https://theweek.com/instant-opinion Fri, 17 Apr 2026 15:54:22 +0000 en https://theweek.com/politics/instant-opinion-technology-history-vaccines-war tGSsqGJbx46rGLP8CnYGcE Fri, 17 Apr 2026 15:54:22 +0000

‘Our longing for inconvenience’

Hanif Abdurraqib at The New Yorker

Longing for “Walkmans and VCRs is, of course, an offshoot of a larger obsession with the not-so-distant past,” says Hanif Abdurraqib. There is a “longing for some previous era, if not actually a desire to return to it.” The “yearning for the past often lands us on the somewhat hollow nostalgia of ephemera: if we can’t have the nineties back, we can build a life of things that might feel transportative,” and “convenience and inaction are often bedfellows.”

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‘History is running backwards’

David Brooks at The Atlantic

Many “thought that the world would get more democratic as it modernized, but for the past quarter century, we have seen a reversion to authoritarian strongmen,” says David Brooks. People “used to have a clear idea of where modernity was heading — toward greater autonomy and equality, secularism, stronger individual rights, cultural openness and liberal democracy.” Science and reason “would prosper while superstition and conspiracy-mongering would wither away.” But it “turns out that was yesterday’s vision of the future.”

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‘Yes, of course war settles things’

Rich Lowry at the National Review

There are “many things that can be said about the tragedy of warfare without crediting the blatantly ahistorical cliché that it is never the answer, or doesn’t solve disputed questions, often with a terrible finality,” says Rich Lowry. War can “determine international boundaries and the nature of governments.” It “might be pointless, or fought for prestige, revenge or territorial aggrandizement. That’s all true, but it doesn’t change the fact that military conflict is, at times, necessary.”

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‘Polio has no cure. The vaccine is the only way to save lives.’

Simone Blaser at USA Today

Making polio vaccines “optional is a bad idea. It’s also a dangerous one,” says Simone Blaser. There is “no cure for polio, but there is a way to prevent this terrible illness.” If the “polio vaccine becomes optional,” it “becomes a mathematical certainty that we will see a resurgence.” You “may believe your choice doesn’t affect others, but there is no way to know who in a community is unvaccinated, whose immune system is shoddy, or who is particularly vulnerable.”

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]]> https://theweek.com/politics/instant-opinion-surveillance-search-jackie-robinson-health-food-stamps czobrpKn9c82oGXZRnXw53 Thu, 16 Apr 2026 17:16:11 +0000 Thu, 16 Apr 2026 20:35:05 +0000

‘Congress has a rare chance to stop warrantless searches’

Noah Feldman at Bloomberg

As Americans “worry about total government surveillance in the age of AI and ICE, Congress has a rare opportunity to protect them from warrantless government searches,” says Noah Feldman. FISA Section 702 is “set to expire,” and the law “effectively permits the government to collect the private information of Americans indirectly.” A bipartisan bill “would close the most important loopholes in the current law.” Congress “can turn the public’s distrust of government surveillance” into “something productive.”

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‘Jackie Robinson’s legacy is more than a symbol. It’s a responsibility.’

Scott Reich at the San Francisco Chronicle

Jackie Robinson Day is “one of the most powerful traditions in American sports,” says Scott Reich. For “one day, the number is the same.” Jackie Robinson’s number, 42, “becomes everyone’s number.” But “while it’s easy to honor a number, it’s harder to fully appreciate what it signifies.” Robinson “did not simply break baseball’s color barrier,” he also “stepped into a country that had not yet decided whether it was ready for him.” His uniform “gave him a platform; he chose to use it.”

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‘Massachusetts health reform at 20: a model for what government can do’

Maura Healey and Mitt Romney at The Boston Globe

In 2006, Massachusetts politicians “came together to answer a question that long seemed unthinkable in Washington: Could we make health care coverage a reality for all?” say Massachusetts Gov. Maura Healey (D) and former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney (R). Massachusetts “proved to the nation that the answer was a resounding yes.” The “lessons of that day went well beyond the policy.” It was a “demonstration of what is possible when leaders of all perspectives come together, set aside partisanship and focus on solving real problems.”

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‘GOP food stamp work requirements hit just as jobs dry up’

Whitney Curry Wimbish at The American Prospect

Trump’s “One Big Beautiful Bill, trade wars and actual wars are coming together to maximize hunger in America,” says Whitney Curry Wimbish. The GOP’s “new work requirements for food stamps began in February, forcing more people to work at least 80 hours a month to get the benefit.” At the “same time, jobs are harder to find,” especially “low-wage jobs that food stamp beneficiaries should be able to turn to for the new requirement.”

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]]> https://theweek.com/politics/instant-opinion-battle-creek-university-pregnancy-vance 9bj3AZXGh244qXhWyK9y6G Wed, 15 Apr 2026 16:05:23 +0000

‘Battle Creek, a Rust Belt icon, battles back as American manufacturing jobs decline’

Chicago Tribune editorial board

For “generations, the Kellogg food company and Battle Creek, Michigan, went together like corn flakes and milk,” but “after decades as an independent public company, Kellogg split in two,” says the Chicago Tribune editorial board. Like “many other small industrial cities across the Midwest, Battle Creek is diversifying beyond its roots,” and its “resilience in the face of change shows that, under pressure, the Rust Belt’s factory towns can carve out a future based on their long-time strengths.”

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‘Universities must reinvent themselves for the intelligent age’

Klaus Schwab at Time

For “more than a century, universities have been among humanity’s most transformative institutions,” but the “world they helped create is now changing at unprecedented speed,” says Klaus Schwab. In the “‘Intelligent Age’ defined by the rise of artificial intelligence and quantum computing, education cannot remain preparation for life.” It “must become a continuous condition of life,” as “our culture is moving irreversibly from learning for life to lifelong learning.” This “demands systemic change across national education systems.”

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‘Why aren’t Republicans thrilled by the fall in teen pregnancies?’

Arwa Mahdawi at The Guardian

The “teenage birth rate in the U.S. fell by 7% in 2025,” and “while this might seem like a positive development, it has been a cause of dismay among the MAGA-adjacent crowd,” says Arwa Mahdawi. Republicans “aren’t just content with overturning the right to a safe and legal abortion; they’re also quietly undercutting access to contraception.” What’s “next? The party of ‘family values’ rallying behind child marriage? Oh, wait, they’ve already ticked that one off.”

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‘The ever-shrinking JD Vance’

Edward Luce at the Financial Times

The vice presidency “was not designed to be fun,” says Edward Luce. But “being Trump’s number two brings unique discomfort.” Defending “policies that often turn 180 degrees overnight — from vowing to destroy a civilization, say, to announcing a new golden age — requires pure acrobatics.” JD Vance “is flailing,” and “he is thus no longer Trump’s obvious successor.” Even “were Vance to regain his place in the Trumpian firmament, there is no such thing as a Vance base.”

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]]> https://theweek.com/politics/instant-opinion-swalwell-congress-fema-filibuster-lebanon czwDrDMczvtySi4QoU8ef5 Tue, 14 Apr 2026 16:14:06 +0000

‘Have these people learned nothing?’

Michelle Cottle at The New York Times

Eric Swalwell “had his political career blown up by allegations of degeneracy and abject stupidity,” says Michelle Cottle. Many lawmakers “fail to learn from the ruined careers of the past in part because those around them too often shrug off the whispers, red flags and glaringly bad behavior until some line gets crossed.” The “problem is less a ‘boys will be boys’ tolerance than a sense of resignation among politicians, staff and other members of official Washington.”

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‘Deportations are putting US disaster response at risk’

Yvette D. Clarke and Michael Shank at Newsweek

This year the U.S. “will be less equipped than in previous years to prevent, prepare for and respond to increasingly extreme weather,” say Yvette D. Clark and Michael Shank. The Trump administration made FEMA “less effective, less funded and less capable of helping Americans before, during and after a storm.” At the “same time, the administration’s immigration policies are shrinking the very workforce we rely on for disaster preparation, response and recovery.” The government “cannot operate in silos.”

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‘Debating busting the filibuster’

Dan McLaughlin at the National Review

Some are “not against the idea of using the levers of the congressional rules to create theatrical confrontations that can move the public to apply pressure to members of Congress,” says Dan McLaughlin. But this is “undermined by senators believing that their votes are not necessary to passage.” The Senate “is dysfunctional, and it should debate and engage publicly more.” The filibuster is “more destructive than the benefits to be gained by any particular public debate.”

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‘Lebanon’s resilience is celebrated, as if survival were admirable rather than imposed’

Tayma Saliba at Le Monde

In Lebanon, “staying informed is both a dependency and a necessity,” says Tayma Saliba. Between “international media, local journalists, rumors and content generated by artificial intelligence, young people become informal analysts, cross-referencing sources and explaining the situation to relatives abroad.” A “recurring discourse celebrates Lebanese resilience, as if survival were admirable rather than imposed.” This is “meant to recognize endurance but ends up normalizing suffering, suggesting that the situation is manageable.” But “survival is not acceptance.”

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]]> https://theweek.com/politics/instant-opinion-taxes-election-democrats-kalshi-women BEmDjGsqaim98wYEnmBr2G Mon, 13 Apr 2026 15:52:48 +0000

‘Hardly anyone checks this little box on their tax return. Why keep it?’

Adam Lashinsky at The Washington Post

There “was a time when nearly a third of U.S. taxpayers checked that little box on their income-tax returns authorizing the Internal Revenue Service to allocate $3 of their taxes” to “help pay for presidential campaigns,” says Adam Lashinsky. But now Americans “are — quite rationally — unwilling to fork over the cost of a Snickers bar to help elect the leader of their country.” Congress “ought to simply junk the checkoff as the relic it is.”

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‘Democrats need to start planning now for a return to power’

Symone D. Sanders Townsend at MS NOW

Democrats “are already talking about a wave election,” and “people are starting to ask: What would Democrats do with that power?” says Symone D. Sanders Townsend. It’s a “more important question now than ever because, this time, winning will come with more risk and more responsibility.” A Democratic win “will not just be a rejection of President Donald Trump. It will be an expectation that they can use power in a way that actually changes people’s lives.”

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‘Kalshi is half right about prediction markets and gambling’

Aaron Brown at Bloomberg

Kalshi CEO Tarek Mansour “has an argument why prediction markets shouldn't be regulated as gambling,” says Aaron Brown. Sportsbooks “profit from customer losses, making them structurally predatory. Kalshi, by contrast, operates as a peer-to-peer exchange.” He is “right about the business model distinction. He’s wrong that it answers the regulatory question.” What Mansour is “describing — a balanced book, fees on both sides, no house risk on outcomes — has been the operating model of sports betting, both legal and illegal.”

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‘Women’s brains are a $1 trillion opportunity’

Lisa Mosconi and George Vradenburg at Time

Nowhere is the “cost of ignoring women’s health more visible or more correctable than in the brain,” say Lisa Mosconi and George Vradenburg. Closing the “women’s health gap could add $1 trillion in annual incremental GDP to the global economy.” This should “reframe how every boardroom and budget office thinks about women’s health.” Researchers “need to mandate sex-disaggregated data and fund women-focused trials for brain disease,” and policymakers “need to recognize women’s brain health as a core input to labor force productivity.”

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]]> https://theweek.com/politics/instant-opinion-olympics-transgender-nuclear-africa-ai-newsroom zy3dCcWRPjdGAjEts4oio3 Fri, 10 Apr 2026 15:47:49 +0000

‘I’m a WNBA player. Don’t use athletes like me to exclude trans women.’

Brianna Turner at USA Today

The IOC “recently announced a binding policy requiring every woman who seeks to compete in the Olympics to undergo sex verification testing,” but the “final hurdle to represent your country should not be proving to a panel of strangers that you are the woman you say you are,” says Brianna Turner. This mandate “ignores established medical and human-rights guidance, and rejects the science that says physical appearance, chromosomes or individual traits do not determine athletic performance.”

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‘New England considers the nuclear option’

Andrew Fowler at The Wall Street Journal

A “bipartisan coalition of all six New England governors has reached a conclusion that until recently would have been politically unthinkable: renewable energy alone can’t deliver the affordable, reliable power the region needs,” says Andrew Fowler. Against “this backdrop, nuclear energy is re-emerging as a practical solution.” New England’s “nuclear facilities such as Connecticut’s Millstone Power Station help maintain grid stability,” but “regulatory barriers have long limited the development of new nuclear capacity.” That is “beginning to change.”

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‘Power, minerals and the AI race — America must win in Africa’

John Giordano at Newsweek

The United States “must secure the critical mineral and energy supply chains that advance economic prosperity,” says John Giordano. One “such jurisdiction, and potentially one of the most consequential on the African continent, is Namibia.” The country is a “model for governance and stability on the continent, operating with regulatory frameworks capable of supporting large-scale development.” It “holds an outsized position on the global minerals and energy map,” but “supply security ultimately rests on infrastructure.”

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‘The ethics of using AI in newsrooms: a work in progress’

Jim Boren at The Seattle Times

The public is “looking for clear guidance on how newsrooms are using AI to report the news,” but “most news organizations are still developing their policies, and few have fully resolved these complex questions,” says Jim Boren. AI “can free journalists to focus more on investigation, verification and storytelling,” but “most newsrooms draw a firm line: AI should not be used to write stories.” This “reflects a broader concern that AI systems can produce convincing but inaccurate or misleading information.”

