The Supreme Court holds one of the most delicate roles in our republic. This is not only because of judicial review, which gives that branch virtually unlimited power to dictate both changes as well as continuity in our nation’s development. It is also because court must perpetuate the public’s perception that they are the most impartial branch of government, in order to retain their stature and legitimacy. That perception is at least in part deceiving. As Rachel Sheldon explains, the public pe...

Change can be challenging, particularly in the political arena. A deeply rooted history only adds to that challenge. The filibuster is an excellent case-in-point. It allows senators to prohibit a bill from being voted upon, unless three-fifths of the Senate vote to limit and then close the debate, referred to as invoking cloture. The filibuster has been both critiqued as obstructing democratic ideals and hailed as enhancing them. This article does not take a stance on the filibuster one way or ...

As Congress takes a break from negotiations due to a lack of compromise, it leads one to ponder about some of the inherent problems in that branch. Congress is not only there to serve the interests of their constituents, but the greater good of the country as well. By itself, that should be enough to motivate a commitment to pass another stimulus package in the midst of the Covid-19 pandemic. Yet, their patriotic duty and the suffering of so many appears to be meaningless to most congressional m...

In the context of such political contention in the United States and around the world, it is reassuring that a point which can be agreed upon is that the use of chemical weapons is simply unacceptable. One must applaud the condemnation of them and our resolve in halting their use. However, the U.S., British, and French response to Syria’s use of such tactics raises multiple concerns about the future. While the administration stated it was focused on “deterring” the future use of chemical warfar...

The horrific Las Vegas shooting will undoubtedly be recorded in the history textbooks as one of the most tragic events in early 21st century history. Any loss of life for any reason is tragic, regardless of the cause. Yet, the manner in which this occurred, the senselessness of it, and the apparent trend this type of killing has become leads us to question multiple aspects in our society.  The most prevalent of these is, “should there be greater control?” However, while we can all agree on a c...

How much influence the average citizen has on the policies of our government is a common debate. As our politicians seem so far removed from the everyday lives of the masses, one has to question how society sways elected officials toward a desired direction. Awareness of the issues is without a doubt vital and activism is just as important. How we achieve both has been consistent throughout American history. That being public forums, gatherings, and the press. Despite this evolving through dif...

In the study of history we ask the question, what are the catalysts? In other words, the motivators that make events happen? Depending on the topic and the framing one puts it in, many times the question is not what made something occur, but what prohibited it from doing so. Agriculture has typically been a fundamental factor in world history in answering both those questions -- events that came about and those that had the potential, but failed. Despite America’s unprecedented urbanization in ...

With growing concern over the situation in Iraq, it brings relatively recent and prolonged combat in the Middle East into the hearts and minds of U.S. citizens. Not to mention the bill we footed for it, and continue to do so. More importantly, it brings to mind the loss of life over the span of these numerous conflicts. One could sum up the current situation in one word: uncertainty. Uncertainty in our own country’s future on the world stage. Let us forget the Middle East for just a moment and...

As the Edward Snowden interview with Brian Williams concluded, Snowden stated that he is comfortable with his actions of divulging the NSA’s information gathering program. After watching the interview, my thoughts were much the same: I am content with Snowden’s actions. Although, I was previously supportive of the former intelligence employee’s actions, I had not expected such an eloquent defense and more important argument for the welfare of the U.S. to be put forth. To not heed his word of de...