It’s Not Just About Bad Choices

It’s Not Just About Bad Choices:

WHENEVER I write about people who are struggling, I hear from readers who say something like: Folks need to stop whining and get a job. It’s all about personal responsibility. via Pocket

Scott Walker and the Fate of the Union

Scott Walker and the Fate of the Union:

On his first day of work in three months, Randy Bryce asked his foreman for the next day off. He wanted to go to the Capitol in Madison, Wis., and testify against a proposed law. via Pocket

This Age of Derp, Kansas Edition

This Age of Derp, Kansas Edition:

Menzie Chinn notes the continuing failure of the Kansas experiment with supply-side tax cuts. And yes, it is an experiment — Gov. via Pocket

The Insecure American

The Insecure American:

America remains, despite the damage inflicted by the Great Recession and its aftermath, a very rich country. But many Americans are economically insecure, with little protection from life’s risks. via Pocket

Can Bruce Bartlett save the GOP by bursting its 'bubble'?

Can Bruce Bartlett save the GOP by bursting its 'bubble'?:

Bruce Bartlett has 24-karat conservative credentials. He worked in the Reagan White House, the George H.W. Bush Treasury Department, for former Texas Rep. Ron Paul and the Heritage Foundation. via Pocket

​Food deserts: why it costs much more to try to eat on $29 a week

​Food deserts: why it costs much more to try to eat on $29 a week:

Much has been said recently about Gwyneth Paltrow’s Twitter post showing the $29 worth of food she attempted to live on last week in order to raise awareness about cuts to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), formerly known as the food stamp program. via Pocket

Fraternity of Failure

Fraternity of Failure:

Jeb Bush wants to stop talking about past controversies. And you can see why. He has a lot to stop talking about. But let’s not honor his wish. You can learn a lot by studying recent history, and you can learn even more by watching how politicians respond to that history. via Pocket

Obama’s Advance Team Should Be Fired

Obama’s Advance Team Should Be Fired:

The Obamas are proving singularly inept at choosing appropriate venues to highlight their initiatives. In June 2011 Michelle invited giant retailers, including Walmart to the White House to launch her effort to persuade the country’s largest retailers to move into inner city “food deserts. via Pocket

What ‘Wild’ Has Wrought

What ‘Wild’ Has Wrought:

ON THE PACIFIC CREST TRAIL, Calif. — THIS is arguably America’s greatest hiking trail, a 2,650-mile serpentine path running through desert and wilderness from the Mexican border to the Canadian border. via Pocket

A question for Scott Walker about Iran: What’s your alternative?

A question for Scott Walker about Iran: What’s your alternative?:

It’s probably too soon to take Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker seriously as a possible next president. He looks strong in the latest polls. via Pocket

Enjoying the Low Life?

Enjoying the Low Life?:

The United States is the most powerful colossus in the history of the world: Our nuclear warheads could wipe out the globe, our enemies tweet on iPhones, and kids worldwide bop to Beyoncé. Yet let’s get real. All this hasn’t benefited all Americans. via Pocket

It Takes a Party

It Takes a Party:

So Hillary Clinton is officially running, to nobody’s surprise. via Pocket

De Blasio's big microphone, and the little party pulling Democrats back to the left

De Blasio's big microphone, and the little party pulling Democrats back to the left:

The agenda of a political party you’ve likely never heard of, one with just a handful of members and that’s never elected a candidate of its own to an office higher than state senator, is driving much of the national conversation. via Pocket

Economics and Elections

Economics and Elections:

Britain’s economic performance since the financial crisis struck has been startlingly bad. A tentative recovery began in 2009, but it stalled in 2010. via Pocket

Denmark’s Drug-Free Pigs

Denmark’s Drug-Free Pigs:

PRESIDENT OBAMA didn’t need to issue a $1.2 billion National Action Plan for Combating Antibiotic-Resistant Bacteria, which he did last week, to figure out how the United States could reduce the antibiotic-resistant bacteria created by the country’s agriculture industry. via Pocket

A Little Respect for Dr. Foster

A Little Respect for Dr. Foster:

