A Letter to Kerry on Afghanistan

  Dear Secretary Kerry: The women of Afghanistan need your help. As head of the diplomatic service of the United States, you have the power to shape US bilateral relations with Afghanistan and therefore direct US involvement in the country. Your recent participation in Afghan peace talks shows that Afghanistan is a top priority; I […]

Syria’s Frontlines: Creative Resistance as a Tool to Challenge the Official Discourse

The Syrian uprising is not merely an armed struggle between regime forces and different opposition groups, as the mainstream media and politicians describe it. When looking closer at the uprising, something becomes clear; there is also a cultural struggle with words as the primary weapon in music, literature, humor, slogans and theatre that is taking place […]

From the Printing Press to Printing Firearms: The effect of 3D printed guns on US federal legislation

“Reservations about rapid technological change are widely shared regardless of political party or philosophy. In America, the tensions between approval of science and worry about the rapid changes it can bring bubbles up in special ways when moral or cultural choices seem to be involved.” This quote by author Jonathan D. Moreno from his book […]

Food for Thought: What Brandon Stanton’s HONY Presentation Helps Us to Understand About Politics, Information, and Social Media

  When the Northeastern University student body packed Blackman Auditorium for a sold-out show featuring Brandon Stanton, the man responsible for the immensely popular Humans of New York photojournalism blog, the general consensus seemed to be that no one knew what to expect.  Although some were undoubtedly in attendance to learn something new or to […]

Party Perspectives: NSA Surveillance

In light of President Obama’s speech last week outlining new guidelines for intelligence-gathering, we asked politically-oriented student groups on campus to respond to the following questions: 1) Will the Obama administration’s proposed reforms restore public trust in the activities of the NSA? 2) How can the United States best respect the privacy of its citizens […]

Northeastern University College Republicans: NSA Surveillance

The concept of natural rights is critical to the understanding of the American Constitution. The Fourth Amendment clearly says what the government can and cannot do regarding searches and seizures. It states quite clearly: “The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall […]