Latest Stories
Most recently published stories in The Swamp.
BryanWatch: April II
A relatively slow week for Congress, with only 14 votes this week, 10 of them party line. As usual, Rep. Steil voted with the Republicans 100 percent of the time this week.
John HeckenlivelyPublished 13 days ago in The SwampIs Prince Charles Fit To Be King?
The British monarchy is a globally recognized and respected institution. Queen Elizabeth II is the current head of the monarchy. She has been in reign since 1952.
Right or Wrong
Chapter 3 Family Traditions Almost every single member of the grand old par-ty and candidate who was in power or running in West Virginia, Pennsylvania or Ohio got their power one way or another through the work and effort of the Jenkins. Glenn and Everett’s leg work, the spreading of lies and misinformation, voter in-timidation. The right push here a little nudge. They twisted rules and stretched the truth, forget the facts, whatever it takes.
David F AndersonPublished 13 days ago in The SwampKissing Covid
For most, there is something innately fascinating about diseases and viruses. Zombies have been a staple of horror movies, books, and video games since the 1970s while games like Plague Inc (2012) have popularized the concept of epidemiology.
Kellen PiferPublished 13 days ago in The Swamp
Police Altercations With African-Americans
Over the last few years, altercations between police and African-American individuals have been at the forefront of news, politics and culture. But generally speaking, there seems to be a trend in which the media and cultural influencers seem to look at the issue from only one side. We simply cannot paint all incidents between police officers and any individual with the same brush.
I Object
“We live in a free country!” This is something you have likely heard if you live anywhere in the U.S. other than under a rock. Even with all its flaws, the United States is at least more free than most other countries (cato.org). We are a constitutional republic, a representative democracy in which the government is bound to a written constitution. One feature of our constitution that some say lends to our freedom is our system of checks and balances. Each of the three branches of government works to counter and balance each other out so that no one branch becomes too powerful. This system works in several ways, among the most notable being the presidential veto power. The veto power allows presidents to overrule congressional decisions, forcing congress to re-vote and requiring the vetoed bill to pass with a two-thirds majority in both the House and Senate to bypass the veto. This power, though great, is rarely used and instead presidents often choose to use alternative methods of dissuading congress from taking certain action. Three veto alternatives that presidents have used are signing statements, issuing veto threats, and the line-item veto. Should the president use these methods though, or do they represent executive overreach?
Colby MathePublished 14 days ago in The Swamp
Realist or Royalist?
The recent turmoil and tragedy facing the British Royal family has caused me to reflect on what my opinion of them as an institution really is. And it has caused me to question and consider the truth about a lot of my deeply held beliefs.
Matty LongPublished 14 days ago in The SwampAccountability
I am writing this as a half-white woman who knows I have privilege. As a Mexican, I see my brown people facing similar issues. As a white woman, I am sorry. I am so so sorry for the society that we live in. To Black and Brown people, I am sorry that you have been tossed aside and been treated as "other" for your entire life. You important, valuable, and worthy of love. I am sorry. Derek Chauvin may look like justice or accountability, but it is only because the world was watching. A majority of police are not held accountable for the people they have killed.
GHSA
President Biden enacted into law twenty executive orders on his first two days in office, including one memorandum, the bulk of these EO's dealt with the viral agent Covid-19. These included creating a Covid-19 response coordinator; putting a stop to the US withdrawal from the World Health Organization (WHO), and naming Dr. Fauci as the head of the US delegation to the WHO. He asked Americans to wear masks for one hundred days; he created a Covid-19 Health Equity task force; he signed into law the requirement workers wear masks in airports and on certain modes of transportation. He called on OSHA to release clear guidance on Covid-19 issues and gave OSHA the authority to enforce worker health and safety requirements. He directed the Department of Education and Health and Human Services (HHS) to provide for safely reopening schools. He signed into law the requirement to accelerate manufacturing and delivery of supplies for vaccination; he lent support to the international pandemic support effort, and he signed a memorandum supporting the Global Health Security Agenda (GHSA).
Steve AndersonPublished 15 days ago in The Swamp
A Seventh Man: The Art of Activism
‘Why does the Western world look to migrant laborers to perform the most menial tasks? What compels people to leave their homes and accept this humiliating situation? In A Seventh Man, John Berger and Jean Mohr come to grips with what it is to be a migrant worker – the material circumstances and the inner experience – and, in doing so, reveal how the migrant is not so much on the margins of modern life, but absolutely central to it. First published in 1975, this finely wrought exploration remains as urgent as ever, presenting a mode of living that pervades the countries of the West and yet is excluded from much of its culture.’ (Berger and Mohr, Verso: 2010)
Outrageous OptimismPublished 15 days ago in The Swamp
CNN's Exposure Shouldn't be Partisan
If you're not actively consuming news, you may be unfamiliar with Project Veritas. If you've heard the name on network news, it's likely you've heard they're a right-wing political action group and not to be trusted. I'm not making a case for or against that. A few days ago, Project Veritas released tapes of CNN technical director Charlie Chester commenting on his network's operations. He was secretly filmed while on dates with a woman who was actually an undercover journalist for Veritas. This is unscrupulous perhaps; the poor guy couldn't have thought the dates were going well when all she could talk about was CNN, but the fact remains that this exposure does not come from any anonymous source as many stories do. The statements below come from Charlie Chester himself.
Why Are Natural Ethnic Features Only Trendy On White People?
For a long time now natural ethnic features have been looked down on by society, often being described as undesirable. Bipoc have faced tremendous amounts of ridicule and discrimination towards features that they were born with. Despite this, there have been two instances that stand out to me, that show society accrediting non-people of colour for their transformation of these features as a new aesthetic and standard of beauty.
Petiri IraPublished 15 days ago in The Swamp
