Opinion: Middle class? Who knows
I approach writing this column with trepidation. Social class is a complex and little-understood term. About 75 years ago, a sociologist name Lloyd Warner described six social classes along a continuum: Upper-upper class, Lower-upper, Upper-middle, Lower-middle, Upper-lower, and Lower-lower. This configuration has been used as a matter of convenience over the years although any respectable […]
Opinion: Leaving California
Having trouble making ends meet? Finding it impossible to purchase that starter house that is so important in building wealth for your retirement? Here’s the solution that many of your neighbors have found: Leave California. According to the Public Policy Institute of California (PPIC), “Over the past 25 years California has had its slowest rates […]
Book Talk: Scottoline, ‘Every Fifteen Minutes’
Long-time fans of Lisa Scottoline, like me, won’t be disappointed with Every Fifteen Minutes (2015, 415 pages in paperback format). Initially known for her tightly-written courtroom scenes, Scottoline has branched out to mystery thrillers. She left the practice of law after her daughter, Francesca Serritella, was born and has crafted 30 bestselling novels. They have […]
Opinion: The changing American family
In my field, sociology, some of the most significant and interesting changes that we’ve witnessed in the past half century have involved the composition of the American family. But I need to point out that the United States is not unique in this regard. As a nation, we are following the trends that started in […]
Book Talk: Freida McFadden, ‘The Inmate’
Mystery fans will love this one. Frieda McFadden’s, The Inmate (2024, 332 pages in softcover) has more twists and turns than a Dutch cruller. And there are two timelines, eleven years apart. But the author makes it easy for us to follow. The characters are the same. In the earlier period, they’re teenagers; in the […]
Opinion: China’s cars, can we compete?
When I was growing up, there were many automobile manufacturers in the United States, some of their names will not be familiar to most people who are reading this column. But even those of us who were not raised in a car culture knew that the “Big Three” were General Motors, Ford, and Chrysler. Over […]
Book Talk: David Baldacci, ‘Hope Rises’
David Baldacci has written some of the most interesting novels that I’ve read, and I’ve read thousands of novels since my teen years. Only a few have kept me up all night because I had to see how they ended. The first, as I recall, was Herman Wouk’s, The Caine Mutiny, which I read when […]
Opinion: U.S. not among happiest nations
Our country is in political turmoil and at least some economic distress. Tentacles from the war with Iran are reaching out and touching families, many of which are struggling to make their paychecks stretch. Probably some people are also dealing with a moral crisis, wondering if the lives lost in the war are worth some […]
Book Talk: Baldacci, ‘Nash Falls’
David Baldacci has written more than fifty best-selling mystery novels. I think that I’ve read all of them. This one is different. Like his other thrillers, Nash Falls (2025, 424 pages in hardback format) has interesting characters, dastardly subplots, and lots of tension. And yet, it’s different. The book opens with the funeral for Tiberius […]
Opinion: India — a caste census for 2026
This year, India — the world’s most populous country — is conducting the world’s largest census. It is not only doing an official count of its estimated 1.4 million people, but also a count of people who identify as members of specific castes. This is the first time that membership in a caste (a socio-religious […]