Archive
In OtherWords: November 9, 2016
Donald Trump shocked the world this week with his stunning victory over Hillary Clinton. While Trump's polling was competitive with the former secretary of state's from the beginning, few imagined that his coalition was broad enough to triumph on Election Day. No...
America’s Dark Underbelly Is Now Its Face
An election that might have marked the ascension of America’s first woman president has instead proven historic for an altogether different reason. Namely, that Americans voted for the unabashedly anti-democratic alternative offered by her rival. And they did it...
In Bleak Times, This City Is an Example for the World
A few days before Donald Trump's stunning upset, the Eiffel Tower and Arc de Triomphe glowed green in Paris. France was celebrating the Paris Climate Agreement, which came into force on November 4. It was a remarkable achievement. Less than a year after 196 countries...
Uncle Sam Needs a Better Handle on Your Money
A decade ago, thousands of California National Guard troops reenlisted to fight in Iraq and Afghanistan. For valiantly responding to a shortage of troops, they were promised a signing bonus. This October, the Pentagon ordered these thousands of veterans to pay back...
This Deal Could Save the World
While the U.S. was distracted by an election that felt like it would never end, the world did something wonderful. It sounds boring and requires a mini chemistry lesson, but it's huge. In October, nearly 200 nations signed a deal to phase out the potent greenhouse...
Who Won in 2016? Big Money.
In one of Agatha Christie's murder mysteries, the key clue that solved the whodunit wasn’t something that happened, but something that didn't — specifically, a dog that didn’t bark. That plot fits one of the great mysteries of this year's Trump-Clinton race for...
Statue of Trumperty
This cartoon originally appeared on January 13, 2016. We republished it on Nov. 9.
In OtherWords: November 2, 2016
This week in OtherWords, in our last package before Election Day, our writers take a hard look at the shape of our democracy. Amid the bruising last days, marked by yet new hysteria over Hillary Clinton's emails and yet more negative headlines for Donald Trump, our...
Eight Ways to Strengthen Our Democracy Beyond Voting
Throughout this trying election season, we’ve been told how much is at stake with our vote. But the success of any democracy depends on continuing to pay attention long after we cast our ballots. So let’s pledge to strengthen our democracy with a few resolutions to...
The Future of Civil Rights is Up To the Supreme Court
When 95-year-old Rosanell Eaton first registered to vote in the Jim Crow South, she was forced to pass a written literacy test and recite the preamble of the Constitution from memory. Seven decades after becoming one of the first African American voters in her county,...
