What do Hunter Wendelstedt (a major-league baseball umpire) and Supreme Court Justice William R. Day (term in office: 1903-1922) have in common? You can
Author: Gloria Shur Bilchik
Gloria Shur Bilchik is a freelance writer and community volunteer in St. Louis, Missouri. She is the editor of Occasional Planet. She views the preservation of democratic values and progressive programs as vital to making the US a humane, livable place for her children and grandchildren.
Sounds of the Supreme Court, courtesy of Chicago Cubs
You still can’t watch Supreme Court proceedings on TV, but you can eavesdrop on them. Oral arguments presented to the Supreme Court have been
Hire and hire. Fed revamps process for job-seekers.
Getting hired by the federal government can be a Kafka-esque experience, say many who, in the past, have attempted to find their way through
“Government is good,” says Douglas J. Amy
Douglas J. Amy, professor of politics at Mt. Holyoke College, wants to remind America that government actually does a great deal of good in everyday lives.
“Taxi sisters” break socio-economic barriers in Senegal
A microfinance program has helped women break economic and social barriers as taxi drivers in Senegal.
A cool cache for long-form news and features
In the instant-news world of 140-character news feeds, what’s going to happen to long-form journalism? And when can you find the time to read
Unpaid taxes? No Defense contract for you!
Here’s a no-brainer policy that should have been enacted a long time ago. According to Federal Times, companies with unpaid tax bills would be
What are secret holds, and why ban them?
Outside of the arcane world of the U.S. Senate, a “secret hold” sounds like something one learns either as a member of a clandestine
Amtrak testing bio-diesel train
In a move that invites all manner of bad puns, Amtrak has begun testing the first train to operate solely on bio-diesel fuel. The
Q & A with The Urbanophile
Aaron Renn is an opinion-leading urban analyst on a mission to help America’s cities thrive and find sustainable success in the 21st century. His