The free high-resolution photo of water, fence, neighborhood, green, color, fencing, blue, neighbour, neighbor, picket fences , taken with an Canon EOS 5D 03/04 2017 The picture taken with 50.0mm, f/1.4s, 1/8000s, ISO 320 The image is released free of copyrights under Creative Commons CC0. The free high-resolution photo of water, fence, neighborhood, green, color, fencing, blue, neighbour, neighbor, picket fences , taken with an Canon EOS 5D 03/04 2017 The picture taken with 50.0mm, f/1.4s, 1/8000s, ISO 320 The image is released free of copyrights under Creative Commons CC0.

Americans No Longer Believe in the American Dream

Most no longer believe it’s possible to get ahead through hard work.

Politics as Sport

The game is the game.

Laphonza Butler Tapped to Replace Feinstein

The Emily’s list leader will be the first Black lesbian in the Senate.

President Joe Biden drives a Jeep Wrangler Rubicon during a clean cars event, Thursday, August 5, 2021, on the South Lawn Driveway of the White House. President Joe Biden drives a Jeep Wrangler Rubicon during a clean cars event, Thursday, August 5, 2021, on the South Lawn Driveway of the White House.

The Politics of An Auto Strike

The President’s support for labor and aggressive action on climate change are in tension.

President Joe Biden talks on the phone with House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) and Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.), Monday, May 9, 2022, in the Oval Office. (Official White House Photo by Adam Schultz) President Joe Biden talks on the phone with House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) and Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.), Monday, May 9, 2022, in the Oval Office. (Official White House Photo by Adam Schultz)

Biden Wants Federal Workers Back at the Office

A pandemic-inspired perk seems to be going away.

Anarchy in France

The rioting never seems to stop.

Pandemic Closures Crushed Kids

We’re seeing our lowest test scores in decades among a key cohort.

Creative Class on Strike

Hollywood and the news media are roiled in labor disputes.

Supreme Court Sides with Company Over Teamster Vandals

Dueling headlines give radically different impressions of the same case.

President Biden Officially Running for Re-Election

“The question we are facing is whether in the years ahead we have more freedom or less freedom. More rights or fewer.”

The Retirement Age

France shines new light on an old problem.

Yearly Reminder: Dr. King Had A Lot More To Say Than That One Sentence

My (apparently) annual reflections on “The content of their character” day

America’s Unique Medical Debt Problem

We charge patients way more than other counties.

The free high-resolution photo of horizon, cloud, sky, track, sunrise, sunset, road, sunlight, morning, train track, highway, dawn, train, cityscape, dusk, transport, evening, weather, station, train station, atmospheric phenomenon , taken with an unknown camera 12/26 2016 The picture taken with The image is released free of copyrights under Creative Commons CC0. You may download, modify, distribute, and use them royalty free for anything you like, even in commercial applications. Attribution is not required. The free high-resolution photo of horizon, cloud, sky, track, sunrise, sunset, road, sunlight, morning, train track, highway, dawn, train, cityscape, dusk, transport, evening, weather, station, train station, atmospheric phenomenon , taken with an unknown camera 12/26 2016 The picture taken with The image is released free of copyrights under Creative Commons CC0. You may download, modify, distribute, and use them royalty free for anything you like, even in commercial applications. Attribution is not required.

Biden and Congress Stop Rail Strike

Washington has imposed a contract that workers rejected.

Why Not Direct Democracy?

Would bypassing politicians altogether make the system more just?

Thursday Tabs

The free high-resolution photo of horizon, cloud, sky, track, sunrise, sunset, road, sunlight, morning, train track, highway, dawn, train, cityscape, dusk, transport, evening, weather, station, train station, atmospheric phenomenon , taken with an unknown camera 12/26 2016 The picture taken with The image is released free of copyrights under Creative Commons CC0. You may download, modify, distribute, and use them royalty free for anything you like, even in commercial applications. Attribution is not required. The free high-resolution photo of horizon, cloud, sky, track, sunrise, sunset, road, sunlight, morning, train track, highway, dawn, train, cityscape, dusk, transport, evening, weather, station, train station, atmospheric phenomenon , taken with an unknown camera 12/26 2016 The picture taken with The image is released free of copyrights under Creative Commons CC0. You may download, modify, distribute, and use them royalty free for anything you like, even in commercial applications. Attribution is not required.

Impending Rail Strike Could Derail Economy

An impasse over schedule flexibility could have widespread impact.

Federal Employees Take Another Pay Cut

What’s being billed as the largest hike in years is anything but.

We Don’t Need No Stinkin’ Constitution

Is it time to call the whole thing off?

House Passes Marriage Protection Bill

The symbolic vote attracted a handful of Republican votes.

Minority Rule in a Winner-Take-All System

How long can the unsustainable be sustained?

Watergate at 50

Half a century have passed since a botched burglary changed history.

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Why America Can’t Build

Are we too regulated for our own good?

Finland and Sweden Apply to NATO, Turkey an Obstacle

A diplomatic nightmare brewing since last week is now upon us.

Are the Teachers Quitting?

The plural of anecdote is not data.

Public Schools vs The Public

The pandemic seems to have broken the social contract.

Warren’s Argument for Court Packing

It’s not compelling.

Massive Worker Backlash?

The equivalent of Pennsylvania’s entire labor force is sitting on the sidelines.

Back to SCOTUS Reform and “Legitimacy”

Doing nothing is still a choice, and the legitimacy crisis is here, like it or not.

Two Nations, Indivisible

We’re an incredibly divided country but splitting it into two is impossible.

Biden Fires ‘Independent’ Social Security Administrator

President Trump’s destruction of longstanding norms continues under his successor.

America’s Poverty Dependence

Our love for cheap goods and services requires lots of people willing to work for very little.

Retail Employees as Vaccine Police

The new CDC guidelines raise some serious questions.

Following the Science Isn’t Our Nature

The reaction to the pandemic has long since been about much more than the pandemic.

Republican Split with Big Business Greatly Exaggerated

Look at who’s lined up against H.R. 1.

Maryland Removes Police Protections over Hogan’s Veto

The Free State may have gotten just a little freer.

Did the Boomers Ruin America?

An interesting but uneven debate.

Vaccine Mandates and Education

The politics and the science are in conflict.

United States Less Democratic Than it Used to Be

Multiple indicators point to a decline in the representativeness of the American system.

It’s Time to Reopen Schools Everywhere

The evidence is too clear to ignore at this point.

Return of the Technocrats? Or Sinking in the Swamp?

Policy wonks are seeing a refreshing return to the normal order. Some believe that’s a bad thing.

Are “Liberal” States Shrinking?

Thinking about unsupported narratives and a little bit about data usage.

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Biden Can’t Fire Postmaster General

When an apolitical process gets politicized.

I Have Seen the Future of Work and it Sucks

A world in which we’re all contractors is a dystopian utopia.

DC Area Schools Not Opening

The lousy hybrid option has been scrapped in favor of a worthless virtual one.

NFL to Play ‘Black National Anthem’ Before Games

“Lift Every Voice and Sing” will reportedly precede the “Star-Spangled Banner” in the opening week.

Pediatricians Urge In-Person School

Contra the CDC, the AAP says getting kids to class outweighs the modest risk of their catching COVID-19.

Virginia Cracking Down on Workplace Safety, Filling OSHA Void

The Commonwealth is the first state in the nation to issue regulations.