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Steve Nelson

Steve Nelson is a retired educator, author, and newspaper columnist. He and his wife Wendy moved to Erie from Manhattan in 2017 to be near family. He was a serious violinist and athlete until a catastrophic mountain bike accident in 2020. He now specializes in gratitude and kindness.

http://www.stevenelson.substack.com

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All Censorship is Wrong

February 27, 2023 Like 0 Steve Nelson

The complex issues of sensitivity, censorship, expression, art and history splashed down on the front page of the New York Times this week in a pair of articles. One piece examined the legal case brought by Quebec artist Sam Kerson,…

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Washing Away the Stench

February 7, 2023 Like 0 Steve Nelson

We all have to live with ourselves, but occasionally one is left to wonder how. This week on MSNBC, Steve Bumbaugh, College Board Senior Vice President, did his corporation’s bidding by defending the indefensible whitewash of the AP African American…

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The Content of Character

January 16, 2023 1 0 Steve Nelson

"I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character.” - Martin Luther King, Jr.

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Gun Rights Take Away Freedom

January 13, 2023 Like 0 Steve Nelson

A recent New York Times column addressed what I have long asserted as the most powerful psychological aspect of the gun issue in America.

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If at First You Don’t Succeed . . .

January 6, 2023 Like 0 Steve Nelson

Few have ever wanted a job as much as Kevin McCarthy wants to be Speaker of the House. If he weren’t such a reprehensible hypocrite, I’d feel sorry him. Imagine any other person seeking any other leadership position, sending a…

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A Big Lie is Breaking Education

December 31, 2022 1 0 Steve Nelson

(This long post is an edited excerpt from my 2016 book. I continue to be frustrated by the resistance to progressive -enlightened – education. I hope the excerpt will offer a helpful perspective to those who care about children and…

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Encountering the Divine in Colorado

December 21, 2022 Like 0 Steve Nelson

Precisely 56 years ago this week, I visited Colorado for the first time. It was not a vacation trip. I first met Willie Vance in 1966. We had been drafted and were sworn in on September 19th in Cleveland, Ohio.…

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Because They Need It

December 18, 2022 Like 0 Steve Nelson

“Because they need it.” – Whitney Tilson Tilson is a multimillionaire hedge fund manager who is a major supporter of education “reform,” particularly the Knowledge is Power Program (KIPP) chain. “Because they need it,” was Tilson’s unguarded response to a…

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Poison Ivy

November 15, 2022 1 0 Steve Nelson

For months, she struggled silently with a sense of worthlessness. She had panic attacks that left her trembling. Nightmares that made her cry. She’d told only a handful of friends about the sexual assault she endured while she was home…

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Affirmative Action Debate is Poppycock

November 7, 2022 Like 0 Steve Nelson

With apologies for being quite blunt . . . the debate about affirmative action is almost entirely poppycock. Last week the Supremes heard arguments in a duo of cases challenging affirmative action (AA) in college admissions. Based on oral arguments,…