By Robert Reich – Not long ago I was asked to speak to a religious congregation about widening inequality. Shortly before I began, the head of the congregation asked that I not advocate raising taxes on the wealthy. He said he didn’t want to antagonize certain wealthy congregants on whose generosity the congregation depended. I…
Guest Columns
Charter School Bill Passes: Follow the Money
Education Matters – By Larry Lee – Even an amateur swami with a cloudy crystal ball could have told us how the recent vote to approve charter schools in Alabama would play out. In fact, he didn’t even have to look at his ball, they could have looked at 2014 campaign financial disclosures instead. There…
The ‘iEverything’ Economy May Require the Redistributional Imperative
By Robert Reich – It’s now possible to sell a new product to hundreds of millions of people without needing many, if any, workers to produce or distribute it. At its prime in 1988, Kodak, the iconic American photography company, had 145,000 employees. In 2012, Kodak filed for bankruptcy. The same year Kodak went under,…
Charter School Movement About Tax Breaks, Not Helping Kids
The Palestinian-Israeli Two-State Solution was Dead Anyway
By Nicholas Sheppard – Newly re-elected Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has tried to walk back his declaration, made late in the contentious political campaign, that no Palestinian state would be established on his watch. His new assertion appeared to do nothing to assuage an irate Obama Administration, and his initial remarks, designed to encourage…
The Conundrum of Corporation and Nation
By Robert Reich – The U.S. economy is picking up steam but most Americans aren’t feeling it. By contrast, most European economies are still in bad shape, but most Europeans are doing relatively well. What’s behind this? Two big facts. First, American corporations exert far more political influence in the United States than their counterparts…
After Selma: From White Sheets to Spreadsheets
By Greg Palast – I hate to spoil a happy ending. The movie “Selma,” like this week’s commemorations of Martin Luther King Jr.’s march from Selma, Ala., 50 years ago, celebrates America’s giant leap from apartheid. Half a century ago Alabama state troopers and a mob of racist thugs beat African-Americans and others as they…
After Selma, What’s Next for Black America?
By Donald Watkins – This weekend marks the 50th Anniversary of the Selma-to-Montgomery march. I did not attend the celebratory events this weekend. I am still deeply troubled by the fact that todayâs civil rights movement has morphed into an endless cycle of commemorative events and celebratory parties consisting mostly of photo opportunities. This would…
Will the 2016 Democratic Nominee Take on Moneyed Interests?
By Robert Reich – Itâs seed time for the 2016 presidential elections, when candidates try to figure out what they stand for and will run on. One thing seems reasonably clear. The Democratic nominee for President, whoever she may be, will campaign on reviving the American middle class. As will the Republican nominee â although…
Alabama Accountability Act Robs Public Schools
We’re All Independent Contractors Now
By Robert Reich – GM is worth around $60 billion, and has over 200,000 employees. Its front-line workers earn from $19 to $28.50 an hour, with benefits. Uber is estimated to be worth some $40 billion, and has 850 employees. Uber also has over 163,000 drivers (as of December – the number is expected to…
Trade Deals Boost the Top 1% and Bust the Rest of Us
By Robert Reich – Suppose that by enacting a particular law we’d increase the U.S.Gross Domestic Product. But almost all that growth would go to the richest 1 percent. The rest of us could buy some products cheaper than before. But those gains would be offset by losses of jobs and wages. This is pretty…
Miracles in Education Still Happen
Education Matters – By Larry Lee – Contrary to what many think, miracles still happen these days. In fact, one just happened in Alabama concerning public education—though no one seemed to notice. I refer to recent news from the Alabama State Department of Education that four schools formerly on the “failing” school list were removed…
Same Sex Marriage and Same History in Alabama
By David Underhill – MOBILE, Ala. â The threat of gay marriage in Alabama has roused governor George Wallace to rise from the dead and stand again in the schoolhouse door. When Roy Moore, chief justice of the state supreme court, flung himself this week between a federal judge in Mobile and the local bureau…
Africatown’s Magazine Point Neighborhood: A Series of Tragedies And Miracles
By Joe Womack – Africatown’s Magazine Point Neighborhood sets on the southern and southeastern portions of the Africatown community. It is situated on both the Mobile River and the Three Mile Creek. The part of Magazine Point that sets on the Mobile River is where that last shipment of slaves in America actually landed, whereas…
Politicians Say the Darndest Things
Education Matters – By Larry Lee – Some of us can recall when Art Linkletter did a segment on his radio show called “Kids Say the Darndest Things.” He would ask questions of children and in their wonderful innocence they would give answers that often made us laugh. I read or hear comments from politicians…
The New Compassionate Conservatism and Trickle-Down Economics
By Robert Reich – Jeb Bush and Mitt Romney are zeroing in on inequality as America’s fundamental economic problem. Bush’s new Political Action Committee, called “The Right to Rise,” declares “the income gap is real” but that “only conservative principles can solve it.” Mitt Romney likewise promised last week that if he runs for president…
Why Wages Won’t Rise
By Robert Reich – Jobs are coming back, but pay isn’t. The median wage is still below where it was before the Great Recession. Last month, average pay actually fell. What’s going on? It used to be that as unemployment dropped, employers had to pay more to attract or keep the workers they needed. That’s…
The Fiftieth Anniversary in Selma: A Once In a Lifetime Experience
Signs of an Obama Revival?
By Nicholas Sheppard – After a year and a half of poor poll numbers, a Republican takeover of both houses of Congress, a sluggish economic recovery and numerous problems abroad, President Obama’s fortunes may be changing going into 2015. His job approval rating has been trending up in general in recent weeks, reaching 48 percent…