ONE sign of a landmark shift in public attitudes: A poll last year found that Americans approved more of gays and lesbians (53 percent) than of evangelical Christians (42 percent). That’s partly because some evangelical leaders were intolerant blowhards who give faith a bad name. via Pocket

Mornings in Blue America

Mornings in Blue America:

Two impossible things happened to the U.S. economy over the course of the past year — or at least they were supposed to be impossible, according to the ideology that dominates half our political spectrum. via Pocket

Hidden Healthcare Horrors

Hidden Healthcare Horrors:

One of the odder subplots of the health reform saga has been the almost pathetic efforts of Republicans to come up with Obamacare horror stories. via Pocket

The Other Biological Clock : How Old Will Your Kids' Grandparents Be?

The Other Biological Clock : How Old Will Your Kids' Grandparents Be?:

A few months ago I was sitting in the vast dining room of an assisted-living home in Washington, D.C., watching my 5-year-old niece bounce like a pinball between tables of seniors. It was a startling sight–that small, smooth blond blur amid a hundred crinkly faces. via Pocket

Charlatans, Cranks, and Cooling

Charlatans, Cranks, and Cooling:

Branko Milanovic notes Lee Kwan Yew’s explanation of the success of Singapore and other Asian economies; partly Confucian culture, partly air conditioning. If you’ve ever tried to walk around Singapore, you know whereof he speaks. via Pocket

Trillion Dollar Fraudsters

Trillion Dollar Fraudsters:

By now it’s a Republican Party tradition: Every year the party produces a budget that allegedly slashes deficits, but which turns out to contain a trillion-dollar “magic asterisk” — a line tha via Pocket

When Liberals Blew It

When Liberals Blew It:

Fifty years ago this month, Democrats made a historic mistake. Daniel Patrick Moynihan, at the time a federal official, wrote a famous report in March 1965 on family breakdown among African-Americans. via Pocket

Can One Union Save the Slumping U.S. Postal Service?

Can One Union Save the Slumping U.S. Postal Service?:

Let’s begin with the bad news. The U.S. Post Office, the oldest, most respected and ubiquitous of all public institutions is fast disappearing. In recent years management has shuttered half the nation’s mail processing plants and put 10 percent of all local post offices up for sale. via Pocket

Building the First Slavery Museum in America

Building the First Slavery Museum in America:

Louisiana’s River Road runs northwest from New Orleans to Baton Rouge, its two lanes snaking some 100 miles along the Mississippi and through a contradictory stretch of America. via Pocket

The qualified 'miracle' of Minneapolis

The qualified 'miracle' of Minneapolis:

A recent article in the Atlantic magazine — “The Miracle of Minneapolis,” by Derek Thompson — brought out the anticipated reactions. via Pocket

Who Decides?

Who Decides?:

Who decides? Conservative Republicans in Texas are split on the issue. Darren Hodges, a Tea Party councilman in the West Texas city of Fort Stockton, fiercely defends his town’s recent decision to ban plastic bags. via Pocket

The Miracle of Minneapolis

The Miracle of Minneapolis:

No other place mixes affordability, opportunity, and wealth so well. What’s its secret? If the American dream has not quite shattered as the Millennial generation has come of age, it has certainly scattered. via Pocket

Unconscious Racial Bias Taints the Legal System

Unconscious Racial Bias Taints the Legal System:

In the wake of the deaths of Michael Brown and Eric Garner, angry demonstrators and subdued academics alike have charged that the American legal process is tainted by racism. But polls suggest most white Americans don’t see things that way, leading to something of a standoff. via Pocket

Dying To Be Free

Dying To Be Free:

The last image we have of Patrick Cagey is of his first moments as a free man. He has just walked out of a 30-day drug treatment center in Georgetown, Kentucky, dressed in gym clothes and carrying a Nike duffel bag. via Pocket

Why chicken is making so many of us sick

Why chicken is making so many of us sick:

This content is made possible by the generous sponsorship support of UCare. Foodborne illness is a huge health problem in the United States. According to the U.S. via Pocket

The case for mandatory vaccinations

The case for mandatory vaccinations:

Should vaccinations be mandatory? Measles outbreaks and recent remarks by presidential hopefuls Sen. Rand Paul of Kentucky and New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie that they should be voluntary have thrust this question into the center of American politics and policy debate. via Pocket

Smart Guns Save Lives. So Where Are They?

