OUR BLOG
Character is Important
George Washington was not an intellectual giant like Benjamin Franklin, John Adams, Thomas Jefferson, or James Madison. Compared with most other founders, he was not well educated (he attended school for only about five years), and, unlike many of them, he disliked...
Thomas Jefferson’s Choice
With five simple words in the Declaration of Independence-- "all men are created equal"--Thomas Jefferson undid Aristotle's ancient formula: "from the hour of their birth some men are marked out for subjection, others for rule."1 Jefferson’s words had a great effect....
Why Stoicism Matters
Stoicism tells us that no happiness can be secure if it’s rooted in changeable, destructible things. Our bank accounts can grow or shrink, our careers can prosper or falter, even our loved ones can be taken from us. There is only one place the world can’t touch: our...
The Importance of “Grit”
Ned Pepper: “I call that bold talk for a one-eyed fat man.” Rooster Cogburn: “Fill your hands you sonofabitch.” Charles Portis, True Grit True Grit is a 1968 novel by Charles Portis. It is told from...
The Meditations of Marcus Aurelius
"Engage your brain before you engage your weapon." - General James Mattis Marcus Aurelius was the Roman emperor from 161 to 180 A.D. People as diverse as former President Bill...
Young Winston Churchill
"I do not believe the Gods would create so potent a being as myself for so prosaic an ending." - Winston Churchill In her book, Hero of the Empire, Candice Millard relates the adventures of Winston Churchill as a young man in the Boer War. Churchill became a...
Productivity at Work
Work is good because it gives a person meaning and self-respect. Beyond this, I have witnessed that people who work seem to be happier and better adjusted to their circumstances as compared to similarly situated people who do not work. Since work is good for us, how...
Retired Judges
From time to time, I will appear to a scheduled hearing expecting to see the judge assigned to that section of court, and, instead, a retired judge appears. Florida’s constitution permits the assignment of retired judges. However, it specifies that these assignments...
Why We Elect Judges
Recently an altercation occurred outside the Jan Platt Library in South Tampa. Citizens were present to cast their early votes.1 The altercation occurred between Melissa Polo's campaign consultant and Gary Dolgin's wife. Polo and Dolgin are candidates for the same...