Amanda Yost is a frequent visitor to this site as well as a student at Santa Monica College currently studying cultural anthropology, with an eye toward cultural ethnography. (Yeah, I had to look that one up, too.) “I’m hoping,” Amanda says, “to focus on the ethnographic side of anthropology as another way to give a voice to the voiceless. Ethnography takes into...

I met Karen Armstrong two years ago at a local talk she gave on the release of her book The Case for God – a thoughtful and highly readable history of the importance of belief. In a brief but private conversation, I found her engaged, informed and always searching; searching to learn more from whomever she spoke with or interviewed. Armstrong’s latest...

“Everyone deserves a seat at humanity’s table.” That was a favorite expression of my friend Frank Kelly, who died in 2010, one day before his 96th birthday. Frank believed it was essential for a peaceful future that everyone be seated at that big table and everyone’s voice be heard. I couldn’t agree more. We need a table that has room...

For nine straight years, nurses continue to rank the highest in the Gallup organization’s annual Honesty and Ethics survey. They would have scored first in the last eleven years if it wasn’t for firefighters snagging the top spot in 2001. The survey results were released on December 3 of this year by the Gallup organization that has been running the annual survey since 1976. “Eighty-one...

Ethical stories surround us every day. While the media tends to focus on the negative, it’s important to acknowledge the positive. While sitting in a local theater the other night listening to the energetic Disney musical Beauty and the Beast, something jumped out at me; something unexpected. The opening narration lays out the backstory. “…a young prince… spoiled, selfish, and unkind…...

Although faith is not an ethical value, its importance in driving ethical conduct should not be underestimated. In fact, the word faith comes from the Latin fidere meaning ‘to trust.’ According to the Dictionary of Philosophy and Religion, “Faith is an attitude or belief which goes beyond the available evidence.” Trusting can sometimes be difficult, but it can uplift and strengthen our resolve...

I have this friend, Amanda.  She’s smart, funny, young and passionate about a great many things, but… at the top of the list would have to be human rights. Amanda is so fervent about the rights of others that she started her own non-profit devoted to creating an awareness of, connection to and action for a variety of human rights issues.  » Read more about: This One’s...

Last Friday (Sept. 4) Huffington Post ran a photo on the front page of its site with the headline, “Snapshot of an Unseen War.”  The photo depicted the final hours of life of Lance Corporal Joshua M. Bernard, 21, after he was struck down by a rocket-propelled grenade in Afghanistan on August 14. Several newspapers around the country chose to run The Associated...

“Never impose on others what you would not choose for yourself.” – Confucius, early Chinese teacher-philosopher One of the best (and most difficult to practice) definitions of the Golden Rule comes from former Hampton Honors College student Courtney Thompson. It’s a short, but powerful essay on what it means to live what Pastor Rick Warren would call, a “purpose-driven life.” When...

Jennifer Westbrook is a graduate from Hampton University’s Honors College who loves the music of Miles Davis and the writings of Frederick Douglass. Her story of respect is a timely reminder of the importance of recognizing the dignity of others. “A homeless man sat alone on a park bench amongst the horde of people in the park. No one sat on the...