Is Prison Necessary? Ruth Wilson Gilmore Might Change Your Mind

Is Prison Necessary? Ruth Wilson Gilmore Might Change Your Mind:

There's an anecdote that Ruth Wilson Gilmore likes to share about being at an environmental-justice conference in Fresno in 2003. via Pocket

Sharing Options

Sharing Options:

via Pocket

Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez’s Tax Hike Idea Is Not About Soaking the Rich

Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez's Tax Hike Idea Is Not About Soaking the Rich:

It's about curtailing inequality and saving democracy. Mr. Saez and Mr. Zucman are economics professors at the University of California, Berkeley, via Pocket

Organizing in Trump country with George Goehl: podcast & transcript

Organizing in Trump country with George Goehl: podcast & transcript:

Chris Hayes speaks with grassroots organizer George Goehl, the director of People's Action, who is focusing his efforts on white rural America. via Pocket

Jay Rosen on Twitter

Jay Rosen on Twitter:

'Campaign coverage: the road not taken.' There was a path the American press could have walked, but did not. This alternative way was illuminated as far back as 1992. Our political journalists declined it. And here we are. This thread is that story. 1/ via Pocket

The Tyranny of Convenience

The Tyranny of Convenience:

Convenience is the most underestimated and least understood force in the world today. As a driver of human decisions, it may not offer the illicit thrill of Freud's unconscious sexual desires or the mathematical elegance of the economist's incentives. Convenience is boring. via Pocket

What if the Placebo Effect Isn’t a Trick?

What if the Placebo Effect Isn't a Trick?:

The Chain of Office of the Dutch city of Leiden is a broad and colorful ceremonial necklace that, draped around the shoulders of Mayor Henri Lenferink, lends a magisterial air to official proceedings in this ancient university town. via Pocket

Why Democrats Should Not Call the Georgia Governor’s Race “Stolen”

Why Democrats Should Not Call the Georgia Governor's Race "Stolen":

Many Democrats are understandably angry about efforts to suppress the vote in Georgia and elsewhere in the 2018 midterm elections. In the Peach State, there is no question that Gov. via Pocket

Uber and the False Hopes of the Sharing Economy

Uber and the False Hopes of the Sharing Economy:

Not long ago arrived word of a new start-up, Wonderschool, which as its website explains, is a "network of boutique, in-home early childhood programs" — the Airbnb or Rover of preschool. via Pocket

What the Mystery of the Tick-Borne Meat Allergy Could Reveal

What the Mystery of the Tick-Borne Meat Allergy Could Reveal:

One spring evening in 2016, Lee Niegelsky's underarm began to itch. An investment manager, he was doing housework around his condo, and he thought he'd been bitten by a chigger. But within 15 minutes, hives had erupted all over his body. via Pocket

California Shields Big Soda From Local Taxes

California Shields Big Soda From Local Taxes:

SAN FRANCISCO—State lawmakers banned all local taxes on groceries for 12 years in California on Thursday, a major victory for the soda industry, which used the state's ballot-initiative system to force legislators' hands. The ban was signed into law by Gov. via Pocket

The trouble with recycling: It's a plastic paradox

The trouble with recycling: It's a plastic paradox:

Americans were not set up for success in recycling plastics. Even before China stopped accepting plastic refuse from abroad, 91 percent of potentially recyclable plastic in the U.S. ended up in landfills — or worse, in the oceans. Europe does a little better, with 70 percent getting tossed. via Pocket

The Las Vegas Union That Learned To Beat The House

The Las Vegas Union That Learned To Beat The House:

LAS VEGAS ― Monie Stewart-Cariaga recently decided to leave the townhouse she's renting to buy a new home. For a single cocktail server, she couldn't be in a better position to do it. via Pocket

Justice reforms take hold, the inmate population plummets, and Philadelphia closes a notorious jail

Justice reforms take hold, the inmate population plummets, and Philadelphia closes a notorious jail:

This article has been updated to correct a statement by the public defender that initial bail hearings are staffed by lawyers at all times. They are not. via Pocket

A Credible and Bold Basic Income

A Credible and Bold Basic Income:

Thomas Piketty: Is our basic income really universal?: After our call « For a credible and bold basic income » launched by a group of ten researchers  (Antoine Bozio, Thomas Breda, Julia Cagé, Lucas Chancel, Elise Huillery, Camille Landais, Dominique Méda, Emmanuel Saez, Tancrède Voituriez) via Pocket

The Rise and Fall of the Word 'Monopoly' in American Life

The Rise and Fall of the Word 'Monopoly' in American Life:

For several decades, the term was a fixture of newspaper headlines and campaign speeches. Then something changed. If "monopoly" sounds like a word from another era, that's because, until recently, it was. via Pocket

How Child Care Enriches Mothers, and Especially the Sons They Raise

How Child Care Enriches Mothers, and Especially the Sons They Raise:

As many American parents know, hiring care for young children during the workday is punishingly expensive, costing the typical family about a third of its income. Helping parents pay for that care would be expensive for society, too. via Pocket

Paying Taxes Is More Popular Than You Think (Episode 41)

Paying Taxes Is More Popular Than You Think (Episode 41):

Taxes, like death, are inevitable. However, that conception of taxes doesn't reflect how the majority of Americans view their relationship to their local, state, and federal government taxes. via Pocket

The Tortilla Cartel

The Tortilla Cartel:

Several years ago, while researching a story about gourmet tacos, I called Diana Kennedy at her home in Michoacán in Mexico. via Pocket

A Simple Way to Improve a Billion Lives: Eyeglasses

A Simple Way to Improve a Billion Lives: Eyeglasses:

PANIPAT, India — Shivam Kumar's failing eyesight was manageable at first. To better see the chalkboard, the 12-year-old moved to the front of the classroom, but in time, the indignities piled up. via Pocket