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]]> https://theweek.com/politics/instant-opinion-meta-google-texas-hungary-smoking YmLWEkzhRLWECXhLNhVtgE Thu, 09 Apr 2026 18:57:04 +0000

‘What the verdict against Meta and Google says about the way we live now’

Jeannie Suk Gersen at The New Yorker

For “decades, the understanding was that social media companies were essentially immune from legal liability,” says Jeannie Suk Gersen. If parents “have in the past felt they were competing with bad influences on children — questionable friends, shady neighbors or profanity-laced music among them — the core anxiety in this era is that algorithms have made it so that there is no competition at all, undermining parents’ opportunity to steer their children right.”

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‘In Texas and beyond, a political impulse: If you don’t like it, leave.’

Mark Z. Barabak at the Los Angeles Times

There is “no end of hurdles” that “would have to be surmounted for a partial Texas-New Mexico merger to occur,” says Mark Z. Barabak. But the “impulse to bust up, break away and move on is as old as America itself and, at the same time, as fresh as the latest provocation to pass the lips of the nation’s frothing commander-in-chief.” Secession “has long been the dream of dissenters, of the discontented and those who feel put upon.”

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‘Freedom itself is at stake in Hungary’

Martin Wolf at the Financial Times

Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán is “not a man of small influence,” and “for many so-called ‘national conservatives,’ notably in the U.S., he defines a successful and admirable form of right-wing politics,” says Martin Wolf. That “makes the parliamentary elections on Sunday far more important than the modest size of Hungary would suggest.” The “defeat of the man who embraced the notion of ‘illiberal democracy’ might mean a great deal for the survival of the threatened ‘liberal’ version.”

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‘Less than 10% now smoke, but we’re still far from finished’

Mario Danek at The Hill

The U.S. “crossed a milestone that sounds like the beginning of the end for cigarette smoking: Fewer than 10% of American adults now smoke,” says Mario Danek. But “percentages can obscure as much as they reveal.” Even at “9.9%, that still represents tens of millions of Americans who continue to smoke.” The “progress is real and should be applauded. But the harder question is what it will take to reach those still smoking and whether we’re ready for that.”

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]]> https://theweek.com/politics/instant-opinion-nasa-artemis-deepfakes-native-americans-college Umc7orcRbaoDX9NA8ZoA89 Wed, 08 Apr 2026 16:22:33 +0000

‘The ripple effects of NASA’s Artemis mission could be bigger than you think’

Scott Solomon at The Washington Post

“As influential” as Apollo’s “developments were for the second half of the 20th century, NASA’s Artemis program could eventually be more consequential,” says Scott Solomon. A “major objective” is to “develop and test technologies enabling a sustained presence in space that is less reliant on resupply missions from Earth,” and the “ripple effects of these plans will echo long into the future.” If “subsequent generations are born on other worlds,” they “could evolve into new human species.”

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‘Deepfake nudes are haunting America’s teens’

Jessica Grose at The New York Times

The “creation of deepfake nudes of minors” is “arguably much worse now that AI image generation tools are ubiquitous, and the images they create are even more realistic,” says Jessica Grose. Social media companies “could be doing a far better job of prioritizing the problem.” Parents can “have a conversation with your children about the fact that AI with nudifying capabilities exists,” but it “should not be the responsibility of individual parents to patrol the entire internet.”

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‘Are Native Americans birthright citizens? It’s no April Fool’s joke.’

Paul Rosier at The Philadelphia Inquirer

Pending “court decisions loom large in the debate over Native people’s ability to exercise their American citizenship to protect their Indigenous citizenship,” says Paul Rosier. Native Americans “have fought hard throughout the 20th century and into the 21st to first gain, and then defend, those dual citizenship rights.” At stake “for Native people is their ability to challenge threats to long-standing treaty rights, which preserve their ancestral homelands, cultural identity and religious freedom, their ability to be both Native and American.”

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‘The disillusioned college grads turning to the labor movement’

Robin Kaiser-Schatzlein at The New Republic

The “story of a highly educated yet disillusioned generation has been told repeatedly since roughly 2011,” says Robin Kaiser-Schatzlein. Why “are unions now appealing to the college-educated?” Many “college grads assumed they would work in jobs that harnessed their passions.” One “appeal of unions for the college-educated is the crumbling of the narrative that pushed people into universities: Upon close inspection, the story about college being an unimpeded good begins to look more like a fairy tale.”

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]]> https://theweek.com/politics/instant-opinion-ice-latinos-malls-nursing-homes-china 9QFdZEj5Jbywq7AMohTSYk Tue, 07 Apr 2026 19:58:10 +0000

‘Why Latinos join ICE’

Geraldo L. Cadava at The Atlantic

People have “treated the phenomenon of Latino border agents as something of a puzzle,” says Geraldo L. Cadava. Some have “argued that these Latinos come to embrace the mission of the Border Patrol through the process of socialization during training,” but a “simpler explanation is that Latinos who join ICE believe in the enforcement of immigration laws and that they are protecting, not antagonizing, their communities.” But this “of course doesn’t mean that other Latinos accept their logic.”

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‘The mall was an American experience. Not anymore.’

Blake Fontenay at USA Today

There was a “time, not so long ago, when malls felt like the centers of the cultural and social universe in American towns across the country,” says Blake Fontenay. Malls “used to be like watering holes on the Serengeti, where all sorts of creatures would gather and learn to coexist.” Time “has moved on. Consumer habits have changed,” but as “progress marches forward, we need to take stock of what we may be leaving behind.”

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‘To save lives in nursing homes, make inspections random’

Margaret Morganroth Gullette at The Boston Globe

Nursing homes “tend to increase staffing levels and expend more effort on patient care as a government inspection looms and cut back afterward,” says Margaret Morganroth Gullette. But the “predictability of inspections influences the homes’ timing: they’ll do what they need to do to clean up and then go back to business as usual.” Sending out “inspectors randomly would be a simple fix.” Another solution “could be to focus the surprise inspections on the homes with the most complaints.”

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‘Trump’s new cyber strategy is catnip for Beijing’

Ahana Datta Fasel at Foreign Policy

Even “best-in-class cyber capabilities rarely stay contained, and once exposed, they move rapidly,” says Ahana Datta Fasel. But Donald Trump’s “new six-pillar national cyber strategy” doubles down “on this risk, elevating offensive cyber operations as Washington’s primary instrument of deterrence.” This is a “dangerous gamble — one that Beijing, which has emerged as the prime cyber adversary to the United States, will see not just as an escalation but also as a legitimization of its own destabilizing posture.”

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]]> https://theweek.com/politics/instant-opinion-prison-reform-pam-bondi-growth-germany-iran eBn9vjTHdBtCja4Fg5HTrP Mon, 06 Apr 2026 15:26:04 +0000

‘Second chances cannot be reserved for the privileged few’

Ken Oliver at Newsweek

Americans “see themselves as believers in second chances,” but for “millions of ordinary people with arrest or conviction records, there is no comparable second chance,” says Ken Oliver. Every “April, Second Chance Month asks Americans to consider a simple question: What should happen after justice has been served?” In “theory, the answer is straightforward: a person is held accountable, pays their debt to society and then has the opportunity to move forward.” In “practice, that’s rarely how it works.”

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‘The embarrassing lesson of Pam Bondi’s confirmation hearing’

Mary McCord at MS NOW

Maybe “now that Pam Bondi is gone, she will reflect on where and why she went astray,” says Mary McCord. Having “seen Bondi promote Donald Trump’s fraudulent election claims on Fox TV and elsewhere,” many were “dubious about her ability to uphold the ideals of the Department of Justice.” Some have “wondered whether Bondi’s supporters at that hearing have had regrets as they’ve watched her actions over the past 14 months stray far from their predictions.”

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‘Why the next era of growth must be built around humans’

Piyachart (Arm) Isarabhakdee at Time

While “seeds might be healthy and sunlight is abundant, without the conditions for roots to take hold, growth can never happen,” and the “same goes for today’s economy,” says Piyachart (Arm) Isarabhakdee. Capitalism’s “initial objective was productivity expansion,” but “today growth, modeled by GDP, often driven by manufacturing output, does not automatically translate into better living conditions, well-being or happiness.” Too “often, it has, in fact, widened inequality and accelerated environmental degradation.”

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‘How the German right sees Iran’

Filip Gaspar at The American Conservative

The Iran war “has become a test for Germany’s strategic independence and economic resilience,” and “Germany, so far, appears to be failing the test,” says Filip Gaspar. As Germans “debate the issue and reconsider past policy choices, no party has seized the moment more deliberately than the Alternative for Germany, now one of the strongest political forces and the clearest nationalist challenge to Berlin’s governing consensus.” This is “yet another sign of deeper disorder within the Western alliance.”

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]]> https://theweek.com/politics/instant-opinion-lebanon-icc-meloni-canada-journalism rNagFhEBTMJJYbyuQXUWBA Fri, 03 Apr 2026 15:30:40 +0000

‘Why Lebanon should join the International Criminal Court’

Mark Kersten at Al Jazeera

What “will international law have to say about the violence and atrocities being waged against the Lebanese people?” says Mark Kersten. The “answer will depend in large part on whether Lebanon finally decides, as Palestine did, to join the International Criminal Court (ICC).” The ICC can “offer a modicum of accountability for war crimes and crimes against humanity committed in Lebanon.” This “would also provide Lebanese citizens with an independent, impartial and international forum.”

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‘How Giorgia Meloni fell to Earth’

Anna Momigliano at The New York Times

For “three years, Giorgia Meloni’s leadership of Italy has seemed unshakable,” says Anna Momigliano. Since the “beginning of Mr. Trump’s second term, she has positioned herself as someone who can curry his favor and avoid his retaliations.” But as Trump’s “popularity craters to new lows in Europe, and the continent begins to find a backbone in its dealings with him, Ms. Meloni is discovering that being a favorite of the U.S. president can be a liability, too.”

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‘We should stop trying to copy unhappy America’

Linda McQuaig at the Toronto Star

Canada has “declined all the way down to the 25th spot when it comes to something that’s really important — happiness,” says Linda McQuaid. In “many ways, happiness is a more meaningful measure of our overall national success than the always-highlighted economic measure of GDP per capita.” Debate is “dominated by talk of how Canada measures up economically, whether we’re as rich as the United States.” The “focus is rarely on whether” Canada’s “social supports are strong enough.”

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‘Like journalists, prosecutors shaped a distorted view of crime. They can help fix it, too.’

Kelly McBride at the Poynter Institute

Journalists “have misled the public about crime and are now trying to correct the problem,” and “prosecuting attorneys have been guilty of many of the same sins,” says Kelly McBride. Both “talk about crime mostly when a crime has occurred.” These “journalists and prosecutors (and police, too) inadvertently reinforce the public perception that crime is a constant, growing threat — even though we know the opposite is true.” This “shapes how people understand their own safety and the policies they support.”

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]]> https://theweek.com/tech/instant-opinion-ai-birthright-citizenship-missiles-aoc-israel RqgU7eL8pkZEKJECs7Trhg Thu, 02 Apr 2026 19:31:06 +0000 Thu, 02 Apr 2026 19:41:06 +0000

‘When capital can think, who pays?’

Ravi Kumar S, Andreea Roberts and Simone Crymes at Newsweek

In the U.S., AI adoption is “growing at a remarkable pace,” but Americans are “concerned” about “layoffs tied to automation,” say Ravi Kumar S, Andreea Roberts and Simone Crymes. So how should “public policy support” the transition? One answer: a “shift in how automation is taxed relative to human labor.” If capital is “taxed more and labor less, replacing people with AI is no longer the cheapest path,” and using AI to “augment human workers” instead “becomes a more attractive option.”

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‘Birthright citizenship made me American. We can't lose it.’

Cynthia Choi at USA Today

On his “first day back in office,” Trump issued an executive order “seeking to deny citizenship to certain U.S.-born children,” says Cynthia Choi. But birthright citizenship is as “fundamental” to our country as “freedom of speech.” This is “not some isolated policy debate.” It’s a “broader effort by the Trump administration to put an end to multiracial democracy.” Children without citizenship will be denied “access to education, public benefits and the basic rights that come with belonging.”

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‘Missile warfare is faster, deadlier and harder to control’

Hal Brands at Bloomberg

The Iran conflict “demonstrates how the spread of powerful, accurate missiles is changing warfare around the globe,” says Hal Brands. Even “relatively weak states now have fairly accurate weapons that can strike hundreds, even thousands, of miles away.” This means “fewer sanctuaries: Facilities and geographies that were once secure are now vulnerable to attack.” That could be “challenging” for the U.S., since “even relatively weak adversaries will be able to hold U.S. bases, perhaps even the homeland, at risk.”

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‘AOC finally takes a position that makes sense on military aid to Israel’

Zeeshan Aleem at MS Now

On Tuesday, Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.), who “struggled to take a clear position on supporting Israel in the past,” pledged to vote “against all military aid to Israel,” says Zeeshan Aleem. This was a “striking shift for a potential 2028 White House hopeful who, should she enter the race, would be the standard bearer for the democratic socialist left.” Her decision “does not just reflect demands on the left but the changing dynamics of the Democratic Party.”

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]]> https://theweek.com/politics/instant-opinion-tiger-woods-latin-america-save-act-april-fools VTEmmmP946RVe397e5SPMa Wed, 01 Apr 2026 18:10:41 +0000

‘The tragic tale of Tiger Woods’

Jason L. Riley at The Wall Street Journal

Tiger Woods was “involved in another car accident,” and the “question is why he continues to drive himself (literally and figuratively) when his legacy is secure, he has nothing left to prove and his body keeps telling him it has had enough,” says Jason L. Riley. People watch “hero athletes handle all that pressure on the field, and they make it seem effortless. It isn’t.” Professional athletes “face inner demons as the rest of us do.”

