The "national security" apparatus sucks down lots of money, year after year, with little opposition. It does not make Americans secure; on the contrary, it puts our freedom in danger and persecutes the heroes that try to tell us about it.

Robert Reich: *The real divide [in the US today] is between democracy and oligarchy.*

I think the term "plutocracy" is slightly clearer than "oligarchy", but under either name, we must put an end to it.

Loujain al-Hathloul, who was tortured in jail for agitating for the right to drive a car in Salafi Arabia, will soon be put on trial.

The acting king offered to release her if she would swear she had not been tortured.

Using Covid-19 as an excuse, Republican saboteurs have given US companies almost unlimited permission to pollute air and water.

There may be some cases in which this is justified and necessary, but many companies will jump for the opportunity to dump toxins. They will kill people; they can even cause Covid-19 to kill more people. And there is no limit on it, and no requirement to look for the least dangerous alternative.

The UK government decided to give housing to all homeless people in Britain, to protect them from Covid-19.

This could have been done at any time; all that was lacking was the will. Better late than never.

It could be done at any time in the US, too.