Here we go...

This is my first post on this blog. I set the blog up to provide myself with a convenient place to write about things that I might otherwise never get around to, the sorts of things you talk about with family, friends, and colleagues, or think about while you're trying to fall asleep, but then never do anything with.

I've chosen a blog format for several reasons. Since I know my writing will be publicly visible, perhaps I'll be a little more careful with it than if I were just writing on my own computer. Also, whatever feedback I get will help me refine ideas that might be only half-baked when I first post them. Another bonus of blogging is the chance to meet and interact with new, as well as old, friends and colleagues.

Anthropology and linguistics have, I believe, important things to tell us about human nature, human history, and human problems. For this reason, hot-button issues such as "race," politics, religion, and human evolution will no doubt show up frequently. Sometimes these topics will pop up as a result of current events; sometimes, they will be triggered by readings, things that happen in my classes, or my simply thinking about them while walking in the woods. Most of the time, I will attempt to locate my thoughts within the larger context of anthropological knowledge, in other words to provide sound reasons for why I think the way I do rather than simply offering unsupported "opinion" (although that might happen now and then).

For now, my blog is open for anyone who registers to leave comments. Please stay tuned...