Whose Rights Are These, Anyway?
One strong trait of Americans is the extent to which we value our rights, our liberties. But what happens when my rights conflict with yours?
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I have some bad news: You can’t go around wearing that robe all the time, and you really need to put something on underneath it. Not that we mind, you know, but no one here has...
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Where we pass the hatLet's be totally honest here: we need money. Our reasons aren't different than anyone else's. There are bills to pay and we've sucked up all available funds during the pandemic. If...
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Whose Rights Are These, Anyway?
One strong trait of Americans is the extent to which we value our rights, our liberties. But what happens when my rights conflict with yours?
Read More "Whose Rights Are These, Anyway?"
Where Do We Go From Here?
We look at gains made: not biting our nails, COVID-19 Vaccines, economy surging, and it feels good. But what direction do we take next?
Read More "Where Do We Go From Here?"
PTSD: A Nation Suffering From Continued Trauma
From the assassination of John F. Kennedy to two mass shootings in the past two weeks, the US has no shortage of trauma, leaving us with PTSD
Read More "PTSD: A Nation Suffering From Continued Trauma"
What The Atlanta Murders Teach About Sex Work
The racist murder of eight people at Atlanta-area massage parlors demands that we reconsider our views on professional sex work.
Read More "What The Atlanta Murders Teach About Sex Work"
Gift Shop
I have some bad news: You can’t go around wearing that robe all the time, and you really need to put something on underneath it. Not that we mind, you know, but no one here has bail money if you get yourself arrested in public. And the children. Think of the children.
You also need to replace some of those glasses and mugs that keep wandering off every time you have guests over. That’s what happens when you’re such a gracious host.
And that rug. Geeze. You need one that really ties the room together.
We have all that and a few other things. Sure, you could get shirts and mugs and rugs and the local Flip-n-Spit, but no one else is going to have these designs and a dollar of every purchase helps us keep the lights on.
Take a look. Buy something. You may not really need anything, but it’s all cool stuff and you’re helping at the same time. Seriously, it’s a better investment in humanity than a lot of NGOs on the planet.
By the way, all our product orders are fulfilled by the chill dudes at CafePress. We let them do all the heavy lifting because, let’s face it, man, we’re lazy. We also don’t have room for that much inventory. This is a nice place we live in, you know, but it’s a bit small what with me, the girlfriend, three kids, seven cats, and two big ol’ dogs. The folks at CafePress are cool.
Whose Rights Are These, Anyway?
One strong trait of Americans is the extent to which we value our rights, our liberties. But what happens when my rights conflict with yours?
Read More "Whose Rights Are These, Anyway?"
Where Do We Go From Here?
We look at gains made: not biting our nails, COVID-19 Vaccines, economy surging, and it feels good. But what direction do we take next?
Read More "Where Do We Go From Here?"
PTSD: A Nation Suffering From Continued Trauma
From the assassination of John F. Kennedy to two mass shootings in the past two weeks, the US has no shortage of trauma, leaving us with PTSD
Read More "PTSD: A Nation Suffering From Continued Trauma"
What The Atlanta Murders Teach About Sex Work
The racist murder of eight people at Atlanta-area massage parlors demands that we reconsider our views on professional sex work.
Read More "What The Atlanta Murders Teach About Sex Work"
The Art Of Doing Nothing
What may look like laziness to some may be the ultimate form of avoiding stress and keeping yourself creative and healthy.
Read More "The Art Of Doing Nothing"
This Isn’t Nam, There Are Rules
Not everyone plays fair. They step over the line. When cheating hurts the poor we have to speak out. This isn't Nam, Dude. There are rules.
Read More "This Isn’t Nam, There Are Rules"
Blog Archive
Where Do We Go From Here?
We look at gains made: not biting our nails, COVID-19 Vaccines, economy surging, and it feels good. But what direction do we take next?
PTSD: A Nation Suffering From Continued Trauma
From the assassination of John F. Kennedy to two mass shootings in the past two weeks, the US has no shortage of trauma, leaving us with PTSD
What The Atlanta Murders Teach About Sex Work
The racist murder of eight people at Atlanta-area massage parlors demands that we reconsider our views on professional sex work.
The Art Of Doing Nothing
What may look like laziness to some may be the ultimate form of avoiding stress and keeping yourself creative and healthy.
This Isn’t Nam, There Are Rules
Not everyone plays fair. They step over the line. When cheating hurts the poor we have to speak out. This isn’t Nam, Dude. There are rules.
Don’t Go Climbing Mountains
Everyone has mountains they must cross. Unless there’s no mountain. Let’s consider that maybe our challenges aren’t as big as we think.
Losing A Little, Finding A Lot
When we give up one thing we can discover something much better. but do we dare to give up something we think is important?
Loving Better: Cancelling Stigmas
Stigmas of every kind stand in the way of us loving people who desperately need to be loved and we desperately need to love them.
Intentional Acts of Generosity
Companies are adjusting their spending on Super Bowl commercials prompting us to consider our moral imperative to give to those suffering
Yes, We Still Feel Anxious
A lot of people thought that with the changing of the president their anxiety would go away, but it’s still there. We still have anxiety.