Smart Guns Save Lives. So Where Are They?:

BOULDER, Colo. — JUST after Christmas, Veronica Rutledge of Blackfoot, Idaho, took her 2-year-old son to a Walmart store to spend holiday gift cards. via Pocket

Fake Engine Noise Is the Auto Industry's Dirty Little Secret - Slashdot

Fake Engine Noise Is the Auto Industry's Dirty Little Secret - Slashdot:

I don’t know why, but I find the idea of pumping in engine noise fascinating. Good discussion about whether external noise is a safety issue for pedestrians, and whether silence in cars is golden.

Kicking Dodd-Frank in the Teeth

Kicking Dodd-Frank in the Teeth:

The 114th Congress has been at work for less than a week, but a goal for many of its members is already evident: a further rollback of regulations put in place to keep markets and Main Street safe from reckless Wall Street practices. via Pocket

Save the Honeybee, Sterilize the Earth

Save the Honeybee, Sterilize the Earth:

A decade ago, people started panicking about the collapse of the honeybee population and the crash of our food supply. But today there are more honeybees than there were then. We have engineered our way to a frenzied and precarious new normal. via Pocket

Social Programs That Work

Social Programs That Work:

WASHINGTON — HARDLY anyone knows it, but since its earliest days the Obama administration has been pursuing the most important initiative in the history of federal attempts to use evidence to improve social programs. via Pocket

The Radical Case for Cities Buying Sports Teams, Not Sports Stadiums

The Radical Case for Cities Buying Sports Teams, Not Sports Stadiums:

And this isn’t an uncommon scenario. The city of Miami and Dade County spent more than $800 million in 2009 on a new stadium for the Marlins… via Pocket

The Science of Why Cops Shoot Young Black Men

The Science of Why Cops Shoot Young Black Men:

"You’re not, like, a total racist bastard," David Amodio tells me. He pauses. "Today." I’m sitting in the soft-spoken cognitive neuroscientist’s spotless office nestled within New York University’s psychology department, but it feels like I’m at the doctor’s, getting a dreaded diagnosis. via Pocket

What if Whites Were the Minority?

What if Whites Were the Minority?:

In the responses to my “When Whites Just Don’t Get It” series, I’ve been struck by the lack of empathy some whites show for members of minority groups. So imagine if the world were reversed. Then “the talk” might go like this: “Nope. That’d be easy. via Pocket

Chris Rock: 'If poor people knew how rich rich people are, there would be riots in the streets.'

Chris Rock: 'If poor people knew how rich rich people are, there would be riots in the streets.':

Writing for New York magazine, Frank Rich interviews Chris Rock. If you read the whole thing, your estimation of Rock as a social critic and political analyst will rise, and, of course, he’s kinda funny too, but edgy funny. Here are a few highlights: Rock Replies: “Oh, people don’t even know. via Pocket

White America's scary delusion: Why its sense of black humanity is so skewed

White America's scary delusion: Why its sense of black humanity is so skewed:

Many white folks aren’t violent. But here’s how ignorance and lack of empathy make life so unsafe for black people The failure of a St. Louis county grand jury to indict Darren Wilson, the former police officer who killed Michael Brown, created a maelstrom of protests last week. via Pocket

Is Everyone a Little Bit Racist?

