Rights and Democracy
Sobering Up Without Stepping Down
Perhaps you thought the political world was finally safe from the dynamic duo of Rob Ford and Trey Radel. But no. Heeeere they come, rushing back into the limelight. Ford, the explosive Toronto mayor, became a global punch line last year after a video showed hizzoner...
Nottoway to Make a Good Impression
If you visit the website of Nottoway Plantation, a resort hotel, you'll see a photo of a half-dozen people dressed in antebellum finery. It's a plug for Nottoway's new mystery theater evening: The actors play members of the Randolph family who built the property. Or...
Flashing Too Little Editorial Integrity
Attention, class. Here's today's new word: "Native advertising." OK, that's two words. But it's one concept, and it has nothing to do with indigenous peoples. Rather, it's a phrase sprung on us by the wonky wordsmiths of Internet media, who also refer to it as "brand...
She Knew I Would Make It
After Peter O'Toole died in December, The New York Times gave him a worthy sendoff. The marvelous English actor's obituary, which began on the front page, ran several thousand words. At the conclusion of its online version the Times ran this addendum: "An earlier...
A Ploy to Dilute the Democratic Party’s Message
Here's a jarring headline: "Economic Populism Is a Dead End for Democrats." That's the title on a recent op-ed piece written by a couple of longtime political flacks for Wall Street and published, naturally, in The Wall Street Journal. Take it from me, when the barons...
Three Lessons from Mandela
Everyone seems to agree that Nelson Mandela, like Martin Luther King Jr., is one of the great figures not only of the 20th century but, indeed, of the long trail of history. Here are three lessons we can learn from his amazing life: Lesson 1: There are times when...
The End of the Internet As We Know It
The Internet is the world's largest shopping mall, library, video store, post office and town square. When you turn on your computer, you're in the driver's seat, choosing what you want to read, watch, and hear. We owe everything we love about the Web to net...
The Power of Reconciliation and Unity
Nelson Mandela's heroic struggle for a free, non-racial, and democratic South Africa inspired freedom-loving people around the world but was especially intertwined with the spirit of our nation's Civil Rights movement. African Americans felt a special relationship...
Equality Lets the Good Times Roll
World Bank economist Branko Milanovic does serious work. His explorations into global income distribution have won him a wide — and appreciative — audience in scholarly and policy-making circles the world over. But Milanovic isn't always crunching data and writing up...
Marriage Equality Hits Critical Mass
During his recent bar mitzvah ceremony, Duncan McAlpine Sennett had to chant a biblical passage in Hebrew and deliver a short sermon in English putting that text into perspective. The Portland, Oregon 13-year-old had an unusual challenge with this routine part of the...
