The Torch Magazine

From the Editor (Fall 2020)

     The Torch does not publish letters to the editor (nor do we receive many—three, I think, in my seven years as editor), but we did have a space on the old club website to post such letters we and keep the dialogue going. I am pleased to report that our new, improved website will also include such a space. If anything in this issue or future issues moves you to comment or respond, please send your thoughts to me (torch.magazine.editor@gmail.com) and we will make them available for the whole membership of Torch.

     Torch is about dialogue, after all. It delights me, for instance, that Eric Davis’s Paxton-winning glimpse of the future, "The Rapid Adoption of Artificial Intelligence," appears in this issue with Anthony Anderson’s analysis of Star Trek, the beloved television series that had its own vision of the future, in "The Multitudes of ‘What-If’."

     Of course we also have our usual array of articles on a surprising variety of topics—Joseph Huber, Jr., on the plantations maintained by the American rubber industry, Daniel Thomas on attempts to censor what public school students read, and Danny Krebs on the historical tragedy of the Trail of Tears. Longtime readers will welcome the return to our pages of Roland Moy (twice a Paxton winner), whose "The Circumvented Endowment by Our Creator: Evil"
offers an analysis of how important an understanding the human capacity for evil might be for our nation’s policy choices.

     In short, we have another issue reflecting the spirit of Torch that my predecessor Norris Paxton captured nicely: "Torch offers its members a place where active minds can become more active; an intellectual rallying ground; a refreshing look at today's and tomorrow's world; and the enduring friendship of kindred spirits."

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