Is Everyone a Little Bit Racist?:

Let’s start with what we don’t know: the precise circumstances under which a white police officer in Ferguson, Mo., shot dead an unarmed black teenager named Michael Brown. via Pocket

http://ift.tt/1zyW2hG

http://ift.tt/1zyW2hG:

via Pocket

The Masterful Marketing of the Heimlich Maneuver

The Masterful Marketing of the Heimlich Maneuver:

Awhile back, I choked on a piece of beef stew. It happened as these things usually do: One minute I was happily sitting in a Dominican restaurant down the block having a “business lunch” with a friend, and the next I couldn’t breathe. This was not ideal. via Pocket

Plutocrats Against Democracy

Plutocrats Against Democracy:

It’s always good when leaders tell the truth, especially if that wasn’t their intention. via Pocket

Beyond Hope

Beyond Hope:

THE MOST COMMON WORDS I hear spoken by any environmentalists anywhere are, We’re fucked. via Pocket

When Whites Just Don’t Get It, Part 3

When Whites Just Don’t Get It, Part 3:

SOME white Americans may be surprised to hear Archbishop Desmond Tutu describe Bryan Stevenson, an African-American lawyer fighting for racial justice, as “America’s young Nelson Mandela. via Pocket

The No. 1 Cause of Traffic Fatalities? It’s Not Texting

The No. 1 Cause of Traffic Fatalities? It’s Not Texting:

I don’t yet have a copy of Matt Richtel’s new book, A Deadly Wandering: A Tale of Tragedy and Redemption in the Age of Attention. via Pocket

John Oliver explains why the U.S. drone program is so terrifying

John Oliver explains why the U.S. drone program is so terrifying:

Host John Oliver of HBO’s Last Week Tonight criticized the U.S. government’s drone program for inflicting fear in children. Oliver uses a segment to discuss U.S. drone program and the legacy President Barack Obama will leave behind. via Pocket

Polarization in America is here to stay. What now?

Polarization in America is here to stay. What now?:

By now, it’s obvious to everyone that U.S. political life has become extremely polarized. Not only are lawmakers further and further apart, but the American people are too, geographically and ideologically. via Pocket

The Debate About the Role of Government in The Republican City of Somerset, Kentucky

The Debate About the Role of Government in The Republican City of Somerset, Kentucky:

When two politicians debate the role of government, its almost always Democrat vs. Republican. Which is why it was so refreshing and instructive to read of the debate taking place among Republicans in a small city in southeastern Kentucky. via Pocket

Who Had It Easier, Reagan or Obama?

Who Had It Easier, Reagan or Obama?:

OVER the past few weeks I’ve been reading Ken Adelman’s fascinating history “Reagan at Reykjavik: Forty-Eight Hours That Ended the Cold War.” Adelman, who led Reagan’s arms control agency, was an adviser at Reagan’s 1986 Iceland summit meeting with Soviet President Mikhail Gorbachev. via Pocket

Is last year's model better? iPhone 6 creates a storage space dilemma

Is last year's model better? iPhone 6 creates a storage space dilemma:

The new iPhone offers several features over its 5S predecessor: a faster processor, bigger screen, near field communications for payments, and purportedly longer battery life.

But it has the same base storage (16 GB) as the iPhone 3G, which premiered 5 years ago! (In that time, storage costs for solid state drives have fallen by 80%).

Apps have grown significantly in size, to take advantage of many new features and higher resolution screens. And data plans have become limited, requiring more local storage for those not constantly on wifi.

For a customer signing a new 2-year contract with a wireless provider, the iPhone 6 will cost $199. But for $50 less, the same person could last year’s flagship phone, iPhone 5S, with double the storage capacity - 32GB. To get more than that on the new phone model, you have to get the 64 GB upgrade for a total of $300, twice what the 5S costs.

There are probably enough people with grandfathered unlimited data plans for whom the cloud (via a cellular data connection) can supplement the measly 16 GB base storage. But Apple’s refusal to increase the base storage for it’s flagship phone is pretty cheap, and I wonder if it will drive some Apple phone purchasers to last year’s model in search of a better deal.

