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Commentary by Froma Harrop

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February 14, 2008

Schemes We Have Seen: A Commentary by Froma Harrop

During the push to privatize Social Security, the idea's foes were accused of not trusting the American people to manage their own money. The naysayers prevailed, and aren't we glad.

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February 12, 2008

Treating Nature-Deficit Disorder: A Commentary by Froma Harrop

Attendance has been falling at America's National Parks since 1987. Blame videophilia, says a Nature Conservancy report.

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February 8, 2008

Between 'Inspiration' and Health Care: A Commentary by Froma Harrop

Why so many Americans want their president to be a personal motivator and religious guide vexes me. You do want a leader with dignity and self-control, but attending to the economy, national defense, foreign affairs, the environment and other aspects of the public's well being should be a full-time occupation.

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February 5, 2008

"I Call You My Base": A Commentary by Froma Harrop

President Bush's new budget will top $3 trillion. It envisions massive deficits for fiscal years 2008 and 2009 -- nearly matching the record in 2004, when the federal budget went $412 billion into the hole.

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January 31, 2008

Media Swallow Kennedys' Arrogant Presumption: A Commentary by Froma Harrop

Are we done worshipping the Kennedys yet? And what do you mean by "we"?

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January 30, 2008

Single Women Vote Early: Will They Vote Often?: A Commentary by Froma Harrop

Single women were supposed to be the Democrats' guest of honor on Election Day. Excuse me, unmarried women. The party has studied unmarried women so much it knows they don't like to be called single women.

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January 24, 2008

The Mortgage Mogul and His Victims: A Commentary by Froma Harrop

As banks, money markets and stock exchanges convulse over a sinking American economy, we see the folks sprawled at the bottom of the smoking rubble -- debt-crushed American consumers. It is they whose reckless or trusting natures enriched so many, at least for a while, and whose troubled loans have sent markets into panic.

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January 22, 2008

Blue Dogs Sniff at Fiscal Stimulus: A Commentary by Froma Harrop

You've seen the hound who sits out front and emits a low growl when people walk by. He's saying, "You can pass, but don't try any funny stuff."

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January 18, 2008

Sarkozy the Mad Modelizer: A Commentary By Froma Harrop

The French have long tolerated adulterers, liars and hypocrites in their politics. A simpleton is another matter, and President Nicolas Sarkozy's public frolic with a former model and singer of heavy-breathing songs does not speak of emotional complexity.

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January 16, 2008

Resort at the Top of the World: A Commentary by Froma Harrop

There was another Hillary in the news last week. It was Edmund Hillary, the mountaineer who in 1953 became the first human to reach the top of Mount Everest -- alongside his Sherpa guide, Tenzing Norgay. The New Zealander had died at 88.

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January 8, 2008

The Wisdom of Crowds: A Commentary by Froma Harrop

"Crowding out" sounds like a bad thing. The Bush administration uses that fearsome term in denying recent requests by Louisiana, Ohio, Oklahoma and no doubt other states to expand Medicaid to families not considered poor.

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January 5, 2008

The Jamie Lynn Business Model: A Commentary by Froma Harrop

The world knows that Jamie Lynn Spears has turned up 16 and pregnant. What makes this newsworthy is that she starred as the nice girl on "Zoey 101," a Nickelodeon show aimed at "tweens" ages 9 to 14.

January 1, 2008

Huckabee's Perilous Perception Of Souls: A Commentary by Froma Harrop

In 1996, then-Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee reportedly pressured a parole board to release a sexual predator from jail.

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December 28, 2007

Will Arizona's Immigration Law Work?: A Commentary by Froma Harrop

What would happen if the United States seriously enforced the ban on hiring undocumented workers?

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December 26, 2007

Only Suckers Pay Bills: A Commentary by Froma Harrop

Wouldn't it be fun to do a money-dance around town, throwing borrowed hundred dollar bills to passersby, while arranging to have others pay for the adventure?