Confessions of a Wannabe Writer I want to write a novel. I want to write a novel so bad it hurts. Not hurts, exactly-more like aches , or haunts . You get the picture. So write it, you say. Quit your moanin' and complainin', procrastinatin' and delayin' . . . least, that's what... ( added 27 days 6 hours ago.)

Weapons of Mass Instruction Insightful, but . . . Okay, class: quick pop quiz. Compulsory education is: a) Responsible for "dumbing down" the population. b) A tool used by the ruling class to control the labor force. c) Responsible for society's every conceivable malaise, from... ( added 32 days 1 hour ago.)

Legal Grass isn't Greener: UN Against Decriminalization The United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime says the success of international controls on illicit drugs has created a monster: a criminal market that actually offsets the benefits of drug control. In a paper prepared for this week's... ( added 195 days 3 hours ago.)

Money's Worth Movies You work hard all week, it's Saturday night, and all you want to do is relax and watch a good movie without paying ten bucks for a box of popcorn. Seems simple, but it's not. More times than I care to remember, I've wandered the aisles at... ( added 196 days 5 hours ago.)

AIG Bloodsuckers Ease Middle-Class Guilt I've been married 24 years, and during those two-plus decades I've traveled twice with my wife to the Bahamas, once on our honeymoon and again the following year. Fast-forward another ten vacation-less years. I left a job that was threatening... ( added 196 days 5 hours ago.)

Love's Not Like Clockwork . . . or Reality TV I don't know if it's a man thing or not, but I suffer from what I'll call a certain antipathy to ceremony-the idea that I have to think, feel, or act a certain way because of a "special" time, place or occasion. I loathe the fuss of birthday... ( added 199 days 3 hours ago.)

Stress and the Media: No Country for Old Men I've got a problem and you've got to help me. It's a matter of life and death. My father died 7 years ago from a heart attack. That's the simple explanation. The truth, however, like most things human, is a little more complex. The reality is... ( added 200 days 3 hours ago.)

Hush, Limbaugh Once upon a time I had the opportunity to listen to a motivational speaker, a man hired to inspire a company's workforce to come up with new ways to cut costs, improve efficiencies and increase profits. Part of his presentation dealt with the idea... ( added 201 days 5 hours ago.)

Mid-Life Crisis? More Like the Tip of the Iceberg. "I've been having this recurring dream," I tell my wife. I'm driving down the highway with Michael Moore in his brown 90's Ford. My driving dreams used to be fun, flashy summertime dreams, Born to be Wild blaring on the radio, incredibly fast... ( added 203 days 6 hours ago.)

The Economy's In the Toilet . . . But You Can Still Dream. " We shut off our engine and the wind filled our sails. It was a beautiful clear night with a million stars. Cruise ships, glittering like diamond bracelets, passed us. Later, we picked up the lights from Great Stirrup Cay, ran inside and made our... ( added 205 days 4 hours ago.)

Words to Die By Once upon a time, the Statue of Liberty called out to the world's wretches with the twin promises of freedom and enterprise. "Give me your tired, your poor, Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free, The wretched refuse of your... ( added 207 days 3 hours ago.)

My Heroes Have Always Been Cowboys . . . Until Now When I was a small-town teenager, sports heroes and movie stars were the role models of my generation. And while dreams of becoming the next Dr. J made me spend hours on the hardcourt, Hollywood's Burt Reynolds and Clint Eastwood, the two major... ( added 210 days 23 hours ago.)