Recently, among the various smart journalists that I follow, there has been a lot of debate about to what one should compare the current American far-right movements. During the shutdown, journalists talked a lot about the Civil War, for example. As a historian, I’m always interested to see how people invoke history to explain contemporary…
Pat Robertson says many inane, stupid, and/or offensive things. This is not news. I just want to point out the way that anti-disability language emerges out of a certain kind of religious discourse. There’s an idea that links disability to sin, that thinks of it as a punishment from God. It’s an old idea, though…
“Who is Jorge Mario Bergoglio?” The pope stares at me in silence. I ask him if this is a question that I am allowed to ask…. He nods that it is, and he tells me: “I do not know what might be the most fitting description…. I am a sinner. This is the most accurate…
It’s been over a month since McCarthy started on The View. It’s been over three months since I wrote about her for The Atlantic and CNN, and I still get emails about her, the good work she’s doing, or endorsements of her movement and charity, if not her. Her key belief is that autism comes…
Next week, I am speaking at Northwestern workshop on work/life integration in higher education. I do think there are specific challenges and insights that I can talk about as a male academic, and I’m looking forward to exploring them with faculty, staff, and admin at one of America’s great universities. I’ll have more to say…
I was on the road this weekend and late to my Sunday writing. Today, rather than write a second post, I want to expand on a few of the themes from the week as I cover the topics, because I have some additional things to say. Last Sunday, I began the week with a long…
The Atlantic found a 1985 ad from IBM for gender-parity in tech, a subject that I follow closely, though it’s not really my field. As the article suggests, we’re still stuck in a lot of these issues, and it’s always a little depressing to think about the ways we are not making progress. But for…
I am travelling today so this will be a quick hit and I’ll have more to say about the lawsuit on Sunday. The Saylor Family has filed a lawsuit. Here’s an article from the local Frederick, MD, paper. Here’s an interview with Ethan’s mother, Patti. Here are some thoughts from Mark Leach, a blogger and…
Last week Maureen Wallace wrote an excellent article surveying, as she puts it, the “good, bad, and wacky” in “Marketing” Down Syndrome. You should all go read it. I have, of course (for those who read me often), mixed feelings about the marketing of Down Syndrome. In general, I’m happy to see awareness, visibility, and…
TRIGGER WARNING – This piece discusses rape in non-graphic ways. In my piece for The Shriver Report – How To Talk Like a Feminist (If You’re a Guy) – I wrote the following: 2. Sometimes it is about you.There may be many feminist topics on which men in fact have a lot to say, but…