John’s Blog

These days, many of us tend to think that human nature is inherently competitive and destructive. We hear about “selfish genes,” as if our genetic makeup predetermines that we will be egotistic people and that we will fight with one another. We’re told that our species contains a built-in “killer instinct,” that we are descended […]

There are a lot of different ways people are responding to the tragic events currently take place in the Gulf of Mexico. Some right wing pundits — including Sarah Palin, Glenn Beck, and Rush Limbaugh — have been blaming the worst human-caused environmental catastrophe in the nation’s history on, of all people, environmentalists. In a […]

I have a dear friend with whom I’ve become very close in recent years. He and I talk about almost everything. We confide in each other to such an extent that we even know details of each other’s sexual history and experiences. But I’ve noticed something. Even with all that we have shared, even with […]

No parent wants to raise a spoiled brat–a kid who is selfish, demanding and insensitive to others. But what is it that spoils children? I don’t think it’s an abundance of love and thoughtful attention. I think it more likely happens when we substitute material things for genuine love, when we try to give them […]

Hypocrisy among public figures is nothing new. But lately we’ve been witnessing examples that represent seemingly new dimensions of mind-numbing duplicity. First there was John Edwards running for President, earnestly presenting himself as a model husband standing by his wife while she dealt bravely with cancer. And then we had Tiger Woods, making hundreds of […]