Archive
Social Security’s Dual-Income Trap
U.S. workers have paid a reduced Social Security tax rate of 4.2 percent for the past year and a half, down from the ordinary rate of 6.2 percent. For most Americans, this has meant some welcome tax relief. But one group is still paying more than its fair share.
Pentagon Spending Spree
Are you wondering where your tax dollars are going? Then take a look at the $642.5 billion stuffed into the National Defense Authorization Act, which the House of Representatives recently approved.
The Changing Face of America
We’ve been hearing about it for years, and now the time has come. In May, the Census Bureau announced that for the first time, the birth rate of people of color exceeded that of whites: 50.4 percent to 49.5 percent.
Diplomacy Is the Only Way Forward with Iran
Negotiators from the United States, the other four permanent members of the UN Security Council, and Germany met with Iranian negotiators in Baghdad to discuss Iran’s nuclear ambitions. Although there’s still a long road ahead, the resumed diplomatic action has made progress that undoubtedly sets the tone for future negotiations.
Walmart’s Unsurprising Bribes
I like little towns, towns where Main Street is lined with small shops and stores — drugstores, hardware stores, a café where you can get breakfast or lunch, maybe a clothing store or two — that kind of little town. In its heyday, it was a place you could go to shop and meet friends by accident, perhaps sit down with them for a cup of coffee. It was a business district of angle parking, no meters. Main Street was charming.
Lobby Responsibly
The big beer brewers often admonish us imbibers of their products to “Drink Responsibly.” Well, I say back to them: Lobby Responsibly.
United States of Walmart
What Medical Mistakes?
Estimates vary, but every year an average of 195,000 Americans die from medical errors. These acts aren’t done on purpose — they are screw-ups, often dealing with medication. Other hundreds of thousands are annually injured. Surely, you say, Washington and the state capitals must be working feverishly to sort all this out.
The Lineup: Week of May 21-27, 2012
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Crushing College Dreams
As graduation season swings into high gear, a new economic crisis confronts thousands of this year’s high school and college grads — crushing college student loan debt.
