Let’s stand up for college dropouts
In Boston, where I live, graduation is more than a day. It’s a whole season. It’s harder to find a parking space now than the night before a nor’easter. As a professor, father and proud mentor, I’ve attended (and battled for parking) at many graduations. I mention parking spaces because, amid all the celebrations I’ve recently attended, I’ve found myself looking out at the crowd of accomplished students and am drawn to the empty spaces. The emotional core of a commencement is a feeling of fulfillment. But those empty spaces represent the many students who did not make it to
Read MoreA view of Russia from Helsinki
The euphoria in Washington, London, Berlin and several other NATO capitals that greeted the Swedish and Finnish applications to NATO has dimmed as Turkey has outlined just what it requires to vote in favor of the Nordic countries’ accession to the alliance. Ibrahim Kalin, a leading aide to Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, said Turkey would withdraw its objection only if Sweden ceased to support the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) with weapons and equipmen
Read MoreBiden zeroes in on plan to cancel $10,000 in student loans per borrower
President Biden is nearing a decision on student loan debt forgiveness, with the president and his team zeroing in on canceling $10,000 per borrower, with some potential caveats. White House officials cautioned no decision has been finalized as Biden continues to weigh his options. The president is scheduled to speak at the Naval Academy’s commencement ceremony on Friday and at the University of Delaware’s ceremony on Saturday. Multiple reports indicated Biden considered using the weekend commencement ceremonies to announce some student debt forgiveness, with The Washing
Read MoreHouse Dem introduces bill calling to withhold pay for Congress after mass shootings
Rep. Emanuel Cleaver (D-Mo.) introduced a bill Thursday that would withhold congressional pay in the aftermath of a mass shooting. The No Pay Until Peace Act would withhold a month of pay from all members of Congress every month that a mass shooting occurs, defined as four or more people being killed from one incident. Cleaver put forward the bill following the shooting at the Texas elementary school that killed 21, including 19 students, as legislation on guns has long been stalled in the Senate. “While the loss of one month’s paycheck doesn’t even begin to compare to
Read MoreGovernments have full budgets — and not enough workers
Over the past two years, the U.S. federal and state governments have been managing more than $5 trillion in pandemic aid, and there is another $1.2 trillion in infrastructure funding on the way. This spending is landing in an economy where organizations of all kinds are desperately seeking workers. While the shortages of retail, restaurant and technical staff have received a great deal of attention, it is less noticed that governmen
Read More