FINANCIAL TIMES: …Yet if Russia were a truly revisionist power, its leaders would not be devising ever more creative ways to portray the country as a law-abiding actor. Instead of conducting a referendum in Crimea, no matter how preposterously biased, Mr Putin would simply have seized the peninsula without engaging in any procedure or any […]
Mourn the death of seven children, but also place responsibility
The seven children were indeed innocent, but Sassoon was ‘guilty’ for failing to place smoke detectors in the kitchen and above the stairs and, if he or his wife were smokers, in their bedroom.
Henry A. Kissinger: The world will miss Lee Kuan Yew
But great men become such through visions beyond material calculations. Lee defied conventional wisdom by opting for statehood. The choice reflected a deep faith in the virtues of his people.
Debate over test security vs. student privacy rages in the age of social media
WASHINGTON POST: A New Jersey student’s tweet about a question on new Common Core tests was deleted after it was flagged by a testing company, spurring a national debate about how to balance children’s privacy with test security in the age of social media… Many parents and Common Core critics accused Pearson, the publisher of […]
LETTER: Montgomery County hatchet job on Kathleen Kane
If a prosecutor can’t get a grand jury to go his way, he should find another job. It’s typical Pennsylvania politics at work and the Inquirer is buying into it to sell papers.
State lawmakers shouldn’t check-out their support for school libraries: Debra Kachel
This is just one more in a series of indicators that school libraries have been severed from education in the minds of decision makers. This is a mistake. It results in poorer readers and writers and that is not just opinion.
Taking Social Security early to retire is a bad idea
USA TODAY:… 1. Most retirees will live longer than the average life expectancy… 2. It’s financially smarter to work for a few more years… 3. Prepare yourself for a long, full retirement… (more)
Medicaid expansion slashes hospitals’ unpaid bills
USA TODAY: Hospitals in states that expanded Medicaid to their poorest residents faced about $5 billion less in unpaid bills last year — about twice the reduction as those that did not expand this health care coverage, according to a new federal report… Hospitals provided more than $50 billion in uncompensated care in 2013, an […]
Israel Spied on Iran Nuclear Talks With U.S.
NEW YORK TIMES: …The spying operation was part of a broader campaign by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu ’s government to penetrate the negotiations and then help build a case against the emerging terms of the deal, current and former U.S. officials said. In addition to eavesdropping, Israel acquired information from confidential U.S. briefings, informants […]
With Expansion of Medicaid, Some States Are Identifying More New Diabetes Cases
NEW YORK TIMES: The number of new diabetes cases identified among poor Americans has surged in states that have embraced the Affordable Care Act, but not in those that have not, a new study has found, suggesting that the health care law may be helping thousands of people get earlier treatment for one of this […]
Seth Williams says Philly isn’t Ferguson: “I’m not afraid of charging people if the evidence is there”
BILLY PENN: District Attorney has always been a high profile position in Philadelphia, and that’s particularly been the case for Seth Williams. He’s charged public officials who were part of a sting operation dropped by Attorney General Kathleen Kane, challenged the governor’s death penalty moratorium and last Thursday announced his office would not press charges […]
5 years later, ‘Obamacare’ critics can’t believe their lying eyes
Conservatives were absolutely convinced that private insurers would refuse to participate in the ACA’s exchange marketplaces, repeating the prediction over and over again. This also proved to be the opposite of the truth, as insurance companies have been eager to compete for Americans’ business.
Health Care Systems Try to Cut Costs by Aiding the Poor and Troubled
NEW YORK TIMES: Jerome Pate, a homeless alcoholic, went to the emergency room when he was cold. He went when he needed a safe place to sleep. He went when he was hungry, or drunk, or suicidal… He made 17 emergency room visits in just four months last year, a costly spree that landed him […]
When a son wants to play football, what’s a mother to do?
WASHINGTON POST COLUMN: …Satchel did play football for a local youth league several years ago, but he was just running around and didn’t really see contact. Then last year, with his daddy as assistant coach, he played both sides of the ball. He scored, he intercepted, he tackled — and he fell in love. With […]