Autiello: Will True Christianity Please Stand Up?
Nick Autiello, Contributor
The notion that homosexuality is a sin and un-Christian is one that is less than a hundred years old. It is wrong, and has no basis in scriptural or historical reality.
SASSO: The Coming New Year
James Sasso, Associate Editor
As the tumultuous 2011 comes down to its final day, this column could contain an obnoxious summary of the year’s extraordinary events. Rather than once again discussing the protests around the world, the death of Osama Bin Laden, Fukushima, America’s political ineptitude, Europe’s demise or the increasingly frightful weather patterns, here I attempt to predict what 2012 holds in store.
SASSO: Kicking the Can
James Sasso, Associate Editor
For one of the first times in his tenure as Speaker, John Boehner has made a statement with which every American, Republican or Democrat, should fully agree; the two-month Senate bipartisan extension of the payroll tax cut fails to fix the nation’s problems sufficiently. Providing a short-term band-aid to a long-term dilemma contradicts what a responsible government should accomplish, but fits the pattern of contemporary American politicking.
CIOCCI: A Foolish Consistency
Mitt Romney is guilty of serial hypocrisy, Newt Gingrich is guilty of being a public intellectual constantly scrutinized by the media and others, and Ron Paul never ceases to remind me about one of my favorite quotes from Ralph Waldo Emerson’s Essays: “A foolish consistency is the hobgoblin of little minds, adored by little statesmen and philosophers and divines.”
AKMAN: Jon Huntsman’s Meaningless Campaign
Josh Akman, Columnist
Jon Huntsman did not participate in the CNN Debate in Las Vegas on Tuesday night. Short of his family and small (and getting smaller) campaign staff, no one really noticed. In a bizarre and counterproductive effort to impress New Hampshire voters Huntsman skipped the debate to protest Nevada moving its caucus ahead of New Hampshire’s, which has always been the nation’s first primary. It’s bizarre because no one else skipped the debate. It’s counterproductive because right now, Jon Huntsman is polling 6% in New Hampshire.
SASSO: The 99% Rising
James Sasso
Associate Editor
For the past month a movement has grown out of Zuccoti Park in New York with the potential to grab at the very heart of America’s problems. “We are the 99%” is not simply a catchy phrase used by frustrated jobless Americans , but a commentary on the disgraceful economic inequality that has arisen in the United States since the 1970s.
AKMAN: Tim Pawlenty Wasted My Time
Tim Pawlenty quit. Based upon on an inability to compete in Iowa, culminating in a disappointing—if not altogether surprising—showing at the Ames Straw Poll, Pawlenty bowed out of the race this past Sunday. His explanation, much like his speeches throughout his brief campaign, was well-reasoned, safe, and wholly unsurprising.
INKELES: Solve The Debt Crisis — End Gerrymandering
Isaac Inkeles, Columnist Republicans had a golden opportunity at the beginning of the debt ceiling debate: Democrats agreed to not raise taxes, but instead close tax loopholes, and coupled this [...]
ROGERS: An Equal and Opposite Reaction
Conor Rogers, Editor
The debt deal is more like a compromise between Moderate Republicans and Tea Partiers — but is a completely necessary step to bringing the nation back to solvency that deals a startling blow to fiscal liberalism in the United States.
ROGERS: 12 Phrases That Need To Die
Conor Rogers, Editor
Conor Rogers argues that if these 12 political phrases exited our discussion, we’d all be able to get along a bit better. The top phrase? “What the American people want…” The American people don’t 100% agree on anything.
ROGERS: Traditional Marriage Has No Clothes
Conor Rogers argues that “traditional marriage” is an imagined victim in the national debate over same-sex marriage. The debate should be about individual rights, not the condition of “traditional marriage” nationwide.
THERRIAULT: A Bailout with Staying Power: Amtrak Turns 40
As Amtrak prepares to mark it’s 40th birthday, Patrick Therriault takes a look at rail subsidies, high-speed rail and the future of our nation’s railroads.
ROGERS: Tim Pawlenty’s Failure to Launch
If “T-Paw” cannot make Mitt Romney, a former pro-abortion, pro-gay, healthcare advocate from Massachusetts, look like a liberal-turned-hypocrite, the Republican Party cannot count on him to make President Obama look like a failure.
THERRIAULT: Freddie and Fannie Still in Business, But No One Wants Them to Be
While everyone seems to agree that Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac need to wind down, no concrete action has yet taken for neither a conservative solution nor a liberal one seem to be optimal. In light of this reality, is there anything that can be done to solve the problems the two government-sponsored entities create?
MCNAMARA: Scientific Ocean Studies a Load of Garbage?
Lindsay McNamara, Columnist
Environmental extremist groups like Greenpeace are exaggerating the size of the Great Pacific Garbage Patch for their own ends — not in the interest of science. cience should reveal the truth about the processes and problems of both naturally-occurring and anthropogenic phenomena — not produce a load of garbage.
LIFSON: No Daylight Between Birtherism and Racism
Donald Trump has been pressuring President Obama to release a long-form birth certificate. Releasing the long-form document, however, will solve nothing. The existing evidence that President Obama was born in the US is already incontrovertible, so birthers will find new and even more ridiculous reasons to rationalize their continued disbelief. More importantly, to surrender the long-form certificate will mean caving to racists and their wranglers who never would have questioned the birthplace of a white president.
STROSTER: WBC is Winning (For Now)
The Supreme Court upheld the right of the Westboro Baptist Church to denigrate America’s fighting men and women. This is a victory for freedom of speech and not a victory for the hate-group. In fact, their judicial win may sow the seeds of their own demise — if society would start ignoring them.
CIOCCI: America Should Not Intervene in Libya
Chadwick Ciocci, Columnist
The complexity and unpredictability of the Libyan conflict necessitates that America adopt a non-interventionist policy and permit natural events to take their course in the Middle East.
ALVAREZ: The Real Story of Planned Parenthood
Planned Parenthood serves more than 3 million teens and adults nationwide annually. The closing of local Planned Parenthood clinics can have a whirlwind effect not only affecting the health of Americans but the healthcare system as a whole. For many, especially its main demographic: young adult women on Medicaid, the local Planned Parenthood serves as a primary care office, providing quality care with timely appointments and even the option of walk-in appointments at some locations. Contrarily, many primary care physician offices are overwhelmed by the demand of the community with many appointments booked several months in advance. Furthermore, the growing trend in these offices is to not accept government sponsored insurances because reimbursements are so low.
THERRIAULT: A Rational Look at Federal Spending
The biased, low quality information presented in the media about the looming budget crisis may make America’s problems appear as unsurmountable. However a rational, business-like approach to the country’s fiscal issues will provide self-evident solutions to our seemingly-unmanageable problems.
WINN: Don’t Count Cameron Out Yet
British Prime Minister David Cameron’s political troubles are temporary. As the UK emerges from the recession and the pain of Cameron’s cuts receedes, Cameron will be well positioned to maintain a grip on Parliament for the foreseeable future and perhaps beyond.