Tag Archives: Opinion

Why We Need the Wild

Professor David Gessner of the University of North Carolina Wilmington reviews the nature writing in Jason Mark’s recently-published Satellites in the High Country, and he touches on some transcendental ideas in the process.

Moving Innovation in Education Forward

U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan presents an initiative to foster innovation in the educational system.

Nature Studies: Is it possible to put a price on nature? And if we can, should we?

Environmental columnist Michael McCarthy expresses his uncertainty about a question posed at a high-profile debate.

A Better Way to Talk About Faith

Religious traditions that bring some people together may drive a wedge between others. An organization called Interfaith Youth Core is working to bring together people of all faiths and none to focus on their shared tenets instead of their differences.

What Is Fashion?

Why do we wear what we wear? How is fashion a way of making your voice heard? This article on fashion provides insights into these questions.

Mark Twain’s Eternal Chatter

Author Ben Tarnoff analyzes the celebrity of Mark Twain and critiques the writer’s autobiography, which was published in several volumes starting in 2010.

A Wild, ‘Burning’ Journey Back To Old Mexico

Author Oscar Casares reviews the work of Juan Rulfo, who covered themes of violence and how it affected the behaviors of individuals in his writing. An excerpt from Rulfo’s The Burning Plain and Other Stories is included.

Order vs. Disorder

The world may seem chaotic today, in part due to the failure of the Arab Spring to live up to its great promise. Pulitzer-winning writer Thomas Friedman notes that one cause of this disorder may be inequality of freedom: Many of those who have won freedom from oppression have yet to gain freedom to conduct their lives as they wish.

Why it’s time for South Africa to take down its walls

In recent decades, South Africans who can afford it have erected ever more daunting walls around their homes to keep out crime. One South African writer argues that only removing or lowering the walls will improve the situation.

As pope evokes nation of immigrants, a report shows it’s not reflected in Congress

A study by the Pew Research Center shows a lack of Congressional representatives who are immigrants, and some think that an increase in that number would lead to a better understanding of complex immigration issues.

Technobiophilia: Can we get all the nature we need in digital form?

Digital expert Sue Thomas explains that humans have a genetic attraction to the natural world, but argues that digital representations of nature may satisfy our needs.

The heroes of the French train attack have given us all a gift—hope

The passengers who thwarted an armed assailant on a European train didn’t just save dozens of lives. They also inspired hope and action around the world.

Germany’s leap of faith in migrant crisis

With migrants from Syria and other troubled locales flooding into Europe comes an opportunity for one nation to change its image.

Error of Century? Balboa Park With No Statue of Balboa

Historian Helen Otfield argues that a statue of Vasco Núñez de Balboa should be erected in San Diego’s Balboa Park, and she provides some history of the Spanish explorer.

Remembering the fight for women’s rights: Suffragists at Seneca Falls laid groundwork for others in the struggle for equality

The first convention for women’s rights in the United States took place in Seneca Falls, New York, in 1848. Writer Michael Sainato remembers the people who met there and highlights the influence they had on those that followed.

‘Map: Collected and Last Poems,’ by Wislawa Szymborska

Read this review of a recent collection of poetry by Wislawa Szymborska.

Emma Watson calls on men to help fight gender inequality: ‘It’s your issue too’

During a speech to launch the UN “HeForShe” campaign, actress Emma Watson argued that men play a major part in achieving gender equality.

Does Fiction Have the Power to Sway Politics?

Two writers argue that works of fiction can trigger political change, sometimes directly, but more often, indirectly. Upton Sinclair, author of The Jungle, is one example.