10 reasons why you shouldn't vote for a vet

10 reasons why you shouldn't vote for a vet:

Maryland Attorney General and Democratic gubernatorial candidate Douglas Gansler committed a campaign faux pas this week when he intoned that his opponent, Lieutenant Governor and Iraq war veteran Anthony Brown, was not as prepared to do a “real job.” The situation is full of peculiarities. via Pocket

After Ferguson, Race Deserves More Attention, Not Less

After Ferguson, Race Deserves More Attention, Not Less:

MANY white Americans say they are fed up with the coverage of the shooting of Michael Brown in Ferguson, Mo. A plurality of whites in a recent Pew survey said that the issue of race is getting more attention than it deserves. via Pocket

The Slow Motion Lynching of President Barack Obama

The Slow Motion Lynching of President Barack Obama:

I’ve watched liberal and right wing commentators alike blame the president for being lynched. They say “he’s not reaching out enough” or “he’s too cold.” It’s the equivalent of assuming that the black man being beaten by a couple of thug cops must have “done something.” via Pocket

Test If Your Batteries Are Dead By Dropping Them on a Hard Surface

Test If Your Batteries Are Dead By Dropping Them on a Hard Surface:

Skip the battery tester and use this quick and easy way to test if your batteries are dead: Just drop them. The video above by electrical engineer Lee Hite explains why dead batteries bounce, in very thorough scientific detail. On YouTube, he says: via Pocket

'The US Economy Performs Better Under Democratic Presidents. Why?'

'The US Economy Performs Better Under Democratic Presidents. Why?':

In case you missed this research from Blinder and Watson: The US economy performs better under Democratic presidents. Why?, by Alan S. via Pocket

Growing Pressure on Obama to Do Something Stupid

Growing Pressure on Obama to Do Something Stupid:

WASHINGTON (The Borowitz Report)—Arguing that his motto “Don’t do stupid stuff” is not a coherent foreign policy, critics of President Obama are pressuring him to do something stupid without further delay. Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz) and Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C. via Pocket

Bring Back the Party of Lincoln

Bring Back the Party of Lincoln:

CHESTNUT HILL, Mass. via Pocket

A Call for a Low-Carb Diet

A Call for a Low-Carb Diet:

People who avoid carbohydrates and eat more fat, even saturated fat, lose more body fat and have fewer cardiovascular risks than people who follow the low-fat diet that health authorities have favored for decades, a major new study shows. via Pocket

Writing Skills

Writing Skills:

via Pocket

A gut microbe that stops food allergies

A gut microbe that stops food allergies:

A class of bacteria commonly found in the guts of people—and rodents—appears to keep mice safe from food allergies, a study suggests. The same bacteria are among those reduced by antibiotic use in early childhood. via Pocket

Why reform conservatives should embrace a universal basic income

Why reform conservatives should embrace a universal basic income:

Reform conservatives — colloquially known as “reformocons” — are having their day in the sun. They made the cover of The New York Times Magazine with their push to move the right away from its myopic focus on tax cuts, starving government, and helping businesses owners. And now Rep. via Pocket

Is a Hard Life Inherited?

Is a Hard Life Inherited?:

YAMHILL, Ore. — ONE delusion common among America’s successful people is that they triumphed just because of hard work and intelligence. via Pocket

Do You Let Your Kid Walk to School or Play Outside Alone?

Do You Let Your Kid Walk to School or Play Outside Alone?:

Recently, a mother in Florida was arrested for allowing her 7-year old son to walk alone to a park about half a mile from home. Putting aside the possibility of being arrested, do you or would you let your school-age kids walk to school and elsewhere alone? via Pocket

Always Hungry? Here’s Why

Always Hungry? Here’s Why:

FOR most of the last century, our understanding of the cause of obesity has been based on immutable physical law. Specifically, it’s the first law of thermodynamics, which dictates that energy can neither be created nor destroyed. via Pocket

Why it makes sense to bike without a helmet — Howie Chong

Why it makes sense to bike without a helmet — Howie Chong:

Over half of all head injuries occur in motor vehicles and more people were hospitalized after walking down the street than riding on a bicycle. Consider another statistic: According to a 2006 French study, pedestrians are 1. via Pocket

The Decline of the Physical Exam in Modern Medicine

The Decline of the Physical Exam in Modern Medicine:

One morning a few years ago, my older brother phoned me in a panic. Our father had been having episodes of numbness and tingling in his left arm. My brother was worried they were transient ischemic attacks, or ministrokes. via Pocket

Cutting off the bees at the knees

A comprehensive story on the continued failure of bee colonies and its potentially fatal impact on American agriculture.

