Is the Mainstream Media Finally Recognizing How the War on Drugs is Destroying Our...
By John Silveira
December 17, 1999
The December 1999 issue of Harper's Magazine has a headline the likes of which I'd given up ever seeing on the cover of a mainstream magazine. The newsstand jacket...
Why I Hated Santa Claus
By John Silveira
December 21, 1999
Even as a little kid I didn't like Santa Claus. I liked the loot he brought; I wanted toys. With some trepidation, I even sat in his lap at the...
Planning the lives of generations to come
By John Silveira
March 8, 2006
I was reading the March 2006 issue of Discover Magazine and read Asteroid Watcher Worries, an interview with Clark R. Chapman, a planetary scientist at the Southwest Research Institute at...
What is reality?
By John Silveira
April 7, 2006
I don't read much. So, I missed James Frey's A Million Little Pieces, though it made best sellers lists from the New York Times to amazon.com. If the truth be...
ID cards are an idea whose time should never come
By John Silveira
October 28, 2001
I just read in the October 8th issue of U.S. News and World Report a column by Randall E. Stross in which he advocates some kind of national I.D. Card....
The Runaway
By John Silveira
February 9, 2006
My kids are grown. But it didn't come about without a lot of frustration, tribulations, and laughs.
Runaways: What do you do with a six-year-old who threatens to run away?
One woman...
Terrorist attack! Was this predictable?
By John Silveira
September 11, 2001
I was awakened to news about the suicide attacks by my daughter. Quite frankly, I thought it was the beginning of a bad joke she'd heard and I was expecting...
Beautiful Women
By John Silveira
August 10, 2001
Who are the 50 most beautiful women in the world? Askmen.com recently came up with a readers' list.
At the bottom and rounding out the list is Sandra Bullock (50th). They...
Why I’m nice to telemarketers
By John Silveira
July 22, 2000
We complain because they bug us during supper. Of course, it wouldn't make sense for them to call us at 1:00 in the afternoon because we're not usually home then....
Helping crackpots kill kids
By John Silveira
February 23, 2000
I've moved to Oregon and one of the first "privileges" in this state I intend to avail myself of is the state's easy-to-obtain concealed weapon permit. Never mind that the...
What kind of Americans sit on our juries?
By John Silveira
March 16, 2000
Our jury system is supposed to be a buffer between us--the citizens--and the government. It is there to prevent the abuse of power that governments have exercised since the dawn...
Dealing with Liberals and History
By John Silveira
February 6, 2000
Years ago I hated talking politics with liberals. I have a good memory and a good sense of history, but whenever I mentioned any historical "fact" that countered their arguments,...
Next time you see me, don’t be afraid to say, ‘Hello.’
By John Silveira
January 29, 2000
Mom and Dad were divorced before I even turned four, so it didn't dawn on me they'd even been married until I was a lot older. But, as I grew...
Real-life heroes
By John Silveira
January 15, 2000
TV programs and movies are often about heroes. Here's the thinnest of plots: someone's in trouble and a John Wayne-type character shows up to rescue him--or her. In the meantime...
Skillet Spanish rice
Recipe of the Week
Skillet Spanish rice
Courtesy of
John Silveira
You'll find this recipe and over 400 more in Backwoods Home Cooking.Click Here
Ingredients
1 lb. lean ground beef
8 oz. sweet Italian sausage
2 small red or green bell peppers,...
Egg thingies
Recipe of the Week
Egg thingies
Courtesy of
John Silveira
You'll find this recipe and over 400 more in Backwoods Home Cooking.Click Here
Ingredients
For each egg:
1 Tbsp. or so of olive oil
1 green onion, diced
1 Tbsp. diced red...