Rob's Blog

Ask the Right Question
I intended to write about immigrants. About our government’s demonization of immigrants. About the reasons people flee their homes, abandon their extended families and communities, take enormous risks and

Rain at 4 am (then War)
Some people use a recording of rain’s soothing white noise to put themselves to sleep. I like to be woken up by the real thing. My

Standing in Black
Yesterday afternoon, from 4:30 to 5:30 p.m., 17 men and women dressed all in black, stood in a line on the street in the little
To Recognize the Fact
I call it cruel and maybe the root of all crueltyto know what occurs but not recognize the fact. – William Stafford, from A Ritual to
Astonished by Water, by Cruelty, by Kindness
A friend asked me to write a little essay about being astonished. Astonished? . . . My first thought was a glass of cool water.
On the River with Huck & Jim, the King & the Duke, Elon & Donald
“It was a dreadful thing to see. Human beings can be awful cruel to one another.” — Huck Finn
Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion and AWTT
Right below the surface, like the rotting body of a drowned Ku Klux Klan Grand Dragon, is the stinking, smug racism of Donald Trump as
The Exaltation of Ego and a Coup, January 20, 2025
“Our government is the potent, the omnipresent teacher. . . . Crime is contagious. If the government becomes a law-breaker, it breeds contempt for the
Let’s Be Clear
Friends, Donald Trump has promised that his first official act as president will be as a dictator. My first act – waking up on November