The Big Picture – By Glynn Wilson – WASHINGTON, D.C. — In one sure sign that traditional press and media outlets have been influenced, for good or ill, by the rise of social media, look no further than the end of the year review stories. For a couple of centuries, newspapers filled space between the…
Letters: Yes, Virginia, There is a Santa Claus
Editor’s Note: “Yes, Virginia, there is a Santa Claus” is a line from an editorial by Francis Pharcellus Church. Written in response to a letter by eight-year-old Virginia O’Hanlon asking whether Santa Claus was real, the editorial was first published in the New York newspaper The Sun on September 21, 1897. “Is There a Santa…
A Christmas Column in a World Torn Asunder: Baby Jesus Under the Rubble in Gaza
Meanwhile the “Orange Jesus” Continues to Parrot Hitler, and President Joe Biden Calls Trump an ‘Insurrectionist’ – The Big Picture – By Glynn Wilson – WASHINGTON, D.C. — It’s hard to get excited about celebrating Christmas — or Hanukkah for that matter — when your country is torn asunder by war. So there won’t be…
Verified Accounts on X Thrive While Spreading Misinformation About the Israel-Hamas Conflict
By Jeff Kao, ProPublica, and Priyanjana Bengani, Tow Center for Digital Journalism – ProPublica – “My sisters have died,” the young boy sobbed, chest heaving, as he wailed into the sky. “Oh, my sisters.” As Israel began airstrikes on Gaza following the Oct. 7 Hamas terrorist attack, posts by verified accounts on X, the social…
Tuberville Filibuster Ends as Senate Confirms Biden’s Military Appointments
By Ashley Murray – Maryland Matters – WASHINGTON, D.C. — Alabama Senator Tommy Tuberville’s one man filibuster of President Joe Biden’s top military appointments effectively came to an ignominious end Tuesday night when the U.S. Senate voted to confirm the remainder of the senior generals and admirals on hold for the past year in a…
Biden Administration Proposes Historic Ban on Cutting Old Growth Trees in National Forests
By Glynn Wilson – WASHINGTON, D.C. — On the heels of a historic agreement in Dubai calling for the first time for countries to transition away from fossil fuel use for powering energy and transportation, the chief cause of climate change due to global warming, the Biden administration just announced a proposal to conserve old-growth…
Democrats Question Social Media Giants on Spread of Abortion Misinformation
By Danielle J. Brown – Maryland Matters – ANNAPOLIS, Md. — In the new landscape of abortion discourse following the overturning of Roe v. Wade by the United States Supreme Court, Maryland Congressman Jamie Raskin and other Democrats are calling on top social media sites to combat potentially harmful misinformation related to abortion access and…
Climate Talks End With Call for Moving Away from Fossil Fuel Use
Staff Report – WASHINGTON, D.C. — In the final weeks of the hottest year in recorded history, the United Nations climate conference in Dubai known as COP28 ended Wednesday with an agreement for the first time to call on countries to transition away from fossil fuels, the chief cause of climate change due to global…
Texas Police Chief Sentenced to 11.2 Years in Federal Prison for Conspiracy To Obstruct Congress During the Jan. 6 Capitol Attack
Staff Report – WASHINGTON, D.C. — A Texas police chief was sentenced to 11.2 years in Federal Prison this week after a judge convicted him of four felonies for his conduct during the attack on the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021. Alan Hostetter, 59, of Poolville, Texas, formerly of San Clemente, California, was sentenced by…
The End of Innocence: Everybody Cheats, Even Facebook and Harvard
The Big Picture – By Glynn Wilson – WASHINGTON, D.C. — Everything has changed since Donald Trump cheated and got himself elected president in 2016. All of us true believers in American democracy were naive, including the top public opinion pollsters and journalists. Almost no one gave him a chance. Now many of the same…
The End of Innocence: Liz Cheney Will Not Be the Next President
Learning How to Deal With Anxiety by Communing With Nature
Editor’s Note: It has long been claimed by nature writers, scientists, psychologists and even the National Park Service that spending time outdoors in nature is good for human physical and mental health. My good friend Edward O. Wilson (no relation) put forward the theory of Biophilia in a book by that name in 1984. The…
Is a Trump Dictatorship Inevitable?
The Big Picture – By Glynn Wilson – WASHINGTON, D.C. — Everyone should remember this day elevon months from now on Tuesday, November 5, 2024, Election Day — because of what I’m about to say. As the one American journalist and public opinion analyst who predicted that Donald Trump would win the presidential election of…
Liz Cheney: The U.S. is ‘Sleepwalking into Dictatorship’ by Supporting Trump
Staff Report – WASHINGTON, D.C. — Former Republican Congresswoman Liz Cheney says that voters have become increasingly numb to politicians warning of looming dangers to democracy, so in her new book, “Oath and Honor: A Memoir and a Warning,” she lays out the case for the threats to the Constitution posed by Donald Trump should…
National Park Service Announces Free Days for 2024
Staff Report – WASHINGTON, D.C. — The National Park Service announced Saturday that there will be six holidays in 2024 when entry fees will be waved. On these dates, the public is invited to experience the wonder of national parks for free. “National parks are places that awaken senses, inspire curiosity, encourage reflection, and foster…
Biden Administration to Require Replacing All Water Pipes Containing Lead in 10 Years
Staff Report – WASHINGTON, D.C. — While the nations of the world gather in Dubai for the 28th United Nations Climate Change Conference, the Biden administration announced a comprehensive plan to replace all water pipes in the United States that contain the harmful pollutant lead. The Environmental Protection Agency announced a proposal on Thursday to…
North American Wolverine to be Protected as a Threatened Species under the Endangered Species Act
By Glynn Wilson – WASHINGTON, D.C. — A distinct population of the North American wolverine is set to be listed as a threatened species under the Endangered Species Act, according to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, which is seeking public comments on the proposal indicating the species faces increasing threats from habitat degradation and…
California’s Giant Sequoias Could Face Extinction Due to Climate Change
From the Editors of E – The Environmental Magazine – Dear EarthTalk: What is the status of California’s giant sequoias trees and what’s being done to save them from extinction? — M.L., Sacramento, CA Giant sequoias, which can grow upwards of 300 feet tall with circumferences of 90+ feet around at ground level, are among…
What if Rat King Trump Returns to Power?
Return of the Wild Turkey, a Conservation Success Story
By Alonso Abugattas – WASHINGTON, D.C. — The wild turkey has made an incredible comeback. Not that long ago, wild turkeys were all but wiped out by a combination of overhunting and habitat loss. By the early 1900s, none remained in the District of Columbia and very few remained in the woods of Maryland, Virginia,…