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Summertime political reruns

When I was younger, so much younger than today (credit The Beatles for that lyric from “Help”), television networks would rerun programs that had originally been broadcast the previous fall and spring. A few still do, like “Wheel of Fortune” and “Jeopardy,” but those are syndicated shows. Still, it can be fun to watch programs you missed, or even ones you have seen, especially if you can impress someone with “Jeopardy” answers because you know them. Reruns that always annoy are the political ads, which start before primaries and continue until the day before the ...

News flash: We live in a mixed economy

Democratic Senate nominee Abdul El-Sayed of Michigan keeps calling himself a capitalist. And the Democratic Socialists of America keep backing him to the eyeballs. Why? Because the DSA understands that El-Sayed has to say that to win over even Democrats in a moderate state like Michigan. They firmly expect that once elected, he would do as they say, which happily conforms with what he truly believes. Confusing? Yes, on purpose. But let’s move beyond this war of labels. Let’s stop using socialist and capitalist as either compliments or denunciations. The United States has a ...

The normalcy of American wars

The war in Iran is unlawful and unconstitutional, but in post-World War II America, it is normal. Here is the backstory. When President Donald Trump decided to begin bombing Iran last June, he did not state a coherent or lawful reason for doing so. His director of national intelligence and his own CIA had publicly told him that Iran did not possess a nuclear weapon and had ceased building one in 2005. His secretary of state told him that Iran and Israel had threatened each other, but he could not articulate how Iran imminently threatened the United States. Yet, since Israel ...

Criminals in control and what we must do

This past weekend, the Republican-led Senate confirmed acting Attorney General Todd Blanche to be the next U.S. attorney general. Like Richard Nixon’s attorney general, John Mitchell, Blanche has carried out the illegal orders of a president of the United States. As was Mitchell’s fate, Blanche should be behind bars. 2 1/2-year sentence for conspiracy and obstruction of justice in the Watergate scandal. Instead, Senate Republicans have given Blanche a promotion. Last week, a Republican-led Senate panel voted to hold Anthony Fauci in contempt of Congress for his refusal to ...

Ohio, W.Va. must address scourge of child poverty

Children’s Defense Fund says an unfathomable 1 in 7 children in the U.S. lives in poverty. In this land of the free and home of the brave, a child is abused or neglected every 54 seconds. As WalletHub researchers pointed out (because they are a financial website, after all), even if you aren’t moved by the plight of that many children living an American nightmare, perhaps you will be moved to act by the $592 billion in lifetime economic costs from just one year’s worth of child maltreatment cases. And the thing is, those are the averages. In Ohio and West Virginia, the numbers ...

Want to help? Try becoming a poll worker

On National Poll Worker Recruitment Day earlier this week, Ohio Secretary of State Frank LaRose rightly seized the opportunity. It’s hard to overestimate the importance of a robust team of volunteers willing not only to ensure the security of our elections, but to guide those seeking to cast their ballots and generally make sure the day runs smoothly. “Every election depends on dedicated Ohioans who are willing to serve their communities,” LaRose said. “This November, voters across the state will be casting ballots in important races that will shape Ohio’s future. Poll ...