To Comfort The Afflicted
And Afflict The Comfortable
Sky Not Falling With Japanese Birth Rates
BY FROMA HARROP There’s one complaint visitors to Tokyo rarely make, and that is “not enough people.” With a population of 36 million, the Tokyo metropolitan area stuffs an average 6,800 people in each square mile. By contrast, the New York metro area, with 19 million residents, has a density of 2,800 people per square […]
Banker Hubris Knows No Bounds
BY JIM HIGHTOWER Have you heard about the earthquake that has shaken Wall Street to its very core? Well, brace yourself, for this really is a shocker: Bonus payments are down. Yes, the exorbitant bonus checks pocketed each year by the Goldman Sachers, Citigropers and other financial tinkerers have been cut by about 25% this […]
What Went Wrong?
BY SUSAN ESTRICH Don’t get me wrong. The killing of 16 Afghan men, women and children by an American soldier without provocation and without threat to his own life [or so it appears] was wrong. Completely wrong. It is an unspeakable tragedy for all those involved. It places the lives of other Americans in danger. […]
Expensive Care That Hurts Patients
BY FROMA HARROP The biggest challenge for fixing American health care isn’t finding more money. It’s learning not to spend money on the wrong things. The solution, conservatives say, is simple: Have patients bear more of the costs now being covered by private or government insurers. The concept has merit, except for this: How on […]
What Are We Doing In Afghanistan?
BY JOE CONASON For everyone who originally supported the U.S. invasion of Afghanistan to oust the Taliban, the question today is how what was once a righteous mission can end in anything but ruin. Blaming the Bush Administration’s neglect and incompetence for the critical failures of the first several years is fair enough, but it […]