Commentary
Commentary: 603 Legal Aid is a ‘transformative change’ in accessing justice in civil cases
(This story was updated on July 5 at 4 p.m. to correct the 603 Legal Aid call center phone number.) As our country celebrates the anniversary of our founding this weekend with fireworks and parades, we’ll also reflect on some of the core fundamental values that bring Americans together – the pursuit of life, liberty, […]
Commentary: The overwhelming intrusion of the party claiming to corner the market on freedom
The New Hampshire Republican Party would have you believe that they have just done you a solid. The GOP-led Legislature just passed a $13.5 billion budget as well as an accompanying policy trailer bill. GOP Gov. Chris Sununu promptly signed both bills into law. Both the numbers and the policies belong to us now. They’re […]
Editor’s Notebook: Aliens, viruses, and Independence Day
Twenty-five years ago Saturday, all the nations of the world came together as one to repel an attack by an alien civilization. Well, that’s not entirely accurate. But the world did come together as one to watch Will Smith, Jeff Goldblum, and Bill Pullman help repel an alien attack (thanks in part to a computer […]
Commentary: Can people vaccinated against COVID-19 still spread the coronavirus?
When the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention changed its guidelines about mask-wearing on May 13, plenty of Americans were left a little confused. Now anyone who is fully vaccinated can participate in indoor and outdoor activities, large or small, without wearing a mask or physical distancing. Anthony Fauci, chief medical adviser to President […]
Commentary: Why we must investigate the events of Jan. 6
The threat to our democracy from Jan. 6 is enduring. The unprecedented insurrection on our nation’s Capitol may only exist now on the plethora of video footage that is still being used to identify and prosecute participants. The threat posed by that now infamous day, however, remains, and its lethality depends on how we respond not […]
Commentary: Schools must act carefully on students’ off-campus speech, Supreme Court rules
For decades, U.S. courts have ruled that public school students “do not shed their constitutional rights to freedom of speech and expression at the schoolhouse gate,” as the Supreme Court said in 1968. In that case, Tinker v. Des Moines Independent School District, the justices held that high school students who were suspended for protesting […]
Editor’s Notebook: Spring into invincible summer
I was asleep when the summer of 2021 began. The solstice arrived at 11:32 p.m. on Sunday night, and 12 hours later that most impetuous of seasons, drunk on anthropogenic climate change and global pestilence, celebrated its scheduled coup by slow-roasting New Hampshire at 93 degrees. The more moderate forces that typically oversee seasonal transitions […]
Commentary: What’s next for health care reform after the Supreme Court rejects ACA’s most recent challenge
The U.S. Supreme Court upheld the Affordable Care Act for the third time on June 17, this time in a case called California v. Texas. With seven justices holding that the states and individual plaintiffs lacked standing to sue because they failed to show that they had suffered a direct injury, the court delivered its […]
Commentary: Local election officials shaped changes to the For the People Act
No matter what we look like or who we vote for, most of us believe that our elected leaders should deliver for us and protect our democracy. But a handful of politicians in state legislatures across the country and here in New Hampshire are actually working against the will of the voters. However, this week, […]
Commentary: New study finds racial bias makes white Americans more likely to support wars in nonwhite foreign countries
The effects of American racial bias and anti-Asian sentiment do not end at the nation’s borders. The racial attitudes of white people also influence their support for American military intervention abroad, according to our working paper on U.S. foreign policy and racism. White Americans who hold racist beliefs are significantly more likely to endorse aggressive […]
Commentary: The state of privacy
When I moved to New Hampshire, one of the first things I was told about the state was that it cared about privacy. New Hampshire was even a national leader on privacy. That was just a few years ago. My how things change. New Hampshire is in the grips of an identity crisis, exemplified by […]
Commentary: ‘Divisive concepts’ bill finds no basis in equal protection
New Hampshire Senate Majority Leader Jeb Bradley has stressed that the “divisive concepts” bill under consideration by the New Hampshire Legislature would only preclude state government from instructing that some people are oppressive, or enjoy social advantages, merely because of an inherent characteristic, like race. Bradley described the law as “affirm[ing] the 14th Amendment of […]