All From the Editors
EditorialsConvention watch: The speech's the thingBegun as a reform movement in the 19th-century United States, political conventions do little real party business today. Their one redeeming virtue? They are a showcase for political speech.
EditorialsTeachers who excel: A lesson from Miss SmootNothing is more important in K-12 education than the quality of a teacher. But how do we make great teachers? We could start with someone like Jane Smoot.
EditorialsAfter Aurora: the role of media violenceThe connection between violent images and violent acts is an age-old debate. Recent research appears to show the connection is real. So what's to be done? There's an age-old antidote.
EditorialsTracing America's green rootsJohn Muir and Gifford Pinchot represent the two strains of environmentalism in the United States -- and most of us think like both of them. We want nature pristine and undisturbed, but we also rely on its resources and understand the need to use care in extracting them.
EditorialsThe end of 'faster, higher, stronger?'As the cream of the world's athletes converge on London for the Olympics, sports scientists say humans may be reaching the limits of their ability to set world records. But that takes nothing away from the drama of athletic competition.
EditorialsTo each his own nicheMass-market campaigning is as passe as mass-market retailing.聽Politicians and pollsters increasingly slice and dice the electorate into demographic niches and tailor their messages to narrow groups of voters. Who are the 'soccer moms' of 2012?
EditorialsWomen warriors: How close to combat?Women in the US military have been unofficially on the front lines in Afghanistan and Iraq. Now they are looking to formalize their role.聽
EditorialsDinner is not just for diningSitting down, breaking bread, and wielding utensils properly are not just pleasant ways to end the day. Families grow closer, kids get smarter, and food tastes better.
EditorialsCollege: more than a credentialEven as many people question the worth -- and cost -- of a bachelor's degree, college remains crucial to civilization. It is how knowledge is transferred from one generation to the next.
EditorialsDoes nation-building work?The term "nation-building" smacks of colonialism. But when war has broken a country, nation-building is a moral duty -- and the best way to build is with equal parts outside and inside effort.
EditorialsDoing well by doing goodAltruism in the glue of society, the "social capital" that binds human and financial capital. Communities where people care for one another also have lower unemployment rates and higher quality of life.
EditorialsFowl weather reportThis is not Big Important News -- no economic meltdowns or international showdowns. It's just a note about a new generation of backyard chickens trying to fit in.
EditorialsPrison: civilization's 'dark flower'We jail people when we have despaired of any other way of dealing with their abhorrent behavior. But the vast majority will one day re-enter civilized society. Does prison make it more or less likely they will fit in?
EditorialsRiding the whirlwindThe Monitor's intrepid science writer rode with the storm-chasers who help federal forecasters warn those in twisters' paths.
EditorialsRussia's one-man brandLike too many Russian leaders, Vladimir Putin's long shadow makes it hard to see the real owners of Russia -- its people.- EditorialsHow the Monitor is doingThree years ago, the Monitor embarked on a bold strategy of Web-first journalism. We are making steady progress toward our goal of becoming self-sustaining.
- EditorialsWhat makes The Monitor tick?A new book by Keith Collins examines more than a century of Monitor journalism and asks whether it is living up to its purpose.
EditorialsThe 'long war' for energy securitySince the oil shocks of the 1970s, the US has been seeking energy independence. Now natural gas is seen as a possible solution. But at best it will probably only give Americans a breather while they look beyond hydrocarbons.
EditorialsThe tax man taketh -- and sometimes givethFrom outside, the workings of a big bureaucracy like the IRS seem mysterious and arbitrary. From the inside, it all makes perfect sense. Actually, you could say that about most workplaces.
EditorialsGuns and freedom: the American paradoxFrom the shot heard round the world to the old West to the spread of modern-day "concealed carry" rights, firearms are embedded in American culture.
