provides conversations of great minds i'm joined by susan jacoby susan is an author an independent scholar who focuses primarily on american intellectual history susan has received numerous awards grants the guggenheim rockefeller and ford foundations as well as the national endowment for the humanities she started a writing career as a reporter for the washington post and has been a regular contributor for over twenty five years to publicly publications like the new york times magazine newsday the nation and alternate the most recent piece on alter net is entitled the ungodly constitution of the founders ensured america would not be a christian nation she's also the author of many critically acclaimed books including freethinkers history of american secularism and never say die the myth and marketing of the new old age susan joins me now from new york city susan welcome. nice to be talking to. i wish i could see you i wish you could too we've got to get a monitor there in new york thank you both so much for being with us under these circumstances you write a column called the spirited ath