For nearly 80 years, the FBI has collected national crime data. The Uniform Crime Report is the method used to provide statistical data regarding violent and victim crimes. The UCR provides information regarding “Part 1 Crimes” which are the eight personal and property crimes that the FBI considers to be “major.” As a police chief […]
Op-Eds
Posted inOp-Eds, sj-web
Deficit addiction becomes a bipartisan norm
WASHINGTON — History is what we make of it — and sometimes we make a real hash. I take as my text for the sermon that follows an op-ed essay in The New York Times this week by Times’ columnist David Leonhardt. The headline tells it all: “Democrats, the Real Fiscal Conservatives.” Are you kidding? […]
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With his book, Comey has stooped to petty revenge
James Comey did it, naturally, for the children. Why does anyone in Washington take advantage of the most opportune moment to make a mint off publishing a tell-all book? It’s never for the profits or the sheer satisfaction of sticking it to your enemies and putting yourself in the best possible light. No, there’s always […]
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Doctored content has invaded social media
Phony “news” stories aren’t the only toxic content being spread on social media these days. Bad people are pitching digitally touched-up rear ends and modified thighs as real, dismaying teens and young women unable to attain what’s being sold as perfection. Public anger at the ills unleashed by social media currently burns hottest on Facebook […]
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Access to essential nonfuel minerals in jeopardy
The United States Geological Survey’s title for its February 2018 study on “nonfuel minerals” slightly undersells the situation: “China, the United States, and competition for resources that enable emerging technologies.” “Competition”? “Global alley fight” is more accurate. The study’s first paragraph is a punch in the face, not a jack slap on the back: “Future […]
Posted inOp-Eds, sj-web
CBO offers warning about budget deficits
WASHINGTON — The Congressional Budget Office last week released its annual budget and economic outlook report, and although the news was gruesome, the report was greeted in Washington with a giant yawn. The assumption among Republicans and Democrats is that the political rewards for curbing runaway budget deficits are too meager to justify the risks. […]
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Trump tackles reducing the welfare rolls
When President Bill Clinton signed the welfare reform act in 1996, which he negotiated with then-Speaker Newt Gingrich, the left claimed people would starve. They didn’t. According to the nonpartisan Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, between 1996 and 2000, the employment rate for single mothers increased from 63 percent to 76 percent. In addition, […]
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Shameful story doesn't end with Starbucks incident
I don’t drink coffee, so I can’t boycott Starbucks. But I wouldn’t if I could. Yes, I understand — and share — the national anger over viral video of last week’s arrest of two African-American men at one of the company’s Philadelphia stores. The men, who have yet to be identified, were reportedly doing nothing […]
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Put an end to unaffordable payday loans
Maine winters can be brutal, and large winter heating bills can be difficult for families to manage. Unfortunately, families struggling to meet utility or other bills become targets for financial products that only make things worse. Payday loans are among the worst. Typically 14- or 30-day loans at 260 percent interest or higher, payday loans […]
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Trump's Syria strike was meant to project strength. It did the opposite.
WASHINGTON — In 2013, after Syrian dictator Bashar Assad crossed President Obama’s red line and used chemical weapons on innocent civilians, a U.S. official told the Los Angeles Times that Obama’s retaliatory strike would likely be “just muscular enough not to get mocked” but not so devastating that it would elicit a response from Iran […]