Welcome to Small Talk! To understand why I created this blog, it's helpful to share a story from the not-so-distant past. The setting: Brooklyn (shocking, I know), at the dinner table. Cast of characters: my esteemed parents, dear husband (henceforth DH) and best friend. Topic of conversation: Libya, the Obama administration's response to protests against Muammar al-Qaddafi. As things start getting heated, my mother begins pacing, cleaning, anxiously looking for something to fix or fidget with, until she reaches the breaking point, approaches the end of the dinner table and declares:

"SMALL TALK! SMALL TALK is what we do! We do not talk about politics or religion or anything that will upset people! We talk about nice things, we talk about the weather, we have SMALL TALK!"

My mother's intervention for the sake of "small talk" has become something of legend within our family. Not without reason, she avoids reading/watching the news, is dismayed by the ongoing tragedy that is life on this planet, and generally wishes to steer those closest to her away from confrontation.

So, in honor of her, I've decided to finally start writing about all the non-controversial topics to which I devote so much mental energy, including history, religious politics and violence, the Middle East (particularly Israel/Palestine, ISIS, how and why the Saudis are part of the problem), political theory and higher ed. Only small talk here. If you want to discuss more pressing matters, there are numerous options for your online perusal. Welcome aboard!