Issues and Ideas

I recently attended the TedWomen conference, and I am so excited to tell you all about it.   First, you must understand, I am a conference junkie. I love the energy, the gatherings, the shared purpose of people wanting to learn, and I spend an embarrassing amount of time considering the...
My great-grandmother was born before women in the U.S. had the right to vote.  As soon as she was legally allowed to vote, she never missed an election. She’d walk from her two-family house on Exchange Place in Clifton and pull the lever for change and progress. Change was what...
A (slightly) shorter version of this was published in NJ Spotlight, an award-winning editorial website that delivers news and analysis about politics and public policy in New Jersey, on September 21, 2018. You can read it directly on their website here. If you're looking for the longer, fuller version,...
I told my daughter I needed to write about gun violence. Know what she told me? “Mom, be sure you’re not too polarizing. People won’t listen.” She’s right. At age eleven she’s figured out that we adults need to be reminded how to speak to one another in order...
I met Jamie on the bus to the Women's March in DC in 2017. She lost her brother to gun violence over 20 years ago. She's been fighting this fight a long time. "A gun in the hands of a criminal with vengeance in his heart took my brother’s life...
My relationship with our country and its symbolisms is a complex one. I’m not a flag waver. I’m not a flag burner. I grew up with both in my family. I broke bread at the same table as the patriot and the hippie. It was interesting, as a child,...
Last November, something happened. I didn’t see it coming. And after it happened, I didn’t like it. My good friend, Jenna, didn’t like it either. She was the one who first asked me if I thought I might consider going to D.C. for the Women’s March on Washington. I wanted...
Why We Need to Stop Asking WHY and Start Doing Something to Prevent Crazy People from Doing Crazy Things.   My husband Brian, news junkie extraordinaire, usually forwards me his breaking news alerts when there’s important news. It’s not that I want to live under a rock, it’s just that I...