Rights and Democracy

Everyone Hates This Tax Bill

Everyone Hates This Tax Bill

As the Trump tax cuts fly through Congress at breakneck speed, one has to wonder: What’s the big rush? Surely a body known for gridlock and deliberation would want to hold hearings, interview stakeholders, and gather public input before restructuring the world's...

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Our Social Structure is Rigged

Our Social Structure is Rigged

“It's structure vs. agency,” my professor said to me, as if that cleared everything up. It didn't. It was my first week of graduate school in sociology, and I had no idea what he was talking about. Fast-forward three years, and I'm now teaching an into sociology class...

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If You Make Under $75,000, You Lose

If You Make Under $75,000, You Lose

Sam Rayburn, a legendary speaker of the U.S. House in the 1940s and '50s, offered this piece of ethical advice for lawmakers who were conflicted over whether to vote for the people or the lobbyists: “Every now and then,” he said, “a politician ought to do something...

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A Mass Murderer’s Love Song to Trump

A Mass Murderer’s Love Song to Trump

"We've had a great relationship," exulted a giddy Donald Trump, following his two-day schmoozefest in Manila with the thuggish Philippine president, Rodrigo Duterte. Duterte, who calls himself a "toughie," brags that he's personally killed many people and likes to...

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