History repeats itself, but in such cunning disguise that we never detect resemblance until the damage is done Sydney J. Harris As we enter another holiday season with COVID-19, vaccine and immunity misinformation continues to spread, just like the virus. For example, back in September, former national security adviser to the “former guy,” Michael Flynn, alluded in a podcast that…
No Joke: The GOP has Turned a Dangerous Corner
On Wednesday, Congress voted 223 to 207 to censure and strip Paul Gosar (R-AZ) of his committee assignments. A but two House Republicans, Liz Cheney(R-WY) and Adam Kinzinger (R-IL) voted along with Democrats. Gosar was in the news recently after posting an anime video of himself killing Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY), and wielding swords at…
Critical Race Theory: Denial Doesn’t Help
History is who we are and the way we are David McCullogh Critical Race Theory (CRT) has been in the US news lately and has become a dirty phrase with conservative Republicans. It has caused an explosion in the public arena, especially with respect to public education. Numerous state legislatures are seeking to ban teaching CRT in…
Virginia: Did McAuliffe ‘diss White Suburban Moms?
Tuesday’s Virginia gubernatorial election results were a blow to both Democrats and the Biden administration. According to ABC News, in the end, it was white suburban women and younger voters who handed Republican candidate Glenn Youngkin the victory. According to reports, white suburban moms who had cast their votes for Biden in 2020 didn’t care for McAuliffe’s comparisons…
Paid Family and Medical Leave on the Skids?
Today, passage of Joe Biden’s historic infrastructure bill took a blow. The paid family and medical leave portion of the economic and climate package may die as Democrats scramble to reach an agreement among their colleagues. Senator Joe Manchin (D-WV) has been an ardent “crepehanger” regarding the price tag of the bill. In an effort to secure his support, Democrats scaled back Biden’s initial…
Betting on Valor
Both the GOP and Democrats actually have something in common when recruiting candidates for the 2022 mid-term elections: Military veterans. Republicans suffered losses at winning the House in 2020, and are taking a page out of the Democratic 2018 playbook in finding veterans to run for office. In 2018, Democrats won with a collection of…
Natural Immunity vs Vaccine Studies: The Importance of Reproducible Results
Years ago I subscribed to a humorous magazine called the Journal of Irreproducible Results: Improbable Investigations and Unfounded Findings. It was a hysterically nerdy publication that parodied scientific publications and research. Article titles ranged from “Golf and the Poo Muscle, to Prenatal psychoanalysis to the Pachydermobile.” The articles were fun reading, and at the foundation…
Facebook: The Polonius of Social Media
Though this be madness, yet there is method in ’t. Polonius, Hamlet (II.ii.) It’s been a tough week for Facebook. Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp were all down for several hours on this past Monday, and Tuesday former FaceBook data engineer and product manager, Frances Haugen, testified before the Senate regarding the social media giant prioritizing profits before people….
When the Well is Dry…
When the well is dry, we know the worth of water. Benjamin Franklin The past year has been the driest or second driest in most Southwestern states, including New Mexico. Although many farms and communities have started to mandate water restrictions, the Southwest still faces a threat that goes beyond a single bad year. Spurred by climate…
Give back to Caesar….
Saturday, September 25 was First Amendment Day, a day to celebrate the document that allows all Americans to practice a faith (or not), publish, speak freely, gather in protest, and petition the government for changes they see fit. It marks the day in 1789 when Congress sent the amendments that became the U.S. Constitution’s Bill of Rights to…