Unpublished

Ideas for Essays

The following list has ideas for topics to be explored:

• War: not to conquer countries, only to defend. Only if asked by the people of the country, not if asked by a government when that government is unpopular.
• War out of security: what does that mean? When is it valid?
• The American Dream.
• Govern with the consent of the governed.
• Capitalism needs government oversight.
• The purpose of government is to protect and provide for the people. Protect economic interests only as far as it protects and provides for the people. Protecting companies is not a goal for the government.
• Race as a basis for superiority is fundamentally invalid.
• Secrecy is sometimes needed but often unnecessary. Transparancy is a much better approach.
• Person of the president versus the office of the president.
• Patriotism is also to speak up against popular policies, or against popular government officials.
• Nobody is above the law, not even the rich.
• Citizens United is fundamentally flawed. Government is for the people, not companies, and companies are not people.
• Operating in the public sphere means leaving behind personal convictions and protections.
• Fundamental protections in the Bill of Rights apply to all people, not just citizens.
• People who are in the country illegally are no more crimimals than people who are speeding.
• Punishment must be proportional to the wrong that was done.
• Death penalty is inadvisable, but if used, should only be applied for the most heinous crimes.
• Innocent until proven guilty is a fundamental principle of law.
• Discuss the “rules of war”: what is acceptable in war, what is not. A lot of history breaking these rules must be acknowledged.
• Climate change is real.
• What is the scientific principle and why is it important.
• Fundamental difference between opinion and fact, between beliefs and facts.
• Sex and nudity in America.
• Honesty and truth are important.
• Cruelty to animals is a sign of lack of empathy and therefore of cruelty to people.
• Prosperity gap is a big problem. It is an economic problem (poor people are bad consumers) and a moral problem.
• Economy and money are tools to distribute goods and services, not goals in themselves.
• Deal with a future where production is cheap.
• What is acceptable for the CIA to do and what is unacceptable?
• Free press is crucial. Censorship must be guarded against. Even evil speech is protected. Explore the limits of free speech.
• Interest in history, to learn from the past rather than repeat previous mistakes.
• Fundamental importance of the separation of the three branches of government.
• Police brutality, how to balance the dangerous job of honest men and women with their role to “serve and protect.”
• Gender: men and women are different but equal. How to reconcile this.
• Gender identity. Why would anyone care?
• Homosexuality.
• Is torture acceptable? Why?
• American interest versus world interest. When is it important to do something that may not be in America’s self-interest but is necessary for the good of the world as a whole.
• The military-industrial complex.
• The two-party system and its problems.
• Gerrymandering, abolishing districts altogether.