I wish the FBI had followed up on the warnings that were sent about the young Florida shooter. Those innocent people would be alive today. But that preemptive action doesn’t solve the problem at the root of epidemic gun violence. Of course we should be talking about mental illness and doing more to understand and…
Category: Gary Kroeger
We Love Our Guns!
Executive Vice President of the NRA, Wayne LaPierre, stated that government should not interfere with our right to possess guns to defend our homes and protect our children. It’s such an appealing statement. The “right to defend our homes and protect our children.” It makes us feel like warrior-kings protecting our domain with bravery and nobility. It…
Once Upon a Time in America
I watched the President’s State of the Union address with great interest. Not because I had an expectation one way or the other of what it might include, but the conversations that always follow a SOTU reveal what the talking points will be moving forward. I heard several pundits talk about “American Exceptionalism” and the…
Freedom Isn’t Easy
Yesterday someone said to me: “I gave your campaign money because I thought you were going to bring people together. But, you’re just another far-out liberal.” (a year ago I ran for public office) I asked him what turned his perception of me from favorable to unfavorable, and he offered: “Your posts lately (Facebook).” There…
Support Our Troops
What does it mean, specifically, to “support our troops”? Everybody says it, and I believe that everyone sincerely means it, but since every color on the political spectrum uses the phrase, even when foreign policy ideologies are diametrically opposed, I wonder what it really means. It was originally branded during the Gulf War to emphasize conservative…
“Press Two for Hmoob”
Several months ago I was traveling on business with an associate and we were in the Minneapolis airport looking for our terminal. We stood at a large sign that contained directions with instructions in Chinese, followed by Spanish, French, then Arabic and finally after, perhaps, even Serbian, was English. My friend was exasperated and turned to…
“A man hears what he wants to hear…”
Political arguments can get frustrating from time to time. Exchanges can get heated and I, a man who prides himself on civility, am sometimes tested. I contend, however, that I never draw first blood, even if my posts incite disharmony, and I never resort to personal insults. I, on the other hand, am called stupid and uninformed…
Sending My Son To College
I just did what many parents have done before me; I took my son off to college. Eventually the last hug comes and with tears welling in my eyes I looked back one more time at the young man whose own eyes were filled with optimism mixed with a dash of fear. I saw a…
Where Responsibility Lies
Most of us, as adults, have many responsibilities. We have a responsibility to our communities, locally, nationally and globally, and although we view those responsibilities in varying ways, we must share the responsibility to co-exist. We have a responsibility to family, friends, and employers to be the best person we can be in the different ways that they may depend on us. And,…
The Emperor Has Designer Clothes
Disclaimer: Anything in this article pertaining to President Donald Trump has been written by someone who does not admire the aforementioned president. The views contained here are of a person pre-disposed to believe that Donald Trump is a malignant narcissist and devoid of empathy, and therefore Donald Trump’s motives are not in the best interests…