Trump: “We are going to war.” When asked how long it would last, he said, “About a week!” Hegseth: “We didn’t start this war, (?) but with President Trump, we will finish it.” Forget rules of engagement. We are going to win it while our allies just continue to ‘clutch their pearls.’” Hegseth’s announcement seemed like a little boy at Christmas. The above two were speaking as tough guys. I have known many tough guys in my life. These two are not it. One is a five- time draft d

Among other places that I worked growing up in working class America, were the Krylon Paint Factory, the Alan Wood Steel Company, and the Nice Ball Bearing Plant in Philly. I lied about my age to get in the paint factory and loaded gallon paint cans off an unforgiving conveyer belt on to wooden skids to help the family finances, have some spending money and put away what I could for college. All of these places challenged my physical ability and raised only one question by th

The Class of 1944 Chapel, designed by Robert Venturi and Denise Scott Brown An article appeared in the February 23, 2026, edition of The Times  that took me back to the building of the Class of 1944 Chapel. The class wanted their classmate Bob Venturi (and his wife Denise Scott Brown) to design the chapel for the Newtown Square Campus. One of the high points of my time at EA was the opportunity to work with Bob and Denise who were two of the greatest architects of the time wi

“But they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall rise up with wings like eagles; they shall run and not be weary; and they shall walk and not faint.” Isaiah 40:31 President John F. Kennedy’s favorite Bible passage There are many lessons learned from these Winter Olympics. The participants inspire with their skill level, their dedication and hard work, and commitment to excellence. Years ago, it was the Olympics that inspired me to get back to running.

There is the adage that “it is better to ask for forgiveness than it is to ask for permission.” This ethical controversial action is meant to be used in situations where swift action is better than asking for approval where emergencies can be made more harmful than immediate bold action. Doctors in emergency rooms are an example where time is of the essence. It is also used in business, management, and technology to promote innovation when a decision is required to move throu

When Chaplain at EA, I would get to my office at 7 to check over email and conflicts that were included. There are times when I met with parents at 7:30. During one of these mornings as I went to unlock my office, I heard a voice calling me from the conference room across the hall. It was a parent in her Pajamas. She had her two children who were EA students in tow. She couldn’t even wait to get dressed to address her concern. She was very angry about how the school had treat

Mark Carney, Prime Minister of Canada, gave a stirring address at the January 26 World Economic Forum in Davos describing a rupture in the rules-based natural order of things as they now stand. My son, Thaddeus Squire, describes the nature of the rupture and the way forward in the following essay. Thaddeus is a graduate of the Episcopal Academy, a Phi Beta Kappa graduate of Princeton, and holds degrees from the University of Leipzig as a J. William Fullbirght Scholar and the

I Kings 19:12 “The Lord was not in the fire, but after the fire a still small voice.” Recall that I have indicated that when someone came to my office to discuss a problem, it is also helpful if they thought of possible solutions so they can be empowered by coming up with solutions on their own. My last blog dealt with the conversational style that is unhelpful in building bridges as it focuses on winning an argument with gotcha questions. These are questions that are used fr

One of the Bishops of Pennsylvania that I was close to was Lyman Ogilby. His father was one time President of Trinity College. He wanted our family to see his home in Maryland when we were frustrated with looking for land to build a home. He invited us down to his place on the Chesapeake. We loved the view of the Chesapeake as homes sat up on a bluff surrounded by woods. He arranged for a real estate agent to meet us that afternoon. We built the home ourselves and became one