Despite the win by Democrats in Alabama’s Senate Race by the slimmest of margins, (Jones/49.92 percent to Moore’s/48.38 percent), the country remains bitterly divided. A recent poll by Pew Research (Oct. 5), shows that “The divisions between Republicans and Democrats on fundamental political values – on government, race, immigration, national security, environmental protection and other areas – reached record levels...

The last several weeks have seen a steady drumbeat of wild allegations by a news organization and some Republican politicians that threaten the integrity of Special Counsel Robert Mueller III and his investigation into Russian meddling in the 2016 election. In a speech, Donald Trump, Jr. appears to be part of a coordinated effort by suggesting a conspiracy in a...

“I recall Miramax telling us they were a nightmare to work with and we should avoid them at all costs. This was probably in 1998.” That’s film director Peter Jackson talking about the blacklist producer Harvey Weinstein created for actresses Mira Sorvino and Ashley Judd who refused his sexual overtures. “I realize,” Jackson said, “that this was very likely the...

Volkswagen Executive Oliver Schmidt just found out the cost of his dishonesty: 7 years in prison. “Schmidt, a citizen of Germany,” The New York Times writes (Dec. 6), “is the highest-ranking Volkswagen employee to be convicted in [a scheme to defraud U.S. consumers and regulators by participating in] the company’s efforts to rig pollution tests on hundreds of thousands of...

The list grows longer every week. This week’s announcement has celebrity chef Mario Batali stepping down from his businesses after four women came forward with sexual misconduct allegations. Last week saw the resignations of U.S. representative, John Conyers and freshman Senator Al Franken after allegations from multiple women. Fittingly, TIME magazine has chosen 61 individuals – 57 women and 4...

Two months after the D-Day invasion by Allied forces, with the wind at their backs against German forces, CBS radio correspondent Charles Collingwood wrote an extraordinary story for radio broadcast: “The French Second Armored Division entered Paris today after the Parisians had risen as one man to beat down the German troops who had garrisoned the city. It was the...

work-around: a plan or method to circumvent a problem. After watching Senator Al Franken’s resignation speech yesterday, my cynical self reminded me that too many men in powerful positions appear genetically incapable of taking full, unconditional responsibility for their actions. As this is likely the last speech he’ll make on the Senate floor, Franken sounds both serious and deliberate. He...

It takes a lot to get Nuclear Peace Activist David Krieger worked up. That’s why I was surprised by his recent essay, Decoding Donald, where Krieger – founder and president of The Nuclear Age Peace Foundation – writes forcefully about the unequivocal threat posed by Donald Trump. “You really pulled no punches in your critique and ultimate solution for dealing...

One week from tomorrow, December 12, Alabama voters go to the polls to vote for a replacement for Senator Jeff Sessions who was appointed U.S. attorney general. According to a CBS News poll, Republican Roy Moore is leading Democrat Doug Jones by 6 percentage points — 49 percent to Jones’s 43 among likely voters.  In the same poll, 71 percent...

“If Jesus Christ [got] down off the cross and told me Trump is with Russia, I would tell him,  ‘Hold on a second. I need to check with the President if it’s true.’ ” – Trump voter, CNN New Day, November 20 This is how low truth and trust have plummeted in the eyes of some voters. Writing about the...