Author: Tom Purcell
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Needed: Blue-Collar Horse Sense
The article in The Washington Post filled me with hope: There’s a trend toward college-educated people getting into the trades. One 29-year-old fellow in Washington, D.C. — he has a degree from Notre Dame — considered going to law school, like many others in the lawyer-saturated town. After watching his friends work long hours as…
Categories: Columns
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Navigating the Second Amendment in Washington, D.C.
“When you get mugged, there are certain rules you must follow,” my friend and his wife explained to me as we walked from a Washington, D.C., pub to their condo. “When I get mugged?” “Muggers are polite when you follow their instructions, but they get surly when you are rude,” said his wife. “How can…
Categories: Columns
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The Case For Marriage
Ah, July, the wedding season. What a great time of the year to NOT marry. So suggest Jessica Bennett and Jesse Ellison in the June 11 edition of Newsweek magazine. The two young, urban women write that marriage no longer makes sense — they cite an anthropologist who says humans are wired for a series…
Categories: Columns
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Necessity, Mother of Invention
Here’s a sentiment that helped make America great: Necessity is the mother of invention. Ted Conley offers a fine example. Conley, a 48-year-old software engineer, was laid off from a large financial services firm in February 2009. With four children to support — two teenage daughters from a prior marriage and a young daughter and…
Categories: Columns
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The Upside to Hiring Independent Contractors
It could turn out to be a good thing. According to CNNMoney.com, the traditional full-time job with benefits is being displaced by temporary or contract positions. With unemployment high, you see, employers have their pick of skilled workers. Why hire full-timers and fund costly benefits when they can pay a flat hourly or monthly rate…
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For Father’s Day Saving for a Rainy Day
My father was right — though it took me a while to realize it. He was born in 1933, when 25 percent of Americans were out of work. His father died when he was only 3, leaving his mother to raise him and his older sister alone. The young family moved from a comfortable house…
Categories: Columns
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Getting Americans Interested in the World Cup
“Who cares about a bunch of guys playing footsie with a little ball?” “Ah, yes, you speak of the World Cup. The fact is BILLIONS care. The World Cup is the most-watched sporting event in the world!” “It is?” “Absolutely, though Americans aren’t watching much. According to a Rasmussen poll, only 8 percent of Americans…
Categories: Columns
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My Sisters Teach Equality to the Women of Afghanistan
As Afghanistan attempts to reach a peace accord with Taliban leaders, U.S. lawmakers, says USA Today, “have made clear that they want women’s rights preserved in any potential deal to integrate former insurgents into the government.” My five sisters took it upon themselves to prepare Afghani women for equality. “We hear the Taliban men made…
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On Fixer-Uppers
If only more Americans had bought fixer-uppers. Maybe I better explain. My first house was in need of major renovations. Boy, did my father and I suffer when we improved the bathroom. The project started well enough. We tore down the old wall tile and put up wallpaper and a tub surround. We repainted, then…
Categories: Columns
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Sex Harassment for Kids
Boy, have sensitivities changed since I was a kid in the ’70s — especially where sexual harassment is concerned. I speak of an incident that occurred three years ago at an elementary school in Oregon. According to abcnews.go.com, two 13-year-old boys were arrested for “slapping girls on the rear end.” Both spent five days in…
Categories: Columns
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