Reaching out to any fellow ghetto kids is an act he puts in the same category as doing drugs: the initial rush of warmth and euphoria puts you on a path to ruin.

The idea that our son would be like Raymond Babbitt was a shocking reordering of everything. And something we couldn't quite fathom, really.

The substance of faith is a hope in the unseen.

Message matters. Message matters almost as much as actions.

It's exciting to work with the kids so devoid of irony, so unguarded. And also terrifying

Once they arrive, affirmative action kids are generally left to sink or swim academically. Brown (University) offers plenty of counseling and tutoring to struggling students, but, as any academic Dean will tell you, it's up to the students to seek it out, something that a drowning minority student will seek to avoid at all costs, fearing it will trumpet a second-class status.

Every person has their pantheon - the Bible, Hollywood, Shakespeare - their way of understanding the world.