A Guide To Anger And Conflict Resolution
Welcome to From Insults To Respect. On this blog, every now and then, I present a little section from one of my three Cool Steve novels—A Hero Grows In Brooklyn, Fights In The Streets, Tears In The Sand, and Love, Sex and Respect. It is my hope each of these sections will provide an opportunity to deepen our thoughts regarding the nature of respect. Today’s section…
Read More
Welcome to From Insults to Respect. Please consider the following quote by Mathias Risse of Harvard University: “Surely, political debate about what America should be, and which kind of economic system it should have, must count among the most basic themes in democratic discourse.” Add to this, if you will, that the very first amendment declares that U.S citizens have, as a basic right, freedom of…
Read More
Welcome to From Insults To Respect. Today, millions of people continue to believe in President Trump. Given what we have learned about him, does it make sense to insult these believers by viewing them as crazy? Let’s give this question some thought. * * *…
Read More
Welcome to From Insults To Respect. I just watched President Trump’s speech about what he hopes the U.S. hopes will be achieved by joining forces with Israel to attack Iran. Since the attack began three days ago, some friends have asked for my reaction. Here’s my response. There are only four things that I am certain of: Billions of tax dollars will be spent on this…
Read More
Welcome to From Insults to Respect. Today we’re going to take a few minutes to compare a Palestinian conflict to one that Native Americans had been engaged in. Doing so, will suggest a path toward peace for the very violence-prone Middle East region. The Comparison The conflict Palestinians are engaged in can be briefly described by using the mnemonic DIG. These letters serve to remind…
Read More
Welcome to From Insults To Respect. Today, we begin with the question, Why do we like getting high? Many people, for their New Year’s resolution, seek to cut back, or even completely give up, drinking or consuming other drugs. They have begun to wonder why they have been spending so much money and time on this activity. They may recognize that although for many the use…
Read More
Welcome to From Insults to Respect. As readers can readily see, this blog deals with issues related to insults and respect. Because I’ve assumed people readily know what they mean, in none of my previous posts have I bothered defining them. However, I recently asked some people what respect means, and found they hesitated, seemed unsure how to respond, or gave some vague answers. For example,…
Read More
Welcome to From Insults to Respect. Recently, I came upon an article in The New York Times by Ellen Barry titled, “Autism, A.D.H.D., Anxiety: Can a Diagnosis Make You Better?” She begins by telling us about a woman in her early 50s who, upon getting a diagnosis of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, “described it as a profound relief, releasing her from years of self-blame — about…
Read More
Welcome to From Insults to Respect. Today, I ask readers to consider a story that raises some questions regarding the practice of psychiatry. The Story Cool Steve and three of his fellow high school buddies, Jeff, George, and Cliff, have come to the Coney Island Child Psychiatric Center because Steve’s eight-year old brother, Pete, has been dealing with some serious emotional problems. When Pete was…
Read More
Welcome to From Insults To Respect. Today, let’s consider a story in which the N-word gets used in a couple of very different ways. A Rough Basketball Game May, 1965. “Wandering around the Coney Island area a few blocks from the amusement parks, 15-year old Steve and his nine-year old brother, Pete, spots some guys about his age playing basketball. As they come closer, they…
Read More