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Finding meaning in increasingly digital world

As we are in what I like to call the seventh-inning stretch of the fall semester, my English composition students are preparing to write their final short essay on “Gen Z: Technology and Communication.” This is the topic where I feel my students are experts since, as Gen Zers, they are the first true digital-native generation. I had discussion groups in each class where students shared their viewpoints on how they deal with technology and communication primarily through social media, and I learned some interesting and insightful things from them. I provided them with questions ...

Can socialism ever be more than fad in America?

Socialism is making a comeback, according to friend and foe alike. A new poll suggests that a majority of registered voters don’t like capitalism. A Gallup poll in September also found that support for capitalism was slipping. A Data for Progress poll around the same time showed that — after asking some decidedly leading questions about democratic socialism — people liked democratic socialism. Still, Politico combined the results to declare: “Capitalism is out ... and socialism is in.” And just this week, a podcast dedicated a segment to explaining “How socialism got ...

No veteran should go hungry in America

According to U.S. government data and recent policy studies, nearly 25% of America’s veterans live either below the federal poverty level or paycheck to paycheck, with little margin for unexpected expenses. To get by, many adopt emergency-level budgets. But even the harshest austerity measures may not be enough. Life at the bottom still costs money. Mortgages and rent must be paid. Vehicles are needed to reach work or medical appointments. So, what can be cut? Too often, it’s food — eating less or sacrificing nutrition. Tragically, many veterans and their families face this ...

Economy remains top political issue

Republicans are licking their wounds after this Tuesday’s ballot box defeats. But there is a lesson to be learned here. The various elections in New York City, New Jersey and Virginia, viewed collectively, reminded us yet again of a perennial political truth: Americans still care first and foremost about their wallets. Culture war-type issues often generate the most salacious headlines – and many of the Trump administration’s fights on these fronts, such as immigration enforcement and higher education reform, are just and necessary. Still, the economy remains the top political ...

Will Supreme Court permit Trump’s power grab?

I think the Supreme Court will rule against President Donald Trump’s imposition of tariffs. That said, it’s just remarkable that the vote will not be 9-0. Trump is claiming sweeping powers to impose (and rescind and reimpose and re-rescind) tariffs under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act of 1977 (IEEPA), which was a revised version of the Trading with the Enemy Act of 1917 (TWEA). The question for the Court was whether IEEPA actually grants the president power to impose tariffs – though the word “tariff” does not appear in the text of the law and no president ...

‘Emergency’ label magic key in Washington

In Washington today, the word “emergency” is a magic key; it unlocks powers Congress never granted, suspends the discipline of regular order and decorates bloated bills with provisions too dubious to pass on their own. What was once meant to be a narrow exception for genuine crises has become a routine pretext for government overreach — a means of inflating executive power and corroding the nation’s fiscal credibility. Start with the most brazen claim, and one soon to be scrutinized by the Supreme Court: that a president may impose sweeping tariffs under the International ...