Freedom, prosperity, and equality shape Americans’ national ideals and identity. America’s lineage is full of people who have worked hard and prospered. But, strife, inequality, and brutality are also a part of America’s bloodline. Thankfully, America’s story includes men and women who faced intimidating foes and overwhelming opposition yet asked a bold question: Why not […]
The winter Olympics opened February 7 in Sochi, Russia amid security concerns, rumors about missing stray dogs, and fervor over Russia’s anti-gay laws. And then all that faded and the focus became the world’s elite athletes who were invited to this city on the edge of the Black Sea to demonstrate their prowess, to amaze […]
Smoking was big news last week. On Wednesday, February 5, CVS announced that beginning in October, it would no longer sell cigarettes, cigars, and chewing tobacco. Representatives for the nation’s second largest drug-store chain cited its desire to focus on customers’ health—and smoking contradicts that goal. The decision is a bold one—CVS will likely lose […]
In 1991, when walking near a melting glacier on the Otztal Alps in South Tyrol, at the border of Austria and Italy, tourists Helmut and Erika Simon noticed something they could not identify. Moving closer, they began to panic when they realized what they had found. It was not a discarded piece of worthless matter […]
On Monday, January 27, American folksinger, songwriter, and life-long advocate Pete Seeger died at the age of 94. Pete Seeger believed deeply in the founding vision of America: justice and equality for all. Throughout his life he revived and used American folk music to unite people, and to work toward a more perfect world. For […]
In 1776, Abigail Adams wrote an interesting letter to her husband. As a member of the Continental Congress, John Adams had been working with colleagues to craft a declaration of independence for the newly ‘united’ states. Abigail reminded John to remember the ladies in this new democracy. In an attempt to placate his wife, John […]