In Defense of Young Women Who Support Sanders

I am a woman. I am an independent voter who leans liberal. I am a feminist. And I support Bernie Sanders. Because of that, according to the first female secretary of state Madeleine Albright, there’s a “special place in Hell for” me.[1] According to Gloria Steinem, a leader of the feminist movement, I’m only supporting […]

For Some Reason I’m Not Concerned: Bernie Sanders vs. The Democratic Spin Machine

In a November 2003 Believer magazine interview, American author David Foster Wallace (who once profiled John McCain’s 2000 Republican primary campaign for Rolling Stone) was asked of his opinion on U.S. political writing around the turn of the century. “As of 2003, the rhetoric of the enterprise is fucked,” the late writer said to interviewer […]

For Some Reason I’m Not Concerned

Okay, so, I finally did it. For way longer than I thought possible, I stayed away from the 21-minute political masterpiece that you’ve all been raving so much about. I’m proud of how long I resisted this thing, as it was teasing my interest nonstop from all over the Internet, silently lurking around every shadowy […]

A Year On: What Did the Umbrella Revolution Achieve?

On the morning of June 5th, 1989, a man in a white shirt stood in front of a military armored tank in one of the most iconic photographs of that year. The same year that the Poles, the Czechs, the Hungarians, the Germans, and the Romanians overthrew their communist oppressors, the people of China attempted […]

Confusion’s Masterpiece: The argument we’re actually having about gun control

The scene is unusual. President Barack H. Obama is seated inside George Mason University’s Johnson Center in Fairfax, Virginia, postured sort of awkwardly, plopped on a high leather chair, itself upholstered in deep crimson, positioned at room center. The President is well lit and sporting a finely tailored suit jacket, unbuttoned, a long and double-Windsored […]

Syrian Refugee Crisis: Where is the Humanity?

In the past week, I’ve watched in horror and bitter disappointment as governors from the two states I call home, New Jersey and Massachusetts, proclaimed that they will not accept Syrian refugees. Governor Chris Christie of New Jersey became a leading voice for the opposition to the federal government’s plan for Syrian refugee resettlement, even […]

The Grand Old Party v. The Supreme Court

The American presidency has ramifications far beyond the executive branch. It can lend the victor’s party a boost in Congress, influence statewide elections, and have deep repercussions in foreign countries. But what a lot of people often forget is that the presidency also affects the judiciary—perhaps most directly—as all federal judges are appointed by the […]

Pay It Back: A Mentality Adjustment Regarding Student Debt

The United States carries a unique debt burden relative to the rest of the developed world. Student debt has officially become the second-highest debt burden on the United States’ economy, eclipsing auto loans and credit card debt while remaining second only to mortgages.[1] This is thanks to a combination of skyrocketing tuition costs and private […]