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A lot of hot air from the gas stove debate
Growing up in West Texas, our family tells a story about a lightning strike that either hit, or nearly hit, a billboard in our neighborhood. It said: “Gas Cooks Better Than Electricity.” In our contemporary era where anything can be an outrage, our latest political spat happens to be about whether or not Biden is […]
Red flag laws saved 7,300 Americans from gun deaths in 2020 alone, and could have saved 11,400 more
Lawmakers in Congress are poised to pass the first gun control legislation in three decades. Among the elements in that legislation is support for states to pass what are called “red flag laws.” These laws, already in place in many states, let police take guns from people deemed a threat to themselves or others. The […]
Did calling attention to the crime of lynching make a difference?
Recently, President Joseph Biden signed into law the Emmett Till Anti-Lynching Act. It recalls the struggle many in this country had to cut down on extrajudicial killings. As my college students and I found, calling attention to these illegal acts did make a difference in how many lynchings occurred in America, showing why recent reconciliation […]
States with strong lockdowns had better economies and fewer deaths
Just as there’s a lot of sketchy Anti-Vaxxer Propaganda, there are also a lot of flawed attacks upon lockdowns. But just as lockdowns did shut down the skyrocketing death rates, new economic data reveals that those states that implemented such measures designed to save lives also did a better job of rescuing their economies as […]
Investigating Benghazi but ignoring the Jan. 6 insurrection
A decade ago, there were more than a half-dozen Congressional committees investigating the attack upon the U.S. Consular Office in Benghazi, Libya. Yet chances are dimming for even a single Congressional investigation of the insurrection at the U.S. Capitol itself on Jan. 6, 2021. But Congress should not be barred from investigating an attempt to […]
Why our Asian-American community needs us more than ever
When I read of the massacres at several Atlanta area businesses, where six of the eight killed were Asian-American women, it hit me especially hard. That’s because I live just down the road from Atlanta, in an area with a wonderful Asian-American community, where the vast majority of locals are highly appreciative of their great […]
Conservatives cancel just as often as liberals do
The Conservative Political Action Committee (CPAC) has declared its 2021 theme is “America Uncanceled” to call attention the scourge of America’s so-called “Cancel Culture.” Imagine our surprise that CPAC chose to “cancel” one of their speakers because of his alleged anti-Semitic views. Now I don’t blame CPAC for doing so. I wouldn’t invite a speaker […]
Rev. Raphael Warnock’s historic U.S. Senate win broke more barriers than you may think
When Rev. Raphael Warnock prevailed in the special election on Jan. 5, he was the first African American from Georgia to win a U.S. Senate seat, and the 11th African American to serve in the U.S. Senate. But as a political scientist who has studied African American candidates seeking statewide offices like governor or U.S. […]