I’ve always considered myself more of a “social justice” guy than a “law and order” person.  Not that the two are necessarily in opposition, but growing up in the Civil Rights era and amidst Vietnam War protests, I found that law and order were usually on the wrong side of justice.  Rather curious then that I find myself now longing for the triumph of law and order...

The Supreme Court overturns Roe and Texas now counts fetuses as “persons.”  Naturally a woman carrying such a person in Plano, Texas does the math and quickly deduces she and yet to be born person meet the requirement for driving in the HOV lane ("high occupancy vehicle", meaning two or more people).  Logical, right?  No, said the officer giving her the ticket, only persons “outside...

My column on gun violence in schools for the Eugene Weekly. Photo: REUTERS/John Ernst

In the uproar over the leaked opinion of Justice Alito—a potential seismic shift in public policy—I fear a most critical issue is being overlooked. Justice Alito reasons that abortion is a moral issue and moral issues should be left to legislatures, not to courts.  The latter may be correct, but is he right that abortion is a moral issue?  I contend that his premise is wrong and abortion...

Preface: The Register Guard reports this morning that the family of Annette Montero has filed a lawsuit against Sanipac and the driver of their truck that crushed Ms. Montero in her sleeping bag on the morning of Aug. 26, 2019. Below is the piece I wrote about this tragedy and printed in the church newsletter a few days later. We held a memorial service for Ms. Montero at First Christian Church...

Just a few weeks ago I was concerned about the survival of democracy in this country, now I am concerned about the survival of democracy in the world, if not of the world itself. Not to be alarmist, but this is some serious shit! (Not a word I normally put in print, but that just underscores how serious this is!) Like so many others, I have been incredibly impressed and moved by the comedian...

“Image is everything,” asserted tennis heartthrob Andre Agassi in an ad campaign for Canon’s cameras in the early 90s. The importance of image is evident in the very first story told in the Bible when God proclaims at the climax of creation, “Let us make human beings in Our image.” St. Francis of Assisi is reported to have said, "Preach Christ at all times, and, if necessary, use...

The killing of 10 civilians in Afghanistan, seven of them children, on the penultimate day of the war, should serve as a lasting symbol not of the chaotic exit of the United States from the country, but of the fallacy of U.S. foreign policy in particular and the folly of war in general. I wonder, will anyone remember the name of the man who was the target of that deadly mistake years from now?...

Address to the 240th Interfaith Prayer Service in Eugene on the Twentieth Anniversary of 9.11 On one hand, it is good to be together even if virtually and once again to connect as people of many faith traditions. On the other, I just want to acknowledge the ongoing pain from not being able to gather in person in that sacred space where we can see and interact with one another.  For what...

Most citizens of this country could probably cite a phrase or two from the first two amendments to the Constitution (e.g “freedom of speech” or “the right to bear arms” to name one from each), but beyond that, not so much. Most would recognize the famous phrase from the Fourteenth Amendment even if they couldn’t tell you a wit about it’s origin. “Equal protection of the law”, the...