Reflecting on a life in the woods, and looking ahead
By Marjorie Burris
Issue #60 • November/December, 1999
It is a good life here on the old homestead. We've worked hard, and we are enjoying the fruits of our labor. It was tough digging the holes...
The meltdown and the bailout: why, how, and what they mean
By John Silveira
Issue #115 • January/February, 2009
To understand how the recent meltdown and bailout came about, you have to know what brought them on. According to some, there are PhDs who have problems grasping...
Is it time for an education revolution?
By Dave Duffy
Issue #77 • September/October, 2002
Education is important, right? Of course it is. Then college must be really important, right? ... Did I hear some of you pause before saying, "Well, yeah, I...
Getting the state out of marriage
By John Silveira
Issue #127 • January/February, 2011
There's a new TV "reality" show on TLC called Sister Wives. It's about a polygamous family: Kody Brown, his 3 wives, their 13 children, and a soon-to-be (maybe...
The attack on Colin Powell prompts questions I’m not supposed to ask
By Dave Duffy
Issue #79 • January/February, 2003
What's wrong with black Americans?
Provocative question, isn't it, especially when it's being asked by a white guy like me. We white guys aren't supposed to question what blacks...
My view: Socialism’s promises always end in disaster
By Dave Duffy
Issue #176 • April/May/June, 2019
There are lots of news stories these days about socialism’s rise in the United States, especially among the young and admirers of newly elected New York Congresswoman Alexandria...
Can America be Saved from Stupid People?
By Dave Duffy
Issue #65 • September/October, 2000
There are a lot of taboos, that is, things we're not supposed to talk about, in modern society. If we do talk about them we are labeled a...
Talking to your kids about death
By Dave Duffy
Issue #97 • January/February, 2006
How do you talk to a child about the death of someone they love? How do you explain the impossible? It's a task many of us parents have...
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...
Activists on both the left and the right spotlight a broken federal government
By Claire Wolfe
Issue #97 • January/February, 2006
On October 28, 2005, 400 citizens of Vermont met amid the pomp of their capitol building and voted to secede from the Union. The media, to say the...
Training for the Boston Marathon
By Dave Duffy
Issue #92 • March/April, 2005
Ever get a wild idea in your head that just won't go away, and you start working on it like crazy? It happens to me all the time....
The black man’s worst enemy is not racism
By Dave Duffy
Issue #16 • July/August, 1992
The recent riots in L.A. and other communities following the acquittal of four white L.A. police officers accused of beating black motorist Rodney King are yet another symptom...
How to fix your aching back using the McKenzie Method
By Dave Duffy
Issue #144 • November/December, 2013
It's hard to get anything done around the homestead if you've got an ailing back. I've had an ailing back for about 40 years, but between issues, after...
Remembering a decade of BHM
By Dave Duffy
Issue #61 • January/February, 2000
Deadline has just ended as I sit down to write this, the last remaining page of this issue. The staff has gone home, and, except for Silveira who...
The Government gorilla in our home
By Dave Duffy
Issue #101 • September/October, 2006
The other week, Vince, a contractor who does occasional work for me, was arrested for slapping his 14-year-old daughter on the behind when she talked back to her...
Three honest words: “I don’t know”
By John Silveira
Issue #63 • May/June, 2000
As we enter another political campaign season I'm reminded of my three favorite words: "I don't know."
Some years back, when I lived in southern California, I met the...