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‘In Latin America, China’s Silk Road Ark is sunk’

Arturo McFields at The Hill

Latin American tours “by Chinese and U.S. warships demonstrates once again that a clear geopolitical, commercial and military battle exists between the two powers — and Beijing is losing it,” says Arturo McFields. While “China is the leading trade partner for most South American countries, the U.S. is showing to be, by far, the region’s primary ally in matters of security and the fight against organized crime.” A “challenging task is still ahead but the U.S. is winning.”

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‘The Save Act must be defeated. But it’s just one step in the fight to protect American voting.’

Austin Sarat at The Guardian

Donald Trump is “going all out to pressure the Senate to pass the Safeguard American Voter Eligibility Act,” which “would make voting even more onerous than it already is,” says Austin Sarat. The act is a “solution in search of a problem, since fraudulent voting by non-citizens almost never happens in this country.” And “while it is unlikely to pass the Senate, it represents a dramatic shift in the federal government’s attitude toward voting.”

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‘In defense of April Fools’ Day’

Sarah Dalgleish at Slate

In “reshaping our idea of what a prank can be, I want to rebrand April Fools’ Day as a holiday, like so many others, in which gifts are exchanged and appreciated,” says Sarah Dalgleish. People “live in a time of malleable reality, in which our understanding of the world keeps shifting so quickly and so implausibly that it often feels like the wrong kind of hoax.” But “playing with reality can also relieve emotional distress instead of inflicting it.”

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]]> https://theweek.com/politics/instant-opinion-glp-1s-gen-z-wnba-voters h73CD2Hhw3i8oN8BbioyoF Tue, 31 Mar 2026 15:55:22 +0000

‘How risky can the weight loss drug boom be? I learned the hard way.’

Jimmie Wilson at The Washington Post

GLP-1 popularity “has also fueled a thriving market for unregulated copycat versions,” and “most patients have no idea how risky these knockoff drugs can be,” says Jimmie Wilson. What “many doctors may not know is that compounded drugs and name-brand drugs are not the same.” Compounding pharmacies “exist to make custom formulations for patients who can’t take branded medications.” They “were not intended, nor are they equipped, to safely mass-produce drugs such as” GLP-1s.

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‘Did Gen Z show up to this “No Kings” protest? Sort of.’

Haley Taylor Schlitz at The Minnesota Star Tribune

It is “easy to ask, ‘Where was Gen Z?’ in a way that sounds like an accusation, as some have done after previous ‘No Kings’ protests,” says Haley Taylor Schlitz. For “young people, public outrage has rarely arrived as a singular moral awakening.” It is “not whether Gen Z wants a king,” but many “have been politically formed by an era in which speeches, protests and hashtags too often end the same way: with emotional release and too little change.”

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‘The WNBA is taking off. What took so long?’

Keia Clarke at Time

The WNBA’s “cultural and economic influence can no longer be denied,” says Keia Clarke. WNBA players “are set to become some of the highest-paid women athletes in the world,” and “that kind of growth prompts a harder question: why did it take so long?” From the “beginning, there was optimism and real conviction about what women’s basketball could become. But belief and scale are not the same thing.” Fans “can’t invest in what they don’t see or what they don’t understand.”

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‘The problem isn’t Washington. It’s us.’

Eugene Scott at The Boston Globe

Viewing “fellow citizens’ ethics and morals negatively is a logical conclusion after the electorate has continued to elect leaders who most people view negatively,” says Eugene Scott. It is “not unreasonable to conclude that people who support unethical leaders must have poor ethics themselves.” But lawmakers are “not primarily products of Washington. They are a reflection of the people and communities who sent them there.” If “you want to change Washington, you have to change your neighborhood.”

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]]> https://theweek.com/politics/instant-opinion-cherry-blossoms-homes-ai-baby-boomers Zm4yJpeK9HUuRp6ULq5Lf Mon, 30 Mar 2026 15:28:32 +0000

‘Cherry blossoms in DC highlight deep-rooted friendship with Japan’

Stewart D. McLaurin at USA Today

The “Japanese cherry blossoms around Washington, D.C., remind Americans that some of the most enduring connections between nations often begin with simple gestures that carry lasting meaning — like the gifting of trees,” says Stewart D. McLaurin. A recent ceremony symbolized the “first of 250 new trees Japan is donating to celebrate America’s 250th anniversary.” Moments of “ceremony and hospitality have marked U.S.-Japan diplomacy for more than a century and a half.”

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‘Democrats need a new promise: a house by 30’

Rotimi Adeoye at The New York Times

The “Trump administration has declared that it is ‘bringing back the American dream of homeownership,’” but is “doing little to make it a reality,” says Rotimi Adeoye. Politicians “can offer a simple promise: Anyone who works, pays taxes and plays by the rules should have a realistic path to buying a first home by age 30.” The “political benefits for the Democratic Party could be large,” as “housing will be a central issue in 2028.”

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‘AI deepfakes of girls are flooding schools. Teachers need more training to help stop it.’

Emma Le and Stephanie Choi at the San Francisco Chronicle

Deepfakes are a “dire issue in high schools full of digital natives: 98% of AI-generated content online is explicit deepfakes, and 40% of high school students know of deepfakes of themselves or their classmates,” say Emma Le and Stephanie Choi. While “protections exist, students still have little way of knowing whether they apply to them.” This gap “stems not from indifference but rather a lack of resources and guidance to address the scope of the deepfake problem among students.”

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‘Aging boomers will jam ERs — why it’s about to get worse’

Tom Wolzien at Newsweek

Patients are “increasingly stuck in the ER when they should have been moved ‘upstairs’ in the hospital,” and “increasingly, baby boomers will remain in those beds due to a lack of skilled nursing and assisted living facilities,” says Tom Wolzien. This “ripple effect will get much worse throughout the health care system.” This “could leave you, your spouse or your child in that ER hallway because when we boomers have nowhere to go, you will have nowhere to go.”

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]]> https://theweek.com/politics/instant-opinion-hoppers-ai-dating-golden-dome qRAhhCUUPkvjqstTpR4qWH Fri, 27 Mar 2026 15:45:04 +0000

‘A radical message for a kids’ movie’

David Sims at The Atlantic

If some kids' movies are “progressive allegories of beings transcending their differences, then ‘Hoppers’ is a surprisingly blunt pushback to that notion,” says David Sims. Its “advertising promises goofy hijinks amid an enclave of diverse species whose ecosystem is threatened by humans,” but the “movie, in actuality, is refreshingly mordant about what might really happen if prey and predators were to try banding together: Their efforts would immediately devolve into a despairing, even political quagmire.”

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‘The tech bubble might finally be popping’

Nitish Pahwa at Slate

The “AI bubble might finally be on the verge of popping,” says Nitish Pahwa. OpenAI is “shutting down its video-generation model, Sora — just six months after launching a dedicated mobile app, and just three months after inking a deal with Disney.” A “highly capitalized AI startup that bails on one of its most prominent creations and largest corporate deals so soon after hyping them up for months on end is not in a good position as a business.”

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‘A myth about dating troubles for high-earning women’

Paul Eastwick at The Boston Globe

When it “comes to the decline in men’s education prospects and the relationship recession, progressive and conservative commentators alike have achieved a rare consensus: They say the first trend explains the second one — because when men are less successful than women, they won’t fall for each other.” But there are “glaring problems with this take.” The “size of a person’s salary has tiny effects on romantic appeal and marital well-being, regardless of gender.”

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‘The Pentagon needs to give better answers on its “Golden Dome”’

Bloomberg editorial board

Legislators “tucked an unusual provision into the recently passed $839 billion defense appropriations bill, demanding answers from the Pentagon on its proposed ‘Golden Dome’ missile defense project,” says the Bloomberg editorial board. If “White House officials want this program to succeed, they shouldn’t just accept the need for greater transparency; they should embrace it.” Undue “secrecy over the program risks raising both expectations and fears unnecessarily,” and the “administration risks becoming a victim of its own hype.”

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]]> https://theweek.com/politics/instant-opinion-weather-social-media-water-marijuana UcifNdpKcQn2PFpGmxmJ4H Thu, 26 Mar 2026 15:41:03 +0000 Thu, 26 Mar 2026 15:43:08 +0000

‘Why you hate your weather app’

Kyle Chayka at The New Yorker

Weather apps “might be second only to social media as a space in need of fresh disruption,” says Kyle Chayka. These apps “have a tendency to alienate their user bases, perhaps because people’s physical experiences — their plans, their dress, their commutes — so directly depend on an accurate report.” But the “challenge of weather app creation lies both in the improbability of accurately predicting the weather and in the difficulty of designing something that works for any user.”

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‘Suing social media won’t protect our kids’

Nicholas Creel at Newsweek

Verdicts against Meta “are being celebrated as a landmark reckoning in the long effort to hold Big Tech accountable for the youth mental health crisis it helped create,” says Nicholas Creel. But “these lawsuits will not protect our children from the harms of social media.” The “desire to sue social media giants is understandable; the anger at them is justified,” but a “damages award against Meta does not redesign the algorithm that exposes children to harmful content.”

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‘Water infrastructure in Texas is failing. A surge of new funding can fix it.’

Lajward Zahra at The Nation

How “does Houston, Texas, lose more than 30 billion gallons of water a year? With the entire state facing scarcity, the cause isn’t drought alone,” says Lajward Zahra. Infrastructure problems have “made daily life feel unmanageable,” prompting a “community-led coalition that helped shape deliberations over Proposition 4, a constitutional amendment that would authorize up to $20 billion over two decades for water infrastructure.” The proposition “exposed a gap between Texas’ political branding and what voters will support.”

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‘Americans now use marijuana more often than alcohol. Is this the new sobriety?’

Tom Greene at The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

A “strange thing is happening, given our national love of booze. U.S. alcohol consumption is dropping faster than Prince Harry’s approval ratings,” says Tom Greene. But when “alcohol consumption goes down, something else will replace it,” and “nearly 18 million Americans now use marijuana almost daily.” Marijuana is “mainstream, even where it’s not legal for recreational use.” Some people “suspect we will see states that legalized marijuana pull back in the next few years.”

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]]> https://theweek.com/politics/instant-opinion-hormuz-agriculture-education-corporations-congress KQZze9MLFmWUWMzrnGLqCi Wed, 25 Mar 2026 16:39:55 +0000

‘Hormuz fertilizer block will upend world’s food production’

Chris Krebs at the Financial Times

Before the “first strike on Iran, the global food system was already running on reduced redundancy,” says Chris Krebs, and the Strait of Hormuz closure “isn’t breaking a healthy system. It is breaking one that was already compromised.” The “food security clock runs in months,” but the “geopolitical clock runs in years.” If “fertilizer isn’t moving through the Strait of Hormuz in two weeks’ time, we won’t be debating any more, we’ll be sending in aid.”

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‘Education decisions aren’t inevitable. They are rooted in history.’

Erika M. Kitzmiller at The Philadelphia Inquirer

Cities like Philadelphia have “always had choices — choices to enact educational policies and practices that replicate inequality or to pursue alternatives that disrupt it,” says Erika M. Kitzmiller. Too “many times in our city’s history, those with power have chosen the former.” The city’s “current challenges — shrinking school enrollments, outdated school facilities and persistent resource disparities — did not suddenly appear in the 21st century.” They “have a long history marked by injustice and disinvestment.”

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‘Why corporate America is coming home to the heartland’

Derek Kreifels at the National Review

For “decades, a handful of states such as Delaware, with its hospitable corporate law, and California, Illinois and New York, with their capital resources, held too strong a grip on the American corporate engine,” says Derek Kreifels. But taxes are “harming innovation, growth and the economic prospects of the people who live there.” As a “result, we are now witnessing a historic migration, as some of America’s most iconic companies pack their bags and head for the heartland.”

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‘Congress can’t protect radio without protecting artists’

Michael Huppe at The Hill

There is a “question for Congress: What good is radio without music?” says Michael Huppe. There are “thousands of artists across America” whose “performances are the product that AM and FM radio use to earn nearly $14 billion in advertising revenue each year.” But “unlike every other democracy, the U.S. still does not require radio corporations to pay the artists for that privilege.” Congress can pass “bills protecting AM radio in every vehicle and protecting the artists who make every recording.”

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]]> https://theweek.com/politics/instant-opinion-airports-housing-israel-lebanon-snl bdQa7SEHor9A3kRGkou88g Tue, 24 Mar 2026 15:29:40 +0000

‘America’s airport problems need to be fixed now’

Chicago Tribune editorial board

The U.S. “cannot function with travelers stuck in security lines for three and four hours,” says the Chicago Tribune editorial board. TSA employees “cannot be expected to go weeks or months without paychecks they need to pay their bills,” and ICE agents “have a job to do other than looking inside travelers’ bags and checking identification, tasks for which they are not directly trained.” Americans “have the right to expect their government to take care of these things.”

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‘Affordable housing is possible, if we stop ignoring the obvious’

Sam Raus at USA Today

American cities are “short on housing yet full of unused space,” says Sam Raus. With “nearly a quarter of the workforce going remote, and no amount of return-to-office mandates likely to change this trend, it’s time for cities to repurpose these empty buildings to meet the demands of the moment.” Turning “cubicles into apartment complexes for those who still live in cities would require state and local politicians approaching zoning policies, building codes and taxation with fresh eyes.”

