Archive
Reasons to Steer Clear from a Syrian Attack
My wife Sanaa is from Syria. Her family, most of whom are who are Alawite farmers, still lives there. As a former U.S. senator of Middle Eastern descent, I oppose any kind of U.S. attack on Syria and hope that Congress does too in its upcoming vote on the matter. As...
Operation Secret Loopholes
The federal budget expresses our nation's values and priorities in numbers. It's a blueprint for how our elected officials plan to make money and how they plan to spend it. What happens in Washington, D.C. has a profound local impact. About 80 percent of all federal...
Raise the Sub-Minimum Wage
As the fast food workers' minimum wage campaign gains momentum, another group of workers is expanding the fight to address one of the least-known economic outrages. You may not realize it, but the measly $7.25 an hour McDonald's and other fast-food giants pay their...
A Higher Minimum Down Under
Fast-food workers are holding strikes and demonstrations in dozens of U.S. cities. The "Fight for 15" campaign demands a $15 living wage and the right to form a union without interference from employers. Critics say a living wage would drive fast-food restaurants and...
The Stiffing State
My cousin Mona called me the other day about her husband Harry, who had came home from work and said: "We're spending too much money, Mona. It's got to stop. We're going broke." "Really? I thought we were doing OK, sort of." "OK? Look at the stack of bills on my desk....
Going Full Circle Back to the Heyday of Inequality
The future just keeps getting brighter for Americans with unique specialties. Randy Stearns has one such specialty: "home-tech integration." Stearns helps people install and maintain high-tech gadgets. But we're not talking "Geek Squad" agents and hooking up home...
Bossing the Poor Around
I spent a few months on food stamps this year. As a single woman in San Diego, I qualified for $70 a month — less than a dollar per meal. But I'm lucky and I'm unusual because many of my friends are farmers and gardeners and I know how to forage wild foods. Determined...
Abusing Animals to Defend Tar Sands Oil
Both the old and new media agree on is this: If you need a story that's guaranteed to be popular, go with animals. Cute kittens, puppies, porpoises, penguins, and polar bears are all a good bet. Now, corporate shills are tapping this animal ploy to push some of their...
Higher Education Takes the Low Road
College lifts us From the mob, But not all do A nifty job. Before World War II, college was mostly for the rich. Starting with the GI Bill, which gave thousands of WW II vets a shot at getting an advanced degree, education became a more common route for upward...
Tax Houdini
