Archive
Diversity Sells
From the television sets in our living rooms to our local movie theaters, diversity appears to be the new black. Fresh off the success of small-screen hits like Fox's musical drama Empire, CW's telenovela-inspired Jane the Virgin, and ABC's family-centric Black-ish,...
No Taxpayer Dollars for the ‘Bank of Boeing’
Have you heard of the Export-Import Bank? It’s little-known yet high on the list of special-interest priorities these days. Created in 1934, this government agency loans money to foreign buyers of American products and gives U.S. exporters loan guarantees. It also...
Your Guide to the 2016 GOP Candidates
The Republicans have a big problem. Their presidential primary contest is beginning to resemble the New York marathon — hordes of contestants as far as the eye can see. How is a voter expected to choose among them, particularly since virtually all say pretty much the...
Faking It While the World Burns
Rex Tillerson, of all people, just did the climate movement a big favor. He didn’t hand the Sierra Club tens of millions of dollars to fight the coal industry like former New York City mayor Mike Bloomberg. Nor did the chairman and CEO of Exxon Mobil follow former...
What’s the Matter with Saying ‘Middle Class’?
Presidential candidates are getting creative when it comes to describing the middle class, The New York Times reports. Why? Because the middle class in America is shrinking. As a result, the term no longer connotes aspirational, feel-good emotions. Long associated...
Re-entering Society — and the Voting Booth
Following the recent uprising in Baltimore, Maryland Governor Larry Hogan promised that he'd work to reduce crime in the state. He also affirmed that Marylanders who'd been convicted of felonies and done their time should be able to reenter society as free citizens....
This Spill Hits Close to Home
The recent oil spill in Santa Barbara, California hit home for me in a painful way. As a southern Californian for many years now, I take any excuse to head up the coast to Santa Barbara I can get. It's a particularly beautiful stretch of pristine coastline, populated...
The New Face of Noplace, USA
As everyone who travels a lot soon learns, it's easy to forget where you are. Those big chains uniformly offer all the charm of Noplace, USA. This disorienting sameness has become more dizzying in recent years as the chains have merged and conglomerated. Weary...
Iraqi Army: Then and Now
Shocking Schumer
Senator Chuck Schumer, a leader of the corporate wing of congressional Democrats and heir apparent to outgoing Minority Leader Harry Reid, never met a global trade deal too ugly to hug. So when he says, "This is really troubling," you know his eyes have been singed by...
