Новости за 24.08.2016

What would it look like if MTV made a show about the depredations of the criminal justice system? Though the premise might sound like a Madlib of sorts, we now have the answer in Unlocking the Truth, a new series that sits somewhere between true crime and reality TV. The show, which premiered on August 17 at 11/10 central and airs its second episode this Wednesday, sets out to re-examine the cases of two young men who claim they were wrongfully convicted of violent crimes. The twist is that one of the hosts... Читать дальше...

This story first appeared at RoberReich.org

The best argument for a single-payer health plan is the recent decision by giant health insurer Aetna to bail out next year from 11 of the 15 states where it sells Obamacare plans. Aetna’s decision follows similar moves by UnitedHealth Group, the nation’s largest health insurer, and by Humana, another one of the giants.

All claim they’re not making enough money because too many people with serious health problems are using the Obamacare exchanges... Читать дальше...

I am writing in the wake of the Republican “convention,” where, intermixed with the carnivalesque moments, vintage George Wallace law-and-order rhetoric, rank xenophobia and 1930s-era isolationism, came ideologically threadbare calls for the same old, same old: “freedom” from taxes and government regulations, and, as the platform insists, the need to “rein in out-of-control spending.”

Roger Ebert once said that a film is as good as its villain. Does this mean that the forthcoming U.S. elections will be good since the “bad guy” (Donald Trump) is almost an ideal villain? Yes, but in a very problematic sense. For the liberal majority, the 2016 elections represent a clear-cut choice: Trump is ridiculous, excessive and vulgar. He exploits our worst racist and sexist prejudices such that big-name Republicans are abandoning him in droves. If Trump remains the Republican candidate... Читать дальше...