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‘Israel’s displacement of civilians in Lebanon is a possible war crime’

Nadia Hardman at Al Jazeera

Israel’s “attacks in Lebanon — and the threat of more to come — have caused more than a million people to flee their homes,” but the “laws of war stipulate that civilians cannot be forced to leave their homes unless imperative military reasons dictate,” says Nadia Hardman. The “evacuation must be temporary, and people must be allowed to return once the hostilities end. In short, war is not a license to expel people from their land.”

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‘With Tina Fey as first host, “SNL UK” kicked off with familiar skits and very British humor’

Robert Lloyd at the Los Angeles Times

After “50 years of being practically synonymous with New York City, ‘Saturday Night Live’ has opened the door to London with ‘Saturday Night Live U.K.,’ following in the steps of ‘Law & Order U.K.’ and possibly nothing else,” says Robert Lloyd. Of “all the cities in the world that might conceivably replicate the spirit of the NBC original, the British capital, with its urban dynamism, media concentration and 20,000 comedians, feels like the obvious, and perhaps only, choice.”

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]]> https://theweek.com/politics/instant-opinion-afroman-iran-doctors-climate-change EZEyvhi2c3Yb2CirgZsKp8 Mon, 23 Mar 2026 16:24:30 +0000

‘Afroman: American patriot’

Greg Lukianoff and Adam Goldstein at The Washington Post

Rapper Afroman “demonstrated in often hilarious fashion why America’s commitment to freedom of speech is the dread of tyrants big and small,” say Greg Lukianoff and Adam Goldstein. Police officers “raided his rural Ohio home in 2022,” and Afroman “responded the way artists have responded to being wronged since time immemorial: turning it into art.” A “country is free when the citizen mocks the state actors who harmed him and the system defends his right to do it.”

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‘Trump’s video game war: AI, memes and a simplistic narrative have flattened the conflict in Iran’

Nesrine Malik at The Guardian

The “war on Iran, even as it spreads and destabilizes the Middle East and the global economy, is not real. This is how it is being portrayed by the Trump administration,” says Nesrine Malik. The “war is a video game, a spectator sport, a social media festival of dunking,” and the “architects of this war have made a virtue out of stupidity.” The conflict “feels like the first of its kind in the modern age: distinctly remote and profoundly ignorant.”

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‘Doctors should be paid to keep patients healthy’

Ashish K. Jha and Thomas C. Tsai at The Boston Globe

Experience “points to a promising idea that has been at the center of health care reform for more than a decade: Instead of paying doctors and hospitals for every test and procedure they perform, pay them for keeping patients healthy,” say Ashish K. Jha and Thomas C. Tsai. In this “model, called value-based care, doctors and hospitals are paid based on the health outcomes they achieve and the overall cost of caring for their patients.”

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‘Energy crises must accelerate the fight against climate change’

Le Monde editorial board

As the “U.S.-Israeli war against Iran enters its third week, hopes for a short, contained crisis without major consequences for the global energy market have faded,” says the Le Monde editorial board. But the “absence of supply disruptions should not obscure the main point.” The “structural vulnerability of our economies to imported crises remains, now manifesting through price volatility, strategic uncertainty and the weakening of industrial supply chains.” This is “what makes this crisis different and politically decisive.”

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]]> https://theweek.com/politics/instant-opinion-banksy-art-farms-world-medicine 7FAJVPJF46a3N7DtBhdKuB Fri, 20 Mar 2026 15:30:04 +0000

‘Banky’s anonymity is what gives — gave? — his art its power’

Allison Schrager at Bloomberg

The “revelation that the artist Banksy is a 50-something man from Bristol, England, named Robin Gunningham” might “be the ultimate test of what actually determines value in contemporary art,” says Allison Schrager. Art insiders “are speculating that the news will increase the value of Banksy’s work. That line of thinking tracks with the fact that markets hate uncertainty, and now there is more clarity.” But Banksy’s “art is not like a stock option or any other commodity.”

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‘The farm bill, in its current state, is a public health failure’

Lyndon Haviland at The Hill

Congress is “trying to pass a long-overdue farm bill as lawmakers debate where, and how, billions in taxpayer resources should be allocated,” says Lyndon Haviland. But “those involved in shaping the current legislation seem to be more interested in protecting special interests than advancing the bill’s primary objectives: establishing a healthy food system, supporting a wide group of farmers who supply it and ensuring all Americans have access to a safe and nutritious food supply.”

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‘Great powers can learn from small island states’

José Ulisses de Pina Correia e Silva at Newsweek

Small island countries are “uniquely placed to navigate today’s changing world,” says Cape Verde Prime Minister José Ulisses de Pina Correia e Silva. Their “size and focused economies, rather than making them vulnerable, have made many capable of addressing global economic shocks and thrive as the shift occurs from the ‘globalization generation’ to a new arena of great power play.” Small size “also means economic expansion is focused on the practical,” with “no room for overpromising.”

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‘Medical students and doctors aren’t supposed to do invasive exams on surgery patients without permission. My research found it’s still happening. Here’s what should be done.’

Phoebe Friesen at the Toronto Star

The “practice of medical students performing pelvic exams on anesthetized patients without their consent has had a lot of press in recent years — at least in the United States,” says Phoebe Friesen. But in Canada “nonconsensual educational sensitive exams” are “alive and well.” It is “time for Canada to get clear on consent for educational sensitive exams under anesthesia,” and “time for medical schools across the country to implement policies ensuring explicit consent takes place before each educational exam.”

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]]> https://theweek.com/politics/instant-opinion-business-youth-nfl-pentagon-refugees-college hdo64LCmKP6fgMoo5gwNYh Thu, 19 Mar 2026 15:32:03 +0000

‘So you want to be a millionaire? Don’t wait until you’re 20.’

Emil Barr at The Wall Street Journal

If you’re a “20-something and plan to get a few years of experience before taking a real swing at entrepreneurship, you’re already late,” says Emil Barr. The “best age to become an entrepreneur is between 18 and 21.” Venture capitalists “often see young blockchain and artificial-intelligence developers as more competent than those in their 50s” and “those are great industries in which to build a business.” In “fast-moving environments, native fluency can outperform seniority. But that window doesn’t stay open indefinitely.”

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‘The NFL ought to throw a flag on the Pentagon. Here’s why it probably won’t.’

Kevin B. Blackistone at MS NOW

Given its “history of promoting the U.S. military, we shouldn’t be surprised that the NFL has not publicly demanded that the Trump administration cease its callous use of game footage to promote its war against Iran,” says Kevin B. Blackistone. The NFL’s “silence is disingenuous at best or hypocritical at worst given the disclaimer we hear at the end of its games: ‘Any rebroadcast or other use of this telecast without the express written consent of the NFL is prohibited.’”

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‘US promised safety. A nearly blind refugee died cold and alone.’

Khin Mai Aung at USA Today

Rohingya refugee Nurul Amin Shah Alam “represents yet another profound systemic failure in our nation’s treatment of immigrants and refugees,” says Khin Mai Aung. Shah Alam “was detained by U.S. Customs and Border Protection, and then dropped off in the middle of the night outside a closed local cafe in February,” and “later found dead.” It “has been a painful road to realize that our country of adoption may not ultimately be safer or more inclusive than our countries of origin.”

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‘Ivy Leaguers are getting their “MRS” degrees’

Grey Battle at Slate

Ivy Leaguers “have classmates who came back from summer vacation married. This is “different from the story usually told about the Ivy League,” says Grey Battle. These students are “chasing marriage with the same intensity they would approach any status symbol — high school book awards, college likely letters, six-figure jobs after graduation.” Universities “will always have students who are engaged, married or parenting, but their numbers are on the rise.” Some are “directly pushing young straight people to marry.”

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]]> https://theweek.com/politics/instant-opinion-girls-sports-meta-economy-ukraine umeo2xMZP7TwxhpZC2qDBk Wed, 18 Mar 2026 16:56:58 +0000

‘Girls’ sports are getting more physical’

Alexandra Moe at The Atlantic

Physical contact in “women’s sports remains controversial,” but girls “seem to be more interested than ever in contact,” says Alexandra Moe. At U.S. high schools “last academic year, more girls played on teams for wrestling than field hockey, gymnastics or dance.” Girls’ “participation in such sports is growing so quickly in part because it’s starting from a small denominator,” and may “appeal to a rising cultural sense that women and girls can — and should — bulk up.”

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‘Meta’s smart glasses are a privacy risk invisible to Chicagoans’

Yunus Emre Tozal at the Chicago Tribune

Meta’s “smart glasses problem is a legibility problem,” says Yunus Emre Tozal. Walking through a city “today, you cannot tell who around you is recording.” This is “not a hypothetical privacy risk. It is an active data pipeline running through one of the most documented failures of AI labor ethics on record, operating at scale in every city where 7 million pairs of glasses are being worn.” This is “not a privacy feature. It is a design decision.”

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‘The era of US dominance in economic warfare is over’

Nicholas Mulder at the Financial Times

Iran’s “threat to shipping in the Gulf is widely seen as an asymmetric retaliation against the U.S. and Israel,” says Nicholas Mulder. But Iran “has actually replicated a tactic that America has long practiced in its use of sanctions: it has turned a key chokepoint in the world economy into a weapon to compel its adversary to de-escalate.” America previously “had an effective monopoly on major sanctions,” but the “end of the unipolar era in economic warfare” is here.

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‘Ukraine and the EU need a fresh start’

Ivan Nagornyak and Fredrik Wesslau at Foreign Policy

Four years “after Ukraine applied for membership in the European Union, one conclusion is inescapable: The EU’s normal model for enlargement is not fit for purpose,” say Ivan Nagornyak and Fredrik Wesslau. The EU’s “accession process — rigid, technocratic and slow — was designed for peacetime, not for a country fighting a war of survival and rebuilding a shattered economy.” But “any interim model for Ukraine must be a stepping stone to full membership, not a substitute.”

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]]> https://theweek.com/politics/instant-opinion-mass-shootings-oscars-trafficking-ai Ci7goskXTWJCfap3C27mnZ Tue, 17 Mar 2026 15:23:34 +0000 Tue, 17 Mar 2026 15:26:15 +0000

‘We study mass shooters. Something terrifying is happening online.’

James Densley and Jillian Peterson at The New York Times

Until “recently, if asked to profile a typical mass shooter, we would have described a middle-aged man who was socially isolated and in despair,” say James Densley and Jillian Peterson. But Americans “are witnessing the emergence of a different paradigm: a mass shooter no less despairing about life’s hardships but younger” and “highly connected to online social networks.” This shift is “highly significant for our understanding of the online-fueled pathologies that afflict our society.”

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‘What “One Battle After Another” doesn’t get about resistance in Trump’s America’

Gustavo Arellano at the Los Angeles Times

The “cheers were loud and long at the 98th Academy Awards after ‘One Battle After Another’ won best picture,” says Gustavo Arellano. It is “supposed to be a movie that Means Something,” but the director has “maintained in interviews that people should regard it less as a reflection of our times and more as a commentary on the eternal struggle of American democracy.” This makes it “far less weighty than critics and supporters alike have characterized it as being.”

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‘Rich men like Bill Gates can do more to make amends for their Epstein ties’

Bridgette Carr at The Guardian

When Bill Gates “spoke before his foundation staff last month and said it had been ‘a huge mistake to spend time with Epstein,’” survivors “felt something familiar. Not surprise. Exhaustion,” says Bridgette Carr. Gates’ “apology — and others like it — are necessary.” But it is “not sufficient.” For “some individuals, accountability should absolutely mean arrest and prosecution. But not everyone in Epstein’s ecosystem committed crimes.” This “leaves a question nobody seems to be asking: is an apology enough?”

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‘AI won’t cause a spending collapse’

Bryan Cutsinger and Alexander William Salter at the National Review

Two “widely read essays in recent weeks have warned that artificial intelligence will do more than eliminate jobs. It will, we are told, wreck the economy by destroying economic demand,” say Bryan Cutsinger and Alexander William Salter. This is “an arresting narrative. It’s also wrong.” AI will “likely cause significant sectoral disruptions,” but the “claim that AI will cause a sustained shortfall in aggregate demand rests on a misunderstanding of how the economy works.”

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]]> https://theweek.com/politics/instant-opinion-bay-area-sex-scandal-oscars-menopause tuEDqUYMtwVG3wv8onCK7h Mon, 16 Mar 2026 15:43:22 +0000

‘The death of Bay Area public transportation’

The Washington Post editorial board

It “looks like the Bay Area Rapid Transit system is headed for a financial death spiral,” says The Washington Post editorial board. Public transit use is “down across the country, but most other systems are closer to pre-pandemic levels. The Bay Area, however, is filled with technology firms that offer generous work-from-home policies.” BART “has been treated more like a jobs program for transit workers than a way for people to get around.”

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‘Trump’s era normalizes Washington sex scandals’

Juan Williams at The Hill

The “tide of sex scandals in Washington is now beyond tabloid gossip,” says Juan Williams. These scandals “point to a raft of powerful people who put personal desire ahead of good government.” They “would reach beyond the tabloids to dominate all news coverage of official Washington in any other era of American politics.” But in the “Trump administration, it is background noise to the regular news reports on the Justice Department’s defiance and slow-walking the opening of files on the Jeffrey Epstein scandal.”

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‘Oscars should focus on best pictures, not celebrity politics’

Clay Routledge and Paul Anleitner at USA Today

The “rejection of celebrity lectures shouldn’t obscure the fact that Hollywood has an important societal role to play,” say Clay Routledge and Paul Anleitner. Americans “don’t want to be lectured to by wealthy entertainers who seem disconnected from their everyday struggles. Celebrity activism is more likely to polarize than persuade.” This “doesn’t mean that Hollywood’s only role is entertainment, however. Films can inspire us in ways that no acceptance speech ever could,” because “humans are ‘storied creatures.’”

