Giggler01 talks about nationalism, patriotism, and more.

Editor's Note: Two weeks ago, the Times announced a special writing contest, asking you to do define "nationalism" and explain your thoughts on this surprisingly complex ideal. Below is the winning submission, another great piece from one of the Times' leading writers.... Think about what's written here. Do you agree? What do terrorists around the globe fight for? Is it always the same thing? When is it more like nationalism and when like unadulterated violence?


Patriotism is the willingness to kill and be killed for trivial reasons. read more...

Calliope prepares for Saturday's club.

Salutations! I'm back, and with a beanie finally -- it's good to walk around Whyville able to chat and discuss openly about all these new ideas for the Critique Club. Speaking of which -- the first one is coming up! This Saturday at 4:30pm, we will be holding the first Critique Club where we'll be discussing this week's featured reading. The works that we will be analyzing this week include: Fahrenheit 451 (Ray Bradbury), The Crucible (Arthur Miller), and Have Spacesuit, Will Travel (Robert Heinlen). read more...