This week, President Biden again forcefully defended his decision to end “the forever war” in Afghanistan.
Law graduate and politics professor Farrah Hassen agrees — and says it’s time to end “the forever prison” too. This week in OtherWords, she calls on the Biden administration to shut down the nearly 20 year old extrajudicial prison at Guantanamo Bay that’s been a stain on America’s reputation ever since it opened.
Meanwhile, as Congress continues to debate how to pay for a potential $3.5 trillion federal jobs and infrastructure package, tax attorney Bob Lord has a great idea: Tax the top seven U.S. billionaires, whose wealth alone could finance a third of the entire package — and yet who pay virtually no income taxes.
Also this week, Justin J. Pearson offers a stirring family story from Memphis about how all communities deserve clean air and clean water. Jim Hightower says it’s a good thing that workers are quitting lousy jobs. And cartoonist Khalil Bendib says the U.S. and Afghanistan now share something surprising in common: a domestic extremism problem.
New This Week…
Tax the ‘Trillion-Dollar Seven’ | Bob Lord
Democrats want to spend $3.5 trillion on jobs and infrastructure. A third of that could be covered by just seven billionaires.
Now Close Gitmo, Too | Farrah Hassen
Biden is right to end the forever war in Afghanistan. Now he needs to close the forever prison that it built.
Everyone Deserves Clean Air and Water — No Matter Their Zip Code | Justin J. Pearson
The right to clean air and water should have nothing to do with luck.
Workers Are Quitting Their Jobs — That’s A Good Thing | Jim Hightower
Workers are quitting jobs where they don’t feel respected. That’s a welcome sea change.
Side by Side | Khalil Bendib
The U.S. and Afghanistan now have something in common: a domestic extremism problem.
In Case You Missed It…
Let’s Take the Profit Out of War | CEOs shouldn’t have a financial stake in the murderous mass violence of modern warfare.
Americans Deserve Publicly Owned Generic Drugs | Dana Brown
Bold policies could have saved America’s largest generic drug plant, but it’s never too late to start putting communities first.
We Need a Civilian Climate Corps | Isabella DeVaan
Like the Depression-era Civilian Conservation Corps, a 21st century CCC could create millions of jobs while repairing our environment.
It’s Time to Reassess Our Relationship With Israel | Sahand Yazdanyar
Biden can’t say he’s putting human rights first and then welcome a prime minister who boasts about war crimes to the White House.
