Reading the great 20th century philosopher and mathematician Bertrand Russell’s The History of Western Philosophy has made me wonder once again about the motivation of the Koch brothers and other ultra-rich who oppose environmental regulation and global warming. I’m thinking…
We have two temporary tax cuts. One is on federal income taxes; it’s been around for 10 years and has benefited upper incomes much more than anyone else. The other temporary tax cut is on payroll (Social Security and Medicare)…
For most of the history of direct and representative democracy, only a limited few were allowed to participate as voters in making decisions or electing representatives, typically free males with property. Ancient Athens, the late medieval and early Renaissance Italian…
Right-wing accusations that the mainstream news media is liberal, if not left-wing, predate Bruce Tinsley, whose “Mallard Fillmore” comic strip appears daily in Conservative-leaning media. Tinsley’s contribution to what has been a constant propaganda theme since the Viet Nam War…
One of National Public Radio’s news features this morning was a “well-balanced” report on the frequent attacks on government support of scientific research that takes the form of a denunciation of what on the surface appears to be a stupid…
Texas Governor Rick Perry didn’t take long to establish himself as the leading presidential candidate of the know-nothings. Maybe he decided to hit the ground running with misinformed opinions to make up for the fact that his ignorance does not…
I recently stumbled across a new book by Boston-area university professors Cynthia Enloe and Joni Seager that I highly recommend to everyone: The Real State of America Atlas is a series of charts, graphs, surveys, facts and snippets of text…
In what must be one of the most absurdly reasoned analysis articles in years, The Wall Street Journal argues that appraisers are to blame for the continuing housing bust that has now lasted more than four years. Let’s be clear:…
The first vote of the presidential election cycle took place this past weekend, and Michele Bachmann squeaked out a 400-vote (one percentage point) victory over the septuagenarian libertarian Ron Paul. The question on everyone’s tongue is if the straw vote…
If he were still alive, I would want to ask Karl Marx a question about his clever, but enigmatic old saw that “history repeats itself, first as tragedy, then as farce.” Dr. Marx’s phrase comes to mind as I read…
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