Have We Acted Responsibly? As the number of COVID-19 cases continue to grow and the death toll mounts, we should use our experiences so far to evaluate our personal responsibilities to each other and whether the government has met its burden in handling the crisis. Why does this matter? Our... Read more →

SLO NightWriters Hosts Chris Lambert On March 10, Chris Lambert will visit SLO NightWriters, the premier writing organization in the Central Coast, for an evening on the hot seat! Chris Lambert is the host of the wildly successful podcast Your Own Backyard, a series where you join him on the... Read more →

Explosion of “Support Services” Breaks the Budget We hear it all the time during the Democratic debates. College tuition is too high; students are burdened with overwhelming debt; and state support is lacking. This is all true. Having taught at the university level for about 40 years, I’ve come to... Read more →

Ethical Principles to Live By Most people go about their daily lives without paying much attention to ethics. They may be good people and ethics may be embedded in their character. Even so, it’s a good idea to think about what you are doing (or about to do) and why.... Read more →

Pursuing Happiness and Meaning in Life Through Writing Having recently completed a book on happiness and meaning and how it links to ethical behavior, I want to share some of my insights about how writing can qualitatively enhance wellness. We pursue happiness and meaning in life through actions we take... Read more →

Incivility and Self-Absorbed Behaviors Run Amok I've thought a lot about where we're headed as a society. It seems things are getting worse in so many areas that I wonder whether civility can ever be regained. I'm using the word "civility" in a broad sense, not only to mean good... Read more →

Let’s Make 2020 a Qualitatively Better Year I’m reminded of a quote by former President John F. Kennedy. JFK said: “As we express our gratitude, we must never forget that the highest appreciation is not to utter words, but to live by them.” Such a true statement. We are judged... Read more →

How to Practice Practical Compassion I wrote a blog this past April on compassion and empathy. Lately, I’ve been reading a lot about mindfulness. Today I explain the link between these two qualitative characteristics of behavior and mindfulness. What is Compassion? Compassion has been defined in many ways. Merriam-Webster’s online... Read more →