Stop Cutting Down Trees. Cities Need Birds to Eat Gross Bugs that Transmit Disease.
ideeone/Getty This story was originally published by CityLab and appears here as part of the Climate Desk collaboration. A grove of five or six mature trees, some of them rising more than 50 feet into the air, once grew on a lot abutting our East Boston yard. In the summer, they shaded the cluster of five townhouses that wrapped…
Six Months Ago Donald Trump Fired the Director of the FBI
This is your periodic reminder that six months ago the president of the United States fired the director of the FBI. Then he went on national TV and admitted that he had done it because he was exasperated with Comey’s investigation of collusion between Russia and the Trump campaign (“this Russia thing”). And then nothing…
When Women Fail, They Pay a Much Bigger Price Than Men
Heather Sarsons Via Harold Pollack, here’s a new study that will probably not surprise you—but should incense you. Heather Sarsons, a graduate student at Harvard, examined Medicare data to determine how doctors referred patients to specialists for surgery. In particular, did they treat male and female surgeons differently? The answer is pretty simple: oh my,…
The Republican Tax Bill Might Help the Economy (By a Smidgen)
Tyler Cowen has been pushing back for a while against liberal disgust with the Republican tax bill. On Friday he linked to a couple of studies suggesting that low corporate tax rates are linked to both stronger growth and higher wages. “I’ve been reading in this area on and off since the 1980s,” he says,…
The Sway of the Nuclear Arms Industry Over Donald Trump and Congress Is Terrifying
Mother Jones illustrationBullit Marquez/AP; KREMLL/Getty This story originally appeared on TomDispatch.com. Until recently, few of us woke up worrying about the threat of nuclear war. Such dangers seemed like Cold War relics, associated with outmoded practices like building fallout shelters and “duck and cover” drills. But give Donald Trump credit: When it comes to nukes,…
“The Devastation Is Very Important to Me”
Mother Jones illustrationBullit Marquez/AP; KREMLL/Getty This story originally appeared on TomDispatch.com. Until recently, few of us woke up worrying about the threat of nuclear war. Such dangers seemed like Cold War relics, associated with outmoded practices like building fallout shelters and “duck and cover” drills. But give Donald Trump credit: When it comes to nukes,…