Fanaticism is redoubling your effort after you've forgotten your aim. --George Santayana Ars gratia artis, the motto of MGM Studios, is the Latin translation of “art for art’s sake.” The movies, MGM implied, were their own excuse … [Read more...]

I posted this 4 1/2 years ago. This morning Jake Tapper-trying to use the word he had just learned from interviewing Juliette Kayyem--said "schotastic."  --Mb stochastic terrorism: the use of mass communications to incite random actors to … [Read more...]

We cling to our own point of view, as though everything depended on it. --Zhuangzi I recently taught George Orwell's 1984 to my Honors English 11 classes. In order to provide the historical underpinnings of the novel, I taught the basics … [Read more...]

Writing to learn was once a popular concept in education. The idea was to write about what a student was learning. It was hardly revolutionary in English, but it was pretty cutting edge in math. If my recent post is any guide, writing to … [Read more...]

“But if thought corrupts language, language can also corrupt thought.” --George Orwell It's finally happened. Trump's crimes have led the media to criticize the Democrats. I'm not talking nutty right-wing, but the mainstream. Not that I … [Read more...]

Beacon Hill: where the coffee is strong and so are the Women Politicians are human. Occasional bad behavior should come as no surprise. What matters is what is done about it. And recently sworn-in Rep. Lindsay Sabadosa (D-Northampton) and … [Read more...]

I've met Elizabeth Warren. And let me tell you, she's likable. She doesn't send me Christmas cards, and she doesn't remember me. But I've spoken to her and had my picture taken with her at a rally hosted by my friend and state senator Eric … [Read more...]

"We need New Politics because our current politics isn’t working." — Congressman Seth Moulton In the 1980s, Patrick Caddell, pollster for Gary Hart's presidential campaign, parlayed the idea of a "new idea" into one of the biggest … [Read more...]