The streets of Milwaukee can be tough. Fortunately, Mama’s on patrol. Martha Freeman is a 77-year old retired corrections officer who, by day tends to household chores like passing out donated bread to those in need. By night, however, she cruises her neighborhood looking for kids who might be getting into trouble. And she’s packin’… wisdom and kindness. In a...

That’s the Japanese word for survivors of the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. The word translates as “explosion-affected people.” Rarely have I listened to such a compelling personal story. It’s the story of Setsuko Thurlow, a hibakusha, who, at just 13-years-old became a victim of war. Today, she is a Peace Ambassador of the United Nations University of Peace...

Why is it that so many good stories – the ones where some impending tragedy is prevented – rarely make broadcast news? I could be sitting here writing about another school shooting if not for the intervention of some alert students who didn’t hesitate to act. This story began with an email from friend and former San Francisco vascular surgeon...

“It was pride that changed angels into devils; it is humility that makes men as angels.”  – St. Augustine Before his elevation to the head of the Catholic Church, Jorge Bergoglio began as a Jesuit priest from Argentina. Since his investiture as Pope in 2013, following the resignation of Pope Benedict XVI, Pope Francis — in honor of Francis of...

In Monday’s commentary (Those Clinton Emails), I began looking at the continuing issue regarding former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton’s use of a private email server. The fallout from inconsistent information from the Democratic candidate has caused her poll numbers to drop and led to a loss of trustworthiness among potential voters. But what’s the genesis of this controversy? Wikipedia...

Even the most reliable news sources can, at times, be inaccurate and so can I. On July 2, 2015, I wrote a commentary (It’s the Law), discussing the pending passage and subsequent protests against California State bill SB 277 which was signed into law by Governor Jerry Brown. The law mandates that most children who attend public or private school...

This month, The Take examines the Good, the Bad and the Very Ugly. The Good – It’s gone! What has stood for decades flying on the grounds of South Carolina’s state house, the Confederate battle flag, long seen as a symbol by many of hate and oppression was officially removed last Friday. In less than a month, after the deaths...

The speed at which attitudes and actions have changed, particularly in the South, about the Confederate battle flag has been staggering. Since the senseless shooting deaths of 9 individuals attending a bible study class in a Charleston, South Carolina church on June 17, we’ve gone from the state’s governor calling for the removal of the flag from the capitol grounds...

The Take was amazed and gratified by three positive events that demonstrated the best we can be. Forgiveness – At the bail hearing for the murder suspect in the Charleston Church shooting this past week, a remarkable and noble spirit spoke. As reported by the Christian Science Monitor (June 20), “ ‘We already forgive him for what he’s done, and...

Even as he took the oath of office, Lincoln knew that civil war was coming. In his first speech as commander and chief, even as he urged restraint, he made clear “In your hands, my dissatisfied fellow-countrymen, and not in mine, is the momentous issue of civil war… You have no oath registered in Heaven to destroy the government, while...