I remember the first time I declared myself to be an atheist. I was in fourth grade, and I was being raised in a Unitarian Universalist Society, where such free thought was encouraged. This was long before I had any conception of liberalism vs. conservatism, right vs. left, or Democrats vs. Republicans. Most of my fourth … Read more
Stepping out of the darkness, Frank Underwood, played by Kevin Spacey, introduces himself to the audience. “There are two kinds of pain,” he begins, cradling the head of a whimpering dog injured in a hit-and-run, “pain that makes you strong or useless pain.” Brusquely, he tilts the dog’s head to one side and rotates. “I … Read more
Few of us really think too much about the political implications of sports. HPR writers have touched on it occasionally, but generally we just root for our city; where our money goes doesn’t really register. The NFL, still, has faced some political problems in the past few years. Charles Pierce’s recent story on retired players’ healthcare is … Read more
Few of us really think too much about the political implications of sports. HPR writers have touched on it occasionally, but generally we just root for our city; where our money goes doesn’t really register. The NFL, still, has faced some political problems in the past few years. Charles Pierce’s recent story on retired players’ healthcare is … Read more
Soon after the Supreme Court heard oral arguments in Shelby County v. Holder last February, NBC Nightly News declared the Court was “considering whether or not to strike down the Voting Rights Act.” Other media outlets have portrayed similar gravity about the fate of the VRA. Yet, the real issues at stake in Shelby are … Read more
During last year’s debate over Egypt’s new constitution and the various power-grabbing moves by President Muhammad Morsi that followed, the Muslim Brotherhood’s offices suffered a series of attacks and thefts. Anti-Brotherhood protesters clashed with supporters, leading to ten fatalities. This March, demonstrations erupted outside the Brotherhood’s Cairo headquarters once again. As before, many protesters focused … Read more
When Henry IV, King of the Germans was excommunicated from the Catholic Church in 1076, he traded his royal robes for a hairshirt and walked barefoot to the Pope’s fortress in Canossa to lift his excommunication. Henry’s act of penitence lasted three days and the phrase “going to Canossa” thereafter came to denote an act … Read more
With a booming economy in the 2000s, it seemed like India was on the fast track to becoming a developed nation. However, recent slow growth has not only reigned in this optimism, but it has also revealed just how rampant government corruption is throughout the country. Major scandals in the telecommunications industry and the coal … Read more
Speaking at a financial conference earlier this month, Professor Niall Ferguson answered a question about John Maynard Keynes’ famous statement, “In the long run we are all dead.” In his response, Professor Ferguson criticized Keynes for caring too little about long term economic prospects and for placing undue importance on present conditions. The way Professor … Read more
As soon as the nationality of Dzhokhar and Tamarlan Tsarnaev was announced in the aftermath of the Boston bombings, misinformed statements stereotyping the Chechen people spread through Facebook, Twitter, and other social media. Not only did such updates and tweets draw a connection between the suspects and Islamic extremism that has not been confirmed, but … Read more