by admin | Sep 22, 2019 | Activism, Civil rights, Crime, Immigration, National security, Politics, Public policy, Public safety, Racism, Terrorism, Volunteerism
National Park Service photo We have become so accustomed to a certain Homeland Security phrase since the events of September 11, 2001, that we have never seriously contemplated its larger meaning. “If you see something, say something,” for most people simply means...
by admin | Sep 2, 2019 | Chicago, Environment, Floodplain management, Infrastructure, Parks, Uncategorized, Urban Planning
It is possible to live in a city as large as Chicago and be blissfully unaware of some wonderful things. Chicago, after all, includes 2.7 million people spread over 227 square miles. My wife and I have lived here since 1986, but we do not spend much of our time...
by admin | Aug 30, 2019 | Blogging, Careers, Disaster, Education, Natural Hazards, Personal health, Personal history, Technology, Urban Planning, Writing
What astounds me about what I am about to say is that the last time I posted to this blog was July 24, more than a month ago. There are reasons for that, but in the meantime, despite the lack of new articles, this blog continued to find new subscribers—and their...
by admin | Jul 24, 2019 | Uncategorized
I wasn’t even supposed to usher on Sunday. My wife and I are part of the usher team at Augustana Lutheran Church in Chicago, but our usual commitment is for the fourth Sunday each month. Jean was elsewhere that day, but I came with our grandson, Alex. I promptly...
by admin | Jul 4, 2019 | Aging, Blogging, Books, Medical, Personal health, Personal history, Public health, Uncategorized
Some readers may have noticed that it has been seven weeks since I last posted to this blog (May 13). That delay was not by design but resulted from circumstances. For two weeks immediately after that last item, I was largely on the road, but that has happened before...