The Popular Assembly of the People of Oaxaca (APPO) is a fusion of the local striking teachers and other community organizations demanding democracy. One of their primary demands is the resignation of Ruiz, the governor of Oaxaca who
After taking office in a disputed election, Mr. Ruiz eliminated millions in community subsidies and began a series […]

If you know me in person, you’re probably already aware of my slight obsession with avian flu. I think it’s one of the most important public health crises facing the planet right now, and no amount of media coverage is too much. It was in consistently in the headlines earlier this year, but the story […]

I can’t honestly call myself a true baseball fan, but this sign makes me wish that I was.

Go Tigers.
- Zach Shoup

Since I’m stuck at work on a Friday afternoon, I’m going to keep beating this horse. Yesterday’s New York Times has an article about what the Democrats would like to accomplish on the health care front if they take back Congress. At the top of their list is trying fix the abhorrent Medicare prescription drug […]

The New York Times reports on the proliferation of Neurometrix, a popular diagnostic test given by primary care physicians to detect carpal tunnel syndrome and other nerve damage. This is the perfect example of the perverse incentives created by the marriage of technological advances and our wildly illogical system for provider reimbursement. Rather than diagnosing […]

A couple of thoughts . . .
Here’s an addendum to my post from last week. Ann Friedman wrote an interesting piece for Alternet about the gender gap among progressive editorial staffs. It’s pretty clear looking at the statistics that a large chunk of the population is absent from the editorial process. Of the 11 publications, […]

If you weren’t planted in front of your television on Friday night (c’mon, who isn’t?), you probably missed the season premiere of Battlestar Galactica on SciFi at 9.
Wait, what?
Yes, it’s true. Battlestar Galactica is one of the best shows around, and I urge you to start watching immediately. It’s not standard science fiction fare, but […]

The Sociology Department at Sonoma State University runs an important annual program called “Project Censored,” where a group of 200 students, professors, researchers, volunteer judges and others track news stories of social importance from magazines, independent journals and newsletters and then compiles a list of 25 influential stories that have been “overlooked, under-reported or self-censored […]

This past Wednesday my old conservative counterpart from last year, James David Dickson - former editor-in-chief of the Michigan Review - had a column in the Michigan Daily. Title: “A Case for Apathy.” Let my own post title here speak for my opinion on his thoughts.
He argued that apathy is not necessarily a […]

I really wish the New York Times would stop printing articles apologizing for the sad state of American health care on a weekly basis. Today’s, by economist Tyler Cowen, is a particularly egregious example.
Cowen attempts to rationalize our astronomical health care spending with the standard conservative talking point that America is a world leader in […]