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‘It is time to recognize menopause as a workplace issue’

Lara Bertola, Akanksha Jalan and Belinda Steffan at Le Monde

As many executives are “approaching or over 50, the fact that many are experiencing menopause is still largely overlooked,” say Lara Bertola, Akanksha Jalan and Belinda Steffan. Are “senior women executives somehow immune to hot flashes, sleepless nights, and the resulting fatigue?” The “lives of women executives are thrown into upheaval by the hormonal changes they undergo.” This is a “burden affecting all women at this stage of life, who face both specific, unrecognized challenges and often unsympathetic attitudes.”

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]]> https://theweek.com/politics/instant-opinion-beans-kash-patel-catholic-social-media 7RVXk38GAehK6Fz5ntKgpY Fri, 13 Mar 2026 15:54:14 +0000

‘One food all Americans can agree on’

Yasmin Tayag at The Atlantic

There is “one player that any team would gladly welcome,” says Yasmin Tayag. It is “plant-based, widely available and incredibly affordable. It is the homeliest and humblest of foods: the bean.” Beans “have a lot going for them,” and “changes in American life are making beans a more attractive choice.” If the “nutritional, environmental and financial benefits aren’t sufficient reasons to root for beans, take note of their recent makeover,” as “bean innovation really took off.”

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‘Kash Patel’s “glitz and glamour” deal with the UFC’

Hayes Brown at MS NOW

A “group of current and former mixed martial arts fighters affiliated with UFC will be conducting a training seminar this weekend for students at the FBI’s academy,” and the move “does illustrate that FBI Director Kash Patel’s desire to appear cool has him in a chokehold,” says Hayes Brown. Patel is “living out a specific version of a Gen X male fantasy from atop the nation’s top law enforcement agency,” creating a “towering construct of manliness.”

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‘Young Latinos — and their commitment to social justice — are shaping the future of the Catholic Church’

Hosffman Ospino and Timothy Matovina at The Conversation

Young people “constitute the largest portion of the more than 68 million Latinos in the United States,” say Hosffman Ospino and Timothy Matovina. Despite their “diversity, their experiences tend to be lumped together.” But regardless of “how Latinos identify, many of them grew up deeply influenced by a Catholic spirituality that permeates Latino culture.” And many are now also “embracing their two or more cultures. They see that inheritance as a gift — and often as inspiration to advocate for social justice.”

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‘Mark Carney is thinking of banning kids from social media. This is why it’s a terrible idea.’

Supriya Dwivedi at the Toronto Star

Canada is “considering a social media ban for children as part of its forthcoming plan to reintroduce legislation on online harms,” says Supriya Dwivedi. But “unlike all of the other jurisdictions that are considering whether or not to ban kids from social media, Canada has not even attempted to regulate social media beyond proposing legislation that ultimately ends up going nowhere.” In an “attempt to do something about social media’s harms, the Carney government could unfairly target adults.”

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]]> https://theweek.com/politics/instant-opinion-world-cup-ballet-kurds-russia QGg2eptn3xgUTwXTSD2uDU Thu, 12 Mar 2026 15:50:46 +0000

‘The US World Cup is facing two crises: a financial mess — and ICE.’

Nellie Pou at The Guardian

The “final match of the 2026 FIFA World Cup will be played in East Rutherford, New Jersey,” but if the U.S. “doesn’t get its act together, we risk turning a generational opportunity into an international embarrassment,” says Nellie Pou. The “first problem is money.” Every “day of delay makes an already complex logistical challenge harder.” The games “also face a second threat: ICE.” When an “immigration enforcement agency signals it may be at our stadiums and public events, it raises legitimate fears.”

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‘Ballet isn’t dead, but Timothée Chalamet might have a point’

Chloe Angyal at Time

Timothée Chalamet recently “spoke about the vibrancy of cinema,” and “went on to claim that ‘no one cares’ about ballet or opera,” says Chloe Angyal. To many, “Chalamet sounded like an ignorant bully.” Ballet is “too often the butt of the joke,” often relying on the “shared assumption that ballet is feminine, frivolous and a little gay.” While Chalamet “did not make such insults himself, his comments fit into this broader context of disparagement and dismissal.” In the US, “ballet is starved for state resources, which reflects a widespread lack of respect.”

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‘Trump wants the Kurds to wage war in Iran. They should beware.’

Stephen Kinzer at The Boston Globe

As the “war against Iran intensifies, an old Middle East impulse has suddenly reemerged: Arm the Kurds,” says Stephen Kinzer. For “decades, the United States has used Kurdish militias as proxies.” Now President Donald Trump “wants them to enter Iran and try to set off an ethnic uprising. They should beware.” Even “with American air support, the few thousand Iranian Kurds who might launch an insurgency inside their country would have no realistic chance to advance against Iran’s military.”

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‘Russia’s use of poison: a reality Europe has been slow to confront.’

Marie Jégo at Le Monde

Eliminating opponents “by poisoning them is embedded in the DNA of Russian power,” says Marie Jégo. The “advantage of poison is that it is not easily detected.” The “fact that Russia, a signatory to the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons, could so brazenly use poisons is a reality Europe has been slow to address.” It was “not until 2023 that Moscow lost its seat on the organization's executive council and 2026 before the criminal state was called out.”

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]]> https://theweek.com/politics/instant-opinion-nyc-mamdani-iran-waymo-fox-news X7jeDemPsrzX6Wfxzeq6sE Wed, 11 Mar 2026 16:04:36 +0000

‘Don't let Gracie Mansion bomb scare obscure far-right’s danger’

Sara Pequeño at USA Today

After a bomb scare at an “anti-Muslim protest outside the home of New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani,” the media “focused on the potential harm these IEDs could have caused,” says Sara Pequeño. But the “presence of far-right, Islamophobic protesters in New York City is also deplorable, and failing to get the attention it deserves.” The protest organizer “lives in Florida,” and it’s “pathetic that someone would come all the way from Florida because they’re outraged that New York City has a Muslim mayor.”

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‘Mojtaba Khamenei brings monarchy back to Iran’

Reuel Marc Gerecht and Ray Takeyh at The Wall Street Journal

The late Iranian ayatollah’s “son and successor, the Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei, 56, has neither his father’s experience nor Khomeini’s pedigree,” say Reuel Marc Gerecht and Ray Takeyh. His “ascent marks the collapse of the last egalitarian pillar of the revolution, namely that the mullahs, unlike decadent Persian shahs, don’t do dynastic succession.” The “revolution has come full circle. Even without regime change, monarchy has returned to Iran,” and Mojtaba “will continue his father’s search for foreign devils.”

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‘How many Waymos is too many Waymos?’

Allison Arieff at the San Francisco Chronicle

The number of Waymos on the street is a “critical question. And we don’t know the answer to it,” says Allison Arieff. That “needs to change, particularly as the company and others like it dramatically scale up.” Waymo has “eroded public trust in its technology,” and “offering greater data transparency would help restore it — and start needed discussions about other regulations for Waymo and the rest of the burgeoning autonomous taxi industry.”

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‘Fox News aired old footage of Trump honoring fallen troops. Was it an honest mistake or a deliberate choice?’

Tom Jones at the Poynter Institute

Some “were upset that Trump never removed his white ‘USA’ baseball cap” during a dignified troop transfer, but Fox News “actually used footage from another time Trump attended a dignified transfer at Dover Air Force Base,” says Tom Jones. As “far as the wrong video, was it an honest mistake, or was the network trying to protect Trump?” When it “comes to coverage of Trump, it’s hard to give Fox News the benefit of the doubt.”

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]]> https://theweek.com/politics/instant-opinion-remote-women-latinos-democrats-iran qCtyCTBnaN8ZX6oiboj5PW Tue, 10 Mar 2026 15:51:27 +0000

‘The return-to-the-office trend backfires’

Gleb Tsipursky at The Hill

Many “business leaders think that a stricter return-to-office policy will cause a surge in productivity. But in reality, the data tells a different story,” says Gleb Tsipursky. Companies that “commit to highly flexible models, including remote-first, report strong output, healthier engagement and faster growth than mandate-driven peers.” These are “not isolated anecdotes; they are economy-wide patterns.” If “flexibility supports performance and expands talent, what do return-to-office mandates do? A growing body of research answers bluntly: not what its champions promise.”

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‘From medals to the Capitol: When women are elected, everyone wins.’

Lauri Hennessey and Kiana Scott at The Seattle Times

Many of the “barriers that kept women, especially women of color, from full participation in elected leadership are still in place today, and are present in and beyond politics,” say Lauri Hennessey and Kiana Scott. While men “share the weight of family care more than they once did, the scales are still deeply unbalanced, forcing many women and families to make choices.” Women are “still fighting, in many ways, for equality. That’s part of why electing women matters.”

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‘Latinos are turning away from Trump’s GOP. That doesn’t mean Democrats are entitled to their votes.’

Luis F. Carrasco at The Philadelphia Inquirer

In 2024, Donald Trump “could rightfully point with pride to how he performed with Hispanic voters in Texas,” but last week Latinos “turned out in massive numbers for the Democrats,” says Luis F. Carrasco. This is “good news for Democrats, but here’s the caveat: they cannot draw the lesson that this is Hispanic voters coming home. Instead, both parties must understand they cannot take Latinos for granted.” Some Latinos have a “sense that Democrats are not properly focused.”

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‘The war with Iran is reaching places you might not expect’

Grigor Hovhannisyan at Newsweek

The world’s “attention in the confrontation with Iran has focused on the obvious places,” says Grigor Hovhannisyan. But wars “rarely respect the neat geography of news coverage,” and airlines have “begun funneling through a narrow band of sky over three countries that rarely occupy the center of American strategic thinking: Armenia, Georgia and Azerbaijan.” The “sudden congestion overhead is less a commercial opportunity than a reminder of geography. When great powers collide, smaller states nearby tend to absorb the pressure.”

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]]> https://theweek.com/politics/instant-opinion-reading-economy-ai-meds-carney-war rjZoodYpfgFux7AyzJD8nW Mon, 09 Mar 2026 17:50:33 +0000 Mon, 09 Mar 2026 19:22:51 +0000

‘Andrew Tate doesn’t get the point of books’

Joel Halldorf at The Atlantic

“Digitization” is the “latest innovation in reading,” but while the “gains in information are undeniable, the costs to attention, contemplation and reflection are no less profound,” says Joel Halldorf. Digital pages are “cluttered with distractions” and “embedded links invite readers to move on mid-sentence.” The “erosion of deep reading weakens our capacity to grasp complex ideas,” which “reshapes the public square, allowing brief snippets of emotionally charged content to crowd out nuance, and algorithms to reinforce preferences and prejudices.”

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‘Trump’s bragging about the economy doesn’t match reality — and Americans notice’

Philip Bump at MS Now

Fox News “released new polling last week that showed Americans broadly remain skeptical of Trump’s leadership as president,” says Philip Bump. “That includes his handling of what was once his strongest issue: the economy.” Now, “only 33% of Americans approve of his handling of the cost of living.” This has “been a lingering problem for Trump”: His “administration’s insistence” that “‘affordability’ is an invented issue or that an economic boom is imminent simply doesn’t match Americans’ actual experience.”

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‘Don’t trust this $4 solution for getting a prescription’

Joseph V. Sakran and Rahul Gorijavolu at The Washington Post

In Utah, an “artificial intelligence platform called Doctronic is renewing prescription medications for patients without physician involvement,” say Joseph V. Sakran and Rahul Gorijavolu. If “AI can handle” medication renewals for “stable chronic conditions,” it “could free up doctors.” But the kind of “chronic conditions” in question “evolve silently. Blood pressure medications become insufficient; diabetes medications require adjustment.” Safety concerns “have been broadly expressed,” and the “window to act” is now — “before autonomous AI prescribing expands.”

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‘Carney confirms: When Washington whistles, Ottawa salutes.’

Andrew Mitrovica at Al Jazeera

Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney once “spoke about restraint,” says Andrew Mitrovica. “He urged the world’s most powerful governments to resist the easy seduction of reckless escalation.” But “Carney has backed” the war on Iran, which “bears all the blatant trademarks of the impulsive thinking Carney claimed to mistrust.” Perhaps the “calculation in Ottawa is that loyalty today will purchase goodwill tomorrow.” That “reflects a remarkable misreading of United States President Donald Trump’s brass-knuckled political instincts.”

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]]> https://theweek.com/politics/instant-opinion-mcdonalds-iran-gambling-movies AHDeHe4YMTyKpDEmoHpLPo Fri, 06 Mar 2026 16:47:18 +0000

‘The McDonald’s CEO’s big burger-eating mistake’

Ellen Cushing at The Atlantic

A video of McDonald’s CEO Chris Kempczinski eating a burger “didn’t go well,” says Ellen Cushing. It “was discomfiting because it broke the rules of the internet-based marketing economy that Kempczinski belongs to (whether he wants to or not).” The “incident is an object lesson in what happens when the logic of food influencerdom collides with the reality of running a giant business.” This is “why the social media accounts of multinational corporations all speak like sleepy teenagers.”

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‘Hard feelings’

Narges Bajoghli at Intelligencer

Over the “past week, the Iranian American community has been fracturing in real time across dinner tables, in group chats, in the silence of blocked numbers,” says Narges Bajoghli. There has “always been infighting among Iranians in the diaspora. The community has never been monolithic. It spans monarchists and leftists, secular nationalists and devout Muslims, people who left last year and people who left in 1979.” But “today’s divisions do not fall neatly along the old political lines.”

