It’s easy to succumb to cynicism from the recent ethics-related scandals causing one to lose sight of everyday acts of civility. At the end of the men’s final at this year’s French Open, Rafael Nadal stood on the podium to accept the top prize and the crowd’s approval after four hard-fought sets of tennis against his rival Novak Djokovic. Not...

What is your word worth? “Step by step I moved on. I kept telling me ‘Just fight, just fight,’ again and again. When I reached the summit ridge I could hardly believe it. With my altimeter I checked everything very carefully, I followed the ridge and I know I was on highest point.” That’s Swiss climber Ueli Steck, considered by...

Ted Nugent is a shameless hate-spewing demagogue. Nugent’s remarks – past, present and more likely future – are not poorly chosen, dumb or inappropriate. They’re dangerously wrong. Last month, Nugent defiantly called the president of the United States “a Chicago communist-raised, communist-educated, communist-nurtured subhuman mongrel.” This month, Texas attorney general and candidate for governor Gregg Abbott welcomed (that’s right, welcomed) the rocker to his...

If you think getting people to act more ethically is tough, try convincing the world to eliminate nuclear weapons. In his 2013 book, ZERO – The Case for Nuclear Weapons Abolition, founder and president of the Nuclear Age Peace FoundationDavid Krieger makes his case through a series of compelling and common sense essays. This one, a conversation between Einstein and Socrates, is...

The Mahatma of mayhem, the Burgermeister of baloney, Glenn Beck has finally seen the Burning Bush of reason and declared – on FOX News of all places – that he played a role in dividing the country. The man who said, “If you take what I say as gospel, you’re an idiot,” spoke to Megyn Kelly Tuesday about his time on the conservative network...

Lists, lists and more lists! Every year, the media creates an endless series of lists. While many target the negative, here’s my list of ten women who inspire: Marissa Mayer –Yahoo CEO. Lots of changes on tap at the web portal company. In abolishing the company’s work-from-home policy, Mayer explained that face-to-face interaction among employees fosters a more collaborative culture...

It’s Christmas and while everyone and their dog is having fun ice skating, Charlie Brown is glum. The always self-conscious little bald kid is depressed. This comes as no great surprise to the many millions that watch the perennial favorite each year. So what is he depressed about this time? “I like getting presents,” he tells Linus, “and sending Christmas...

Okay, I’ve trotted out this story before. However, it is the universal message in everyday stories like this that informs my own life and that is why this story speaks to me. To begin with, it actually happened at Christmastime. Second, our smiling protagonist IS just that genuine in her intentions and her actions. That is not to say that she’s a...

Nelson Mandela was many things to many people. Husband, father, political prisoner for 27 years, and finally president of South Africa, a country he worked for and inspired change from within. South Africans called him Madiba. The name derives from a chief who ruled in 18th century. It is a sign of reverence and respect; respect, in this case, befitting a...

I recently learned of the death of Fran Striker, Jr. – a true friend who reflected the kind of character represented in his dad as well as the western hero made famous on radio and film. After the release of his dad’s final western “One More River,” Fran wrote, “To my good friend, Jim Lichtman – like my Dad and...