Memories of mom are cherished, eternal
My mother was 88 years old when she died at the Teresian House in Albany. Often, I would bring my children to visit their grandmother at her final place of residence. But I don't want my children to...
View ArticleShrinking the right to privacy
Your privacy, and the expectation that it is secure, took a massive hit April 29. It came from state and federal prosecutors arguing Riley v. California before the U.S. Supreme Court. In the Riley...
View ArticleDavid Brooks: Real Africa a test case of modernity
In 2005, Binyavanga Wainaina published a brilliantly sarcastic essay in Granta called "How to Write About Africa," advising people on how to sound spiritual and compassionate while writing a book...
View ArticleMaureen Dowd: Pope acting with malice toward nuns
Washington So much for all the cozy hugs and soothing cold calls and fun selfies and humble gestures and talk of mercy, love, inclusion, equality and justice.Pope Francis appears guilty of condoning...
View ArticleThomas Friedman: Gathering chopsticks into a bundle
Hanoi, VietnamBy an accident of scheduling, I've visited Kiev and Hanoi in the last couple of weeks, and it's been accidentally extremely revealing. Ukraine is a middle power living next to a giant...
View ArticleTruth should trump all
When President James Madison proposed war against Britain in 1812, Congressman Samuel Taggart, noting the war's aggressive intent, scoffed at the notion that Canadians would welcome their U.S....
View ArticleEditorial: Climate change is here now
THE ISSUE:Another national report on climate change warns of imminent danger.THE STAKES:Americans cannot afford to ignore it or even move slowly in our response. Even as one credible report after...
View ArticleScaffold Law is too costly for New York
The absolute liability of the Scaffold Law drives up the cost of nearly every public project in the state. This is not opinion; this is fact. The data is not in dispute.The School Construction...
View ArticlePaul Bray: Adjuncts merit better treatment
The growing use of adjunct or part-time faculty by public colleges and universities and, especially, community colleges has now reached the "crisis" level, according to the title of an April New York...
View ArticleCharles Krauthammer: Americans should hear the truth
Washington The Democrats are portraying the not-yet-even constituted House Select Committee on Benghazi as nothing but a partisan exercise. They may even boycott the hearings. Fine. Although this...
View ArticleRepublicans don't let a lack of facts ruin Benghazi story
The following appeared in a New York Times editorial:The hottest competition in Washington this week is among House Republicans vying for a seat on the Benghazi kangaroo court, also known as the...
View ArticleEditorial: An unfinished cleanup
THE ISSUE:Gov. Cuomo has abruptly disbanded his Moreland Act anti-corruption commission.THE STAKES:U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara is moving to finish the panel's incompleted work. As the New York state...
View ArticleDeath penalty in America immoral and discriminatory
Oklahoma's barbaric execution of Clayton D. Lockett is a gruesome example of the brutal manner in which our country responds to crime. While most American media have focused on the method of execution...
View ArticleRichard Brodsky: Honorable politicians indeed exist
The unrelenting drumbeat of cynicism about public service seems permanent. Call it "dysfunction," or a "culture of corruption"; it's a widely held view of Albany.It's not true. There is corruption and...
View ArticleEditorial: Lights, cameras, Albany
THE ISSUE:Albany asks New York state for permission to install red light cameras.THE STAKES:Imaginary threats to privacy shouldn't put the brakes on a useful strategy. Ever since George Orwell...
View ArticleRepublicans show hypocrisy in squabble over tax credit
The following appeared in a Dallas Morning News editorial:As America's voters careen from one congressional election to the next, each increasingly discouraging, this might be a good opportunity to...
View ArticleBuilding a critical framework
In my high school classes, one of my favorite activities is to put a source like John Locke's "Two Treatises of Government" in front of students and have them make observations and interpretations of...
View ArticleDavid Brooks: The innate problem of confidence
The current issue of The Atlantic carries a fascinating summary of "The Confidence Code" by Katty Kay and Claire Shipman. The essay runs through the evidence suggesting that women tend to have too...
View ArticleClose the pension loophole
THE ISSUE:Taxpayer-funded state pensions are provided for certain nonpublic employees.THE STAKES:A bill to end this unfair perk should be enacted into law. It happens every year around this time: Near...
View ArticleRams' Michael Sam, football player and social pioneer
The following appeared in a Dallas Morning News editorial:Let's hope that in not too many years Michael Sam will be known more for his talent on the football field and less for being the first openly...
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