Foster kids need help as they age out of system

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Imagine being in the foster care system for years and, suddenly, on your 18th birthday, you’re expected to fend for yourself. Get a job, find a place to live and make good of yourself. It’s a tall order for any 18-year-old, all the more so when you’ve suffered abuse or neglect or drug dependency has been part of your world.

The odds are stacked against this group. Based on research by Ohio Fostering Connections, a coalition that advocates for foster youth, ...

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30
APR
4

Social Issues

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Arrogant and shameless, they’re running for the U.S. Senate

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Running for the U.S. Senate are two men who have no business running for office. The first is Don Blankenship of West Virginia, and the other is Joe Arpaio, the former long-time sheriff of Maricopa County, Arizona.

Blankenship was the CEO of Massey Energy when a coal mine it operated exploded in 2010, killing 29 men. Blakenship went to prison for a year for conspiring to violate mine safety standards. Prosecutors argued he was part of a conspiracy where employees ...

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12
APR
20

Social Issues

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High school students know how to mobilize

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Earlier this month, Gov. Rick Scott (R) signed a bill that promotes gun safety in Florida. The bill raises the age to buy firearms to 21, imposes a three-day waiting period on most firearm purchases and bans bump stocks, a device that essentially converts a semi-automatic rifle into a fully automatic rifle. The bill also allows certain school employees to carry guns as part of new school security measures.

Outside of allowing school employees to carry guns, this is a positive ...

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25
MAR
3

Gun Policy

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Guns and the gap between voters and G.O.P. leadership

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We’re seeing a widening gap between citizens and Republican leadership when it comes to gun violence. People are coming to grips with the fact that the status quo is unacceptable.

Republican leadership, however, doesn’t get it or doesn’t want to get it. There are few exceptions, such as Gov. John Kasich, R-Ohio, who is promoting a six-point plan to decrease gun violence.

Based on a Quinnipiac poll, released on Feb. 20, 2018, here’s how Americans feel about gun violence:

  • American voters ...
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4
MAR
4

Social Issues

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So now the unemployment stats are legit?

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President Donald Trump is beside himself with how well the economy is doing and boasts about the nation’s unemployment rate.

Though the Bureau of Labor Statistics tells us unemployment has been steadily declining since 2010 and was 4.6% in November 2016, Trump is taking sole credit for the current 4.1% unemployment figure.

I’m not surprised. Actually, I’d be shocked if Trump didn’t take all the credit.

But does anyone remember what Trump said about unemployment statistics before he was elected? The Continue Reading →

11
FEB
6

Social Issues

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Lawmakers give a pass to corporate welfare

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Just a few weeks before the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act was signed into law last December, Speaker of the House Paul Ryan (R-Wis.) announced it was time to reduce the deficit by cutting entitlements. On talk radio, he said, “We’re going to have to get back next year at entitlement reform … it’s the health care entitlements that are the big drivers of our debt …”

Ryan is not alone. The Washington Post reported that Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) stated, ...

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2
FEB
10

Political Issues, Social Issues

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Are liberals purveyors of misinformation?

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In my last post, I wrote about why it’s hard to debunk misinformation. Two examples of misinformation I cited came from the Trump administration. Some readers suggested I should have been more balanced. One wrote, “Too bad you didn’t offer a couple examples from the other side of the aisle, like the notorious Harry Reid or the ever-panicked Nancy Pelosi. Surely there are others??”

I wasn’t trying to pick on the Trump administration, and I’m not an apologist for either ...

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8
JAN
20

Political Issues, Social Issues

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Why it’s hard to debunk misinformation

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Why is it hard to debunk misinformation? Why aren’t people willing to change their minds? Part of the problem lies within our own psyche, and part of the problem is with the news media.

Ezra Klein of Vox interviewed Dartmouth University political scientist Brendan Nyhan about our reticence to accept proven facts. The underlying problem is that we’re slow to update our belief system. No one likes to admit he’s wrong, and admitting you’re wrong becomes even harder when the ...

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2
JAN
6

Political Issues, Social Issues

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What in the world were they thinking?

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Ever wonder how people come up with their ideas? Take, for example, the Trump administration’s decision to nominate Matthew Spencer Petersen to be a federal judge for the U.S. District Court of the District of Columbia.

Nominees must be approved by the Senate, and the questioning by Sen. John Kennedy, R-La., last Friday showed how unfit Petersen is to serve as a judge. It’s painful to listen to Senator Kennedy’s questioning. If appointed, Petersen would serve a life-long appointment, but ...

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18
DEC
7

Political Issues

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Trump wrong to criticize judge and jury

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Two years ago, Kathryn Steinle was killed by Jose Garcia Zarate, an illegal immigrant who had been deported five times and had a history of drug convictions. On Nov. 30, Zarate was acquitted in Steinle’s murder trial. President Donald Trump called it “a disgraceful verdict.”

It’s a shocking and a horrible result for Steinle’s family, because there’s no doubt Zarate was the shooter. Was Trump right to criticize the verdict and, by implication, the jury?

Trump also took issue with the trial ...

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9
DEC
7

Social Issues

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