Blogcritics Author: Diana Hartman

Book Review: The Mysterious Benedict Society by Trenton Lee Stewart

Diana Hartman — Sun, 13 Jul 2008 18:24:59 EDT

Of all the juvenile fiction I�ve read, Stewart�s is the only one that kept me up all night reading.
Upon my college daughter’s recommendation, I bought and read The Mysterious Benedict Society (TMBS) and The Mysterious Benedict Society and the Perilous Journey by Trenton Lee Stewart. My child is studying to be an archaeologist and is one of the funniest, most creative people, and outside-the-box thinkers I know. I’ve never been...

Post-9/11 GI Bill: 2,881 Days Late and Millions of Dollars Short

Diana Hartman — Fri, 11 Jul 2008 22:54:02 EDT

Yes, Virginia, there is no grandfather clause.
After signing a $162 billion war funding bill, to include a $63 billion overhaul of GI Bill education benefits on Monday, June 30, 2008, President Bush said, “The bill shows even in an election year, Republicans and Democrats can come together to stand behind our troops.” Yes, it’s an election year – evidenced by Bush and...

Black Holes are Racist? Reinventing the Color Wheel

Diana Hartman — Thu, 10 Jul 2008 23:38:35 EDT

If all goes as planned, we�ve heard the last of Monty Python�s The Black Knight and Ajax' White Knight.
Two black officials, including Dallas County, Texas Commissioner John Wiley Price, took issue with white Commissioner, Kenneth Mayfield, when he said, “Central Collections has become a black hole.” Price and the other official assert that a term like “black hole” is racist and unacceptable language, and demanded an apology....

Getting Joy to Outweigh Regret

Diana Hartman — Sat, 28 Jun 2008 15:12:15 EDT

The road from remorse to consolation is as simple, and as difficult, as putting all your cards on the table.
I have regrets, and not just a few. I'd love to say I have none or that there's no going back in time to change what I didn't know then, but to be honest, sometimes I did know. I knew better, I knew how to do it differently, and I knew that even though kindness would be harder, it was still the thing to do rather than what I did. I knew...

Jumping to the Wrong Conclusion

Diana Hartman — Mon, 23 Jun 2008 16:50:36 EDT

A military wife reflects on how her husband handled his struggle with post-traumatic stress.
As I stood on the bridge looking out over the sun-glazed waters of the ocean, I couldn't help but wonder what had possessed my dearest to make this fateful jump.He had been in agony, to be sure. After his return from Iraq, all seemed lost to him. He said as much - often and to many. Still, there were the visits he made to those who were physically...

High School Drunken-Driving Awareness Program Causes Outcry: Too Bad?

Diana Hartman — Wed, 18 Jun 2008 16:40:31 EDT

Parents, students, and the media are upset. Lucky them.
On a Monday morning last month, some of the students attending my daughter’s school, El Camino High in Oceanside, California, were told by Highway Patrol officers that several of their classmates had been killed in drunken-driving car crashes the previous weekend. Some of the students were left stunned. Others were hysterical until a teacher...

MSNBC's Allison Linn Questions USMC Ad at Sex and the City Screening

Diana Hartman — Tue, 17 Jun 2008 16:06:05 EDT

In the attempt to catch the Marine Corps in a lie, Linn manages to paraphrase Marine Lt. General Lewis B. "Chesty" Puller.
MSNBC’s Allison Linn isn’t so sure about an ad she saw for the United States Marine Corps. While she enjoyed the striking movement of the Silent Drill Team against panoramic views of America’s landscapes, Linn wonders “whether those who choose to make that sacrifice would feel turned off, or even pandered to, by the...

Gay Marriage and the Undoing of Straight Marriage

Diana Hartman — Mon, 16 Jun 2008 17:55:14 EDT

Marriage has long been a punchline in this country. Are we about to let others in on the joke?
It will be interesting to see what the legalization of gay marriage does for divorce statistics. Given that many lining up to get married have already been together for years (some for decades), there's a chance the rate of divorce will drop significantly in the future. Marriage between man and woman has long been a punchline in this country....

News You Can Abuse: Eastwood Gets Spiked, Starr Shines on Paparazzi

Diana Hartman — Wed, 11 Jun 2008 10:33:15 EDT

We get an inadvertent peek into Spike Lee�s childhood, and a common gynecological test gets new meaning.
Facial ExpressionsSpike Lee went after Clint Eastwood, saying Eastwood did not accurately depict history when he failed to cast even one black actor in his films, Flags of Our Fathers and Letters from Iwo Jima. Both films came out in 2006. I wish I could take two years to compose my thoughts before speaking up about an issue close to my heart...

Cell Phone Drivers: Let Them Eat Pavement

Diana Hartman — Mon, 9 Jun 2008 15:58:16 EDT

The motor vehicle is the new house.
Anyone who's taken their car for a spin anywhere in the United States knows teenagers are not the only ones ignoring laws that ban cell phone use while driving. They’re also not the only ones throwing common sense out the car window. I’ve traveled the entire length of I-40 several times and have witnessed more carnage caused by...