On January 20th, 2009, scientists (and anyone who values science) in the USA breathed a collective sigh of relief. After eight years of President George W. Bush, a Democratic president – Barack Obama – was taking over and science once again took its rightful place in American society as a force for good and an asset to policy making. It’s […]

On February 26th, 2015, after an extensive comment period where 3.7 million comments were submitted, the FCC classified internet service providers (ISPs) as telecommunications providers and is subject to Title II of the Communications Act just like phone and cable service. This ensures that all everyone on the internet has equal access to content. There were lawsuits by the corporations […]

Trump wants you to be so mad at minorities that you’ll give him and his kids your retirement. One thing most Americans agree on besides “pie is also good for breakfast” is that things are “rigged.” Elizabeth Warren used the metaphor to explain how we got into the financial crisis that cost America 8 million jobs and trillions in wealth. […]

There’s one thing you can say about Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder: He has zero #$@&%*!s to give when it comes to how things look or are perceived by the public. Today we have Exhibit A in this regard: Gov. Snyder has appointed Michgan’s chief medical executive Dr. Eden Wells to lead the newly-formed Public Health Advisory Council: Gov. Rick Snyder […]

The most unpopular new president in the history of polling is about to pass the most unpopular piece of legislation in generations. But who knows what happens next? Is there a better revenge story than Virginia? A George W. Bush Republican runs a Donald Trump campaign and get crushed like a guy who picked Sarah Palin as his running mate. […]

It wasn’t enough that a candidate for the president of the United States was accused by a dozen or more women of sexual assault and harassment, assault and harassment that he actually confessed to. No, a powerful so-called “Hollywood liberal”, Harvey Weinstein, had to be the perpetrator before America began to really take this seriously. Since that moment, largely thanks […]

As winter begins, the Ann Arbor City Council’s fixation on lawn care for the rich could have deadly consequences After losing $100,000 in funding last year, Ann Arbor’s Delonis Center homeless shelter was forced to close a floor full of beds that were badly needed. Meanwhile, the city is spending more than that to shoot local deer. You probably understand […]

Could podcasts play a similar role in a 2018 wave election that AM radio did in 1994? There is an almost inappropriate roar of a crowd. It could be welcoming an aging boy band or an Avengers Comic Con panel. Instead, four former White House staffers and the one former Bernie Sanders flack take the stage of The National theater […]

We’ve been seeing a lot of posts and news pieces lately about how Roy Moore, the alleged child molester about to be elected to the Senate from Alabama, does not represent the Republican Party, Christians, or even conservatives.   Well, it’s time to call this out for the lie it is. It may make conservatives, or Christians, feel better about […]

This first-of-its-kind initiative in Michigan supports nurses’ call for hospital reforms to ease the burden of excessive medical bills. Nurses saves lives every day. And with a recent project spearheaded by Michigan Nurses Association (MNA) members at Sparrow Hospital in Lansing, nurses saved patients across the state from financial ruin, clearing more than $1 million in medical debt for more […]

As an academic who works in the world of words, it’s been by turns horrifying and fascinating watching Alabama Republican Senate candidate Roy Moore and his defenders try to rationalize his–alleged–history of sexual harassment, assault, inappropriate, and illegal (at the time–the statute of limitations now having expired) behavior with teenage girls. Given that Moore and most of his supporters in […]