Storytelling as a weapon. “Weaponized narrative seeks to undermine an opponent’s civilization, identity, and will by generating complexity, confusion, and political and social schisms.” Fake news. Conspiracy theories. Professional trolls from other countries. Erratic leaders with weaponized twitter accounts. The methods are as old as propaganda and disinformation, but those weapons have new speed and ferocity and power in the… Read More

My grandfather arrived on a boat from Poland when he was only six years old. There are still Durlaks (my maiden name) in Poland, although the family connection has been lost. Even though I’ve never been there, I’ve long cheered Polish heroes for democracy – it’s one of my “second home” countries after my country-love for the US. So it… Read More

Five years ago, I published Open Minds (Mindjack #1): “Back then, it was the first (mind)readers who were different and paid the price for it. Grandma O’Donnell’s stories about the camps where the government held her dad and the other early (mind)readers still gave me the creeps….Even if I never changed, at least I wasn’t destined for an internment camp… Read More

One must have hope. And hope lies now, as it always has, in great moral leaders, enlightenment through intellectual and emotional understanding, and strength in the face of adversity. Just saw SHAWSHANK REDEMPTION for the first time last night. Such a powerful movie about hope (and the use of intellect to thwart evil). Story is the most powerful force in… Read More

There’s a reason most love stories involve healing hearts. Some people are more naturally open-hearted than others – this isn’t good or bad, it simply is. The diversity of the human condition is what makes humanity fascinating. But having an open heart means the slings and arrows of the world pierce you more easily, and the temptation is to withdraw,… Read More

THIS IS NOT NORMAL **300+ hate crimes in the week since the Election** “Post-election spate of hate crimes worse than post-9/11, experts say” http://www.usatoday.com/…/post-election-spate…/93681294/ **President-elect Trump appointing a white nationalist (Steve Bannon) as his Chief Political Strategist, co-equal to his Chief of Staff.** This is not normal. This is not even close to normal. For my at-risk friends (friends of… Read More