The beauty of zipper merging, or why you should drive ruder

The beauty of zipper merging, or why you should drive ruder:

Of all of the reasons for traffic snarls, impending lane closures bring out a particularly brutal combination of road rage and etiquette confusion. via Pocket

When the Juvenile Justice System Isn’t the Answer

When the Juvenile Justice System Isn’t the Answer:

IF you want to understand just how miserable a childhood can be, 16-year-old “Jane Doe” is a good place to start. That’s what the authorities in Connecticut call her to protect her identity. via Pocket

Darkness

Darkness:

via Pocket

The Best Chef's Knife

The Best Chef's Knife:

After an extremely close voting round, the Wusthof Classic Cooks Knife has cut through the competition as your choice for Best Chef’s Knife. You praised it specifically for its durability, hand-protecting shape, heft, balance, and of course, sharpness. via Pocket

Don't cross the pollinators: Starting July 1, they're protected by law

Don't cross the pollinators: Starting July 1, they're protected by law:

BRISTOL TOWNSHIP, Minnesota — Pollinating his zucchini crop by hand has been one of Jonas Hochstetler’s daily chores between roughly 7:30 and 8:30 in the morning during this month of June. via Pocket

Scientists find Achilles' heel of antibiotic resistant bacteria

Scientists find Achilles' heel of antibiotic resistant bacteria:

Scientists at the University of East Anglia demonstrate how the bug responsible for E. coli and salmonella builds an impenetrable wall to keep out drugs The global threat of antibiotic resistance could finally be tackled after British scientists discovered a chink in the armour of deadly bacteria. via Pocket

Religion for $1,000, Alex

Religion for $1,000, Alex:

WITH Easter and Passover freshly behind us, let’s test your knowledge of the Bible. How many mistakes can you find: Noah of Arc and his wife, Joan, build a boat to survive a great flood. via Pocket

The Expendables: How the temps who power corporate giants are getting crushed

The Expendables: How the temps who power corporate giants are getting crushed:

It’s 4:18 a.m. and the strip mall is deserted. But tucked in back, next to a closed-down video store, an employment agency is already filling up. Rosa Ramirez walks in, as she has done nearly every morning for the past six months. via Pocket

Obama’s Game of Chicken

Obama’s Game of Chicken:

The untold story of how the administration tried to stand up to big agricultural companies on behalf of independent farmers, and lost. In May 2010, Garry Staples left his chicken farm in Steele, Alabama, to take part in a historic hearing in Normal, an hour and a half away. via Pocket

On Iraq, let’s ignore those who got it all wrong

On Iraq, let’s ignore those who got it all wrong:

At noon today, President Obama issued his first statement on the deteriorating situation on Iraq. “This is not solely or even primarily a military challenge,” he said. via Pocket

Internet Subversion

Internet Subversion:

In addition to turning the Internet into a worldwide surveillance platform, the NSA has surreptitiously weakened the products, protocols, and standards we all use to protect ourselves. By doing so, it has destroyed the trust that underlies the Internet. We need that trust back. via Pocket

The War on Cancer: Big Pharma Is Keeping Us From Developing Low-Cost Treatments

The War on Cancer: Big Pharma Is Keeping Us From Developing Low-Cost Treatments:

Big Pharma’s focus on blockbuster cancer drugs squeezes out research into potential treatments that are more affordable. Says one researcher: “What is scientific and sexy is driven by what can be monetized.” Michael Retsky awoke from surgery to bad news. via Pocket

"What happens to the Congressional Budget Office if a party that has learned that lying about numbers..."

“What happens to the Congressional Budget Office if a party that has learned that lying about numbers works takes full control of Congress?”

