The philosophy of the school room in one generation will be the philosophy of government in the next. — Abraham Lincoln

The COVID-19 virus is flourishing at breakneck speed into the small towns and states where they thought they were immune. It was a “big city” problem and they were protected until they weren’t.

And with the virus came the danger to work and education as companies sent workers home and schools closed. Then came the unending din of a call to open the schools.

We heard that children would be fine, teachers would be safe, and kids didn’t get the virus as adults do, but none of that was true. Having to make decisions about the safety of their children as opposed to sending them to school, moms opted to keep them home. Where would they be educated? …

Brad Pitt is an actor whose name causes ears to shoot up whenever he’s mentioned anywhere in the world. He is among the pantheon of film stars who can ensure box office dynamite when his name is above the title and, as a result, he can influence many fans.

The guy with the cowboy hat and the made-for-movies bod (remember “Thelma and Louise?”), Pitt has been involved in many humanitarian causes, but he’s always kept it quiet. When Hurricane Katrina devastated housing in New Orleans, Pitt assembled a planning and construction crew.

His environmentally friendly Make It Right Foundation went to work to construct a projected 150 homes in New Orleans. The architects for the homes were famous in their own right, too, and among them was the uber-famous Frank Gehry. Additional homes are planned for other urban areas in need of housing. Some of these homes are for disabled veterans and persons with special needs. …

I don’t care who you are. When you sit down to write the first page of your screenplay, in your head, you’re also writing your Oscar acceptance speech. — Nora Ephron

Writing a screenplay and you want to get noticed, get a meeting with someone who really matters in this industry? Your prayers may have been answered to some extent, and it’s not how you think.

Anyone who writes, even the most famous writers who went on to incredible fame, has a trunk full of scripts that may never see the light of day. Why? …

There is a sufficiency in the world for man’s need but not for man’s greed. — Mahatma Gandhi

The COVID-19 virus is overtaking the world (a third surge is evident in the US now) and causing death and economic ruin wherever it is found, but not for all. Whenever there’s a disaster, therein lies the seeds for greed for those who see incredible opportunity in the wake of helplessness.

Who among us doesn’t feel helpless in the face of this virus that can kill so quickly despite the age or the social position of the patient?

Yes, we should be following the guidelines offered by medical experts who have advised us what to do to slow down or stop the pandemic. But here is where helplessness meets greed in a most secretive manner. And it’s not the first time this has happened, and it won’t be the last unless we have legislative protection. …

Medicine is not only a science; it is also an art. It does not consist of compounding pills and plasters; it deals with the very processes of life, which must be understood before they may be guided. — Paracelsus

Humans are prone to illness and disease; there is no doubt, but how these illnesses are treated is often misunderstood. Patients are thankful that there are medications today that were once mere far-fetched dreams in the minds of scientists. We not only have medicines, but we have medical procedures that save lives. Even here, there is no infallibility.

Research has pulled us from death’s door with medical alchemy, but there is no free lunch in medicine, either. Every medication, every procedure, comes with its share of side effects or dangers, some of which are missed by the most acute eyes. …

“Climate change is happening, humans are causing it, and I think this is perhaps the most serious environmental issue facing us.“— Bill Nye

The sky and taming its actions may offer one of the latest solutions to bringing the impending dangers of climate change under control. At least that’s what a group at Harvard University is theorizing might be something that must be attempted; we can’t wait.

Drought, hunger, and severe human and animal suffering are on the horizon if we don’t begin an earnest response to climate change. “On September 15, 2020, the sea ice cover reached its annual summer minimum, second-smallest on record: the area of the Arctic Ocean where sea ice concentration was at least 15 percent sea ice was 1.44 million square miles (3.74 …

We are tied to the ocean. And when we go back to the sea, whether it is to sail or to watch — we are going back from whence we came. — John F. Kennedy

Seagrass meadows in the Mediterranean have been doing their best in the war against plastic ocean pollution. Mysterious orbs, named “Neptune balls,” appearing on beaches along the Spanish coast have revealed their true intent — survival of the oceans.

Prior research on the ocean floor had discovered that microplastics and nanoplastics had settled and became a part of the aquatic environment. …

By nature, I’m very care-taking. There’s something really beautiful about cooking for someone and feeding them. — Eric Balfour

Pollution doesn’t hide in our environment. We see it everywhere in our oceans, on our beaches, in huge landfills, the air, and we smell it. But one form of pollution is being missed, and it is potentially the most dangerous — microplastics.

But even here, we are still missing the life-changing microform of pollution that hides from sight in our food and our drinking water, which we serve to our precious babies. Formula contains more than formula.

Not only are these potentially dangerous substances present in foods, but the bottles we use to feed our babies their formula also increases the ingestion of plastics by our infants. …