Monthly Archives: August 2021

Freedom To versus Freedom From

In “Two Concepts of Liberty,” British philosopher Isaiah Berlin defines positive freedom as “the ability to be one’s own master,” and negative freedom as the realm within which a person can “act unobstructed by others.” The former involves doing as … Continue reading

Posted in Education, Ethics, Politics | 12 Comments

Triage

The FDA’s formal approval of the Pfizer coronavirus vaccine will facilitate making the vaccine a requirement to participate in public life. Some schools in other parts of the country have already decided to mandate that faculty get the vaccine; some … Continue reading

Posted in Environment, Ethics, Politics | 12 Comments

Literary Challenge

Find a sentence from a piece of literature where a single, simple word makes all the difference in the world. A lovely example, as noted by Paul Crenshaw, comes from a Robert Hayden poem: “Sundays too my father got father … Continue reading

Posted in Arts, Books | 10 Comments

Help Me Help Your Juniors

Orientation ended with MSMS’ induction ceremony, The Ceremony of Lights. School officials designed everything leading up to that moment to emphasize the responsibilities, opportunities, and advantages (and fun!) involved with being at MSMS. This year’s orientation marks the first time … Continue reading

Posted in Education | 23 Comments

The Delta Spike

Mississippi has run out of Intensive Care Unit beds. Arkansas had only 8 available. Neighboring states are no better off. Incredulity has replaced the optimism I felt after C19 vaccines became available. Why must we continue to deal with this … Continue reading

Posted in National Politics, Politics, Science | 21 Comments