Searching for Leadership - The Trump-Harris Debate

The debate between former President Donald Trump and Vice President Kamala Harris was another disappointment for those seeking true leadership capable of inspiring and uniting the American people. It served as a reminder of how much importance we’ve placed on the presidency while simultaneously lowering the standard for candidates. Both Trump and Harris once again demonstrated mediocrity. Trump stuck to his predictable pattern of exaggeration without substance, while Harris excelled at playing her role, but lacked meaningful content.

Trump was, as expected, unable to deviate from his usual script. His inability to adapt or take advice was clear. This debate marked his second chance to "seal the deal," the first being his meandering 90-minute speech at the Republican National Convention. Those who had hoped for a change or an awakening after his near-death experience were let down.

The Basement Strategy

 In the 2020 presidential election, Joe Biden successfully defeated Donald Trump by employing what is called the "Basement Strategy." This approach was developed by the Biden campaign to keep their candidate away from unscripted public events. Their knowledge then that Biden's cognitive abilities were in decline drove the strategy. Instead of frequent unscripted public appearances, the campaign relied on a compliant media, which was largely opposed to Trump, to overlook Biden's limited visibility. This strategy proved effective, culminating in Biden's victory.

However, once Biden assumed office, the signs of his cognitive decline became increasingly apparent. His public appearances were marked by moments that raised eyebrows and could not be concealed - falling while climbing steps, a stiffened gait, calling his vice president the president, misnaming foreign leaders, and unscripted comments that often bordered on incoherent. Even in scripted events the President would often read parenthetical instructions from the teleprompter and, despite detailed instructions and prompts from his staff, he would often wander aimlessly around the stage, requiring intervention by his wife or in one highly visible instance, former President Barrack Obama.

Memorial Day - what happened to the parades and walks in cemeteries?

This Memorial Day post is an annual distribution. It seems as the years go by and more friends and family pass that important traditions of the past fade further from the culture. Please share this post on Facebook and other vehicles with your friends and family to remind them of the importance of such solemn traditions. Thank you

I vividly recall from my childhood the prominence of Memorial Day among the pantheon of holidays.  It was one of the two big civic holidays.  The other being the Fourth of July.  At a young age I could sense the difference between the two – one celebratory and one solemn.  Memorial Day is larger in my memory.  The holiday was specifically to remember the dead of war, but the event was broader in that it was also an opportunity to visit and reflect more generally on relatives and friends who had passed.  It also related to the continuation of a tradition that emerged in the mid-1800s that made cemeteries places for peaceful meditation with nature’s beauty and communing with one’s family and friends – both living and dead.  As can be said of many traditions – times have changed.

Stop smartphones and social media from harming children

I write this blog post as a plea, to parents with children and young people who anticipate having children. Smartphones and social media are addictive technologies that are damaging the development of children’s brains.  I beg you to inform yourselves about this topic and take action to address the problem in your homes and schools. Your children’s future may depend on it.

I first became aware of the threat to children from these technologies when I watched The Social Dilemma on Netflix four years ago. This documentary explored the dangerous human impact of social networking. The code developers who created social media and related algorithms discuss their creations and regret. The information contained in the documentary caused me to cancel all of my social media accounts. I recommend you watch it.

The Biological and Psychological Foundations of our Division

Our nation is in an intense political and cultural struggle where neither side can emerge as an unequivocal victor. Internal strife leaves us vulnerable to external threats from those aspiring to replace our global dominance. Understanding the deeper underlying forces at work as we grapple with the political tension may help forge a way forward. In my reading and research to understand our division better two books stood out to provide a compelling lens to understand the deepening polarization rooted in the fabric of our minds.

Jonathan Haidt’s, The Righteous Mind: Why Good People Are Divided by Politics and Religion provides a study of the profound disparities in the political values of liberal and conservative-leaning individuals. As a summary, I recommend this twenty-minute video TED Talk by Haidt: “The moral roots of liberals and conservatives.”

I previously wrote the blog post, “Isour political division biological?” about Oxford scholar Iain McGilchrist’s book, The Master and his Emissary: The Divided Brain and the Making of the Western World. The book offers warnings about the collective potential of the divided brain to destroy civilizations. As a summary, I recommend this twelve-minute animated summary of McGilchrist’s ideas: The Divided Brain.