Category Archives: Uncategorized

Don’t Swallow the Lie

Posted on October 14, 2013 by mhowgill

Our culture is falling prey to the notion that pronouncing something right or wrong, true or false is sufficient for belief or disbelief. Facts, where they may exist, are too often selected only to prove our pre-existing convictions, rarely to … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged creativity, dialogue, dogma, first amendment, founding fathers, freedom of speech, media bias, news reporting, objectivity, responsibility, Samuel Johnson, science | 1 Comment

An Exceptional Week for U.S. Diplomacy

Posted on September 12, 2013 by mhowgill

With regard to Russian President Vladimir Putin’s comments in today’s New York Times, a friend just grumbled that for Putin “to think he can play us like a fiddle for his own gain” requires significant hubris. I suggest that for … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged American exceptionalism, chemical warfare, leadership, Russia, Syria, United Nations | Leave a comment

Resorting to Power Reflects Failure of Leadership

Posted on September 7, 2013 by mhowgill

As Dana Milbank pointed out in Wednesday’s Post, the administration needs to come clean with the facts on which it is basing a decision to intervene unilaterally in Syria. This momentous decision should not be made in sealed rooms by … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged consensus, constitution, current affairs, current-events, dogma, freedom, international affairs, leadership, Middle East, military power, politics, power, Syria, terror, unilateral action, United Nations, war | Leave a comment

Let Loose the Dogs of Accord

Posted on September 1, 2013 by mhowgill

The current turmoil in Syria, where tens of thousands of innocent citizens endure vicious and criminal cruelty from a rogue dictatorship, must stop. But how? If we’ve learned nothing from the last century it must be that to stand silent … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged consensus, constitution, Middle East, power, Syria, terror, war | 3 Comments

Bait and Switch: Methods and Motives

Posted on May 24, 2013 by mhowgill

Technology has changed, and changed us and our times with it. Do journalists have new and more powerful investigative methods? Can journalists tap anonymous sources and both remain hidden better than ever before? Yes on all counts. Yet we remain … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Leave a comment

Self Destruction

Posted on December 16, 2012 by mhowgill

The Second Amendment to the United States’ Constitution guarantees us the right to keep and bear arms. It is among the first and most fiercely guarded of many entitlements we claim as citizens today. The Founders’ rationale for this privilege … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged civil liberties, gun control, mass murder, Newtown CT, second amendment | 4 Comments

Seeking Unbound Lives

Posted on November 12, 2012 by mhowgill

Republicans are frantically seeking someone to blame for their completely predictable election defeat last week. But all their carping and evasion hasn’t yet revealed the most obvious explanation. The United States in 2012 moved closer to its Founders’ vision of … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged competitiveness, current-events, diversity, dogma, election, election results, freedom, ideology, immigration policy, leadership, politics, presidency, presidential election | 1 Comment

Are We To Become a Nanny State?

Posted on October 9, 2012 by mhowgill

Governor Romney’s current campaign platform is that he knows how to create jobs. He asserts that President Obama has had four years to fix the economy and failed. The governor promises to succeed. The governor sees the private sector as … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged competitiveness, economy, government role, leadership, nanny state, politics, presidential election | Leave a comment

Without Integrity Nothing Else Matters

Posted on September 24, 2012 by mhowgill

Do I make myself more handsome by portraying others as ugly? Can I make my ideas sound better by distorting those of others? When we knowingly misrepresent facts, we’re lying. And lying is among the gravest of threats to our … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged accuracy, competitiveness, current-events, diversity, election, ethics, free speech, integrity, leadership, politics, presidential election, truth, voter rights | Leave a comment

Free Speech Can’t Live with Lies

Posted on September 13, 2012 by mhowgill

According to scholars Norman Ornstein and Thomas Mann, the bi-partisan duo who recently published It’s Even Worse than It Looks, “Viral emails and word-of-mouth campaigns are expanding sharply, mostly aimed at false facts about political adversaries”(p. 66). Last November, the … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged current-events, election, free speech, freedom, Internet lies, leadership, politics, presidential election, truth, viral emails, voter rights, voting rights | Leave a comment