IMPORTANT READS

GUEST WORDS--Sign of the changing times: Aunt Jemima, the minstrel-based, cringey racist "mammy" figure on the classic fake maple syrup of our childhoods - and for some white people, their only black friend - is about to go.

GUEST WORDS--“This was not an attack on history. This is history. It is one of those rare historic moments whose arrival means things can never go back to how they were.”

VIEW FROM HERE-After Ferguson six years ago, police departments all over the country implemented several reforms to make officers more aware of their implicit biases and to embrace conflict de-escalation as one of their duties.

ELECTION PROTECTION-Unless election protection activists rise up, primary election disasters in Wisconsin, Ohio, and Georgia could signal the death of American democracy this fall. 

THE LEAD-Progressive critics and advocacy groups are responding with alarm and anger to the Trump administration's refusal to disclose the names of more than 4.5 million companies that have collectively received over $500 billion in corporate bailout money through a federal program created to provide businesses with relief from the coronavirus pandemic.

OTHER WORDS-Following the police killings of George Floyd and Breonna Taylor, national unrest has brought millions of protestors out from coast to coast. Most have been peaceful — but not all. 

RE-VOTING TO SURVIVE-I’ve been made aware of some anonymous but apparently real insider GOP analysis that I believe is of value as we proceed in this troubled election season

GUEST WORDS--As a White parent of White kids, ignoring the police slayings of Black people and other people of color could be easy.

WORLD WATCH-The murder of George Floyd by a police officer in broad daylight came amid a high point in the continuing rampage of the coronavirus throughout the country, killing over 100,000 and infecting nearly two million while more than 45 million have lost their jobs.

TALE OF TWO AMERICA’S--As protests and riots spread like wildfire across the nation in response to the death of George Floyd and other black people at the hands of white police officers, I cannot help but recall an old African Proverb:

OTHERWORDS--The grocery store across from my old house in La Mesa, California (just outside of San Diego) has been vandalized and looted. Two nearby banks were burned to the ground.

WORLD WATCH-The murder of George Floyd by a police officer in broad daylight came amid a high point in the continuing rampage of the coronavirus throughout the country, killing over 100,000 and infecting nearly two million while more than 45 million have lost their jobs.

AMERICA AT A CROSSROAD-No one wants to see their community burn.

GUEST WORDS--Over the last several days, protesters across the United States have demanded justice for the horrific police killings of George Floyd and countless other African Americans.

PROGRESSIVE POLITICS-The popular website Twitter has become an eminently reliable hub for cultural and political drama.

VIEW FROM HERE--The United States is the richest country in the world. It has the best hospitals in the world.

ONE MAN’S OPINION--When Benjamin Franklin (above left) described the type government which the Constitutional Convention had created, he could have followed up with “There is no greater threat to a republic than a democracy.” 

VIEW FROM HERE-Ten reasons why. . .

GUEST WORDS--Back in the early days of the U.S. environmental movement, it wasn’t so hard to persuade people that it costs money to clean up pollution.

COVID 19 POLITICS-As the U.S. begins to reopen after being shut down to protect us from spreading Covid-19, many people are beginning to talk about a choice between what is good for the economy and what will keep us healthy.

VIEW FROM HERE-My first real introduction to ancient Chinese philosophy happened while studying at the Candler School of Theology at Emory University in Atlanta, GA.