The Venerable Sage keeps popping up in the strangest places: Prisoners in central China’s Hubei province have built a sculpture of Confucius, the famous ancient Chinese philosopher, and prison authorities say it can inspire and educate inmates….. ……… Continue reading

    Another milestone in the continuing redefinition of the American family: For what experts say is probably the first time, more American women are living without a husband than with one, according to a New York Times analysis of… Continue reading

    Just noticed this short piece in China Daily: Guangzhou achieves developed city status (Bernama.com/chinadaily.com.cn) Updated: 2007-01-04 21:48 The per capita of Guangzhou, the capital of China’s richest Guangdong province, is expected to surpass US$10,000 last year, becoming the… Continue reading

     Here’s a grim passage from the Guardian’s obituary of Saddam Hussein (hat tip, Andrew Sullivan): Saddam was born in the nearby village of Owja, into the mud house of his uncle, Khairallah Tulfah, and into what a Tikriti… Continue reading

     A story ran a few days ago in the Canadian newspaper, The Globe and Mail, about a friend of mine, Daniel A. Bell, who works to demonstrate the contemporary relevance of ancient Chinese, and especially Confucian, thought: Prof.… Continue reading

     Last year I wrote about A Taoist Christmas.  I like that post and re-wrote it for a submission to China Daily, which I think was not published by Christmas in China.   But I want to pick up on… Continue reading

     Yesterday was just too busy to blog: a long meeting at work to decide on a new hire (we did!); lots of grading (the bane of many academic lives right now); and some time sitting around the Albany,… Continue reading

     A good piece in Sunday’s WaPo opens a new perspective on the complex of ethical issues surrounding sperm donors: the point of view of the children so conceived.   Katrina Clark is one such person and she does a… Continue reading