Monthly Archives: July 2010

Saturday Night Music Break

Posted on July 31, 2010 by profmondo

In keeping with my band’s first gig in months, I thought I’d pass along links to a bit of what I’ve been listening to of late. Status Quo: Pictures of Matchstick Men. Status Quo soldiered on far longer than anyone … Continue reading →

Posted in Music | Leave a comment

On University Spending Cuts and Collegiate Cash Cows

Posted on July 30, 2010 by profmondo

Professor Eva von Dassow of the U of Minnesota is my new heroine. The good people at The Educated Imagination clued me to a lovely three-minute speech Prof. von D. delivered to the U of M Board of Regents. Follow … Continue reading →

Posted in Education, Politics | 1 Comment

Aging Gracefully as a Weekend Warrior

Posted on July 30, 2010 by profmondo

I started playing drums on borrowed gear when I was in elementary school, and got my first set of my own when I was thirteen. Almost 32 years after that, I’m still playing, in a band that basically does first-generation … Continue reading →

Posted in Music, Why I Do What I Do | 5 Comments

A Brief Note About Moral Equivalence

Posted on July 29, 2010 by profmondo

The cover of the latest Time magazine is intensely disturbing. It is a portrait of a once-beautiful young woman named Aisha, who had the temerity to flee her abusive in-laws. The local Taliban leader had her nose and ears cut … Continue reading →

Posted in Culture, Politics | Leave a comment

Pathfinding: Natural Libertarians and the Myth of Concern

Posted on July 28, 2010 by profmondo

At the American Enterprise Institute’s journal, The American, there’s a nifty article by Lee Harris on the phenomenon of what he calls “natural libertarians,” those folks who knew they couldn’t stand the idea of someone else owning them, someone else … Continue reading →

Posted in Culture, Education, Politics, Why I Do What I Do | Leave a comment

A Brief, if Non-Commercial, Plug

Posted on July 27, 2010 by profmondo

One of the questions I’ve kicked around in my time here is the value of humanities education these days. One of the answers I’ve run across is that the humanities are a way of opening ourselves up to other lives, … Continue reading →

Posted in Culture, Education, Literature, Why I Do What I Do | 1 Comment

Burdens of Proof

Posted on July 26, 2010 by profmondo

The National Association of Scholars (NAS) is a group for which I have considerable sympathy, and I’m glad they’re around, although I’m not a member. However, I’m not very comfortable with a recent essay by the association’s president, Steve Balch. … Continue reading →

Posted in Culture, Education, Politics | 1 Comment

How Twigs Get Bent: Northrop Frye

Posted on July 26, 2010 by profmondo

UPDATE: Welcome, Frygians! Thanks for dropping by! When people ask me why I’m a medievalist, I sometimes joke and say medieval studies are relatively uncontaminated by theory. Now that’s not quite true — to read is to interpret, and interpretation … Continue reading →

Posted in Education, Why I Do What I Do | 3 Comments

Home Again, Home Again…

Posted on July 24, 2010 by profmondo

Jiggety jig. David Foster at Chicago Boyz offers an interesting take on a stock phrase — “liberal guilt.” It’s suggested that liberal whites, for example, are motivated by remorse for the past maltreatment of visible minorities. While we could debate … Continue reading →

Posted in Culture, Faith, Politics | 2 Comments

Yes, I’m Still Here, and Some Suggested Reading

Posted on July 23, 2010 by profmondo

I made it back from my Northern safari on Monday, and followed that with a run to the ancestral lands this week, so that I could take care of some family business. I’m currently in another bookstore coffee shop, having … Continue reading →

Posted in Culture, Politics | 4 Comments