NLRB Makes a Good Decision, Supreme Court a Bad Decision

Tom Raum, Adam Liptak AP
In a turn-around decision, the National Labor Relations Board ruled that employees can use their workplace email to organize a union. The Supreme Court continued it's pro-business agenda by ruling that Amazon can detain workers at the end of their shift to search them, and they do not have to pay them for the time it takes.

Can Pope Francis Change the Doctrine of the Catholic Church?

Jason Berry Global Post
Pope Francis is a reform-driven pope that has huge popularity with rank-and-file Catholics who have hungered for a figure to transcend an age of scandal. But, does even a powerful and popular pope have the power to change church doctrine? The advancing story line of Francis’s papacy is how far can a pope go in making reforms against an embedded culture of cardinals and bishops who are averse to change?

A U.S. Activist’s Last Days in the West Bank City of Hebron

Richard Hardigan CounterPunch
A U.S. activist with the International Solidarity Movement (ISM), which supports Palestinians in their non-violent actions against the Israeli occupation, writes of his last days in Hebron. Hebron is the most populous city in the Occupied Territories. It is the only West Bank city where the Israeli settlers live inside the city itself, including many who live in an area close to the hub of the city, designated as H2.

The Eviction of America’s Largest Homeless Camp

Chris Herring Beyond Chron
On December 4th the City of San Jose began the eviction of some 300 men, women, and children residing in tents and shanties on the 68 acres of creek-side property called the Jungle. Where will the former residents go. The Jungle, considered the largest homeless encampment in the U.S., is in the heart of Silicon Valley, the high tech region that accounts for one-third of all of the venture capital investment in the United States.

The U.S. Should Abolish Criminal Grand Juries

LaDoris Hazzard Cordell Slate
The Michael Brown and Eric Garner cases are examples of how prosecutors manipulate the grand jury process. Criminal grand juries, with their secrecy, lack of oversight, and disregard for the rules of evidence, serve no useful purpose and make a mockery of justice. If we abolish criminal grand juries, at least the deaths of Brown and Garner will not have been in vain.

John Oliver: Dr. Oz and Nutritional Supplements

John Oliver outlines what, exactly is problematic about Dr. Oz and the nutrition supplement industry. Then he invites George R.R. Martin, Steve Buscemi, the Black and Gold Marching Elite, and some fake real housewives on the show to illustrate how to pander to an audience without hurting anyone. 

'Morning Mood' in a Copenhagen Subway

An orchestral flash mob tranforms the morning commute into an much more tranquil and uplifting experience with this performance of Edvard Grieg's Morning Mood.

How Wolves Became Dogs

A quick description of the likely path that over time changed the wolf -- an excellent hunter -- to the modern dog.