Americans pride themselves on being self-reliant. In the eyes of many, there's nothing better than a self-made man. (Somehow self-made women don't have the same status). Benjamin Franklin's autobiography is perhaps the archetypal American … [Read more...]

I'm sure I'm not the only one who's noticed, but off-topic threads trading barbs has reached an annoying level. Part of this is due to some conservative commenters who add little of substance and can't resist inflaming others in whatever … [Read more...]

At some point, the happy, happy, joy, joy political strategy of tax cuts has to peter out. After all, there's a zero lower bound to tax cuts. Once there are no taxes, cuts are no longer possible. Unless the goal is a taxless America, … [Read more...]

Massachusetts House and Senate Republicans are part of a nation-wide effort to suppress the vote of people of color, college students, the elderly, and, of course, the poor. Covering the legislative flank for the sometimes illegal, activist … [Read more...]

Rick Perlstein has a good piece in The Rolling Stone. It comes in the form of a Wisconsin post-mortem, but the lessons are about us and our situation. The night Scott Walker survived his recall, ...Democratic candidate Tom Barrett gave a … [Read more...]

This is a previous post I did that puts Stand for Children in a larger context. Jonah Edelman, founder of Stand for Children, is a poster-child for a new class that is especially apparent in education policy: an educated elite, with minimal … [Read more...]

Antagonism toward public unions is exploding. --Barry Bluestone Organized labor hasn't had many victories these days. The recall of Wisconsin's Governor Scott Walker was, at best, a draw. At worst, it was another lost battle wasting … [Read more...]

Let's rewrite the narrative. I'll start. Add your own silliness in the comments. BOSTON—Campaign headquarters for Massachusetts’ junior senator was thrown into a tizzy today when the Boston Herald reported that Scott Brown once claimed … [Read more...]

"If ancestor stealing was a crime, you would be #1 on the Genealogical Bureau of Investigation's Most Wanted List! --Twila Barnes For confusion’s sake, Eric Fehrnstrom and the Boston Herald chose well. When it comes to Cherokees, heritage … [Read more...]

No point in writing a lede. Think Progress says it very well: Florida has no history of mass voter fraud. It does have a history, however, of mass voter disenfranchisement. By one estimate, 7000 Florida voters were wrongfully removed … [Read more...]