Onward and Upward!
Listen to the Audio and/or Subscribe to the Podcast Full Transcript: Way back in 2005, The New York Times used the expression “gesture politics” to describe the substitution of symbols and empty promises for policy. Today, gestures towards bipartisanship and voting integrity together with a feigned respect for the United States constitution ring hollow. The … Read more
Listen to the Audio and/or Subscribe to the Podcast Full Transcript: Continuing our discussion with Ramona Johnson we focus on some practical considerations with respect to police reform. Our takeaways from this segment underscore the fact that more creativity, research, and real world experience must be brought to bear before we will know precisely how … Read more
Full Transcript: The territory of northern Oklahoma had been established for the resettlement of Native Americans that had been subjected to a forced march along the Trail of Tears from the southeastern United States. Once admitted as a state in 1907, the newly created state legislature passed racial segregation laws as its first order of … Read more
Listen to the Audio and/or Subscribe to the Podcast Full Transcript: Edmond Burke is best known for the quote: “The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing.” He was also the first and, some would say, the best advocate of conservatism. He held that rulers are only … Read more
Listen to the Audio and/or Subscribe to the Podcast Full Transcript: Continuing our discussion about mental health and public policy with Ramona Johnson. Here we examine how resources for health care are allocated. Let’s review: Mental illnesses are neuro-chemical, biological diseases, just like many other physical diseases. And yet, the resources allocated to address these … Read more
Full Transcript: There is a certain wisdom embodied in the old joke: “If you want to make God laugh, tell Him your plans for the future.” Lest we get too uppity we should remember that whenever human beings, rely exclusively upon human ingenuity for advancing a cause, there is a humility lesson embedded in there … Read more
Listen to the Audio and/or Subscribe to the Podcast Full Transcript: The United Nations currently lists 18 “Global Issues.” Among the many are poverty, hunger, water, and health. Poverty-stricken communities are not only disrespected, they are often disregarded due to their low socio-economic status. This occurs even within affluent countries. However, according to the World … Read more
Listen to the Audio and/or Subscribe to the Podcast Full Transcript: In this segment, we continue our discussion with Ramona Johnson. This time focusing on mental health in light of public policy . Among the points raised in this segment are the dynamics that play in the policy arena. There are economic considerations. For example, … Read more
Listen to the Audio and/or Subscribe to the Podcast Full Transcript: <<AUDIO Part 1 (Ten Seconds): The Chair recognizes, , , Senator Smith>> There was a time when, if you were to express an opinion in writing, it would likely be over your own signature. In fact, sending an unsigned letter was widely considered an … Read more
Full Transcript: There was a time in my life when pattern recognition consisted of little more than realizing I had repeatedly uttered the same expletive as I slammed the same toe against the same leg of the same coffee table. But when I began to develop an interest in things, other than self, a tapestry … Read more