BY FROMA HARROP Consider the case of “Jihad Jane.” Divorced twice [first marriage at 16], Colleen LaRose was arrested for drunkenness in Texas. She ended up living with a boyfriend in a Philadelphia suburb and taking care of his elderly father. Let’s say that LaRose was not one of life’s winners under conventional definitions. But […]

BY JIM HIGHTOWER You know what we need to juice up the performance of our weak economy? Viagra. Yes, America needs a new Viagra, specifically targeted to stiffen backbones – in particular, the limp backbones of Barack Obama’s team, as well as the flaccid spines of Democratic congressional leaders. Where’s the drug industry when we […]

BY SUSAN ESTRICH Like most Americans, I haven’t seen “The Hurt Locker,” but I was still rooting for Kathryn Bigelow to claim the Best Director statue. This is, after all, 2010 – a little late in the day for “first women,” particularly in an industry that depends on women as much as men to buy […]

BY FROMA HARROP A big chunk of rock went missing from Mount Rushmore when Paul Volcker broke away in 2008 to stand stony-faced behind candidate Barack Obama. The former Federal Reserve chairman served as a reassuring presence from an older, more orderly financial era that had been sacrificed on the altar of deregulation. Volcker has […]

BY SUSAN ESTRICH When you ask people why it is that they hate or distrust politicians, the usual answers, understandably so, are all about what gutless wonders most politicians are – addicted to their polls, determined to stay there at all costs. Campaign promises are about getting elected; once there, they are quickly forgotten. Courage […]