Staying The Course For The Change We Still Need
The inauguration of a new administration does not mean we have time to relax. Long-needed change requires continued vigilance and passion.
Answering Our Call To Live
Disney/Pixar’s movie “Soul” raises the question of “What is my purpose in life?” We’ve asked that for centuries. The answer is simple.
Sunday Sermon: New Year, Old Problems
The actions and events of this week require a response if we are fulfilling our obligations to making this year a better one.
Advent: Hearing Bells On Christmas Day
Our final thoughts on this Advent season take us to the first pronouncement of a coming Messiah and Mary’s account of why deity incarnated.
Advent: Believing In What’s Impossible
The message of the Fourth Sunday of Advent leads us to believe in the possible part of impossible.
Advent: Finding Joy In The Midst of Despair
How do we find joy in the midst of a pandemic that leaves many empty places at the table?
Redemption: Advent in a Time of Turmoil
May the Peace of Justice find us embracing repentance and redemption not only for ourselves but for those who we may not consider worthy.
Advent In A Pandemic
What in our future is worthy of anticipation? The following article was first published November 29 on Facebook Today is the first Sunday of Advent in the Christian tradition. Around the world, churches are lighting candles, hanging the green, and enduring bad versions of Magnificat. Secularly, it marks the beginning …
Who Are We?
Our actions during the pandemic betray what we claim as our national identity. We are not nice people.
What If We Don’t
What if we choose to not return to the old normal? We have an opportunity to better our world, but will we?
The Church Between Me And Music I Love
All I wanted to do was listen to a wonderful pipe organ. A church got in the way.
Summoning Reluctant Spirits of the Holidays
References to Charles Dickens abound as the spirits of past years are summoned in search of a hopeful spirit for the holidays.
Conversation With A Mad Man
I talk to myself because sometimes I need expert advice. This is one of those times.
2020 Is Almost Here And I'm Already Disappointed
All predictions were that we would be a great society by 2020. Those predictions were wrong. 2020 is already disappointing.
Are We Fit Enough To Stay Alive?
It’s my birthday, but how many of us will be here for the next one? We’re dying too quickly and that’s a problem!
Searching For Legacy In Fear Of Being Forgotten
The New Yorker scooped my planned topic so we got all depressed and went this direction instead.
Being Creative Is Scary And I Need A Drink
Being creative and maintaining that creativity raises a lot of questions and doubts and the fear that we’re all going mad.
We’re Not Getting Enough Sleep And It’s Killing Us
[Annoying copy reminding people I need to eat at least once a week. Either buy something or drop us some cash.] An editorial reminder that links in this article appear bold and italicized. We don’t color or underline them. Please, click the links. Our personal health depends on learning how …
Five Things No One Needs To Fear
There is a lot of fear in our lives and many are unnecessary. We look at five fears you no longer need.
Name Calling Aside, Saving The Planet Requires Being Radical
Rhetoric is irrelevant; climate change now threatens everything, eliminating the opportunity for a measured response. Note: I realize that since we’ve spent 20 weeks with the novel there haven’t been a large number of links in what we’ve written. Our links are not underlined or colored, they’re bold italic. When …
Being Perfect Doesn’t Make Life Better
Striving for perfection sounds like a good thing right up until the point it causes a heart attack, or ruins a relationship, or makes life suck. We need to let go of perfection everywhere we can.
Good Guys, Bad Guys, And The Ethical Problem Of Nationalism
We have fallen victim to the good guy/bad guy mythology of Nationalism and it is a large part of what fuels our intolerance and racism.
Planetary Abortion: Saving The Lives That Matter
There has been a lot of incendiary talk about abortion this week but if we truly value life we have to realize it’s the planet we’re about to abort.
Replacing WWJD With WDJS
Asking What Would Jesus Do (WWJD) is the wrong question. Instead, one should ask What Did Jesus Say? (WDJS)
Remembering Rachel Held Evans
News of the death of Rachel Held Evans shook us hard. We look back at the original article that brought her to our attention.
This Is Where We Are Now
Have we reached a state of permanent dystopia and injustice or are there some things we’re missing? We look at the numbers across the board.
Enduring The Crucible of Self-Creation
Creating our own identity is a challenge that tests our resolve and determination but we come out stronger in the end.
Enduring The Crucible of Self-Creation, pt. 2
Creating our own identity is a challenge that tests our resolve and determination but we come out stronger in the end.
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Where we pass the hat
Let's be totally honest here: we need money. Our reasons aren't different than anyone else's. There are bills to pay and we've sucked up all available funds during the pandemic. If we're going to make progress and improve the experience here, we're going to need a bit of help.
When you give to Old Man Talking, you're helping raise awareness and support for issues that matter: issues like fair housing, equal pay, gender fairness, and everything else necessary to maintain an acceptable quality of life. While it would be nice to think that we can just write something and everyone instantly know about it, that's not the way things happen. We work hard to get every pair of eyes that view a post.
Our hand is out. Our hat is tipped in your direction. Thank you in advance for helping us stay solvent. Your generosity is truly overwhelming.
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