- Inventing a Failure - NYTimes.com

The other downside of antibiotics: Killing the useful bacteria

The other downside of antibiotics: Killing the useful bacteria:

Everyone has a pet theory to explain the rise of modern scourges, things that our forbears rarely had to contend with during their short, brutish lives: obesity, diabetes, celiac disease, autism, asthma, allergies, esophageal cancer, etc. via Pocket

WHO: Without urgent action, world headed toward 'post-antibiotic era'

WHO: Without urgent action, world headed toward 'post-antibiotic era':

This content is made possible by the generous sponsorship support of UCare. via Pocket

One Execution Botched, Oklahoma Delays the Next - NYTimes.com

One Execution Botched, Oklahoma Delays the Next - NYTimes.com:

There really isn’t a way to humanely execute someone, so maybe we should stop trying.

Where the G.O.P. Gets It Right

Where the G.O.P. Gets It Right:

Republicans may seem like ultimate Scrooges. Many want to slash food stamps, unemployment benefits and just about any program that helps the needy. So they know nothing about poverty, right? via Pocket

Fresh looks at 'creeping ecological disaster' of U.S. grassland conversions

Fresh looks at 'creeping ecological disaster' of U.S. grassland conversions:

From the American Prospect comes a fine piece of enterprise journalism on the shocking rates at which native grasslands are being converted to row crops in a region stretching from western Minnesota across the Dakotas, Nebraska and Iowa. “Plowed Under,” written by Jocelyn C. via Pocket

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http://ift.tt/1gjxHFf:

via Pocket

Why Roku Matters More Than Ever

Why Roku Matters More Than Ever

CIA's role in the arrest of Nelson Mandela

CIA's role in the arrest of Nelson Mandela:

When Nelson Mandela died in December, I paid a lot of attention to the coverage. There was a lot about his long imprisonment by the South Afrrican apartheid regime. via Pocket

A Nation of Takers?

A Nation of Takers?:

In the debate about poverty, critics argue that government assistance saps initiative and is unaffordable. After exploring the issue, I must concede that the critics have a point. Here are five public welfare programs that are wasteful and turning us into a nation of “takers.” via Pocket

Matching Color for IKEA Lixtorp cabinets

For all you IKEA hackers out there, Varathane brand stain, Early American, is a spot on match for the brown LIxtorp cabinets from IKEA. 

Listen Up: It’s Time to Turn Down the Sound

Listen Up: It’s Time to Turn Down the Sound:

Ambient noise machines meant to prolong uninterrupted sleep may be doing long-term damage to the ears of infants, kick-starting a cycle of hearing loss that’s almost impossible to break. via Pocket

From Putin, a Blessing in Disguise

From Putin, a Blessing in Disguise:

There are a lot of people who seem intent on restarting the Cold War — in both Moscow and Washington. I am not one of them. But if we’re going to have a new Cold War, then I have one condition: I want a new moonshot. via Pocket

The dirty truth behind Park & Rides

The dirty truth behind Park & Rides:

Park and ride facilities are darling infrastructure of the transit planning profession. By providing “free” parking to lure choice riders out of cars and onto buses and trains, ridership can get a big boost. via Pocket

Insurance Won't Cover Special Needs Toddler Formula

Insurance Won't Cover Special Needs Toddler Formula:

TOPEKA, Kansas (WIBW) — One Topeka family is facing added expenses after their insurance company told them they will not cover a vital formula for their son, who has a rare genetic disorder. via Pocket

The Crimean Exception: Never Before in Autonomy Struggles Has a People Chosen Between Oppressors

The Crimean Exception: Never Before in Autonomy Struggles Has a People Chosen Between Oppressors:

The upcoming Crimea referendum is both ordinary and extraordinary. Ordinary because more than 100 times since World War II geographically concentrated ethnic or linguistic groups have voted on the question of independence. via Pocket

Liberty, Equality, Efficiency

Liberty, Equality, Efficiency:

Most people, if pressed on the subject, would probably agree that extreme income inequality is a bad thing, although a fair number of conservatives believe that the whole subject of income distribution should be banned from public discourse. via Pocket

Best predictor of divorce? Age when couples cohabit, study says

Best predictor of divorce? Age when couples cohabit, study says:

For years, social scientists have tried to explain why living together before marriage seemed to increase the likelihood of a couple divorcing. Now, new research released by the nonpartisan Council on Contemporary Families gives an answer: It doesn’t. And it probably never has. via Pocket