Writing

I write in many genres, primarily nonfiction and fiction.  Some of my writing appears in print or online (I’m a platform agnostic), while other pieces I deliver as speeches or guest lectures.  See below for a sampling of recent work.

Featured Nonfiction

"Thaddeus Stevens: Our Admirable Leaders," LA Progressive, 18 February 2013
"For Political Leaders, Gratitude Is Earned," LA Progressive, 22 September 2012
"Beware of Utopias," LA Progressive, 23 July 2012 [Reprint]
"Founding Wisdom," LA Progressive, 30 May 2012
"Warmongering vs. Pacifism," LA Progressive, 18 April 2012 [Reprint]
"Nagasaki," The Jacksonville Free Press, 4 April 2012
"A Civil Encounter at a Local Hospital," LA Progressive, 27 March 2012 [Reprint]
"Lifelong Learning: A 21st-Century Necessity," The Jacksonville Free Press, 11 March 2012
"The Okinawa Conundrum," LA Progressive, 11 March 2012
"Retreat to Canada," The Jacksonville Free Press, 4 March 2012
"Protest or Revolution?", LA Progressive, 4 March 2012
"Progressives Must Seize This Political Opportunity," LA Progressive, 26 February 2012
“Teacher,” This I Believe: On Fatherhood, May 2011
“Finding My Way to Pearl Harbor,” Raving Dove No. 19, Spring-Summer 2011 [Released on April 15]

Commentary (a sampling of some columns)

Jacksonville Journal-Courier [Most links work again now.]

"The Case for Compassion," 15 May 2013
"Balancing Act When It Comes to Answers," 20 March 2013
"Concern and Uncertainty," 6 February 2013
"The Perils of Factionalism," 11 January 2013
"Mediocre Not Good Enough," 12 December 2012
"Seeing What Is Obvious," 28 November 2012
"Food or Compassion Lacking?" 10 October 2012
"'Chuck' Was Awesome," 12 September 2012
"Always Choose Optimism," 6 August 2012
"In Defense of Popular Culture," 16 July 2012
"Knowledge--and Preparation," 30 May 2012
"Learning from the Past," 8 May 2012
"Warmongering vs. Pacifism," 16 April 2012
"Competition and Cooperation," 28 March 2012
"An Incredible Set of Tools," 7 March 2012
"Ignoring the Horse Race," 15 February 2012
"Discovering Hidden Truths," 1 February 2012
"Pandemic of Cruelty," 25 January 2012
"What Good Are Resolutions?" 4 January 2012
"Ron Paul Got My Attention," 21 December 2011
"From the Abstract, We Get Clearer Picture," 21 November 2011
"Imagine a Grand Vision," 9 November 2011
"Citizens or Consumers?" 19 October 2011

Illinois Times

"We Need to Focus on Jobs," 29 November–5 December 2012
"We Need a New WPA," 5–11 July 2012
"Boycott Cynicism and Fear," 22–28 March 2012
"The 1 Percent That Used to Be," 5–11 January 2012
"I (Sort of) Love Taxes," 8–14 December 2011
"Who Are the Poor?" 13–19 October 2011
"Marching Toward the New Economy, 21 July–27 July 2011
"A Sinking Feeling about the Economy," 2 June–8 June 2011
"While U.S. Fiddles, China Gains," 28 April–May 4 2011
“Our Clothes Reveal the Story,” 3–9 March 2011
“A Letter to a Young Worker,” 10–16 February 2011

Most Recent Speeches

“The Pacific War and Hiroshima: Japan and the United States as 'Two Scorpions in a Bottle.'” Views of Japan BreakAway Course, Guest Lecture, 3 April 2012 and 15 March 2011

“Compassion: The Neglected Commodity in the Globalized World,” American Association of Community Colleges Service-Learning Workshop, Lincoln Land Community College, Springfield, Illinois, 21 January 2011 [Currently posted on the Featured Manuscript page of this website]

Student Retention Research

“Standardized Test Scores: Reacting to Student Preparation, Resisting False Certainty.”  Proceedings of the National Symposium on
Student Retention, 31 Oct.–2 Nov. 2011, The University of Oklahoma Center for Institutional Data Exchange and Analysis, 2011.

“The ‘Magic Pill’: Data-driven Decision-Making,” coauthored with Elizabeth Tobin, Proceedings of the National Symposium on Student Retention, 1 Nov.–3 Nov. 2010, The University of Oklahoma Center for Institutional Data Exchange and Analysis, 2010.

Blog Essay

“Doing Your Work,” Penn State M.F.A. Program Blog, 25 October 2010

Military History

“A Tough and Smart Enemy,” World at War Magazine No.16, February–March 2011

Epic Fantasy

Guardians of the Dawn (short-story collection, iUniverse), available on Amazon.com at this link

* “Capo has crafted a beautifully written tale in the style of traditional Greek or Roman mythology,” Lisa Kellar, Pittsburgh,

February 2006

                        * “Nick Capo’s Guardians of the Dawn is quite good, and left me begging, wishing, hoping, and

yearning for more!,” Keith May, Once Written