Category: sociology
-
jury duty and bias
I wrote this while waiting to serve on a jury selection panel: I’m sitting in the courthouse just outside a courtroom waiting to be part of a jury panel to determine whether I will be selected to serve on an actual jury. As I sit here, litigants walk back and forth and in and out…
-
What if I’m gay?
I don’t get out much. It’s kind of sad, especially considering I’m a sociologist (meaning I study people), but I attribute it to the fact that Debi and I are both workaholics and introverted. Ergo, being around large groups of people is pretty rare for me. I mention that to introduce a couple of incidents…
-
Something Interesting
In case you were wondering what effect Obama’s health care legislation (Affordable Care Act) will have on Medicare (’cause I’m sure everyone was wondering this), I have some visual aids for you. I create these for my Introduction to Sociology class for the chapter on aging. But the change was so dramatic I figured others…
-
cat problem and innate morality
Our neighbors to the east of us recently moved out (they were renting). In the last couple of months before they moved out, we think they adopted a young cat. They may not have and the cat may have just showed up recently, but it seemed to spend a lot of time in their yard,…
-
On TV again – as an expert on “heaven”
I received an email from the director of PR at my university last week looking for an expert on religion to comment on a news story the local Fox affiliate was running about heaven and different conceptions of heaven. While a religious studies scholar might have been a better option, I figured I know enough…
-
RE: Joys of Muslim Women – more debunking
Another relative (not my uncle this time), sent me the email below, but (I think smartly) asked me if it was accurate. My response follows the email: This was written by a woman born in Egypt as a Muslim. This is not heresay, and it will scare the life out of you. Make sure you read…
-
new email from my uncle: Jose Legal vs. Jose Illegal
So, I got another email from my uncle (well, Debi got it and forwarded it to me). Here it is: JOSE LEGAL VS. JOSE ILLEGAL You have two families: Jose Legal and Jose Illegal. Both families have two parents, two children and live in California. Jose Legal works in construction, has a social security number…
-
UT highlights my research
My university did a little write up about one of the articles I published recently: It’s a nice summary of the paper and the picture isn’t half bad either.
-
I’ve been shot!
I was standing in line at the grocery store Friday night picking up some stuff for Toren’s birthday party. The woman checking out in front of me was chatting with the employee scanning her purchases – I think they were discussing recipes. I wasn’t really paying very close attention. I put all of my groceries…
-
my best publication yet!
I don’t typically mention my publications on this blog, but this is one about which I am particularly proud. I think it is a significant contribution not only to the study of Mormonism but also to theory in the Sociology of Religion as well. I’m also proud of it because of the amount of time…