How to Choose a President

The topics dominating the discussion about the Republican primary for president – Rick Perry’s inability to recall the details of his own campaign proposal and the sexual harassment allegations against Herman Cain – may be captivating, but they don’t tell us what we need to determine who is best equipped to serve in the Oval Office.

Sure, we’d like our leaders to be pillars of virtue, but there have been some very effective presidents, governors and mayors whose personal lives were not exactly role models. Likewise, Perry’s gaffe in the CNBC debate was downright embarrassing, but should our judgments on the next leader of the free world be based on a 53-second YouTube moment? There must be better ways to gauge who would be a good president.

Where do you begin in choosing a president?

My op-ed on the GOP primary and the way we pick presidents in our country was published in today’s Buffalo News.

To read it, click here.

‘Glory Days’ Are Back Again

I was glad to learn that there will be a third installment of Glory Days: A Bruce Springsteen Symposium. The event, best described as an academic conference on Springsteen’s life and work, will return to Monmouth University next year from September 14 to 16.

I had the honor of presenting a paper at Glory Days in 2009, and I hope to take part in next year’s symposium.