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‘We’re gambling with men’s health. Here’s why that’s bad for all of us.’

Elizabeth Renzetti at the Toronto Star

In the “past few years, gambling has received a glow-up that would make a Kardashian green with envy,” says Elizabeth Renzetti. Gambling has been “rebranded as ‘prediction markets,’” and there are “clear winners in this explosion of micro-gambling.” But there are “clear losers, too. Mainly they’re the young men and boys whose health is being harmed by having a gambling den on their phones — and by constant ads reminding them that they’re losers if they’re not placing bets.”

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‘The cinema of societal collapse’

Vikram Murthi at The Nation

“‘The Secret Agent’ and ‘Sirat’ are among the five films nominated in this year’s Best International Feature Film category, all of which confront state-backed oppression,” says Vikram Murthi. “Living with or dying under tyranny pertains to each of the nominated films, yet ‘The Secret Agent’ and ‘Sirat’ are primarily concerned with the texture of a fascist atmosphere.” Both “capture the psychology of knowing that one’s fragile world is on the brink of collapse but persevering anyway in spite of overwhelming despair.”

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]]> https://theweek.com/politics/instant-opinion-scream-guns-kamala-harris-trump-work pJ6Dp42Dsbi8spBTDWpX3D Thu, 05 Mar 2026 16:37:28 +0000

‘“Scream 7” shows us a different way to survive the night’

Kris Brown at USA Today

Amid the “usual jump scares and plot twists, there’s an important safety lesson in the latest installment of ‘Scream.’ And it’s likely something you didn’t even notice: firearms stored locked up in a safe,” says Kris Brown. These “depictions matter.” Storing guns safely is a “key step to preventing these kinds of tragedies,” and “when writers and directors take the time to show characters properly storing their firearms, we can inspire audiences everywhere to do the same.”

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‘Kamala Harris might run for president again in 2028. Please, no.’

Arwa Mahdawi at The Guardian

Kamala Harris “hasn’t ruled out running for president again,” and it “would be very satisfying to see Trump’s misogynistic reign end with a woman in the White House,” says Arwa Mahdawi. But “unless she fundamentally changes as a politician, that woman is never going to be Harris.” The “sooner Harris realizes that and abandons her presidential ambitions the better for all of us. We can’t afford to have the run-up to 2028 be a battle of Democratic egos.”

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‘The idea that Trump was anti-war was always delusional’

Michelle Goldberg at The Seattle Times

The “ludicrous idea of Trump as a promoter of peace — a notion his 2024 campaign leaned into — rests on a deep, willful misunderstanding of Trump’s record and character,” says Michelle Goldberg. It is “true that he broke with key elements of neoconservative ideology, particularly when it comes to nation-building and promoting democracy.” But “what Trump has always hated isn’t conflict but sacrifice, the notion that American power should ever be constrained by a veneer of idealism.”

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‘The economics of night-time work’

Soumaya Keynes at the Financial Times

In “America, it seems, night owls are becoming less common,” says Soumaya Keynes. The “most obvious explanation for the shift is that our economic requirements have evolved in favor of daytime pencil pushers.” Maybe people “do still need some night-time workers to taxi us to early flights or tend to our wounds in the wee hours.” But “perhaps demands elsewhere — and for employees competent enough to do their work in the allotted time — have been stronger.”

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]]> https://theweek.com/politics/instant-opinion-weapons-iran-gucci-education-world Q5YLFqYyGnHtQpnkZjcUjf Wed, 04 Mar 2026 19:36:50 +0000

‘Is the US running out of ammo?’

The Wall Street Journal editorial board

The Iran war is “still in its early days, but the press is playing the wrap-it-up music by warning that America and its allies lack air defenses for a long fight,” says The Wall Street Journal editorial board. The White House will have to “elevate U.S. weapons lines to a national priority.” The U.S. “can choose to build more weapons,” but it “doesn’t matter how many missiles are in the cabinet if our enemies conclude America won’t accept risk to defend itself.”

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‘Gucci needs fresher ideas than “sex sells”’

Andrea Felsted at Bloomberg

The “luxury sector must excite customers enough to tempt them to buy, rather than repel them with missteps such as the rampant price increases of the past five years,” says Andrea Felsted. After a “two-year, industry-wide slump, even competitors are rooting for Gucci.” The company wants to “re-establish Gucci at the cutting edge,” but “relying on nostalgia can only take the brand so far.” Making a “more rounded collection with wide-ranging appeal” will “take time.”

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‘University presidents face a “Star Trek”-like Kobayashi Maru moment’

James T. Harris at the Chicago Tribune

In some “academic circles, especially at public universities, it is now common for presidents to adopt a policy of neutrality,” says James T. Harris. Educators are “currently facing their own Kobayashi Maru moment — defend social justice on their campus or openly criticize the actions of the federal government and put the federal funding vital to their students and the institutions they serve at risk.” One “could argue that silence is understandable given the certain retribution.”

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‘A middle powers club would make the world more dangerous’

Manjari Chatterjee Miller at Foreign Policy

The “sight of a North American country working with three of the Indo-Pacific’s largest economies” underscores the “new salience of middle powers,” says Manjari Chatterjee Miller. But “while middle-power diplomacy has suddenly become ubiquitous, there is a widespread misunderstanding of not only the nature of these countries but also the risks of their collective rise.” These countries are “unable or unwilling to step up regionally or globally to define a more general agenda for international order.”

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]]> https://theweek.com/politics/instant-opinion-cdc-cnn-welfare-retirement 3dTqvUak8DoZ8qQL8c6vDW Tue, 03 Mar 2026 19:32:35 +0000 Tue, 03 Mar 2026 20:59:55 +0000

‘The cost of chaos at the CDC’

Leana S. Wen at The Washington Post

Nearly “half of the CDC’s routinely updated databases were paused without explanation between May and October 2025,” and “without up-to-date data, health officials cannot identify gaps or direct education and outreach where they are most needed,” says Leana S. Wen. When funding is “withdrawn at this scale, local and state governments have little realistic prospect to replace it.” Even if “some of the money is eventually restored through litigation, the damage may be difficult to undo.”

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‘CNN’s coverage of Iran is a reminder of its power — and what could be lost in the wrong hands’

Tom Jones at the Poynter Institute

News organizations have done an “admirable job, calling out their top reporters and anchors and having special programming to pass along vital information” about Iran, says Tom Jones. But it is “moments like these when CNN especially shines.” Despite “many criticisms, CNN continues to be a leader in national and international news and, with all due respect to the other networks, no network is better and more equipped to cover huge stories like Iran.”

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‘Don’t just freeze federal assistance to fight fraud — fix the program’

Parth Patel at The Hill

Headlines have been “dominated by scandal: phantom day cares, faked receipts, and misuse of taxpayer dollars,” says Parth Patel, but these are “not an aberration. They are the predictable result of a system that measures compliance instead of outcomes.” The real “scandal of the American welfare system isn’t just that money is being stolen — it is that the money we do spend isn’t helping people escape poverty. Rather, it is trapping them in poverty.”

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‘Retirement is a strategic mistake — unless we redesign life for the intelligent age’

Klaus Schwab at Time

Longevity is “not merely a medical achievement. It is a structural shift in the human condition,” says Klaus Schwab. But humans “continue to organize life according to a model designed for a 70-year or shorter lifespan. Education, career, retirement — that’s how we think about life.“ We “must apply systemic thinking to the architecture of life itself.“ A 100-year life “cannot be compressed into a front-loaded education, a 40-year career sprint, and three decades of passive withdrawal.”

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]]> https://theweek.com/politics/instant-opinion-conservation-iran-television-tariffs rL3YXebjW8faYXgmY2BTAR Mon, 02 Mar 2026 19:00:19 +0000

‘The glorious birds we saved’

Margaret Renkl at The New York Times

To “see a whooping crane in the wild is to be reminded that we nearly killed something miraculous — and then, almost unbelievably, we didn’t,” says Margaret Renkl. The “question is whether we still have the wisdom to save what we have the ability to save.” At a “species level, it is nothing less than suicidal to believe that human beings are exempt from the ravages that human beings keep subjecting the earth to.”

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‘The US-Israeli war on Iran could rewrite Gulf security calculations’

Khalid Al-Jaber at Al Jazeera

The war in Iran “will have a profound impact on the Middle East and the Gulf in particular,” says Khalid Al-Jaber. If the “conflict drags on, it could become a real turning point for the Gulf — one that reshapes how states think about security, alliances and even their long-term economic futures.” It “ would push Gulf capitals to revisit not only their defense planning but also the deeper logic of their regional strategy.”

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‘Censoring network TV is outdated. America needs free speech.’

Neil Brown at USA Today

Stephen Colbert’s “recent attempt to broadcast an interview with Talarico, a Texas Democratic state representative running for the U.S. Senate, set off a fresh round of anger and angst about the state of freedom of speech,” says Neil Brown. Are equal time rules “antiquated in 2026? Absolutely. Who do we think those old rules are protecting?” People who “create and distribute content should embrace the gray realities of life and put value on purposefully helping audiences get comfortable with conflict.”

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‘Tariffs, a hidden tax that hits Main Street first’

Ronell Smith at The Dallas Morning News

The Supreme Court’s “rebuke of President Donald Trump’s tariff policy cannot undo the damage already done” to businesses and the “customers they serve,” says Ronell Smith. Trump “framed tariffs as a boon to American industry. That’s certainly not how they are landing on Main Street.” Businesses are “dealing with simpler, unforgiving math: raise prices and risk losing customers, or hold prices steady and accept thinner margins — often while cutting staff, hours or investment to stay afloat.”

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]]> https://theweek.com/politics/instant-opinion-hospitals-disability-olympics-binance fgm4nE8HBcp6jv49ksUgfW Fri, 27 Feb 2026 18:34:30 +0000 Fri, 27 Feb 2026 18:35:59 +0000

‘As Trump’s immigration crackdown continues, hospitals have become a battleground’

Theresa Chang at the San Francisco Chronicle

The Trump administration’s “immigration crackdown has spilled into emergency departments and hospitals across the country,” and hospitals have “become frontlines of heated battles,” says Theresa Chang. Doctors are being “intimidated and directed to violate the Hippocratic Oath, sometimes by their own hospital administrators.” The “moral injury inflicted on clinicians to abandon their oath and ethical duty to patients is immense,” and “clinicians are left to navigate this ethical minefield alone, with patients bearing the consequences.”

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‘Cruelty is not strength’

Jane Clementi at Newsweek

The “renewed embrace” of the R-word “represents a microcosm of a larger cultural shift taking place across our nation right now,” says Jane Clementi. The “recent online push to ‘Bring Back Bullying’ is no longer a fringe joke, but an ideology that’s taking our nation by storm and putting real lives at risk.” This is a “warning about who we are becoming.” America is “not suffering from a lack of toughness, but from a growing tolerance for cruelty.”

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‘The Olympic loyalty test no one asked for’

Ka Vang at The Minnesota Star Tribune

The “quickest way to make America nervous is to let an Asian American woman make her own decisions, especially if she wins a gold medal,” says Ka Vang. Alysa Liu “fits neatly into the national scrapbook — patriotism with creative-colored hair and sequins.” Eileen Gu has been “cast differently: calculating, opportunistic, suspect.” The “subtext was louder than a starter pistol at the Olympic finals. There is apparently a right way to be Asian American. And there is a wrong way.”

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‘Binance’s MAGA-branding strategy’

Jacob Silverman at The Nation

President Donald Trump has “enriched himself far more than any American politician before him,” but he “hasn’t done it alone,” says Jacob Silverman. No company has “provided more financial and logistical support to Trump’s cryptocurrency empire — the engine of his newly acquired wealth — than Binance, the world’s largest crypto exchange.” On its “way to becoming the world’s dominant crypto exchange, Binance also became notorious as a financial conduit for cyber criminals, sanctions evaders, and militant groups.”

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]]> https://theweek.com/politics/instant-opinion-worker-weather-democracy-iran-mexico QfEQGmH9PPzT95XugtwPuk Thu, 26 Feb 2026 19:26:27 +0000

‘In monster snowstorms or blistering heat, workers need protection’

Terri Gerstein at The Hill

As “climate change causes ever more dangerous storms, workers need protection in extreme weather of all kinds,” says Terri Gerstein. “Very low and very high temperatures both present serious dangers,” but in “most of the U.S., however, there are no specific rules requiring employers to take basic and common-sense measures to keep workers safe. This needs to change.” With the “Trump administration’s hostile approach toward worker safety, state and local governments will have to take the lead.”

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‘The real revolution is not giving up on democracy — or on each other’

Kerry Sautner at The Philadelphia Inquirer

This is “not a season for rose-tinted nostalgia, nor is it a time to ignore the difficulties of the past year,” says Kerry Sautner. The “challenges we have faced have been real and impossible to dismiss,” but “cynicism is not a solution, and disengagement is not patriotism.” American democracy is a “glorious, unfinished experiment,” but it “does not sustain itself. It requires constant care, tension, participation, and belief.” Not “giving up on democracy looks like staying in the game.”

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‘Three things to remember if US bombs Iran’

Ted Snider at The American Conservative

There are “three things to remember if the U.S. goes to war with Iran: It was never about nuclear weapons, it was never about helping the Iranian people, and Iran was genuinely negotiating a diplomatic solution,” says Ted Snider. Iran “reportedly indicated a willingness to compromise,” and there is a “clear diplomatic path to peace with Iran.” If that “path is not taken, it will not be because Iran was unwilling to negotiate and compromise.”

