Original Commentary

Bills that elevate politics over science, research and training are an attack on the integrity of the medical profession As a doctor about to finish residency after multiple years of training, I have never been so worried about the future of medical practice.

Cannabis – aka marijuana. Most Americans already live in a state where it’s lawful to sell, obtain and possess – either for medical purposes, recreational purposes or both – and the genie is clearly not going back in the bottle.

The freedom to vote has faced serious challenges in recent years. New voting restrictions, rampant disinformation, threats to voters and election officials, and even violent attempts to overturn election results have led to growing concern about the future of our democracy and election process.

North Carolina elected leaders have enacted several ineffective and misleading laws over the years, but when it comes to undermining public confidence in government and taking advantage of vulnerable people, the badly misnamed “education lottery” has to be near the bottom of any “worst of” list.

North Carolina has witnessed a spate of glowing and upbeat news reports and commentaries in recent days in the aftermath of last week’s announcement by Republican legislative leaders that they had reached an agreement to expand the state’s Medicaid program.

The idea of slapping inaccurate or deceptive names on controversial legislation in order to drive and manipulate public opinion is nothing particularly new in the frequently cynical world of politics. Authoritarian regimes across the globe have long used this tactic, but it’s an American phenomenon too. Two decades ago, the administration of President George W. Bush...

We weren’t expecting it to be pretty – “it” being the launch of the N.C. General Assembly’s new session, with freshly emboldened conservatives eager to flex their muscles. The reality, one month after things got under way, hasn’t failed to disappoint. Two themes stand out:

Whether in a grocery store, a place of worship, a shopping mall, a community celebration, at work or in school, you are at risk for becoming a victim of senseless gun violence. Why is America the only industrialized nation in the world that is plagued by frequent mass shootings? Has our form of democracy allowed the minority to run amuck when it comes to the rights of an individual to own any kind of gun vs. the majority’s right to live without fear of mass murder?

The much-faster-than-expected economic recovery that’s followed the easing of the COVID-19 pandemic has produced several encouraging developments in the United States: low unemployment, rising wages, strong corporate profits, flattened or even falling poverty rates – just to name a few. And while the global spike in inflation that resulted from supply chain issues, CEO wealth grabs, and Russia’s war on Ukraine has taken a big toll on most households, that phenomenon has, thankfully, slowed significantly of late.

Every February a new cultural controversy pops up to show us why Black History Month is needed. A hot-button topic this year has been Gov. Ron DeSantis’s threat to ban the African American Advanced Placement (A.P.) curriculum from Florida classrooms after state education officials there said it violates a state law that regulates how race is discussed in public schools.

Homelessness. It takes many forms in modern North Carolina – some familiar, some less so. For several thousand families, it means double-bunking or “couch surfing” with friends or relatives for an extended period. For a tragic number, it means living in a vehicle or even camping out in tents, shanties, parking garages, and downtown doorways, under highway overpasses, or on park benches.