Lloyd Bowers | Discover Thrilling Stories: Divide the Country, Freedom as Public Utility, The Results of Polar Bear Research & Keep These In the Family

About the Author

Lloyd Bowers was born in Columbus, Georgia in 1952, graduated from Furman University in 1976, and has lived in Charleston, South Carolina since 2002.

The Results of Polar Bear Research is Lloyd's first novel and was published in 2007. Lloyd's next book, Keep These in the Family, is a collection of twelve stories and was published in 2010.

"I grew up in the South," says Lloyd. "The Southern Appalachians is a sort of fixed foot in my life, and the summer-time is a great time to gravitate unpredictably in social settings."

"Freedom is a Public Utility, published 2014, developed from the discovery of a stash of old family letters, dated 1812 to 1857, mailed to my great-great-grandfather John Siegling, who emigrated from Erfurt, Germany, and settled in Charleston in 1820. That he was en route, or 'unterwegs,' for five years impressed me.

"Divide the Country! was published February, 2020. It reflects my concern about the disunity, and even partisan hatred, that plagues the U.S."

Latest Posts

16 Feb 2026

Polarization

I first heard the term "polarization" in the modern American context in a book The Second Civil War: How Extreme Partisonship has Paralyzed Washington and Polarized America, by political analyst Ronald Brownstein, published in 2007. Again and again, Brownstein frets over important elections decided by "razor-thin margins". The lack of common ground, expressed by politcal-party loyalty and the absence of cross-voters in Congress, suggests deep divisions in the body-politic, although the voters don't like cross-overs by politicians who represent them.

12 Feb 2026

Thinking about the Epstein Case

Given the fall-out from the Jeffrey Epstein case, more than a few Americans have dusted off their old copies of Mario Puzo's The Godfather, since it tells a number of stories about the dark side of the American Dream. The Godfather Vito Corleone leads an intriguing double-life, on the one hand as a gangster involved in gambling and prostitution—and, once in while, murder—and as a family- man with an inviolable sense of loyalty to family members and friends from the Old Country who get into trouble with corrupt Establishment types.

13 Jan 2026

Why We should remember Jonestown

Every thinking American should read Raven by Tim Reiterman, which chronicles the history of the Reverend Jim Jones, from his early life in rural Indiana, to his establishment of Peoples Temple in Indianapolis, reestablishing it in rural California, then relocating to San Francisco, and starting his rise to political empowerment in San Francisco. My readers should consult the outstanding videos about Jim Jones, available on YouTube.

13 Jan 2026

What Really Works . . .

I can remember reading a history about my great-great-grandfather's hometown in Germany, named Erfurt. In the 11th century, a regional battle raged in Erfurt. Besides losing the battle, a fire resulted in the destruction of most of the city. The regional archbishop took responsibility for the rebuilding of the town and providing for its future; so he had to make policy changes to strengthen it.

09 Jan 2026

Power Exists!

The expression"Macht existiert!" or "Power exists!" has an unofficial status as a "Sprichwort" that recalls Germany's rise to industrial supremecy in the late 19th century. The expression returned to relevancy during the years that the Nazi dictatorship unleashed its military might on Europe. Those experiences gave "Macht existiert!" a largely negative connotation. Post-War Germans naturally did not want to appear too powerful.

15 Dec 2025

Why Men Have so Few Friends

This article "Wenn Männer gemeinsam schweigen" (Why Men have so Few Friends) appeared in the Sunday edition of the Frankfurter Allgemeine newspaper on October 5th. The author reports that he and his best friend met to talk about friendship, and appear in the photo sipping their beers. They even recorded some of their conversation to use in the article. As I read it, I wondered if all Germans are so deathlessly analytical.

12 Dec 2025

A Problem with Truth-2

This "Kompromiss" article by Professor Nils Goldschmidt interested me enough that I decided to do as second post on it. For one thing, he posits the compromise solution to organizational problems so negatively, it is effectively a lose-lose solution. He describes it as a "Dilemmata", the plural form of the English word "dilemma", effectively a confluence of problems that blocks the flow of progress. I needed the help of AI Overview to help me study "Dilemmata" with a fresh eye. The AI Overview definition confirms its negative context.

09 Dec 2025

A Problem with Truth

This article "Kompromiss" appeared in the business section of the Sunday Frankfurter Allgemeine newspaper on November 16th. For an article that discusses the virtues, philosophy, and practice of compromising, when disagreements in an organization threaten to block forward movement, the author Professor Nils Goldschmidt approaches the subject obliquely and cryptically: "We have a problem with the truth, when the 'truth' is too sure of itself."

01 Dec 2025

Heuss and Scheel

Theodor Heuss and Walter Scheel had the challenge of re-establishing a constitutional republic in Germany after the horrors of World War II—converting the end-game oriented Nazi administration to a civilized government with civil rights and individual freedoms, that allowed private spaces and an active civilian economy, proved a challenge. The Soviet Union angled for influence in Post-war Germany, sabotaging Allied efforts, and frankly exerting dictatorial control.

29 Nov 2025

"Goodbye Donald!" in the Frankfurter Allgemeine newspaper

"Goodbye Donald!" appeared in the Sunday edition of the Frankfurter Allgemeine newspaper on May 18th. It may interest American readers because it concerns their fellow countrymen who want to leave the country to escape perceived threats posed by Trump-administration policy-initiatives. The article carries quotes from an interview with John Moore, an I.T. manager from California who supports left-wing policy-making. It also interviews Nick Speach and his wife Christina Hinz, who work in I.T. in Maryland. Like Moore, they want to move to Germany.

27 Nov 2025

Lea Ypi: Return to Marxist Dignity

This article, "Eine Frage der Würde", in English "A Question of Dignity", appeared on the 14th of September in the Sunday edition of the Frankfurter Allgemeine newspaper. The article takes the form of an interview between a staff-writer for the newspaper and Dr. Lea Ypi, an Albanian national who teaches at the London School of Economics.

25 Nov 2025

Anne Rabe Retreats to the Familiar

This article, "Uns entgleitet gerade etwas", translated into English, "We have let something slip away.", appeared in the Sunday edition of the Frankfurter Allgemeine newspaper on August 10th, during my visit in Germany. A staff-writer for the Frankfurter Allgemeine conducted an interview with the novelist Anne Rabe that spans nearly an entire page, perhaps 2,000 words.

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