Starbucks just announced it will provide a free online college education to thousands of its workers, without requiring that they remain with the company, through an unusual arrangement with Arizona State University. The offer is being extended to the 135,000 U.S. employees. That's a lot...
Read MoreThe public school system in America is undergoing an overhaul. That overhaul is called Common Core -- the new curriculum structure based on "consistent academic guidelines created to help all students succeed." Those words aren't mine; they greet you when you go to the Common...
Read MoreWelcome to the believing season, otherwise, known as "the Holidays." It's a time of year when we give ourselves permission to believe in, and be grateful for many things in our lives -- a close family, dear friends, snow-driven evenings; whatever aspects of our lives...
Read More"We must also pay attention to the issue of identity as a key driver of tension in, and beyond, the Middle East. At their core, the vicious battles in Iraq, Afghanistan and Syria are over the nature of those countries’ identities and their consequent roles in...
Read MoreThe U.S. is doing it. Microsoft is doing it. Lots of people - not just nations and companies - are doing it: Falling into Descartes' trap, and it's taking a hell of a toll on everyone. If you don't remember, Rene Descartes famously said, I...
Read MoreReading about Rutgers University's ongoing athletic department scandal, leads me to conclude that we're into a protracted crisis season, a time when crises are showing up all over the place. The list is long. Here (along with Rutgers) are a few of my recent favorites. The...
Read MoreSometimes, it's easier to not be who you are in this world. Your boss wants you to be whatever you need to be to get the job done on time and on budget. Your friends want you to be what they need you to be...
Read MoreThis time of year it's hard not to think about peace. We're in the season of "peace on earth, good will toward men." We sing about it, ponder it, imagine it, pray for it. But we don't have it. I believe that before we can have...
Read MoreSo, I'm sitting on the train this morning, from Westport CT to New York City, reading the paper. Today's New York Times had three articles addressing the tug-of-war going on over the fiscal cliff (no pun intended), between the Democrats and the Republicans. The capstone...
Read MoreI just heard a commentator - it is now 7:30 pm EST, Tuesday, election day - say that it's important to assess the "Asian-American" vote as a harbinger of the election. What the heck is that and how do you calculate it? If Suzie Chow,...
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