Steveawiggins

LATEST ARTICLES ( 4674 )

• Energized

  

  I grew up in Pennsylvania, but there’s a lot I don’t know about the commonwealth.  (I do know that it’s a commonwealth rather than a state. Read more

  Posted on 05 January 2022 POLITICS, RELIGION, SOCIETY

• Carton Thoughts

  

  Did you know they’re recyclable?  Milk cartons, that is.  In our vegan efforts we switched to non-dairy milk years ago.  Unfortunately the plant-based milk... Read more

  Posted on 04 January 2022 POLITICS, RELIGION, SOCIETY

• 925

  

  Sometimes you just know.  One of the things I know is that nine-to-five schedules are killers.  Literally.  I grew my permanent teeth as a teacher.  Before... Read more

  Posted on 03 January 2022 POLITICS, RELIGION, SOCIETY

• What’s New?

  

  Now that 2021’s behind us, what will we make of the year ahead?  New Year has generally been a time of reflection.  I don’t put a lot of stock into it because... Read more

  Posted on 02 January 2022 POLITICS, RELIGION, SOCIETY

• A Haunting Story

  

  The last book I finished in 2021 didn’t quite make it under the wire for my year-end blog post. It was the second Stephen Graham Jones novel I read in the... Read more

  Posted on 01 January 2022 POLITICS, RELIGION, SOCIETY

• 2021 in Books

  

  It’s become my habit, on the last post of the year, to think back over the year in reading.  This gives me a chance to give a separate boost to the books I foun... Read more

  Posted on 31 December 2021 POLITICS, RELIGION, SOCIETY

• Investigating Investigators

  

  I firmly stand by my earlier assertion that you can learn a lot from reading badly written books. It’s difficult not to attribute motives (particularly of the... Read more

  Posted on 30 December 2021 POLITICS, RELIGION, SOCIETY

• Next Year’s Reading

  

  One of my year-end rituals, apart from looking back at the past year’s books, is to look ahead for the next year’s reading.  This is such a pleasant exercise... Read more

  Posted on 29 December 2021 POLITICS, RELIGION, SOCIETY

• Many Moons

  

  Once you get beyond the very basic level, astronomy quickly become all about numbers. It’s both fascinating and a shame. Fascinating because scientists have bee... Read more

  Posted on 28 December 2021 POLITICS, RELIGION, SOCIETY

• Love Letter

  

  One of the more insidious things about religions is their claim to exclusivity. The belief than any religion is the “only true religion” is bound to run up... Read more

  Posted on 27 December 2021 POLITICS, RELIGION, SOCIETY

• Ghosts Again

  

  In keeping with my holiday ghost interest, I read John Kachuba’s Ghosthunters: On the Trail of Mediums, Dowsers, Spirt Seekers, and Other Investigators of... Read more

  Posted on 26 December 2021 POLITICS, RELIGION, SOCIETY

• Twilight on Christmas

  

  We have too many ornaments for the single Christmas tree we can afford.  There are few reasons for this.  One is that I married into a family with Christmas... Read more

  Posted on 25 December 2021 POLITICS, RELIGION, SOCIETY

• Salvation by the Book

  

  Photo by Nicolas J Leclercq on UnsplashI’ve never been to Iceland.  Part of me says that if I ever get to go I’d want it to be on Christmas Eve.  Ah, the light... Read more

  Posted on 24 December 2021 POLITICS, RELIGION, SOCIETY

• Literary Thoughts

  

  A book is a physical object.  It is printed on paper and has a cover.  It has a publisher who undertakes to have it printed and bound (and with any luck,... Read more

  Posted on 23 December 2021 POLITICS, RELIGION, SOCIETY

• Another Article

  

  Some insecure people feel the compulsion, but really don’t know why.  Speaking strictly for this insecure person it’s because (I think) I’ve been ignored most o... Read more

  Posted on 22 December 2021 POLITICS, RELIGION, SOCIETY

• At Last, Yule

  

  It all depends on how you look at it.  Today is either the longest night or the beginning of the return of the light.  It’s the winter solstice, that time that... Read more

  Posted on 21 December 2021 POLITICS, RELIGION, SOCIETY

• Rats

  

  Small town living had its benefits but one of them wasn’t seeing movies.  In the seventies, before the local mall came in, there were scattered movie theaters... Read more

  Posted on 20 December 2021 POLITICS, RELIGION, SOCIETY

• Not Really Nervous

  

  Embarrassment is a not uncommon reaction. People who knew me as a religion professor or who now know me as a volunteer leader in my local congregation wonder wh... Read more

  Posted on 19 December 2021 POLITICS, RELIGION, SOCIETY

• Masking Identity

  

  Who am I, really?  Identity has been on my mind quite a bit during this pandemic.  With millions dying I suppose it’s important that “the officials” know who... Read more

  Posted on 18 December 2021 POLITICS, RELIGION, SOCIETY

• Ghosts and Puritans

  

  One of the victims of capitalism is the tradition of telling ghost stories at Christmas time.  We tend to relegate such downers to Halloween.  Christmas is a... Read more

  Posted on 17 December 2021 POLITICS, RELIGION, SOCIETY