Continuous Protest outside the Supreme Court

A photo essay

Thousands of people congregated outside the Supreme Court on June 24, shortly after the Court announced that it was overturning Roe v. Wade.  That 1973 decision had held that states could not regulate women’s right to an abortion prior to the viability of the fetus. People came and went throughout the ...
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Continuous Protest outside the Supreme Court

How Fetal Politics Stole Americans’ Reproductive Rights

An interview with Jennifer Holland about the origins and ethics of the anti-abortion movement

I interviewed Jennifer Holland, L.R. Brammer Jr. Presidential Professor of History at the University of Oklahoma about her book, Tiny You: A Western History of the Anti-Abortion Movement (UC press, 2020). Holland describes the evolution of what she calls “fetal politics”—a political mov...

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How Fetal Politics Stole Americans’ Reproductive Rights

Liberalism Needs Nationalism

A young person reflects on the war in Ukraine—and her generation’s yearnings

In our yearning moment, nationalism can fill liberalism’s void—a void left by valueless chaos and unfulfilling choices. It is time to follow Ukraine’s lead and forge a civic nationalism that inspires everyone to find their stake, their anchor, within the sea of globalization. ...

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Liberalism Needs Nationalism

Capitalism Uber Alles

After the collapse of Marx’s hopes for humanity, what’s left of the Left?

Though dominant for centuries, capitalism formerly coexisted with other economic forms, once alongside forms of feudalism, later among forms of socialism. This is no longer the case; with the demise of the Marxist regimes, the sway of capitalism is now universal....

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Capitalism Uber Alles

The Big Lie

When the January 6 Select Committee chose this phrase to headline the second day of hearings they identified Donald J. Trump and his confederates as 21st century fascists

The message from Republican politicians and their right-wing media flacks about the televised hearings of the Select Committee to Investigate the January 6 Attack on the United States Capitol, which have now completed their second day? They don’t matter. “Nothing to see here!” they are all quacking, as they have ...
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The Big Lie

March for Our Lives Rallies on DC Mall

A photo essay

Twenty thousand people rallied on the DC Mall on June 12 to denounce gun violence. Organized by March for Our Lives, there were major rallies all over the country, in contrast to one very large national rally by this group in 2018. DC Mayor Muriel Bowser was one of many speakers in ...
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March for Our Lives Rallies on DC Mall

Semiconductor Subsidy Doom Loop

There’s an ugly state-federal feedback loop happening

That doom loop is happening because Congress is dangling large federal semiconductor subsidies out there, but hasn’t approved them yet, and states want those funds to land within their borders, so are spending a lot all by themselves in the hopes that it will lead to an even bigger payoff....

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Semiconductor Subsidy Doom Loop

Jesus in a Cowboy Hat

A conversation with historian Kristin Kobes Du Mez about why white evangelicals support MAGA politics

When the thrice-divorced, self-proclaimed billionaire, casino entrepreneur, and unfailingly crass Donald Trump announced his candidacy for the 2016 Republican nomination, his significant popularity among white evangelical Christian voters surprised political commentators. When their support carried President Trump all the way to the White House, Calvin University historian Dr. Kristin Kobes ...
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Jesus in a Cowboy Hat