Archive
Avoiding a 21st-Century Dust Bowl
Mother Nature found a cruel way to demonstrate the difference between political rhetoric and reality when this summer’s record-breaking drought coincided with the writing of a new U.S. Farm Bill.
David Barton’s Make-Believe Version of American History
David Barton, a self-styled Christian historian who claims to debunk left-wing myths about America, is sure of it: If you studied the Founding Fathers like he has, you would know that “as far as they were concerned, they had already had the entire debate on creationism and evolution.”
We’re All Subsidizing Free Lunches for America’s CEOs
A generation ago, on National Secretary’s Day, America’s top corporate executives used to take their prized office assistants out to lunch. Times change, and National Secretary’s Day has become Administrative Professionals’ Day. But something else has changed. These days, CEOs are getting the free lunches. Secretaries and all the rest of us are picking up the tab. And not at Burger King either.
Romney Runs away from his Running Mate
Poor Paul Ryan — he successfully rammed a budget bill through the U.S. House of Representatives that gutted Medicare, thus earning him the undying adulation of the far-right Republican fringe, whose unrestrained enthusiasm for him compelled Mitt Romney to name the Wisconsin Republican as his vice presidential nominee.
Belt-Tightening Time
Oh, Just Call Them Terrorists
The terrorist menace is proving quite useful to the U.S. government, much as the communist menace did many years ago. What could be more convenient than tagging dissenters and opponents as “giving material aid to terrorists”?
The Lineup: Week of August 13-19, 2012
Robert G. Gard, a retired lieutenant general, urges Congress to take action to avoid the upcoming “fiscal cliff.”
How Romney Could Blow Iowa
Should Congress renew the wind-energy production tax credit that’s scheduled to expire at the end of 2012? It depends on whom you ask — a Democrat, a Republican, or another Republican.
Steering Clear of the Iceberg Ahead
“Doomsday!” “Taxmageddon!” “Catastrophe!” Next year will begin with both a bang and a whimper unless Congress can escape its apparently hopeless deadlock.
Why We Need the Food from Family Farms Act
Although my Mississippi community has fared pretty well this summer, the worst drought in a generation is jeopardizing more than half of U.S. cropland. Thousands of farmers are facing tough decisions, especially if they own livestock. Dairy farmers face a triple threat — feed costs are at record highs, heat stress is reducing milk production, and dairy cooperatives aren’t paying enough for wholesale milk, thanks in part to failed policy. Some farmers are seeking hay, grain, or silage to feed their cows; others are selling now to cut their losses.
