As Senator Cruz carried out his mini-filibuster against Obama's imperfect health care plan, 200 or so Americans died from lack of health coverage. If Obama's health care plan were in effect, it would have saved many of them. But single-player health care, a national health system, would save them all and save money too.

Certain kinds of US corporate welfare amounts to $6000 per family.

I don't think this includes all the forms of corporate welfare.

The "independent" panel that will supposedly investigate the NSA's civil liberties violations is a swindle: it is effectively controlled by the same office that the NSA reports to.

US insurance companies have no doubt about the danger of global heating, and are starting to lobby for a carbon tax.

The FBI has been flying drones for surveillance since 2006.

It is true that they are not qualitatively different from looking at people from aircraft. They are a big quantitative increase in the amount of surveillance that is feasible.