Belgians planning to “march against fear” Sunday were told to stay home out of fear for more violence. Americans in Europe, meanwhile, are being advised to “exercise vigilance.” What about Americans in America? Over here, there’s a bizarre split screen of an intelligent response to a serious terrorist threat and a major political party descending […]
Froma Harrop
Posted inOp-Eds
Defense of encription may have become moot
One inevitable sequel to a terrorist attack is seeing the ugly mugs of creeps-turned-monsters thrust before us over a multitude of news cycles. Another is a debate over cellphone encryption. Encryption is a means of turning information into secret code. Terrorists communicate through encrypted devices to hide their plans and protect the identities of their […]
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Obama oversees new era of Cuban relations
Barack Obama walked the cobblestone streets of Old Havana to cheers of “Welcome to Cuba!” After decades of official hostility between the United States and Cuba, Obama has successfully nudged the two toward normal relations. After decades of craziness, it’s heartening to see smart policy regarding Cuba. So Cuba remains a repressive country run by […]
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West Coast comes late to primary circus
There’s a not-insignificant part of the United States known as the West Coast. It includes such prominent states as California, Oregon and Washington. These states have yet to hold a single presidential primary or caucus. But at 8 p.m. Eastern Daylight Time on Tuesday, this population center of 50 million-plus souls was informed that the […]
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Trump foes should stay away from his stage
It’s not easy to turn Donald Trump into an object of sympathy, but the hotheads disrupting his rallies are pulling it off. They may see their invasions as a brave effort to stop a frightening, divisive political force. But others — not just Trump followers — see privileged college kids stomping on someone’s right to […]
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Dress codes in conflict with female dignity
How many among us recognize the name of Yolande Betbeze Fox, the Alabama beauty who died recently at the age of 87? Fox blazed quite a trail through American culture when, as Miss America of 1951, she refused to reign in a bathing suit. The swimsuit-maker sponsoring the pageant was not pleased. Educated in a […]
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Public tired of ‘establishment’ Republicans
Just as Donald Trump did a Super Tuesday stomp on the Republican establishment, the establishment showed why it deserved the rough treatment. The Republican Senate leadership yet again announced its refusal to consider anyone President Obama nominates for the Supreme Court until after the presidential election. It is the job of the U.S. Senate to […]
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Youth vote the bane of progressives
What happened in the South Carolina primary? Bernie Sanders was asked. “We got decimated, that’s what happened,” he responded. Here was Sanders at his best. Brutally honest. Averse to spin. Though the independent from Vermont vows to fight on, his lopsided loss in pivotal South Carolina makes his prospects for winning the Democratic nomination increasingly […]
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Local residents lost in megatower shadows
Many longtime residents of San Francisco, Miami and other hot U.S. cities complain of “Manhattanization” when developers put up 20- or 30-story apartment complexes. In Portland, Oregon, they’re debating the wisdom of 40 stories. They should try 100 stories on for size — or not, if they value the amenities of urban life. That’s the […]
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Election 2000 provides model for Dems today
The death of Antonin Scalia has set off yet another epic partisan struggle as Senate Republicans seek to deny President Obama his constitutional right to nominate the next Supreme Court justice. They want to wait out Obama’s last year in office, hoping his successor will be one of their own. If the Democrats choose Bernie […]