Despite Public Pressure, Florida Republicans Dodge a Bullet on an Assault Rifle Ban

by Nomad

How should state legislators react in the aftermath of not one but two horrific mass shooting events? Republicans in Florida struggled against public pressure to do something without offending the NRA.

How America's Inflexible Immigration Policy is Tearing Families Apart

by Nomad

Whatever your views on immigration, the story of the Pukri family is a tale of what happens when broad policy trickles down to a human level. 

Having left their home country for the US nearly two decades ago, the goals of the Vitor and Neta were to obtain their legal status to remain in the country they loved. At the time, with the civil order broken down, Albania was a dangerous place to raise a family.
Take a listen to this short podcast.

Sanity Sunday- The Music of Cat Stevens

by Nomad

For anybody who came of age around the early 1970s, the name Cat Stevens is bound to be wrapped up with quite a few personal memories. (The same is true for singer/songwriters like James Taylor, Carole King and many others.)

Regardless of whether you agree or disagree with his religious or political opinions, his music still sounds as fresh as it did back in that time.

How Decades of Fear-Stoking by the NRA and GOP Have Made Smart Gun Laws Impossible

by Nomad

Yesterday was a historic day. It was the day President Trump led the nation into an era of meaningful gun law reform and defied the all-powerful NRA.
That was the idea anyway.

If you had the stomach for it- I endured about 5 minutes- this exercise in suspending disbelief was both disturbing and fascinating.
With the cameras rolling, the president sat down with members of Congress from both parties. Calling upon the attendee to draft "comprehensive" and radical reforms, Trump declared "“It’s time that a president stepped up.”

• Expanding background checks to weapons purchased at gun shows and on the internet? Sure, why not?
• Keeping guns from mentally ill people? Sounds good!
• Securing schools and restricting gun sales for some young adults? Let's do it!

Our Benedict Arnold Presidency

by Nomad

When we examine the most infamous traitors of American history, we inevitably turn to Benedict Arnold? His crime was treason but specifically, what were the details of that crime?
For this discussion, a few historical details are important.

Sophie Scholl and the Conscience of the Nation

by Nomad

This 22 February marked the 75th anniversary of the trial and execution of  21-year-old Sophie Magdalena Scholl. Along with her brother, Hans, and her friend, Christoph Probst, Sophie was charged with and convicted of high treason against the Nazi regime.

Why Russian Opposition Leader Navalny's Recent Video Deserves a Closer Look

by Nomad

At the beginning of this month, while all of us were preoccupied with porn star pay-offs and Trump's tweets, the main opposition leader in Russia, Alexei Navalny posted a video on YouTube, outlining interesting accusations against the Putin administration.
His private investigation involves a wild cast of characters: an indiscreet escort, a philandering oligarch, and an extremely powerful, and possibly corrupt government official.

Florida Inmates Serve Time Caring for Abandoned Animals

by Nomad

In honor of National Love Your Pet Day, here's a short video about an innovative program at the Stock Island Detention Center in Key West involving abandoned animals and incarcerated inmates.

Christopher Hitchens' Banana Republic of America- Revisited

by Nomad

The term "banana republic" can be traced back to a collection of short stories by O.Henry a called "Cabbages and Kings." In that book, he described his observations based on the time he lived in Honduras when he was on the run for bank embezzlement. The portrait O. Henry drew was not a flattering one.

The bare-bones definition of a "banana republic" is a politically-unstable nation with an economy dependent on a chief export controlled by a single corporation, usually in foreign hands.
But there's more to it than that.

Good News Round -Up for Week Two of February 2018

by Nomad

In an endless search of positive news, I scoured the Internet, hunting high and low. and I managed to find these four stories for all my glum Nomads. 

Super Beans for Human Beings

Let's talk beans. Specifically, super beans. 

Developed by scientists at the National Agricultural Research Organisation of Uganda, in collaboration with the Colombia-based International Centre for Tropical Agriculture (CIAT), the Nabe 15 bean is better than your average bean. It's a fast-maturing, high-yield variety that drought-resistant. 

Sanity Sunday- The Music of Zach Winters

 by Nomad

Norman, Oklahoma-based artist Zach Winters has been described as "a multi-instrumentalist, a reader, a man of faith, a writer and a dedicated husband and father." According to his bio, Winters has had the honor to sing for Syrian refugees, laboring mothers, orphans in Mexico, and his friends, neighbors and family.

Insecurity on Display: Trump's Pompous Parade and Nixon's Palace Guards

by Nomad

Back in January 1970, then-president Richard Nixon took a good look at the White House guard (secret service uniformed division) and made a decision. The attire was not suitably fancy.

It would not do.

And so, he ordered an overhaul of the uniforms to match what he had seen in palaces worn in other countries.

From now on, the president ordered, the guards would be decked out in uniforms which featured a white, double-breasted tunic with gold shoulder trim and a stiff shako hat with peaked front.  

Trump and the Lessons of the Rise of Benito Mussolini

by Nomad

Comparing Donald Trump to some of the more infamous dictators of the past is pretty standard fare nowadays. However, without even mentioning Trump by name, one blogger, Quintus Curtius, in an interesting blog post has made a few fascinating points about the Italian fascist Mussolini and the series of events that put him in absolute control.