steinharterm

All the Presidents (Are) Men

I realize that it’s obvious – all of the US Presidents have been men, and all but one have been white men. (tall white men.) I’m not sure that’s served us well. I think back on the Presidents who have been in office that I can recall having an opinion about. Nixon was clearly aContinue reading “All the Presidents (Are) Men”

Like two colors

I just finished Frederick Backman’s latest book, My Friends. Its as much fun as he always is, but more than fun – also clever and thought provoking. At one point, he says (or his character says) that “we’re not like two magnets. We’re like two colors. Once they were mixed together there was no wayContinue reading “Like two colors”

Surrey

We said goodby to Surrey on February 3, 2026. She had been with us – as my son Will’s dog – since 2/11/12. She was a little over 14 years old. It has taken me several weeks to get up the courage to write this post. We have had many pets over the years. IContinue reading “Surrey”

Are we a heartless nation?

I have never thought so. I was brought up to believe that we – the USA – are not only the most powerful nation on earth, but also the one that takes care of the world. We spent billions in Africa, we ran to the defense of a multitude of peoples who we thought wereContinue reading “Are we a heartless nation?”

I’d like my parents back, please

Last year my kids gave me a couple of Christmas gifts that will last. My son gave me a book called Dad, I want to hear your story. It was filled with questions about my life and I spent months filling it in, as stories came to me. My daughter gave to my wife andContinue reading “I’d like my parents back, please”

The World Cup!

I’m a big football (soccer) fan. I have been since I was a boy, playing for my schools in Pennsylvania. I played until i was about 50 and a couple of ACL injuries (and my wife) convinced me that I should retire. I coached my older son from the age of six, in Australia, EnglandContinue reading “The World Cup!”

Elon Musk

I recently read Walter Isaacson’s biography of Elon Musk. I truly hesitated before buying this book. I think Elon Musk is deplorable – i dislike what he’s done in support of Donald Trump and I cannot even admire his business successes given what an asshole he seems to be. I found the idea of readingContinue reading “Elon Musk”

The News

I have been a loyal subscriber to the NY Times for many years. When I lived in CT I got the NYTimes delivered to the house each morning. I would read it and the Wall St Journal every day on the way to work in NYC. The Times has always leaned left and the JournalContinue reading “The News”

Reading

I read an article recently questioning whether audiobooks were in fact reading. I offer my views here. Firstly I would like to point out that I read a lot of books. This year I am up to 60 books, according to goodreads, and most of them are in fact books – books in real paper,Continue reading “Reading”

Embarrassing

I’m reading a book called Quiet, by Susan Cain. It is a study of introverts and extroverts. Susan is an introvert. It’s a fascinating and thought-provoking book. In the current chapter she discusses how people react to being embarrassed. No surprise that introverts take it a lot harder than extroverts, who tend to shrug thingsContinue reading “Embarrassing”