Recent mass shootings that have made national news headlines are a frightening reminder to us all of this “new normal.” Beyond those that have made national headlines, there are many more incidence of gun violence – sometimes more than one a day – for which the trauma is felt only locally.
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As a father of four children and grandfather of four, I was personally shaken by the testimony of Dr. Christine Blasey Ford yesterday. I thought about my kids growing up, and what they might have experienced or observed and never told me, my wife, or anyone.
Last night I had a hard time sleeping.
It was Patriot’s Day in Massachusetts.
I was meeting with a film maker about a possible collaboration on a documentary. We were interested in the impact of digital media on youth.
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Recently, youth-driven marches such as ‘March for Our Lives’ have received extensive media coverage.
Things might seem kind of awful lately.
Every news headline, from every corner of American ideology, feels pretty depressing. We are subjected to nihilistic rants or apocalyptic predictions. When do we smile? When our late-night talk-show hosts use our negativity for comedic material. I’ll admit it.
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According to a 2017 report by the American Psychological Association, 2/3 of Americans feel stressed about the future of our nation, including a majority of each Democrats and Republicans.
This is a good time to talk about charisma and its relationship to the power of stories.
It’s not that the idea of charisma is new. The word itself is an old one. It derives from the ancient Greek word “χάρισμα (khárisma)”, and it translates to something like “favor freely given” or “gift of grace.
During times of “breaking news,” we are all drawn to our TVs, phones and computers for information. This was especially true throughout the 2013 Boston Marathon bombing and lockdown, when we found the drama usually reserved for action-adventure movies playing out in our own neighborhoods.