Archive
The [Redacted] Truth about the CIA
It's no secret that the CIA isn't always up front with the public about its operations. You may even be kept in the dark if you're an elected official. But did you know the agency even lies to its own employees? That's the subject of a recent Washington Post report on...
No Candidate is Perfect
Let me tell you something people don't often say when arguing about presidential candidates on Facebook: No candidate is perfect. But that doesn’t mean it’s not worth choosing to support one. For example, you can support Bernie Sanders because you believe he's the...
The Billionaire Bankrolling the Latest Trade Deal Push
A New York Times article about Barack Obama's Trans-Pacific Partnership opened with this sunny headline: “Trade Pact Would Lift U.S. Incomes, Study Says.” But wait, a study by whom? It comes from the Washington-based Peterson Institute for International Economics....
Scalia’s Big Shoes
In OtherWords: February 10, 2016
This week in OtherWords, Janet Redman highlights how the Trans-Pacific Partnership could make it harder for Americans to safeguard our communities and I explain why the natural gas industry is in big trouble. If you haven’t already subscribed, please ensure that you...
Betting the Farm on Free Trade
From her home in Berks County, Pennsylvania, Karen Feridun is helping stage a growing citizen pushback against the expansion of natural gas extraction. But a far-reaching global deal recently signed halfway around the world may make her job much harder. Feridun got...
Cracking Down on Abusive Debt Collectors
Have you ever picked up your phone to find an aggressive voice on the other end demanding payments on a debt you know nothing about? You’re far from alone. Once you’re in the sights of a debt collector, the impact on your life can be devastating: Your wages can be...
Natural Gas Becomes a Fracking Mess
Until late last year, Laura Gideon’s family lived in Porter Ranch on the outskirts of Los Angeles. “We didn’t ever want to leave,” Gideon told the Associated Press. It’s “a nice gated community.” What uprooted them from one of LA’s wealthiest pockets? They became...
Trump’s Impeachable Offense
For anyone who cares deeply about being informed, watching Republican presidential debates can feel like a form of torture. But the program becomes more terrifying altogether when their ignorance is hitched to an endorsement of actual torture. At the latest GOP debate...
The Blind Spots of Dead White Men
As the rest of the nation celebrates Black History Month this February, I’m taking a graduate level course I call “Dead White Men.” It's actually a classic theory class that covers a number of influential thinkers, like free market theorist Adam Smith and the famous...