A free press is supposed to be one of the necessary ingredients in a free society. It is how the citizens can make informed choices and hold the elected officials accountable. That sounds nice, but a free press only gets us part way there. We are currently experiencing a lot of the problems that a…
I’ve been divorced for going on two years now. Half the week and every other weekend, I have my daughter with me, so I’m happy, content, fulfilled, life is good. The other half of the week and every other weekend, I’m lonely. I hang out with my parents a lot. Not that I mind hanging…
My partner, Jamil, wrote this piece about the problems with housing being an investment rather than shelter. He said he wanted to start a conversation, so here’s my contribution. *** I was recently having a conversation with my parents and brother about the fact that the financial services industry is not set up to serve…
A few days ago I posted a video on Facebook of Robert Mueller, former director of the FBI and currently the special counsel investigating the Trump Administration. In the video, Mueller is giving a speech about the future of the FBI as a counterterrorism force. Of course, the word “future” is a relative term. The…
On the morning of March 14, 2018, students all over the country participated in a school walkout to protest gun violence and to honor the seventeen children killed in Parkland, FL. In a lot of ways, this was inspiring, seeing thousands of kids believe in a cause and actually try to do something about it….
It’s Christmas Eve and I’m completely finished. All the shopping is done. All the wrapping is done. I finished two days ago. There’s nothing left to do but to put out the milk and cookies and wait for Santa to do his thing. The funny thing is, I’m kind of bummed about it. Generally, I…
Every year on Columbus Day weekend, Hartford hosts a marathon. Can you guess how I know this? They probably advertise, right? Maybe there’s some word of mouth buzz? How about social media? Sadly, the answer is no to all of those. The way people in the Greater Hartford Area learn about the Hartford Marathon is…
The most important moment of Dr. Robert Putnam’s presentation “Closing the Opportunity Gap” on July 21st at the Bushnell Center for the Performing Arts came after he’d already offered his conclusion. During the question and answer session, an audience member asked Dr. Putnam about former presidential candidate Bernie Sander’s plan to make college free. The…
I am not a journalist. I am a writer who loves my city, my neighborhood and the people who inhabit them. Every time I walk past Dunkin’ Donuts Park and glance through the shuttered doors at the manicured, empty field, I feel sadness and anger. The people I love and the neighborhoods we all live in…
Let’s try some experiments. First, read the official story of Korryn Gaines, the 23-year old woman who was killed by the Baltimore police on August 1st. If you don’t want to click on the link, here it is: The officers intended to serve arrest warrants on Gaines and a man. Gaines was wanted on a bench…
