So in an hour or so, I’ll be off to Baltimore for Mythmoot III: Ever on…, the third installment of the (nearly) annual academic/fan gathering for the Mythgard Institute. As with last year, I will be presenting a paper. This year, my subject is Ursula K. Le Guin’s The Left Hand of Darkness, specifically about her descriptions of […]
Recently, Neshaminy High School in Bucks County, PA, made a ripple when the student editors of the school newspaper (The Playwickian) decided that they would no longer print the name of the school’s mascot — the Redskins — within its pages. The editors’ reasons focus on sensitivity, as indicated in an unsigned editorial published last
As it turns out, I’m a horrible libertarian: I’m allowing my kids to take New York State’s standardized tests. The first of these, the English Language Arts, are being administered this week, and the math version will follow in a few weeks, after spring break. Given my social media contacts, I’ve seen a lot of
Yeah, it’s been over a month since I’ve blogged. Can I blame it on the shutdown? Well, either way, here’s what I’ve been doing with my time since then. Philology through Tolkien — This trimester at the Mythgard Institute, I’ve been studying philology through Tolkien. The guy who wrote The Hobbit and The Lord of the
A couple days ago, President Obama came to Central New York. I know because the traffic on I-690 was backed up, and I got stuck in the mire on the way home. For some reason (perhaps to avoid State Fair traffic), the presidential entourage — coming from Buffalo and Rochester in Western NY — went
Apparently, there’s some brouhaha over standardized testing in schools. Earlier today, a friend posted a link to an article about parents in Central New York telling their children to refuse to take standardized tests, and it seems it’s not just a local phenomenon. The question is, why? Opponents of the testing say it stresses students,
Recently, Mythgard celebrated it’s first birthday, which is pretty awesome. (Incidentally, today is the last day to take advantage of the 5% discount Mythgard is offering as part of their birthday gift to students and auditors.) Iparticipated in the inaugural “Tolkien and the Epic” class last fall, and I’m glad I’ve continued working toward my
There are hundreds, if not thousands, of things I could write about my dad. He was both feared and admired, abhorred and adored, and at times predictably unpredictable. There are stories about camping trips (real men use tarps) and motorcycle rides (yes, I fell asleep), anecdotes about how he made my friends do yard work
The Mythgard Institute is a new organization that is trying to promote studies and research related to the works of J. R. R. Tolkien (and related fields). While simultaneously opening a new door for such an interesting and rich body of work, the institute is diving headfirst into the crevasse of online academia in an
Eugene Volokh at The Volokh Conspiracy has some problems with a recent U.S. District Court decision that ruled a teacher’s comments about creationism violate the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution. I am not a lawyer, but it seems that the problem has less to do with the fact that public
