Pigs Prove to Be Smart, if Not Vain The 8th and final session of the Class of Nonviolence is about violence and animals. This article from the New York Times covers the new scientific field of “pig cognition.” It says in part: “Even in domesticity, pigs have retained much of their foreboar’s smarts. Dr. Byrne… Read More »
Understanding and Combating War This is a resource provided by the Voices Education Project. It is a complilation of writings, music, drama and art inspired by the work of Lucy Dougall in her book War and Peace in Literature: Prose, Drama and Poetry which Illuminate the Problem of War. Here’s what you’ll find (click on… Read More »
A really nice short video that defines Human Rights, which we typically discuss during lesson six of the Class of Nonviolence.
There’s really not an ideal place to discuss Columbus Day in the Class of Nonviolence, although it fits best in lesson 7, where we generally talk about war. Instead, take advantage of the day itself to discuss alternative views of Columbus. Several good books that can be added to a library or curriculum are: Lies… Read More »
“Distributive justice is not only a central issue of moral and political philosophy, but also an object of common-sense moral reasoning. Everyone is sensitive to the question of his/her share of the common good. Even those who get the best piece of the social pie are in need to justify the actual model of distribution.… Read More »
My peaceCENTER colleague Rosalyn Collier roped me into dinner and a movie, the movie being “Strictly Ballroom,” a 1993 Australian film about ballroom dancing. “Not at all my cup of tea,” I complained. “You love it. Trust me,” she countered. She was right. Scott, a young competitive ballroom dancer, is inspired to improvise in a… Read More »
The Interactive Media Lab at USC is developing Walden, a game that simulates the experiment in living made by Thoreau at Walden Pond in 1845-47, allowing players to walk in his virtual footsteps, attend to the tasks of living a self-reliant existence, discover in the beauty of a virtual landscape the ideas and writings of… Read More »
Active U.S. Hate Groups The Southern Poverty Law Center counted 926 active hate groups in the United States in 2008. Only organizations and their chapters known to be active during 2008 are included. All hate groups have beliefs or practices that attack or malign an entire class of people, typically for their immutable characteristics. This… Read More »
Want to be a better person? Commune with nature. Paying attention to the natural world not only makes you feel better, it makes you behave better, finds a new study to be published October 1 in the Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin. [read article] We’d probably use this material in the first session of the… Read More »
The peaceCENTER has recently published two more book, “End of the Line: five short classic novels about the death penalty” and “Death Sentences: 34 Classic short stories about the death penalty.” Both are available from Amazon.com.