Rest in Peace, Robert S. Strauss
Some of the fun ebbed out of politics and public life yesterday with the death of Bob Strauss. And some of the harmony, too. Lawyer, diplomat, negotiator, political insider, consummate fundraiser,...
View ArticleSam Nunn: Director of the Day
Co-authored with Arthur Phillips, research associate at the Center for Economic and Policy Research. Directorships, 2008-2012: 5 Total director compensation, 2008-2012: $4,579,315 Average annual...
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Coming Out as Queer and Undocumented (VIDEO)
I'm From Driftwood is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit archive of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer stories. New stories are posted on the site every week. When Carlos was 2 years old, his mother...
View ArticleObama, Putin and Ukraine: No Charge of the Light Brigade But A Big...
Theirs not to make reply, Theirs not to reason why, Theirs but to do and die: Into the Valley of Death Rode the six hundred. from The Charge of the Light Brigade by Alfred, Lord Tennyson, then Poet...
View ArticleDiscrimination's Religious Cloak
Did you know that the United States, which was founded on the principle of religious freedom, has now become a bastion of religious persecution? It's true -- at least according to couple of cases the...
View ArticleBan Ki Moon Is MIA on Crimea
UN Secretary Ban Ki Moon's trip to Moscow to meet with President Putin yesterday was, at best, an exercise in pro forma UN diplomacy. It seems mostly designed to show to UN member-states that...
View ArticleReSovietizing Crimea? What the Vote Means for the Twin Epidemics of Drug Use...
If upheld, Crimea's vote to split from Ukraine to join Russia could leave one clear winner: HIV. While Ukraine and Russia both have large HIV epidemics driven by drug injection, Ukraine has moved...
View ArticleThe Invisible Backbone Leaders of Transforming Social Change
Women’s History Month is a reminder that in every major American social reform movement, women have always played a critical role. Women at the forefront, acting as the catalyst for progress when it...
View ArticleCompeting for the Latino Vote in Texas
By Loren McArthur, Deputy Director, Civic Engagement, NCLR The Latino vote is a rising force in American politics, and Texas, with its 36 electoral college votes, is one of the states where the...
View ArticleLost in the U.S. Senate
On March 5 the Senate voted 52-47 on a procedural matter against confirming Debo Adgebile to head the Justice Department's civil rights division. Every Republican present and seven Democrats took the...
View ArticleIn Vienna, U.S. and Iran Building a Recipe for Success
As the latest round of nuclear talks between Iran and the permanent members of the United Nations Security Council plus Germany (P5+1) came to a close here in Vienna, one thing stood out above all...
View ArticleThe Financial Overthrow of Ukraine
Despite all the swagger of Russia's Putin and the pro-Russian sentiments of many citizens of Ukraine living in Crimea, the people of Ukraine remain angry about the staggering sums of cash allegedly...
View ArticleThe Invisible War: Sexual Assault in the American Military
Many young women who join the military are idealistic, patriotic and ambitious. The military promises education, training, a possible career and the adventure of deploying to foreign lands. Even though...
View ArticleU.S. Tryst with International Law: Could We Deepen the Romance?
I didn't join the chorus ridiculing the U.S. for the hypocrisy of its new romance with international law following the Russian occupation of Crimea. Even prominent Democratic activist Markos Moulitsas...
View ArticleNo Marijuana Candy at Oregon Dispensaries?
The Oregon Health Authority has passed a draft rule that would ban the sale of any cannabis edibles "manufactured in a form that resembles cake-like products, cookies, candy, or gum, or that otherwise...
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Friday Talking Points -- Breaking News! Well... Not Really.
Things have apparently gone too far for Chuck Todd of NBC News. After weeks of breathless lead-story coverage of the missing airplane -- with pretty much zero new facts to report -- Chuck finally...
View ArticleA New Urban Crime: Selling Public Utilities to Private Corporations
When Michael Nutter first became Philadelphia's mayor in 2007, I was lukewarm in my support for him. The progressive maverick seemed to have all the "right" positions on issues, and he was articulate,...
View ArticlePersistence of Race in the Changing South
Is race still the driver of Southern politics? Is there any difference in the racial/partisan politics of the Peripheral South and the Deep South? What has been the impact of changing Southern politics...
View ArticleAnimal Rights and the Erosion of the First Amendment: AETA, Ag-Gag and Why...
Last week the First Circuit Court of Appeals dismissed a lawsuit challenging the federal Animal Enterprise Terrorism Act. Last month the governor of Idaho signed into law a bill that makes it illegal...
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ALEC: The New-and-Improved Political Corruption
The American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC) has been described as a "shadowy group" of companies and politicians working behind closed doors to rewrite our laws, frequently to bolster corporate...
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