This is picture of George Washington that was the only painting rescued from the fire (4 slaves took the very large painting to safety) that ravaged the White House during John Adams’ administration. I took the picture during my recent visit to the Christmas Traditions exhibit at the White House.
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Christmas overnight, December 25-26, 1776. Rain turned to sleet, turned to ice, turned into a biting storm from the northeast. Who would brave a night like that with a poorly clad, hungry, tired army and the need to cross the ice-choked Delaware River? George Washington would. The army was battle- weary and in bad need […]
I’ve been cyberMonday-ing for a week now ?, looking for the best deals. Likewise, I’ve been researching both sides of the Net Neutrality topic, looking for the side that I believe yields the greatest benefit to consumers. I’ve come down on the side of the free market on this issue. Common sense citizenship requires that […]
We have some holidays that are uniquely American-I’m thinking of Memorial Day, July 4, Labor Day, Veteran’s Day but you could include our American Thanksgiving Day as well. Thanksgiving is almost here, and when I saw the video for this week on the schedule I thought maybe it was out of season for Thanksgiving Day. Then […]
We know that if guns are removed from the hands of law abiding citizens, criminals will still get their hands on some other form of weaponry-like a truck, for example. Removal of trucks and/or guns doesn’t solve the problem, so let’s consider what might be the root cause of the heinous acts of mass murder […]
Another terrorist incident this week, another discussion about borders ensues. Good. We need to talk to each other and then listen carefully to the other side on this issue. I offer a simple explanation of why the USA (and, frankly, other countries) have a border policy. Take a look at Episode 26 called “Why Borders?” […]
We like using common sense around here 🙂 There is a recent story in the news that involves using a speaker phone in a car without announcing all of the passengers/listeners in the car. Ready to apply common sense citizenship to a situation like this? Let’s do it! We have a First Amendment right to free […]
The Orionid meteor shower peaks on October 20 and the buzz surrounding it made me recall a memory. You may be wondering what this has to do with civics and citizenship? Recently I was a guest on the National Geographic Orion, a small ship, where sustainability plays a key role. All of the waste and […]
We’ve been hearing the gun control debates once again. Have you been reassessing your views on your Second Amendment rights as guaranteed by the Bill of Rights in the U.S. Constitution? Here are my thoughts so far: Criminals will always be with us as long as there is evil among us. No organization, country, entity, […]
The past week, we have seen uncommon citizenship at work- Americans helping Americans out of disasters in Houston and in Florida and honoring Americans, living and dead, from 9/11/01. These destructive situations have shown the world what it means to be American. Individual citizens stand and pitch in when others fall. We run into danger, […]
Melania Trump wore stiletto heels to board a plane as she and the President headed to Texas to discuss hurricane relief. This, apparently, is big news. Not North Korea. Not disaster relief. Not taxes. Not infrastructure. Not defense. No, just stiletto heels. Can we get back to the serious topics of American life, like how […]
Recently, I was taking a walk on the bike path. As I looked up, I saw about 20 young people jogging in a straight, single file line. The sergeant had an army fatigue chest pack strapped on. No one was in uniform. Perhaps these wereArmy National Guard recruits. As they came toward me, the Sergeant […]
Our first amendment right to free speech includes the right to say things that others disagree with vehemently. Our right to free speech depends on our ability to exercise that right responsibly. This includes putting up with people who don’t think, act, or speak about issues the way we do. However, our right to assemble […]
The poem inscribed inside the base of the Statue of Liberty has been a hot topic lately. Coincidentally, I filmed a video (episode 29) on this topic earlier this summer and it is on producer Aaron’s desk, preparing to be edited for my YouTube channel (connect with YouTube videos by clicking on the link on this […]
A favorite time of the summer is when I get an episode topic in mind and begin to write out a script. It’s fun to see it all materialize, start to finish. Today I sent producer Aaron 8 new episodes for Common Sense Civics and Citizenship. It’s been a wild week of filming, testing lighting, […]
