Month / October 1, 2014
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Recidivism and Rehabilitation
BY XIAOCHANG SONG It is a central doctrine of American exceptionalism that America is the land of opportunity and second chances. We embrace the heartwarming tale of the penniless man who pulls himself up by his bootstraps, and we proudly assert that only in a society like ours could his story be possible. In the…
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Better Know My District
BY CHARLIE THAU This summer, I had the privilege of working at the district office of Congressman Jerrold Nadler, who represents New York’s 10th District. As the summer began, I wondered whether the experience would culminate in my finally finding a political allegiance. As I grew up in a household with one parent a staunch…
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A Warning to David, After Going to the Dentist
BY WALLIS LINKER As of this July, seventeen states have decriminalized non-medical marijuana in some way or another. It appears that as time passes, President Nixon’s 1971 declaration of a hard “war on drugs” is slowly failing. In September 1989, the perception of drug abuse as America’s number one problem was polled at 64%; this…
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What’s so Offensive about Self-Defense?
BY CANDICE LOVE I am one of two female cousins in my large, overwhelmingly male family. Growing up without other girls to play with, I hung out with boys. I learned a lot from them, like how to do things even when I’m scared, and how to suck up my tears. But the most important…
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Cleveland , Chicago, Conventions and the Media
BY RYAN THIER “AND WITH GEORGE MCGOVERN AS PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES, WE WOULDN’T HAVE TO HAVE GESTAPO TACTICS IN THE STREETS OF CHICAGO.” – SENATOR ABE RIBICOFF 1968 was a turbulent year in the United States, with cultural and political unrest explosively culminating in Chicago’s conflagration of a Democratic National Convention. The chaos,…
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License to Destroy
BY SONYA SCHOENBERGER In 1863, President Lincoln’s critics denounced the Emancipation Proclamation as a barbaric violation of the laws of civilized warfare. By emancipating slaves behind Confederate lines, they argued, the Union had utterly dispensed with the restraints of enlightened military conduct. Northerners and Southerners alike viewed the proclamation as nothing more than the incitement…
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Obamacare: Cost vs. Access
BY ARYEH MELLMAN After five years, the Affordable Care Act (ACA) is staggering toward the end of its gauntlet of political, legal, and implementation challenges. To paraphrase Nancy Pelosi, it’s time to find out not just what is i n the law, but the ultimate effects of the law. From the time the ACA was…