Archive
I Play an Objective Expert on TV
Scores of pundits appearing on Fox News, CNN, MSNBC, and other networks are actually paid corporate lobbyists and public relations pros
Raise My Taxes, Please
My grandfather taught his three children that their earnings should be distributed in thirds: A third for charitable community organizations, a third for taxes, and a third for themselves. But today, many wealthy Americans pay far less than a third of their income in taxes, because tax rates have been slashed and the income from capital gains is taxed at much lower rates than income from wages.
Don’t Apologize if You’re Sorry about Getting Caught
Forget it. I don’t want your apology. In the first place, I doubt its sincerity. One can be genuinely sorry for getting stuck in traffic and being late or for spilling red wine on your hostess’s white couch, true accidents.
Big Pharma Divorces Billy Tauzin
Some marriages are made in heaven, some in hell. The matrimony of Billy Tauzin and Big Pharma was definitely hellish—especially for us innocent bystanders.
Down and Out…in America
Returning from Haiti makes life in America look pretty sweet…briefly. Until you read the data. The poverty rate here is up to 12 percent, or 39 million people. Unemployment hovers around 10 percent (not even counting the underemployed or those who have given up), 14 percent lack health insurance, and 15 percent endure hunger.
Strange Snow Patterns Consistent with Climate Change
Freak snowstorms plunged the nation’s capital and the rest of the mid-Atlantic United States into utter chaos in February. The federal government shut down for nearly a week, many schools turned President’s Day into an unexpected 10-day-long “snowcation,” public transportation ground to a screeching halt, and suburban power outages drove some families to burn Freak snowstorms plunged the nation’s capital and the rest of the mid-Atlantic United States into utter chaos in February. The federal government shut down for nearly a week, many schools turned President’s Day into an unexpected 10-day-long “snowcation,” public transportation ground to a screeching halt, and suburban power outages drove some families to burn furniture in their fireplaces to keep warm.
Dealing with the Deficit
Nobody wants government bailouts of financial institutions, but nobody wants to take responsibility for letting them fail.
Torture.gov
As we all know, the United States doesn’t torture. Within our own borders. Anymore. That we talk about.
Agribusiness Profits, Mutant Germs, and Us
For decades, we have benefited enormously from the healing wonders of antibiotics. These drugs save millions of lives that would otherwise be lost to microbial infections. But more and more of the antibiotics in America’s medical kit are proving to be ineffective against the plethora of germs that endanger us. Why? Too much of a good thing.
Let’s Rein In Tax Cheats
The government’s treatment of UBS banking whistleblower Brad Birkenfeld, who is credited with shattering Swiss bank secrecy and revealing massive tax evasion by Americans, has alarmed government accountability advocates nationwide.
