THE TORTURER DESCRIBES HIS JOB

Charlotte Muse WinningWriters.com
California poet Charlotte Muse tries to enter the mind of a person capable of committing torture, justifying torture, an issue from the George W. Bush era that refuses to fade away.

Court Backs Labor Board on Speedy Election Rule

Sean Higgins Washington Examiner
The policy shortens the timespan from when the board approves a union's request for a workplace organizing election to when that election is held to as little as 11 days. Previously, the process often took one to two months. The board formally announced the rule in December and it went into effect April 14.

Scalia's Poetry Slam

It seems only fitting to use Antonin Scalia’s own words for a poetry slam, since the justice’s snarky dissents are filled with so many poetic gems. The Affordable Care Act victory was followed quickly by the same-sex marriage win, and Scalia’s dissents have become increasingly irate and colorful. 

Key & Peele - Pro Teaching

Boyd Maxwell and Perry Schmidt report on the latest developments in the exciting world of pro teaching.
 

Street Art for Hope and Peace

eL Seed delights in juggling multiple cultures, languages and identities. His Arabic poetry artwork, inspired by street art and graffiti, aims to create art so beautiful it needs no translation.

College Board Caves To Conservative Pressure, Changes AP U.S. History Curriculum

Casey Quinlan ThinkProgress
The College Board has revised its guidelines for teaching Advanced Placement History, which has broad influence in high school history courses, to accommodate right-wing pressures. Among the changes: Manifest Destiny is given a more benign treatment and violence against Native Americans is downplayed.

Planned Parenthood Is Right to Supply Fetal Tissue

Mark Joseph Stern Slate
A woman’s decision to donate her aborted fetus to medical research—and Planned Parenthood’s willingness to transfer the fetal material—is deeply commendable. No woman is eager to have an unwanted pregnancy, but if she decides to terminate it, Planned Parenthood can help turn her misfortune into a mitzvah. That is not an act of killing. It is an act of altruism.

Iran Calls for World's Nuclear Weapons States to Disarm

Julian Borger The Guardian
Iran's foreign minister has put forward three proposals: negotiations on a nuclear weapons elimination treaty; taking nuclear arsenals off high alert (for example, by removing warheads from missiles); and the creation of a zone in the Middle East free of weapons of mass destruction. This proposal represents a challenge to the members of the UN Security Council (all nuclear powers) as well as Israel, Pakistan and North Korea.

Bernie Sanders Explains Why You Should Care About What’s Happening to Greece

William Greider The Nation
For those familiar with the senator’s long political career, expressing solidarity with suffering Greeks while teaching a little history is pure Bernie. Political reporters are typically confused by his socialist identity and either joke about this weird, rumpled lefty running for president or try to expose alleged contradictions. But as he often does, Sanders has taken the subject to a higher plane, explaining its significance beyond Greece and beyond Europe.