One is that Malia is allergic, so it has to be hypoallergenic. There are a number of breeds that are hypoallergenic. On … Read the rest
Listening to today’s everyday commentary makes it sound as if the end is near. The climate is changing, the economy is faltering, our resources have been degraded and threatened, population continues to increase among the world’s poorest people, reefs are dying, fish populations are collapsing … Read the rest
In his lengthy speech about race and politics, candidate Barack Obama made a point of distancing himself from the historical anger of racism, choosing instead to focus upon reconciliation and acceptance. He challenged us to shift our… Read the rest
For most of human history, society and government have been organized in other than democratic form, including many variations of monarchy, autocracy and theocracy. In this day and age, we tend to speak of these other systems in a highly pejorative way and view democracy as the pinnacle of governmental… Read the rest
Words have meaning rooted in social custom, usage and culture, therefore their meaning shifts and alters as culture evolves. Before the modern age this metamorphosis of language occurred organically as people traveled and interacted with others, bringing new concepts and words along with them.… Read the rest
In the fairy tale about the Pied Piper, the townsfolk of Hamelin find themselves paying dearly for their lack of foresight. In case you don’t remember, in order to rid the town of rats, the townsfolk hastily enlist the services of the Piper, who, using a flute, entices the rats to the river, where they drown.… Read the rest
The word “war” used to mean something; its invocation shook the heart, set us atremble, brought forth tears and darkened our vision. “WAR!” The word itself seemed enormous and foreboding; after all, death always prospers during war. Its declaration was the biggest news… Read the rest
It has long been council policy, albeit not in written rules of order, that any member of the city council could add an item to the council agenda. This has been an open-ended right, completely unencumbered by the opinions of other council members or city staff, and it has worked wonderfully.… Read the rest
I entered adulthood protesting and criticizing war, and it seems that I will leave it that way. As I enter senior-citizenship I can’t help but wonder why the world needs to learn the same sorry lessons over and over again. It’s not like there are no historical records; WWII was well covered by the press,… Read the rest
Once every decade or so a monumental land-use matter arises in this community which sets the stage for the decades to come. In the 1990s it was the luxury high-end Rosewood Hotels resort proposed for the hillside above the city cemetery, where the open… Read the rest
Now that I have set aside my cloak of public office and have returned to the rank of ordinary citizen, it might be useful to consider exactly what some of the responsibilities of citizenship happen to be.
While serving as a councilman, I had the experience of being confronted by confused or angry citizens… Read the rest
How can one summarize the experience of 12 years on the Sonoma City Council? Well, for one thing my hair has turned gray. And, wait a minute… 12 years ago I had hair! Consider this; 12 years ago councilman-elect Sebastiani was 14 years old! Congratulations on your election, councilman Sebastiani… I will… Read the rest
In the 1970s, the notion of “affordable housing” was linked in some minds to what used to be called “Section 8” housing devoted to those on welfare or disabilities caused by drugs or alcohol. In its past attempts to help otherwise indigent people get off the streets, government initiated a variety of … Read the rest
A rather miraculous thing has happened: all the politicians have turned green. In the past, such a statement would have meant “green with envy” or “green like money” or “turned green with disgust.” Today, however, it means “pro-environment.” At least, that’s how it sounds.
There was a time, not long… Read the rest
