The SAVE Act would disenfranchise millions of citizens

  The Safeguard American Voter Eligibility (SAVE) Act has been reintroduced in the U.S. House of Representatives. This legislation would require all Americans to prove their citizenship status by presenting documentation—in person—when registering to vote or updating their voter registration information. Specifically, the legislation would require the vast majority of Americans to rely on a passport or birth certificate to prove their citizenship. While this may sound easy for many Americans, the reality is that more than 140 million American citizens do not possess a passport and as many as 69 million women who have taken their spouse’s name do not have a birth certificate matching their legal name.

Why is it wrong to teach students about diversity, equity and inclusion?

  The college where I teach had always been very progressive. It encouraged faculty and staff to exercise freedom of speech and welcomed inclusive speakers, lessons and events.

  Texas Senate Bill 17 was passed in May 2023, and almost overnight things changed. This law, similar to ones in two of the Southern Poverty Law Center’s focus states of Florida and Alabama, bans diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives in public colleges and universities. Colleges that do not comply can lose millions in state funding. Administrators explained to us what speech was prohibited, such as requiring attendance for certain speakers.

  I wondered how I could teach without violating the law and how it would affect events for students.

Why Trump’s meme coin is a cash grab

  Three days before his presidential inauguration, Donald Trump launched a meme coin, a type of cryptocurrency whose value is buoyed by social media and internet culture rather than any sort of functionality or intrinsic value.

  The coin – officially called $Trump – briefly ascended into the top 15 cryptocurrencies by market capitalization and attracted over a half-million buyers.

Character is an essential part of competence

  If you were hiring a new CEO, what are the most important qualities you’d look for?

  Surely you’d want a high level of demonstrated competence – knowledge, experience, intelligence, vision, communication, and relationship skills and the ability to motivate, manage, and solve problems. But what about qualities such as honesty, moral courage, accountability, and fairness?

If this is how Alabama universities defend employees, it’s not working

  Alabama’s colleges and universities are scared.

  And I understand why. If an administration that prioritizes ideological conformity over intellectual curiosity cut off one of my key funding sources, I’d hesitate to speak out, too.

  But they don’t have a choice. Not they take their educational missions seriously.

Nutrition advice is rife with misinformation − a medical education specialist explains how to tell valid health information from pseudoscience

  The COVID-19 pandemic illuminated a vast landscape of misinformation about many topics, science, and health chief among them.

  Since then, information overload continues unabated, and many people are rightfully confused by an onslaught of conflicting health information. Even expert advice is often contradictory.

  On top of that, people sometimes deliberately distort research findings to promote a certain agenda. For example, trisodium phosphate is a common food additive in cakes and cookies that is used to improve texture and prevent spoilage, but wellness influencers exploit the fact that a similarly named substance is used in paint and cleaning products to suggest it’s dangerous to your health.

Destroying the freedom of association and liberty of contract

  I was recently staying in a hotel and noticed that the two women charged with cleaning the guest rooms were Hispanic. I couldn’t help but wonder whether they were here illegally. If so, they are among the millions of other illegal immigrants who are currently experiencing deep fear over the possibility of being arrested and deported. What a horrible way to have to live life. Moreover, the hotel owner (or manager) has to also live in fear over the possibility of being criminally charged for knowingly hiring an illegal immigrant.

We are what we think

  In the early 1900s, a little-known philosopher named James Allen wrote a powerful essay called “As a Man Thinketh” in which he argued that we are what we think, that a person’s character is the sum of his thoughts. He declared that the power to control our thoughts (whether we use that power or not) is the ability to mold our character and shape our destiny.

  This is a profound insight, making us personally responsible not only for our conduct but for our circumstances.

Sketches #1962: We must remember Jimmie Lee Jackson

  We must remember Jimmie Lee Jackson. He is a critical force in our history. He is a key reason we celebrate and commemorate the Bridge Crossing Jubilee. Let me tell you about Jimmie Lee Jackson. We must remember Jimmie Lee.

  It was February 18, 1965. Rev. James of Orange of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC) was in the Perry County Jail in Marion, Alabama. The word was out that the Ku Klux Klan intended to get him out of jail late at night and murder him. The local voting rights movement leaders called a night mass meeting and a rare night march. Marches were very dangerous in the daytime and even more dangerous at night. We must remember Jimmie Lee.

The power of a song in a strange land

  From the moment of capture, through the treacherous middle passage, after the final sale, and throughout life in North America, the experience of enslaved Africans who first arrived at Jamestown, Virginia, some 400 years ago, was characterized by loss, terror, and abuse.

  The Abolition of the Slave Trade Act of 1807 made it illegal to buy and sell people in British colonies, but in the independent United States, slavery remained a prominent – and legal – practice until December 1865. From this tragic backdrop, one of the most poignant American musical genres, the Negro spiritual, was birthed.