WASHINGTON D.C.—There has been a big controversy in the media about a college e-mail system in England that was hacked, and a bunch of private e-mails published.
UNITED STATES—A bill passed gaving partners in domestic partnerships, their children and their relatives the same civil rights, protections and obligations as partners in marriage.
UNITES STATES—Intellectual property rights are supposed to ensure the people who create content get credit and get paid for their work. However copyright and patent laws get in the way.
UNITED STATES—With the recent surge in discussion over domestic violence, it seems like the time to teach young people that abusive relationships and behavior have no place in their lives.
UNITED STATES—Whatever happened to America's heroes? Politicians, police, businessmen, all have failed our youth and the nation. But one group of heroes, our nation's troops, remains strong and moral.
UNITED STATES—Although Americans are rightly worried about decline of the economy, they still need to know about Pakistan and the possible resolutions to the problems in this region.
It is now the automakers' turn to come, hat in hand, to the federal government. On the heels of their lobbyists, the CEO's have made the pilgrimage twice, like wealthy Muslims for the Hajj….
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U.S. used to be leader of the world in so many ways, but now we're just ranked number one in military spending and our per capita prison population. That these are the only ways we seem able to excel…
There's lots of talk these days about "green" products and how people can be supportive of environmental issues. But what can an ordinary person really do to make a difference to the global ecology?
There are basically two competing theories of government and they are at the heart of any discussion of what government is, what government should do and why it should do it.
Critical analysts of the fourth estate have often noted that it is more interesting to note what is missing from mainstream media press coverage than what is reported. The two biggest tells of bias are the ubiquitous question and the unanimous silence.
The Supreme Court of the United States has just refused to hear a case involving the government requiring warantless searches of people's homes as a prerequisite to receiving benefits from public assistance. Evidently, poor people don't have any right to an expectation of privacy, that is reserved for people of means.
It is amazing how the media defines things for people. When the press labels something, right or wrong, the label acquires a permanence it does not deserve. If you watch how these labels change over time, and how they change everywhere at once, you can learn a great deal about how media is used to shape public perception.
Two years later, and the disaster of Katrina is still an awful mess. Money's been squandered, in some cases stolen, and people are still homeless. Why can't the government deal with these problems? Because they don't want to.
We Americans have so much to be afraid of these days. We have become a nation driven by fear. Our children, our spouses, our brothers and sisters, and especially our parents are all at risk. Any misstep can be fatal.
President Bush likes to straddle moral issues with a very broad stance. On the one hand, he is a proponent of pre-emptive war and on the other, he vetoes stem cell research initiatives. Evidently, some human life is more sacred than other human life.
War certainly has a good press agent. There is practically nothing, with the possible exception of sex that gets more positive reviews for less reason.
I work with a fellow, a person of more than average intelligence, who surprised me the other day by stating his belief in the movement of huge amounts of weapons from Iraq to Syria. I was flabbergasted. I'd previously thought the only people who believed this obvious fabrication also believed in Bigfoot, astrology, and Atlantis.
Most war stories are sad, when true. One of the saddest I'm personally acquainted with was told to my father fifty year ago on Halloween. It was an old story when he heard it. It is no less sad for being old.
It does not seem to me very long ago that our current President was claiming to be an environmental president. He may pretend to champion many good causes, but his administration is doing great harm.
Why I'm going to have a hard time voting Democrat: The bipartisan support of the Detainee Bill clearly shows that neither party in our two-party system is prepared to act on behalf of protecting the rights and freedoms of ordinary citizens.
