It began with a bang — or rather, a bomber jacket. On April 12, Sen. Ed Markey of Massachusetts tweeted a photo of himself decked out in a slick green jacket, Boston Red Sox facemask, and Nike high top sneakers captioned: “If you have to go outside, wear a mask.” The photo went viral, amassing over … Read more
A Requiem They are found in suburban bedrooms and urban sublets. They are found in college dorms and motel parking lots. They are found in settings that are completely different from each other in every way, save for one depressing similarity: They are found alone. These are the casualties of America’s opioid epidemic, numbering almost … Read more
Daron Acemoglu is the Elizabeth and James Killian Professor of Economics at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. A prolific author renowned for his work in the field of political economy, he co-wrote “Why Nations Fail” (2012) and, more recently, “The Narrow Corridor” (2019) with University of Chicago Professor James A. Robinson. Harvard Political Review: “The … Read more
I have always been taught that childhood is not an exemplary state of being. Rather, it is a hurried stage for becoming, a gestation inside of our respect for our elders, who we believe to be wiser because of their experience. College students on the precipice of adulthood especially look to imitate adults. We applaud … Read more
As the coronavirus spreads, it continues to take a toll on cities and towns all across the United States. The response to this ubiquitous contagion, however, appears much more variant: Some states are just now reopening, some have been reopened for more than a month, some are closing again, and others are doing nothing. These … Read more
Spongebob: Product or Porifera? In my junior year of high school, I applied to QuestBridge, a non-profit made to help disadvantaged high school students get into college. As a part of my application, I was asked to write about a historical figure I would like to meet and a question I would ask them. I … Read more
It takes a lot for “bad cable customer service” to make the news, yet Ryan Block’s infamous 2014 phone call with Comcast managed to do just that. Block, a tech journalist, had made the decision to switch cable providers and just needed the cable company to disconnect his service. As he quickly realized, the representative … Read more
Seven inmates have been executed in 2020, amid a global pandemic. Forty-one more executions are scheduled for the next four years and there are 2,500 people currently on death row. Yet substantial research suggests that the death penalty is an inefficient and unjust treatment that has failed both the innocent and guilty, especially due to … Read more
Political theorist Danielle Allen is the James Bryant Conant University Professor at Harvard University and director of Harvard’s Edmond J. Safra Center for Ethics, where she leads the center’s on-going COVID-19 Rapid Response Initiative. Widely recognized for her contributions to democratic theory, political sociology, and the history of political thought, Allen is the 2020 recipient … Read more
Toilet paper, hand sanitizer, tissues. These items were the first to be frantically bought out from local supermarkets as the coronavirus started to ravage the nation, leaving empty shelves staring back at unlucky shoppers. However, their absence was temporary. As the pandemic rages on, many are finding that one commodity remains a scarce resource: space. … Read more