OTHER WORDS-How much of your paycheck do you plan to hand over to corporate Pentagon contractors this year?

MIDDLE EAST PERSPECTIVE--The ongoing Palestinian demonstration along the Israel-Gaza border has turned out to be, not surprisingly, violent.

FIRED FOR HIS VIEWS--When Kevin Williamson was fired by The Atlanticon Thursday afternoon, the Twittersphere lit up with mournful statements from conservatives, claiming Williamson had been martyred for his “views.” In their rush to defend him, they revealed several crucial truths about anti-abortion thinking in 2018 and gave the lie to the idea of a “compassionate” pro-life movement. 

VIEW FROM HERE--For historians, the current president of the United States is terra incognita. Donald John Trump is the first of the 44 individuals who have held the office to never have been a government functionary. Even men like U.S. Grant and Dwight Eisenhower served in high-ranking military positions, overseeing the huge bureaucracy of war. As far as I am aware, Trump has never even been a local commissioner, let alone an elected official. 

SHOOT FIRST, ASK LATER BEING QUESTIONED-On the heels of police officers shooting a young, unarmed black man to death in Sacramento, California, last month, state lawmakers announced a first-of-its-kind bill on Monday that raises the standard for when officers may open fire. 

VIEW FROM HERE--The online Oxford dictionary defines the word siege as a “military operation in which enemy forces surround a town or building, cutting off essential supplies, with the aim of compelling those inside to surrender.”