This post has been a long time coming. Many people in my world are fundamentally reptilian. This largely accounts for their social marginalization. The question is how to, for want of a better word, humanize them.

Stress in low-income families can affect children’s learning I am very excited about this. This is, as far as I know, the first study to attempt to measure the degree of chaos in the home. The researchers in an earlier-mentioned study (Related: Poor children have smaller brains) speculated that “poor families tend to live more chaotic lives, and that stress could inhibit healthy brain development.” The current study seems to indicate that it is directly so. As of this writi

This thinking goes back to 1973. I was a senior in high school, running an errand in the family car. I must have been listening to WKSU. This 5- or 15-minute segment came on. A female spokesperson for the ACLU said that, under the compulsory school attendance law, a minor can only be in one of two places: a school, or a penal facility. In her view there was no real difference. I was an honors student and deeply convicted that education is the answer to poverty. Thus her

This is the first of three posts about entitlement: Today – “Entitlement(s): Attitude and policy” 04/26 – “How I became homeless” 05/03 – “When needs are met” Let’s get rid of (the term) entitlements “In 2012, Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid alone represented 44 percent of spending; all entitlement programs were 63 percent. But it’s hard to control entitlement programs because their constituencies are so large.” It makes sense to me that, as Samuelson proposes, we sho

Dan Rodricks complained that a recent Baltimore City ordinance on panhandling failed to address “the underlying issues.” He has failed to address them either; so, I thought I would. Here are those I personally see: CHECKLIST ✓ TREATMENT ON DEMAND. Drug and alcohol treatment needs to be available on demand. This doesn’t affect me personally, but does affect panhandling — and prostitution, petty theft, shoplifting, smash-and-grabs, larcenies, and in fact all crime of any type.

Disease, or sin? And other questions.