Steveawiggins

LATEST ARTICLES ( 4650 )

• Flower Power

  

  Why do we find flowers so attractive?  Often what separates weeds from desired plants are the flowers.  (Not always, though, as the much maligned dandelion can... Read more

  Posted on 07 August 2022 POLITICS, RELIGION, SOCIETY

• Who’s It For?

  

  I suspect editors see this all the time.  I also suspect that I’ve unknowingly participated in it as well.  If you’re a book writer, you have to be clear of you... Read more

  Posted on 06 August 2022 POLITICS, RELIGION, SOCIETY

• Cover Copy

  

  If you’ve ever wondered why the same images appear on book covers over and over, there’s a fairly simple explanation.  (I should specify, by the way, that I mea... Read more

  Posted on 05 August 2022 POLITICS, RELIGION, SOCIETY

• New Physics

  

  Maybe it’s time to put away those “new physics” textbooks.  I often wondered what’d become of the old physics.  If it had been good enough for my granddaddy,... Read more

  Posted on 04 August 2022 POLITICS, RELIGION, SOCIETY

• The Nature of Nationalism

  

  I was recently reading about China.  The particular take of this piece was that China began, just over a dozen years ago, an attempt to become the world’s... Read more

  Posted on 03 August 2022 POLITICS, RELIGION, SOCIETY

• Remember the Doorway

  

  I’m glad it has a name.  And I’m also, relievedly, glad it’s normal.  The Doorway Effect.  I’m sure it’s happened to you.  You walk into a room and immediately... Read more

  Posted on 02 August 2022 POLITICS, RELIGION, SOCIETY

• Conflicting Lifestyles

  

  Sleep patterns often don’t fit with work patterns.  The reason I wake up so early is that for years I had to do it to get to Manhattan.  For work. Read more

  Posted on 01 August 2022 POLITICS, RELIGION, SOCIETY

• Woman in the Wilderness

  

  The “Burnt Over District” is religious historian shorthand for upstate New York.  That particular region, during the “Second Great Awakening,” spawned so many... Read more

  Posted on 31 July 2022 POLITICS, RELIGION, SOCIETY

• Yep, Nope

  

  I can honestly say that I’ve never seen a movie that starts with a quote from Nahum.  I also honestly admit that Nope left me scratching my head, but very glad... Read more

  Posted on 30 July 2022 POLITICS, RELIGION, SOCIETY

• Beyond Natural

  

  I’ve read quite a few books about the supernatural. Often these books, which are mostly written by scientists, tend to show the problems with supernatural... Read more

  Posted on 29 July 2022 POLITICS, RELIGION, SOCIETY

• Twisted in Knots

  

  Our staycation at the Red Caboose in Ronks brought to mind the Weird Al Yankovic parody of “Amish Paradise.”  Bored-looking tourists in Lancaster County can’t... Read more

  Posted on 28 July 2022 POLITICS, RELIGION, SOCIETY

• The Magic of Cairns

  

  They’re one of those things, my daughter explained, that people do that make them so likable.  She was talking about building cairns. Read more

  Posted on 27 July 2022 POLITICS, RELIGION, SOCIETY

• Say It in Poetry

  

  I was listening to some Nick Cave the other day, and, as usual, I was quite taken by his lyrics.  I dusted off my poetry notebook and began to try to forge word... Read more

  Posted on 26 July 2022 POLITICS, RELIGION, SOCIETY

• Jekyll and Jekyll

  

  W. E. D. (“Marilyn”) Ross was a journeyman writer. Prolific, he produced more than 300 pot-boilers, and he only started writing at mid-life, which kind of... Read more

  Posted on 25 July 2022 POLITICS, RELIGION, SOCIETY

• Nope, Not Yet

  

  It’s perhaps this summer’s most hotly anticipated movie, but I’m not sure when I’ll get to see it. Jordan Peele’s Nope opened in theaters this weekend but I’ve... Read more

  Posted on 24 July 2022 POLITICS, RELIGION, SOCIETY

• Ancient West Asia

  

  You know what they say about old habits.  While various people are protesting things like critical race theory, there are still some scholarly holdouts for... Read more

  Posted on 23 July 2022 POLITICS, RELIGION, SOCIETY

• Ephrata Cloister

  

  Conrad Beissel isn’t exactly a household name.  I never heard of him until a visit to Ephrata Cloister during a Lancaster staycation. Read more

  Posted on 22 July 2022 POLITICS, RELIGION, SOCIETY

• Not Just Horsemen

  

  With the way they’ve been in the news, UFOs have started to arouse some curiosity. Since I’ve been reading about the culture of the Hudson, Linda Zimmermann’s... Read more

  Posted on 21 July 2022 POLITICS, RELIGION, SOCIETY

• Odd Getaway

  

  It’s small.  Almost cramped, you might say.  But then again, a Pennsylvania Railroad caboose wasn’t really designed to be a two-bedroom apartment with en suite... Read more

  Posted on 20 July 2022 POLITICS, RELIGION, SOCIETY

• Blog Writing

  

  From time to time someone will ask me about my personal writing process.  Those who know that I write at all, primarily, I suspect, think I do mostly blog posts. Read more

  Posted on 19 July 2022 POLITICS, RELIGION, SOCIETY