by jpitney | May 22, 2022 | Civility
David French writes that “civility and decency aren’t incompatible with `taking sides.’ It doesn’t require anyone to whither in the face of angry opposition. Kindness doesn’t conflict with conviction, and our commitments to kindness are biblically...
by jpitney | May 21, 2022 | Asian American
Claremont McKenna College alum Julie Wong wrote this week’s episode of Grey’s Anatomy. In this scene, Dr. Nico Kim (Alex Landi), Dr. Michelle Lin (Lynn Chen) and nurse BokHee (Kathy C. An) perform surgery on an Asian American woman who was the victim of a...
by jpitney | May 21, 2022 | Debate, Deliberation, Higher Education
Heterodox Academy Open Inquiry Awards: Exceptional Student Emma Camp graduated from the University of Virginia in 2022 with a degree in philosophy and English. While at the University of Virginia, she was a Jefferson Scholar, a regular freelance writer for Reason...
by jpitney | May 19, 2022 | Congress, Deliberation, House of Representatives
Gary Schmitt at American Purpose: Today, the Speaker’s “paper” authority is less impressive than it seems. Without real party discipline, ambitious House members are more likely to invest their time and resources into how to grandstand politically than to build up a...
by jpitney | May 18, 2022 | Biden, Declaration of Independence
We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness. President Biden yesterday in Buffalo: White supremacy is...
by jpitney | May 17, 2022 | Civility, Congress, House of Representatives
At The Hill, former Rep. Steve Israel (D-NY) remembers the late Tim Johnson (R-IL) We created the House Center Aisle Caucus and invited colleagues from both parties for dinners at a Chinese restaurant (chosen for its proximity to the Capitol and ease on our...
by jpitney | May 16, 2022 | civic virtue, Civility, Coronavirus
One million Americans have now died of COVID. Australia’s death rate is only one-tenth as great. Damien Cave at NYT: In global surveys, Australians were more likely than Americans to agree that “most people can be trusted” — a major factor, researchers found,...
by jpitney | May 15, 2022 | Civility, Debate
Tish Harrison Warren at NYT: Our tendency to adopt polarizing and moralistic patterns of speech is turbo-boosted by a social media architecture that encourages animosity toward outgroups. But this hatred toward our opponents and the accompanying habit of moralism is...
by jpitney | May 14, 2022 | Budget, Debt
From CBO: The federal budget deficit was $360 billion in the first seven months of fiscal year 2022 (that is, from October 2021 through April 2022), the Congressional Budget Office estimates. That amount is about one-fifth of the $1.9 trillion shortfall recorded...
