Our Toxic Failure

Our Toxic Failure

Now that it’s already been phased out, the world can agree that a chemical used in Teflon — the famous coating on nonstick pots and pans — was toxic. A recent New York Times Magazine article told the story of the heroic victims who paid with their health and the...
Border Boondoggle

Border Boondoggle

Good fences, wrote Robert Frost, make good neighbors. But an 18-foot high, 2,000-mile wall? That’s another story. It just antagonizes your neighbor — and shows your own fear and weakness. Yet this is what self-described conservatives running for president...
This Global Ruling Is Just Not Cool

This Global Ruling Is Just Not Cool

They say that if you get up in the morning and swallow a live toad, nothing worse will happen to you for the rest of the day. Well, we Americans have just been fed a live toad by the World Trade Organization. Last May, the WTO — an oligarchic, autocratic governing...
The GOP’s Pro-Corporate Prescription

The GOP’s Pro-Corporate Prescription

The conventional wisdom in Washington is that tax breaks for corporations lead to economic growth. Tax assistance for working families, on the other hand, may help them make ends meet, but it doesn’t have much impact on the economy. The conventional wisdom has it...
The Days of Lying to Protect Killer Cops Are Numbered

The Days of Lying to Protect Killer Cops Are Numbered

Right around Thanksgiving, the city of Chicago released a dash-cam video showing the cold-blooded murder of 17-year-old Laquan McDonald at the hands of a Chicago Police Department officer. The very next day, the Chicago Urban League — supported by my organization, the...