This week, in Indiana, two police officers who were killed during a charity bicycle ride were laid to rest. This is a bit self-service as one was a relative of mine, but nonetheless, John Adams did have somethign to say about service to man:
“If we do not lay out ourselves in the service of mankind [...]
The news is seemingly the same every day, so today I just want to reflect on what John Adams said about change.
“All great changes are irksome to the human mind, especially those which are
attended with great dangers and uncertain effects.”
The United Nations approved force in Lebonan with a newly drafted “rules of engagement.” It seemed appropriate to take a look at how John Adams connected politics and conflict:
“The science of government it is my duty to study, more than all other
sciences; the arts of legislation and administration and negotiation
ought to take the place of, [...]
Many of those on the side against what is happening in Iraq would possibly agree with what John Adams said:
“Facts are stubborn things; and whatever may be our wishes, our inclinations, or the dictates of our passion, they cannot alter the state of facts and evidence.”
With the San Francisco Chronical reporters, Lance Williams and Mark Fainaru-Wada, being ordert o testify before a grand jury on their source for illegally leaked grand jury testimony from the BALCO case, would Adams give it an “I told you so?”
“When people talk of the freedom of writing, speaking or thinking I cannot choose but [...]
With both parties beginning to position their potential candidates, many people are anticipating this election as a chance for change. Adams quite possibly saw that by giving liberty to the people, they were also giving power to the people:
“Liberty, according to my metaphysics is a self-determining power in an intellectual agent. It implies thought and [...]
It is that time of year again, where children gather up their supplies and begin the school year. What, though, was Adams endorsing in terms of eduction?
“There are two types of education…
One should teach us how to make a living,
And the other how to live.”
Is he right? If so, then what is the answer?
Whether it is Mark McGwire refusing to assist in the steroid investigations, Barry Bonds presumed guilt in the use of performance enhancing drugs, or Floyd Landis’ positive test for synthetic hormones, cheating is on the minds of the public. Adams actually had some things to say about honesty and fairness. In his diary, for instance:
“My [...]
Whether it is the citizens of Cuba, issues in Iraq, or what happens right here at home, there is seemingly endless commentary on equality, but John Adams seemingly did not believe that all people ARE equal:
“Pick up, the first 100 men you meet, and make a Republick. Every Man will have an equal Vote. But [...]
With the Kansas board of education continuing their fight over Intelligent Design versus Evolution, even in his own time Adams may have been a liberal on this one as he wrote to Thomas Jefferson:
“The question before the human race is, whether the God of nature shall govern the world by his own laws, or whether [...]