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‘There is no military solution to Mexico’s cartel problem’

Antonio De Loera-Brust at Foreign Policy

Mexico “killed El Mencho at President Claudia Sheinbaum’s orders,” but in “taking action against a major cartel leader, Sheinbaum is walking a tightrope,” says Antonio De Loera-Burst. The White House “welcomed Mexico’s attack” on El Mencho and “was quick to claim its share of the credit for El Mencho’s elimination,” but the “benefit to ordinary Mexicans is far less clear.” As “long as money can be made selling drugs, eliminating one cartel boss merely means ensuring his replacement.”

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]]> https://theweek.com/politics/instant-opinion-historic-sites-hospitals-dating-porn ZQQsAJY7HEKs45namsGzwS Wed, 25 Feb 2026 18:25:19 +0000 Wed, 25 Feb 2026 18:26:26 +0000

‘Historic sites are where Americans learn who we are’

Carol Quillen at Time

It is “not enough to analyze the dead. Even as you respect the chasm between their time and now, you need to see through their eyes,” says Carol Quillen. National Historic Sites “can offer this experience to every American, but these places are now at risk.” They are “America’s open classrooms — places where people from every zip code stand on ground that holds stories.” Independence Park visitors were “cheated when they were cut off from facts.”

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‘End the policies that protect hospital monopolies’

Ashish K. Jha and Thomas C. Tsai at The Boston Globe

Preventing “consolidation that does not provide benefits, or even breaking up consolidated systems that behave badly, is likely not enough,” say Ashish K. Jha and Thomas C. Tsai. If Americans “want health care markets to work — if we want prices to fall without sacrificing quality — the policies that shield established health care systems and stymie innovation must be removed.” The “path forward will need to restore the patient-doctor relationship and allow delivery models that place doctors and patients back at the center.”

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‘Are dating apps giving people the ick?’

Dave Schilling at The Guardian

Technology is “supposed to solve all of our problems, but it seems like it just creates more of them,” says Dave Schilling. Dating apps “offer all the shiny optimization and algorithmic simplicity of modern tech, but also the anonymous, flat and impersonal drudgery.” Maybe dating apps are “struggling because their dating pools are fetid and teeming with malicious bacteria,” and “maybe there is no math equation in the world to guarantee romantic success, even if venture capitalists might dream of one.”

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‘Porn is making Gen Z anxious, lonely and insecure’

Debra Soh at The Globe and Mail

Most “would agree that exposure to adult content at a young age is not healthy. But what are the consequences, and how harmful are they?” says Debra Soh. If a child “regularly watches porn prior to their first sexual experience, this can shape their sexual preferences and behavior.” Porn “sedates men and further disincentivizes them from working up the courage to meet women in real life,” which “further perpetuates their belief that sex with an imaginary partner on a screen is equivalent.”

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]]> https://theweek.com/politics/instant-opinion-olympics-reviews-sotu-majority sUkMohs4fxZQDChpZn6zHc Tue, 24 Feb 2026 18:40:24 +0000 Tue, 24 Feb 2026 18:47:43 +0000

‘Team USA showed America at its best’

Chicago Tribune editorial board

Americans “love the 12 gold medals — 33 in total — our athletes are bringing home, but it’s the stories that keep us hooked on the Olympic Games, and Milan did not disappoint,” says the Chicago Tribune editorial board. People have “immense respect for the athletes who endure and perform.” Watching our “fellow Americans achieve such heights offers a reminder that maybe we, too, are capable of something extraordinary if we’re willing to work.”

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‘I don’t trust online reviews. You probably shouldn’t either.’

Blake Fontenay at USA Today

Being “bombarded with online surveys is one of the most tiresome aspects of modern life,” says Blake Fontenay. After spending “half an hour on the phone with some faceless customer service rep at a call center, no one wants to spend another five to 10 minutes recapping the conversation.” In a “society already swimming in data, there's such a thing as too much feedback.” Not “every routine online transaction is a magical experience worthy of a five-star rating.”

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‘The State of the Union is delusion’

Jim Newell at Slate

The “fleeting preservation of delusion is now the only practical purpose of the State of the Union,” says Jim Newell. Gone are the “days when the American people didn’t get regular updates from the president, and when a single speech could cut through the noise to introduce the next year’s agenda.” The speech is a “moment when the president can project the exact aura he wants on a grand stage. For Biden, that was vigor. For Trump’s first, that was gravitas.”

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‘The quiet majority is exhausted. It’s time to act.’

Patrick Payton at The Dallas Morning News

Moderate Americans are “fed up with and exhausted by the extremes sucking the life out of our collective morale and crushing the long-held belief that we are able to continue to be one nation,” says Patrick Payton. It “doesn’t have to be this way if the Majority Middle will awaken from their exhausted slumber and demand more from those we elect and hopefully hold them accountable.” They “must not be allowed to continue to hold the microphone of national debate.”

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]]> https://theweek.com/politics/instant-opinion-protein-bars-tech-women-bangladesh-music xDEjYjQCvPSXaJvFSGC7zg Mon, 23 Feb 2026 18:11:20 +0000 Mon, 23 Feb 2026 18:20:48 +0000

‘The protein bar delusion’

Nicholas Florko at The Atlantic

Protein bars have “come a long way from the chalky monstrosities that lined shelves not long ago,” says Nicholas Florko. For “anyone with a sweet tooth, it can feel like food companies have developed guilt-free candy. But that’s where things get disorienting.” Some protein products are “seemingly nutritionally benign, whereas others are nothing more than junk food trying to cash in on protein’s good reputation.” The “line between protein bar and candy bar has never been blurrier.”

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‘How tech turned against women’

Laura Bates at the Financial Times

The “Big Tech lobby, well oiled by money and unprecedented proximity to those in positions of power, has done an overwhelmingly successful job of convincing us that regulation in their sector is a near-impossible task,” says Laura Bates. We are “sleepwalking into a new age of gender inequality, propelled at breathtaking speed by the implementation of untested AI.” Existing “forms of inequality and discrimination are being repeated and intensified by tools that have been trained on biased or misleading data.”

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‘Tarique Rahman must revive Bangladesh’s economy’

Farid Erkizia Bakht at Time

New Bangladesh Prime Minister Tarique Rahman will have to “work hard to maintain political stability but his political success will depend on his primary task: reviving the economy,” says Farid Erkizia Bakht. Many “identify structural bottlenecks in distribution channels, rather than monetary policy alone, as the chief cause of elevated food prices. This is the Rahman government’s Achilles heel.” The “challenges are significant but Rahman does have a chance to revive the economy and bring stability to Bangladesh.”

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‘How George Harrison transformed the music business’

Josh Harlan at The Wall Street Journal

Spotify “recently announced that it paid more than $11 billion in streaming royalties and other payments to the music industry in 2025,” and it is a “fitting occasion to recall how George Harrison, railing against Britain’s confiscatory tax regime, unwittingly helped create the template for this market,” says Josh Harlan. The Beatles’ “attempt to protect their income stream would backfire twice, costing them control of their own songs, but it also helped shape one of today’s most coveted asset classes.”

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]]> https://theweek.com/politics/instant-opinion-natural-gas-europe-tech-congress wCgR3rHJD7EYHTEDSS7uog Fri, 20 Feb 2026 18:23:25 +0000 Fri, 20 Feb 2026 18:32:27 +0000

‘Natural gas, renewables can help Democrats on energy affordability’

Mary Landrieu and Terry McAuliffe at The Hill

Americans are “facing a new energy reality: electric bills are rising and the risk of blackouts is growing as our power grid faces unprecedented demand,” say Mary Landrieu and Terry McAuliffe. This “moment presents an opportunity for Democratic leaders to reset the national energy conversation.” An “all-of-the-above energy approach that pairs renewable energy with dependable sources available 24/7 like natural gas is the most practical path forward to help decarbonize and cut costs, without sacrificing reliability.”

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‘Europe’s Israel policy faces a democratic test’

Majed al-Zeer at Al Jazeera

The “demand to suspend the EU-Israel Association Agreement is no longer confined to street demonstrations or activist circles,” says Majed al-Zeer. Over “more than two years of genocidal war, ethnic cleansing and the systematic destruction of civilian life in Gaza, solidarity across Europe has not dissipated.” It has “moved from protest slogans and street mobilization into a formal democratic instrument that demands institutional response.” The “call for suspension is rooted in broad and measurable public support.”

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‘What a 1921 Ford Model T can teach us about today’s tech’

Aaron Brown at The Minnesota Star Tribune

When the “Model T came on the scene in 1908, it famously changed everything,” says Aaron Brown. But “once underway, the driver must manipulate levers constantly as the vehicle sputters and spurts along the road,” and this “experience became the knowledge that developed today’s cars, which increasingly drive themselves.” It “helps explain why everything, and everyone, seems off these days. We’re unbound from our understanding of how the world works or how ‘progress’ benefits us.”

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‘People are leaving Congress because the job sucks’

Ed Kilgore at Intelligencer

There has been a “lot of buzz in Washington lately about the ‘exodus’ of members of Congress in the 2026 midterm-election cycle,” says Ed Kilgore. Anyone “familiar with the daily grind of congressional service, especially in the House, can tell you that in some cases members hang it up because the job sucks.” It “should not be surprising when anyone decides against making Congress a graveyard, particularly right now, when the institution’s power is at a historically low ebb.”

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]]> https://theweek.com/politics/instant-opinion-chipotle-food-film-ai-trump DJX6bxFPMyZhJsTzd9gw54 Thu, 19 Feb 2026 19:42:25 +0000 Thu, 19 Feb 2026 19:45:50 +0000

‘Chipotle just saw its worst year ever. It may not get any better.’

Gustavo Arellano at the Los Angeles Times

Chipotle’s “core problem is its stagnant approach and underwhelming food, which no longer justifies its premium pricing to budget-conscious consumers,” says Gustavo Arellano. Restaurateurs have been “capitalizing on the insatiable American appetite for nearly any foodstuff from south of the border. But as all empires inevitably do, the good times stop.” Chipotle CEO Scott Boatwright “would be wise to heed this history and either take Chipotle into new frontiers or prepare for its inevitable irrelevance.”

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‘Does “Wuthering Heights” herald the revival of the film romance’?

Richard Brody at The New Yorker

Emerald Fennell’s “Wuthering Heights” is an “unabashedly romantic movie emerging at a time when few such films are being made — at least, for theatrical release and by directors with some artistic cachet,” says Richard Brody. The “silliness of the movie falls short of camp — it’s neither intentionally self-parodic nor exaggeratedly theatrical.” What Fennell “really appears to be adapting is less Brontë than a cinematic genre that has more or less fallen into oblivion: the romantic drama.”

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‘Kids are using AI. Here’s what adults need to do right now.’

Sarah Sword and Shai Fuxman at Newsweek

When “new technology lands in children’s hands, they don’t read the manual. And they don’t tell their parents,” say Sarah Sword and Shai Fuxman. Kids “push every button, test every limit and try to break it,” and “millions of kids are doing that with AI tools like ChatGPT.” Parents are the “most influential figures in shaping children’s decisions and habits,” and should “make AI part of your family’s conversations, just as you would with social media.”

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‘Trump’s planned visit to Venezuela would be a catastrophic mistake’

Andres Oppenheimer at the Miami Herald

President Donald Trump is “planning a historic trip to Venezuela,” but “visiting Caracas before opposition leader María Corina Machado is allowed to return would legitimize a dictatorship and be a shameless reward for repression,” says Andres Oppenheimer. Trump’s “priorities in Venezuela are stability and increased oil exports to the United States, not democracy.” If Trump “goes before Machado’s return, Venezuelans will get the worst of both worlds: massive deportations from the United States and a fortified dictatorship at home.”

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]]> https://theweek.com/politics/instant-opinion-time-analog-crime-elections-voting fV98x8TQmdcQTGDjJ9aWbW Wed, 18 Feb 2026 18:34:10 +0000 Wed, 18 Feb 2026 18:37:49 +0000

‘You aren’t “too busy.” You’re making a choice.’

Bill Korman at USA Today

February is “National Time Management Month, which feels almost ironic because if Americans were good at managing time, we probably wouldn’t need a reminder,” says Bill Korman. Time is the “true currency of life. Yet, most of us act as if we’re victims of a cruel shortage instead of owners of a mismanaged asset.” When people “mishandle time, our health suffers,” and this “shows up as burnout, anxiety, weight gain, heart problems and a constant feeling of being behind.”

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‘Analog is back, and my millennial heart couldn’t be happier’

Tayo Bero at The Guardian

Analog is “back, and it feels like we need it more than ever,” says Tayo Bero. In a “world where getting just about anything done means being sucked into a digital black hole of apps, sign-up forms, harrowing social media feeds and carnivorous advertisers, it’s no surprise that we keep reaching back for the comfort of the physical: polaroids, vinyl records, real birthday cards.” This “helps us slow down and appreciate a world where not everything is online.”

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‘A surprising theory for why some people become criminals’

Abdallah Fayyad at The Boston Globe

One of the “fascinating things about crime is that we don’t actually know what’s behind the spikes and declines in criminal behavior,” says Abdallah Fayyad. When it “comes to trying to predict” crimes, the “problem with these theories is that they tend to be frozen in time.” Studies have “followed single age cohorts — that is, people born around the same time,” and “birth year could very well be just as much a contributing factor to crime as anything else.”

