海角大神

Budget deficits generate plenty of arguments 鈥� among economists who differ on how detrimental they are, and among lawmakers, for whom they can be a favored political punching bag. As President Trump rolls out his tax plan, it looks as if tolerance for high federal debt is growing 鈥� with reservations, of course. But it's a different story in households: Americans are tucking away far more than they used to, chastened by the 2008 Great Recession.

If you're not looking for it, can you find it? A new paper is out arguing that humans may have populated the Americas 115,000 years earlier than thought. Some paleontologists are pretty skeptical, and note that evidence for such early human settlement has not been unearthed before. But others say it simply may have been overlooked by those who thought it impossible 鈥� and thus didn't see what was in front of them.

When does being up 20 points in the polls become a not so comfortable lead? For French presidential contender Emmanuel Macron, the answer lies in #sansmoile7mai 鈥� or 'without me on May 7.' The tension is being heightened by a former candidate who appears to be supporting those who might choose to do something other than vote on election day. But that doesn't work for many French. They may be disillusioned by a messy campaign 鈥� but their voices are rising against those who might consider opting out.

History does have a tendency to repeat itself 鈥� or so it seems from the battles over free speech playing out at UC Berkeley. The issues are as contentious now as they were in the 1960s, when the school was an icon of the free speech movement. But there are differences 鈥� and there are lessons to be learned by revisiting that era. That's what reporter Jessica Mendoza did by speaking with Lynne Hollander Savio, an activist and widow of protest leader Mario Savio.

The Hendersons, who are parents of a transgender sixth grader, admit that their journey toward understanding their son has been a challenging one. But it's ultimately been rewarding. Now, as they watch social gains for transgender kids come under threat, they are asking others to do what they did: Challenge themselves to see the individuals behind the issues, who all are worthy of love and consideration.

One reason individuals support their police is so they don鈥檛 have to own a gun. Police are the preferred night watchmen of safety. Yet if some neighbors start to buy guns, the police look less reliable. And more people then buy guns. That same logic may be at play in Northeast Asia.

As North Korea moves to own more nuclear weapons and missiles, will Japan and South Korea seek nuclear weapons rather than rely on the United States 鈥� as the preferred cop on the beat 鈥� with its deterrence threat of nuclear retaliation?

For decades, many allies of the US have trusted its nuclear 鈥渦mbrella鈥� enough not to develop their own atomic arsenal. This has helped curb the proliferation of nuclear weapons, helping to keep the world safe from a devastating type of warfare. But the North Korea crisis could change this key aspect of the global order. If a major country like Japan, despite its deep and constitutional commitment to pacifism, ever feels the need to go nuclear, what will stop other countries from doing the same?

It is in this moral context that the world must watch what President Trump, along with China, is doing about North Korea鈥檚 nuclear ambitions.

Despite Mr. Trump鈥檚 rhetoric about 鈥淎merica first鈥� and his mixed signals about honoring defense commitments to allies, he so far seems engaged in finding ways to restrain North Korea. He attended a White House briefing of all 100 US senators on North Korea in an unusual summit on Wednesday, April 26. And he met with United Nations Security Council members on Monday.

鈥淲hether we want to talk about it or not, North Korea is a big-world problem, and it鈥檚 a problem we have to finally solve,鈥� he said. That is not the rhetoric of someone who believes in retrenchment from America鈥檚 unique role in nuclear deterrence.

Among all Americans, Trump has the strongest backing from his core supporters in dealing with this issue. According to a 2016 survey by the Chicago Council on Foreign Relations, 68 percent of those supporters see a 鈥渃ritical threat鈥� in the possibility of unfriendly countries becoming nuclear powers. That percentage is higher than for Republicans in general and Democrats. And their strong support is in contrast to their lukewarm support 鈥� only 51 percent 鈥� for the US to take an active role in world affairs.

Trump鈥檚 real strategy toward North Korea remains uncertain. He has suggested negotiations, putting pressure on China, and beefing up missile defenses in the region. And his aides say a military strike on the North鈥檚 nuclear facilities is one option. 鈥淚 don鈥檛 have to tell you what I鈥檓 going to do in North Korea,鈥� he says. 鈥淵ou know why? Because they shouldn鈥檛 know.鈥�

At the least, however, he is engaged, holding fast to a logic that nuclear proliferation is not a moral course for the world.