Rights and Democracy
We’re Failing the U.S. Citizens of Puerto Rico
Hurricane-struck Puerto Rico wants "everything done for them," says President Trump. Puerto Rico, an island of 3.5 million inhabitants — all of whom are U.S. citizens — gets nearly nothing done for it. Puerto Rico, a colony of the United States, has gotten a whole lot...
Trump Wants $1.6 Billion for the Border Wall. That Covers Just 74 Miles.
How much of your money does Donald Trump want to pour into his xenophobic fantasy of erecting an impenetrable wall on our Mexican border? The big-businessman-turned-president insists he doesn't care about costs — just build it! That seems to be a very un-businesslike...
Help Is on the Way!
White Folks Need to Stop Assuming We Know Everything About Race
As white people across the nation criticize Colin Kaepernick and other NFL players who "take a knee" for the national anthem, they ought to know something first. White people in America have no idea what life is like for black people in America. How can I make such a...
First, Do Harm
The Dark Side of Hosting the Olympics
This summer, Los Angeles officials reached a deal with the International Olympic Committee to host the 2028 Olympic Summer Games. For its trouble, the city hopes to generate hundreds of millions in savings and additional revenues. However, over the past few decades,...
If You Don’t Have Good Health Care, Neither Should Your Rep
Want good quality, lower-cost health care for your family. And — what the heck, let's think big here — for every man, woman, and child in our society? Here's how we can finally get Congress to pass such a program. Step One: Take away every dime of the...
Bernie and Goliath
An Anti-Poverty Program That Makes It Pay to Work
Imagine a government-funded anti-poverty tool that encouraged people to work. Now imagine that it's popular with both Democrats and Republicans, in red states and blue. Turns out we've had just such a tool since 1975: the Earned Income Tax Credit, or EITC. The EITC is...
Texas Is Flooded Because Our Democracy Is, Too
"It’s flooding down in Texas," goes the old song. "All of the telephone lines are down." With apologies to Stevie Ray Vaughan, there’s a lot more down in Texas than telephone lines now. Power lines are down, homes are destroyed, and cities sit underwater. Dozens have...
