The Founders feared them, and record numbers of Americans have declared independence from them.  In a country as large and diverse as ours, they've been a source of both unity and division, and our future and theirs seem as deeply intertwined as ever...

Justice. In a world that seems increasingly devoid of it, the meaning, and even continued existence, of justice have been brought into question as never before...

In 30+ years Gallup has asked Americans if they want government to do more, or less, have they said more. Yet in the case of the virtually all the issues we care most about, majorities of us want government's role to be expanded...

The definition of intoxication has many facets. Together these descriptors tell the story of a journey many Americans are on today, across many domains, one that may require novel expansions of our definitions of malady and treatment...

Years after Simon's "Mrs Robinson" became a hit, DiMaggio wanted to know what was meant by the lyric that referred to him. "I haven't gone anywhere; I'm right here." Simon explained that he just meant that heroes are hard to find  But heroes are everywhere--...

Eight score ago Abraham Lincoln wondered if a nation created out of an idea "could long endure." Can there be any doubt the welcoming and gathering together of those from all over the world who believe in that idea has been the most durable answer...

Geography is the science of place and America is a very big place.  Not surprisingly, in times of division, geography is often at the root of the divide, while the ways in which humanity rises above it to form common ground is our wellspring of hope...

Unity and union share the same root, but while appeals for unity are, too often, calls by "powers that be" to fall in line, unions are typically the product of contention. And yet, in the long run, more vital to unity than establishment appeals...

It's said one of the challenges in dealing with climate change is that it's so big it's hard for anyone to get their arms around it. That's because the climate in need of change goes far beyond the weather...