Articles written by Rick Fontes - Page 3

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About me - Rick Fontes

A photographer by trade, specializing in child portraiture. A curmudgeon by inclination and, I suppose, a frustrated philosopher of sorts.

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Politics, News & Issues > Presidential Elections 2008 Does Obama meet citizenship requirements to become president?: 2 of 7
President-elect Barrack Obama promised change. Who could have suspected that his "change" would involve dismantling the Constitution of the United States?Article two, Section one, of the constitution sets forth the qualifications for an individual to serve as president of these United States and there are serious, unanswered ... More..
Arts & Humanities > Colonial & Early American History The history of slavery in the US: 3 of 9
The history of slavery in the US is not a closed book. New chapters are being written every day as the descendants of America's slaves and the descendants of America's slave masters continue the struggle to find common ground and a united sense of what is truly the legacy of the slave experience. No reasonable person, in our ... More..
Politics, News & Issues > People in the News Illinois Governor Blagojevich will go down: 2 of 6
Rod Blagojevich was caught with his hand in the cookie jar and now all of his former friends and political cronies are trying desperately to distance themselves from their fallen colleague.There can be no doubt that his political career is at an end. But this is America. Mr. Blagojevich has the opportunity to turn the entire ... More..
Politics, News & Issues > Political Issues Reflections: Expecting too much from politicians: 1 of 3
There is a law of inverse proportions at work between we, the citizens and our elected officials. The more we expect of them the less we expect from ourselves. It is this very surrendering of our rights and obligations in return for promises that the mythic "they" will make everything right for us, somewhere in the bye and by... More..
Society & Lifestyle > Personal Morals & Values How choices can make us better people: 7 of 20
Each choice we make can be evaluated by using a simple device, the "cost-benefit" ratio. Each choice brings a potential benefit and an attendant cost. Too often we are blinded by the potential good and fail to take into account the price to be paid. The monkey trap is a prime example. When certain natives set out to catch a m... More..
Politics, News & Issues > US Elections (Other) Satire: How to win a presidential debate: 3 of 8
To win political debates you must follow the rules. Well, actually there is only one rule. Don't debate, obfuscate. Modern political debates are merely canned sound-bite responses which seldom address the specifics of the question asked. Each candidate's presentation amounts to little more than the repetition of "my impossibl... More..
Politics, News & Issues > Pulitzer Center Should a global climate agreement hold the US to a higher environmental standard than the rest of the world?: 39 of 86
My first reaction is a resounding"NO" but this subject is too important to be dismissed with a simple yes or no. There is no doubt that the climate is changing but reasonable people both in and out of the scientific community hold varied and hotly contested views as to why this is happening. It has been said that when the onl... More..
Politics, News & Issues > Politics, News & Issues (Other) Do people tend to base election votes more on emotion or reason?: 32 of 69
Relatively soon, speaking historically, the tides of time will have washed over this US presidential election cycle and emotional responses to campaign rhetoric will once again have carried someone into the White House. We all strive to be informed voters. We listen to the speeches and debates, read the myriad op-ed pieces, l... More..
Relationships & Family > Relationships & Family (Other) What can be done to address the teenage pregnancy epidemic: 13 of 26
When is the last time you heard the admonition, "shame on you?" Shame is the missing element in all the discussion on the topic of teenage pregnancy. More on this later. On the subject of teenage pregnancy the hot button issue at present is the flapdoodle concerning the breakaway Mormon sect in Texas. Child Protective Service... More..
Religion & Spirituality > Self-Awareness & Realization Taking ownership of your own happiness: 4 of 8
Abraham Lincoln observed, and I paraphrase, "Most people are about as happy or as miserable as they decide to be." The key to this puzzle called "happiness" is choice. This is not to say that we have all chosen the situation that may be the present cause of our unhappiness. Quite often those conditions are thrust upon us thro... More..