Archive for the ‘Ethics’ Category

I’m the first to admit it: I dressed kind of weird when my family moved to Minnesota from Peru. My innate lack of style — and years of wearing the state-mandated gray school uniform — somehow led me to believe that green-and-white plaid pants were OK. Of course, my pants were not OK. Neither was […]


Yesterday I got the news that a former colleague committed suicide. I didn’t know Larry Oakes very well in my days at the Star Tribune. Mostly, he worked out of the Duluth bureau — but occasionally he’d call the news desk in Minneapolis and ask me to transcribe a story. I remember him as a […]


A story ran in the New York Times the other day about a cop who encountered a barefoot homeless man in Times Square. “It was freezing out and you could see the blisters on the man’s feet,” [Officer Lawrence DePrimo] said in an interview. “I had two pairs of socks and I was still cold.” […]


When I accidentally documented the 35W bridge collapse in 2007, my photojournalist friends advised me to hire a rights-management agency—and fast. I was grateful for their advice: Within 24 hours, my images were all over the Internet. Most of the online news sites had acquired the photos through the Associated Press. But a handful of […]


My friend Tom (aka., “The Blogfodder”) has been at it again. Today he sent me a treasure trove of great reads—including some good advice, should I decide to become a busker: “If you can’t be original, be good.” (I couldn’t help but think of my pal Rudy McLeod, who is both original and good.) I […]


I used to be a licensed wildlife rehabilitator. Sometimes I’d repair broken bats and squirrels and turtles. But mostly I’d feed orphaned babies—Eastern cottontails, usually. I have no idea how many animals I saved. But I know for a fact that I killed one last night, and I’m heartbroken. I had dinner with my dear […]


The United Nations is calling it one of the worst humanitarian crises in decades. Almost 11 million people are suffering, a quarter of Somalia’s population is displaced, and an estimated 10,000 people a day are dying of hunger. Scores of others are battling malaria. The pictures are heartbreaking. Tyler Hicks, The New York Times via […]


I’m not beautiful. In fact, I would describe myself as a “plain Jane:” not repulsively hideous—but nothing to write home about, either. Don’t believe me? Here are the cold, hard facts, courtesy of Anaface.com: OK, so 7.45 out of 10 isn’t that bad. Still … if Daniel S. Hamermesh is right, my poor horizontal symmetry, […]


I have a soft spot for the downtrodden, so it’s not uncommon for me to give a few coins to the occasional beggar. “What’s his story?” I often ask myself as our eyes meet for a moment. “How did he end up here?” Today I actually stopped and asked. I passed this guy on my […]


I met my friend Norine for a stroll today—our first walk since she lost her beloved Mica. I was worried that she’d feel melancholic, but she seemed to find joy in photographing the spring blooms. We followed our feet to Dinkytown, which is just a mile from our homes. In some ways Dinkytown hasn’t changed […]



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