(This story was originally published in print on Nov. 29, 2018) “I do not know where to begin. I just do not.” Do you feel this way after engaging in a conversation, especially when it turns to a sensitive issue? Do you, like many others I know, sometimes feel like you have to hide what you really...

Behind every closed door, a professor can be a professor. They can joke about that one student who makes them want to rip the hair out of their head, or complain about the colleague that seems to add salt to the wound of every hard day. Students can empathize. Either we are that student who walks out...

(This story was originally published in print on Nov. 29, 2018) Last week in the Biola Collegium, a student asked me to tell her something about myself most people do not know. I told her I was an introvert. If I had more time or had more foresight, I would have also told her I was a shy college student....

For every age, and for every culture, there has been a name for the obscure. For Rousseau, it was “the general will,” for Kierkegaard it was “the crowd” and for common conversation it is “they said.” No one knows what a crowd does, but it makes us feel empowered. No one knows who “they”...

In 1999, the ABC show “Nightline” featured IDEO, a top design consultancy which invented the first Apple Mouse. In this episode, IDEO took on a challenge to redesign the shopping cart in just five days. The episode featured a group of experts from diverse disciplines—a Harvard MBA, a linguist,...

Looming in the background of the midterm elections was the political blockbuster flick no one wanted to talk about. However, on November 25, the migrant caravan finally made its way to the United States border and was confronted with tear gas. A popular photo, circulated among mainstream media, depicting...

This story was originally published in print on Nov. 15, 2018. Students at the University of Pennsylvania set off a controversy in 2016 when they removed a prominent portrait of William Shakespeare in their English building and replaced it with a portrait of  Audre Lorde, a black, feminist poet. The...

This story was originally published in print on Nov. 15, 2018. When I was a freshman, someone told me a riddle: “What’s the difference between a philosopher and a large pepperoni pizza?” The answer: “A large pepperoni pizza can feed a family of four.” There is a common assumption that humanities...

“You never know what you have until it's gone” is a sobering proverb about missed opportunities. It is also a hopeful proverb, explain that when things are taken away, there is opportunity to learn. When I studied abroad in England, I celebrated an “American Thanksgiving,” hosted by a local...

During the early days of the American Revolution, when war with Great Britain was undesirable and prospects of winning were dim, Thomas Paine sought to persuade the colonists by writing “The American Crisis.” The first pamphlet opened with words many of us have since read: “These are the times...

The casualties from both Pennsylvania’s Tree of Life Synagogue massacre just two weeks ago and Wednesday night’s shooting spree at Thousand Oaks’ Borderline Bar & Grill has reached an astounding 23 deaths. Pittsburgh’s synagogue shooting was just the first shock wave, and news of California’s...

“While everyone cheered and their cheers filled the sky: ‘Fight! Fight for the Butter side UP! Do or die! Well . . . We didn't do. And we didn't quite die.” Dr. Seuss’ “The Butter Battle Book” captures the deflating tone in the wake of an overhyped colossal clash between the blue wave...