A couple of weeks ago, Donald Trump Jr.’s wife Vanessa was sent to the hospital for observation after opening an envelope containing white powder. Luckily she was fine; the powder was determined to be nonthreatening. It got me thinking. No matter how angry some of us are with President Trump and his antics, please, do not attempt to assassinate Mr. Trump. Seriously. That would be disastrous to the nation, for it would deepen the rifts of values and ideologies and may destroy, for generations to

The small hand-written note, left on my desk after a day of teaching sixth graders many years ago, caught my attention. "Mr. Kline: I am sorry. Will you forgive me? David." As students go, David was neither saint nor sinner. Or perhaps, in the words of Martin Luther, he was both, as all of us are. I carried that note in my wallet for years and later moved it to a file for safekeeping. As I think about that student and the request he was making, two things immediately come to mind. First, I had

Matt Rawle, in What Makes a Hero? , defines Evil as nothingness. Evil exists, but only as a shadow – something defined only by a lack of light. Consider the profound nothingness within and surrounding the 19-year-old who shot up the high school in Florida, or the 16-year-old boy who jacks cars in Chicago because he will not face a felony, or the politician in a position of great power who is blind to his own misogyny and insecurities, or the 14-year-old middle-school girl who ostracizes a fellow

In 1787, when he emerged from Independence Hall in Philadelphia at the close of the Constitutional Convention, Benjamin Franklin was asked: "Well, doctor, what have we got -- a republic or a monarchy?" His famous reply? "A republic -- if you can keep it." His questioner was a woman. And while his answer was directed at her, it was clear that the "you" was meant to include all the citizens of the emerging country. Now, 231 years later, Franklin's admonition reverberates with fresh relevance. And

If you had just 90 seconds to say something to the world, what would you say? As I sit pondering, a cooper’s hawk lands on the porch outside my window, rescuing me. He hangs around, hunting the feeder. More it snows, more I see him. The snow has been remarkable, hasn’t it? Everything that’s not flocked is frosted. Just what we needed, I think, fresh whitewashing of the old cow barn. If the only thing the snow did was make the cardinal stand out, well, that would be enough. The cooper’s hawk is

I’m going to warn you right now: What’s going to follow is marked by sarcasm, bitterness and perhaps some faulty logic. I believe school districts need to update their school-supply list to reflect the times. Depending on the grade level, most kids need the prerequisite pens, notebooks, notecards and calculators. But there are two things missing from that list that I think are now necessary to safely attend school in this country: bullet-proof vests and SWAT helmets. And here’s why. It’s

Tragically our nation, once again, finds itself having to deal with a mass shooting. And, once again, the arguments in favor of doing something to limit access to high-powered weapons is butting heads with the NRA and second amendment purists. We have heard the arguments before and we will, I fear, hear them again. So let’s change the terms of the conversation. At the root of the gun debate is a basic assumption that technology is ethically neutral and that what matters most is how an instrument

It was my turn to take our border collies for a run after our recent snowstorm dumped a foot of light, wind-blown snow. On our four-wheeler, I realized the trail around the edges of our plowed furrows would be a challenge. I could feel my anxiety mounting as I slipped the ATV into lower gear to seek traction. I knew at the end of the tree line was a turn-around for a shorter run. Getting there, I saw the circular track had disappeared. My heart beating faster, I stopped to figure out how to make

Every weekday morning, I say the Pledge of Allegiance with over 300 children. These energetic souls attend the grade school where I teach Language Arts. They speak, collectively, over 20 different languages. They have come from countries around the world to the neighborhood across the street. Their joys are the typical joys of children: new shoes, a handful of dandelions, birthday party plans, but their sorrows are deep and their burdens, heavy. Many come from the relentless grips of poverty,

Generations before me worked too hard, and our State of Illinois is worth fighting for. Striking as it may be, I am not planning my exit to warmer weather, lower taxes, or in pursuit of a functional government. Illinois is my home. I am not leaving, because I cannot abdicate my contribution. Our family has made a deliberate choice to pursue a future here, despite economics or politics. The negative environment persists, but we can stop the momentum. However, I say to our local and state