Outside the Beltway

Most of us define ourselves largely through our jobs. That’s increasingly a problem.

A Virginia woman left unusual instructions for the Executor of her will, and it’s become something of a controversy.

The city by the Bay is rapidly transforming. Should we lament that?

America’s leading motivational speaker and self-help guru is coming under fire.

Despite poll numbers suggesting otherwise, one political analyst suggests that the United States may not be “ready” for a gay President.

This is my shocked face.

The New York, Los Angeles, and Chicago metro areas are all losing people.

Pledges from wealthy men to help rebuild Notre Dame cathedral after a devastating fire is generating backlash.

The New Hampshire Supreme Court rejected a challenge by three women to their prosecution for going topless on a public beach in the Granite State.

The cases of Ralph Northam and Mark Herring raise a question of when, if ever, something we did in the past should follow us for the rest of our lives.

Wearing Donald Trump’s famous campaign symbol creates a presumption of ill intent. Is that fair?

Can society forgive the men caught up in the #MeToo movement? Is it even our place to decide?

Just days after appearing to condone donning blackface in the style of a 19th Century minstrel show, Megyn Kelly is out at NBC News.

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints wants to be referred to by its given name. Shouldn’t we respect that wish?

The Kavanaugh fight is just another indicator of our national divide.

In November, Michigan voters will be able to make their state the tenth state to legalize marijuana. This is just the latest step in what seems to be an irreversible trend.

There is a frustration and a growing sense that the American political system is illegitimate.

A pioneer woman born in 1867 depicted American Indians and African-Americans in ways that are cringe-worthy today.

New York attorney Aaron Schlossberg found himself on the receiving end of an Internet firestorm this week. His case raises some interesting questions about Internet vigilantism.

The church sponsors 20 percent of the youth organization’s membership.

Controversies involving Jimmy Kimmel and “The Simpsons” highlight a perennial question.

Maureen Dowd blames the Internet for women having sex with men they find unattractive.

Argumentation without the intent to persuade is masturbation, not journalism.

The Atlantic fired one of their few conservative voices for saying women who have abortions should be hanged. Was this beyond the pale?

A woman who was fired after a photograph of her giving the middle finger to President Trump’s motorcade went viral is suing her former employer. She doesn’t have much of a case.

The FBI committed gross malfeasance in building a case against the widow of Omar Mateen. She nonetheless bears significant blame for 53 deaths.

A blog post and resulting Twitter exchange point to a larger problem in our political dialog.

The grand gesture may put undue pressure on women in making an important life decision.

Why do most people think success is mostly due to merit?

The danger of saying stupid things online apparently has not sunk in with some people.

Those with the means can buy their way out of more and more of life’s inconveniences.

What is the appropriate response to someone who’s acting like a jerk?

There’s no consensus for European-style social democracy or a Randian libertarian paradise.

While elite schools confer many advantages on their graduates, they also wall them off from normal people and create an entitled, out-of-touch elite.

Attempts to capture the speech patterns of the American South in written dialogue should be approached with extreme caution.

A bizarre rant in American Spectator contains some interesting thoughts about the nature of America’s political elite.