Rights and Democracy
Refugees Are as American as Baseball
I recently watched an old movie called Take Me Out to the Ball Game, a post-World War II Hollywood musical bursting with good ol’ U.S.A. pride. At the heart of the film is baseball, the quintessential American pastime. The plot focuses on three great fictional...
President Obama Can Expose Corporate Election Spending
Since the Supreme Court's Citizens United decision paved the way for unlimited corporate spending on elections, shadowy political organizations that don’t disclose their donors have spent over $600 million on federal races. With the Koch brothers’ network alone...
Fear Itself
Why Justin Trudeau Makes Me Jealous of Canada
Asked why half the members of his cabinet are women, Justin Trudeau replied with three words that spoke volumes: “Because it’s 2015.” The nurturing father of three kids under 10 is a master of effortless statements that spread inclusiveness and tolerance. Four Sikhs...
John Kiriakou Wins Big Honor
When the OtherWords editorial service began running John Kiriakou’s column in May, it became an instant hit. His opinion pieces on whistleblowing, national security, mass incarceration, and other vital issues now run in dozens of newspapers and websites, thanks to his...
Bright Ideas from the GOP’s Finest
We're officially just under a year away from Election Day 2016. We’ve already been bombarded for months with red-hot anti-tax, anti-woman, anti-immigrant, and anti-poor rhetoric from a fool’s dozen Republican candidates. Can we really take another 12 months of this?...
Even Republicans Agree: Money Isn’t Speech
In today's so-called “democratic” election process, Big Money doesn’t talk, it roars — usually drowning out the people's voice. Bizarrely, the Supreme Court decreed in its 2010 Citizens United ruling that money is a form of “free speech.” Thus, declared the learned...
Paul Ryan vs. the People
Paul Ryan paints himself as a champion of "the people" over "Washington." But the "people" the new House speaker defends are corporations. And the "Washington" he attacks is the one that does deliver for real people. For the past five years, Ryan has authored the...
Racial Slurs Have No Place in Football
The leaves are changing. The scent of pumpkin spice lattes is in the air. In short, it’s football season. And like millions of my fellow Americans, I love football. But I'm also American Indian. So for me, football season also means hearing a racial slur all the time....
Away with the Clowns
Is it me or are the GOP presidential debates getting more circus-like each time? The recent CNBC "Your Money, Your Vote" debate began with this beauty pageant question: "What’s your greatest weakness?" Who asks a bunch of narcissists that question and expects a real...