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‘The SAVE Act’s virtuous goals are not worth the cost’

The National Review editors

The SAVE Act “aims at a virtuous and popular end: ensuring that only U.S. citizens vote in federal elections. And many of the criticisms of the bill are overblown,” says the National Review editors. But it “continues a step in the wrong direction in federalizing elections.” Calls for “Republicans to end the Senate filibuster in order to pass it would cause great mischief in exchange for very modest ends. Senate Republicans should not sell their patrimony for this mess of pottage.”

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]]> https://theweek.com/politics/instant-opinion-jesse-jackson-russia-ukraine-olympics RRAsWpWRMXijuTJwETzpME Tue, 17 Feb 2026 18:15:55 +0000

‘Jesse Jackson envisioned a more inclusive politics — and made it happen’

Donna Brazile at The Washington Post

Civil rights activist Jesse Jackson “profoundly changed American politics,” and his “life story is a triumph over adversity,” says Donna Brazile. Jackson “advanced a broadly progressive agenda” and “embraced the then-relatively new idea that diversity was a strength, not a weakness.” He “liked to talk about the nation as a quilt patched together by intent and accident,” and “made us see what could be, which helped so much of it come to be, and we are all the better for it.”

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‘Putin doesn’t want peace. He wants more time.’

Bloomberg editorial board

It “should be obvious by now that Russian President Vladimir Putin is playing for time,” says the Bloomberg editorial board. Putin’s “negotiators are dragging out peace talks, making enough conciliatory noises to fend off renewed U.S. pressure while Russian missiles and drones pound Ukraine.” Additional “pressure on Putin would have an impact,” and the U.S. and Europe “need to focus on further strangling Russia’s income from oil exports.” Nations have “agreed that wars should have limits.”

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‘American Ninja Warriors on ice’

Chris Schleicher at Slate

Pairs is the “best discipline in figure skating,” says Chris Schleicher. Pairs skaters are the “American Ninja Warriors of figure skating, doing X Games–level stunts with the gentility and grace of the Bolshoi Ballet.” Whether “you’re looking for beauty or you enjoy the NASCAR thrill of impending disaster, pairs has something for everyone.” It comes down to “who can sell us on their connection while forgetting for four minutes that every element they’re performing is absolutely insane.”

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‘The Mediterranean does not have to be a graveyard. Preventable failures are turning it into one.’

Amy Pope at Le Monde

The Mediterranean has “claimed lives that should never have been lost,” says Amy Pope. These deaths are the “predictable outcome of policy failure, criminal exploitation and a global conversation on migration that has become dangerously distorted – and they are largely preventable.” Migrant smuggling networks are at the “heart of this crisis — sophisticated criminal enterprises that profit from despair.” This is “more than reckless indifference; it is an appalling disregard for human life.”

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]]> https://theweek.com/politics/instant-opinion-constitution-dating-pam-bondi-homeschooling 8oaCiASuAbnMndPDvLwnaN Fri, 13 Feb 2026 18:03:40 +0000 Tue, 17 Feb 2026 17:00:46 +0000

‘Where are all the “Don’t tread on me” Americans?’

Chris Truax at The Hill

We have a “package of constitutional rights that we created to keep the government from becoming oppressive,” says Chris Truax. These rights “aren’t just a defense against an intentionally tyrannical government; they also protect us against well-meaning bureaucrats.” For “all the patriots out there who fly ‘Don’t Tread on Me’ flags and talk about upholding the Constitution,” this is “your moment. You’ve spent your entire lives talking about resisting tyranny. Now it is happening right before your eyes.”

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‘How to have a good first date’

Sonya Gurwitt at Time

A “lot of first dates do not turn into second dates,” and dating “can feel like a chore,” says Sonya Gurwitt. There is a “scriptedness to dating in a big city,” a “dance that nobody choreographed, but with distinct steps we’re supposed to pick up as we go.” People should “approach first dates as an opportunity to step into somebody’s world. When else do you get to spend a few hours getting to know a stranger?”

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‘This Pam Bondi photo captures the justice system’s contempt for Epstein’s victims’

The Miami Herald editorial board

If there is a “single photo that captures the contemptible way the Jeffrey Epstein victims have been treated by the justice system, it’s a picture of Pam Bondi, the U.S. attorney general,” says the Miami Herald editorial board. The picture shows Bondi “sitting in front of a group of more than a dozen victims,” but it “looks as though she is determined to ignore them.” It is a “heartbreaking image for many reasons” and shows the “default response by authorities.”

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‘The homeschooling hack’

Lauren Hilgers at New York magazine

“Homeschooling, long associated with hippies and religious conservatives in the U.S., is in the middle of a rebrand and a boom,” says Lauren Hilgers. Homeschooled kids are “more self-motivated, better rested, and less anxious than their peers in normal classrooms,” and “can read a book without distractions or devote hours of attention to a single subject.” Parents “can carefully measure their child’s interests, skills, and learning styles, teaching them to become discerning à la carte consumers of classes.”

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]]> https://theweek.com/politics/instant-opinion-mexico-women-insurance-cuba aWPMgsbfF7vZ5DPzx5tFGL Thu, 12 Feb 2026 18:59:11 +0000 Thu, 12 Feb 2026 19:03:45 +0000

‘Tomb raiders pose a challenge in preserving Mexico’s history’

Jude Webber at the Financial Times

Two “major pre-Hispanic discoveries came to light in Mexico last month that have both stunned and stung local archaeologists,” says Jude Webber. The “problem with the first discovery” was that the “tomb was full of artifacts — but they had been removed by locals.” The “problem with the second” tomb was “that it was empty.” Mexico is “replete with still undiscovered treasures from its ancient civilizations,” but “keeping them intact can be a challenge.”

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‘Make lifesaving care affordable for new moms’

Gwen Moore at Newsweek

Nearly “every family in America has experienced the ravages of addiction or mental health struggles,” and “during pregnancy and in the postpartum period, too many mothers face these battles alone,” says Rep. Gwen Moore (D-Wisc.). While society “broadly accepts the premise that children are our future, America is failing to keep mothers healthy.” Congress “should play a direct role in helping to build a society where every mother receives the care she needs, where no one suffers in silence.”

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‘Most insurance claim denials are due to clerical error. The system needs to be simplified.’

The Boston Globe editorial board

Adjudicating “what health care services are necessary and paying for them is a core function of an insurance company,” but insurance claims are “mostly rejected for what amount to clerical errors,” says The Boston Globe editorial board. Resubmitting them is a “waste of time and money. Even worse, the delays caused by the need to fill out more forms can harm patients, who may need to wait for the treatments they need.” Insurers and providers “need to work together.”

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‘Cuba is in crisis and it’s time for Canada to help’

John Kirk at the Toronto Star

There are “many reports on the dire situation in Cuba,” says John Kirk. But “why should Canada get involved? There are several reasons.” Canadians “travel there annually and have close friends on the island. Canadians are the single largest group of tourists to the island.” Many Canadians “also know what it is like to be the object of U.S. bullying and threats.” Canada “should now turn to humanitarian assistance along the lines of Mexico.”

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]]> https://theweek.com/politics/instant-opinion-wall-street-foreign-policy-ukraine-united-states gpNMRsCBwtsM5TnyrBLoUn Wed, 11 Feb 2026 19:49:09 +0000 Wed, 11 Feb 2026 19:54:10 +0000

‘The Dow just broke 50,000. Here’s what that means.’

Michael Hiltzik at the Los Angeles Times

The Dow Jones “crossed 50,000 points for the first time, but that doesn’t mean the economy is healthy,” says Michael Hiltzik. The Dow “doesn’t rank as a reliable picture of the U.S. economy” and “doesn’t rank as a picture of the stock market as a whole.” As for “whether it’s possible to read conclusions about the economy in the Dow Industrial figures, it’s hard to discern.” The Dow had a “very nice day. That doesn’t mean the euphoria will last.”

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‘A foreign policy worse than regime change’

John Bolton at The Atlantic

President Donald Trump “campaigned in 2024 saying he would begin ‘no new wars,’ ‘regime change’ and ‘nation building,’ and generally prioritize domestic policy over foreign affairs,” says former National Security Adviser John Bolton. But Trump “has instead opted for global buccaneering: attacking Islamic terrorists in Nigeria, launching pinprick swipes at Yemen’s Houthis, and seeking a massive, elusive trade deal with China.” He has “done so inconsistently and incoherently,” and “this is much worse as a policy model than ‘regime change’ ever was.”

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‘On Ukraine, “liberal” war hawks make the far right look like peacemakers’

Leonid Ragozin at Al Jazeera

Ukraine is “stuck between two kinds of Western populism,” says Leonid Ragozin. One is “that of Donald Trump and his European far-right equivalents, who don’t care much about either Ukraine or the rules-based order.” The “other one is that of the anti-Russian (and anti-Trump) hawks who tend to wrap the cynical interests of the military-industrial complex in phony liberal rhetoric.” Claims “misinterpreting Russia’s motives and intentions are an integral part of jingoistic populism, which has been fueling this conflict.”

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‘America won’t be easily forgiven — even after Trump is gone’

Alaric DeArment at The New Republic

President Donald Trump’s “worst offenses pale in comparison to Nazi crimes, and invoking the Holocaust to make political points is never acceptable,” says Alaric DeArment. But “when a nation breaks the world’s trust, forgiveness does not come quickly or easily,” and that’s a “hard lesson that Americans, even the liberals and progressives who might absolve themselves of contributing to Trumpian misrule, will have to learn as we grapple with the damage Trump has done to our international standing.”

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]]> https://theweek.com/politics/instant-opinion-jimmy-lai-ice-epstein-super-bowl k3N5Tg9AtY2VzZoEsDZJAb Tue, 10 Feb 2026 18:41:04 +0000

‘Jimmy Lai, a symbol of the end of freedom in Hong Kong’

Le Monde editorial board

The “final nail was hammered into the coffin of the freedom that for so long had made Hong Kong a unique territory in the Chinese world,” as “judges appointed by authorities loyal to Beijing imposed an exceptionally harsh sentence of 20 years in prison for pro-democracy activist and former media mogul Jimmy Lai,” said the Le Monde editorial board. This “fate mirrors that of several dissidents in mainland China, evidence, if any were needed, of the flattening of political differences inherited from history.”

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‘Toxic stress: The long-term harms ICE’s tactics are doing to our children’

Dana Suskind at The Hill

ICE’s “approach to immigration reform is deeply detrimental to public health, in both the present and long term,” says Dana Suskind. Adverse “childhood events and toxic stress disrupt children’s brain development; it is hard to think of a more traumatic or stressful event for children than being forcibly separated from their families.” Immigration enforcement “should not come at the expense of children’s wellbeing, parents’ and caregivers’ dignity, or our nation’s moral compass.” Children “need access to loving, nurturing caregivers.”

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‘I study moral panics. The Epstein files are not one.’

Marcella Szablewicz at MS NOW

As the “world recoiled from the revelations in the U.S. government’s files on convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein,” some op-eds “labeled it a ‘moral panic,’” says Marcella Szablewicz. As a “communication and media studies professor who studies moral panics, I want to be clear: The Epstein scandal is not one.” By “definition, moral panics are short-lived. The fervor dies down, and the once-threatening change is eventually accepted by society.” Let’s “not pretend that demanding more answers constitutes a moral panic.”

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‘What Super Bowl commercials teach us about capitalism’

Eben Shapiro at Time

The “Super Bowl is the only thing Google cannot replicate,” says Eben Shapiro. In a “fragmented world, it is one of the only times 120 million people look at the same screen simultaneously,” and the “Super Bowl ad is no longer just a commercial; it is a vanity metric.” It is the “only place where a brand can guarantee that its ad will be watched by a group of people at the same time, in one place, together.”

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]]> https://theweek.com/politics/instant-opinion-bad-bunny-national-guard-alcohol-israel HgCvhKpYqnxpb4ENwU43MP Mon, 09 Feb 2026 20:08:16 +0000

‘Bad Bunny’s all-American Super Bowl halftime show’

Kelefa Sanneh at The New Yorker

Bad Bunny has “spent the past decade creating one of the most irresistible bodies of work in all of popular music,” and “put on what might have been the best halftime performance in Super Bowl history,” says Kelefa Sanneh. He is “just about as popular as it is possible for a musician to be.” People “could think of Bad Bunny’s triumphant set as a tribute to the power and capaciousness of American popular music — or as a pointed critique of it.”

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‘Depoliticize the National Guard’

Adam Kinzinger at Newsweek

The “military and National Guard are trusted precisely because they are professional, nonpartisan and committed to service — not political agendas. But today, that norm is under strain,” says former Rep. Adam Kinzinger. The Guard has been “redirected away from their communities for reasons that have little to do with public safety and everything to do with politics.” Politicizing the military “erodes public trust, undermines civilian control, dishonors service members and weakens one of America’s most respected institutions.”

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‘Wine against the New Prohibitionism’

N.C. Stevens at Slate

An “increasing push toward sobriety has flooded the market with nonalcoholic alternatives to traditional tipples,” and “some in the beverage alcohol industry have begun decrying what they view as a dastardly neo-temperance — even neo-Prohibitionist — movement,” says N.C. Stevens. But “where beer and spirits have largely opted for diversification into nonalcoholic renditions of their traditional offerings as a hedge against the surge in sobriety, wine is relying on its smooth and rounded voice to push back.”

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‘Is nixing aid to Israel a poison chalice?’

Kelley Beaucar Vlahos at The American Conservative

There is a “lot of talk about getting rid of the massive agreement that guarantees Israel billions of dollars in military aid each year,” says Kelley Beaucar Vlahos. But “while a debate over the annual package would be a most welcome one given the enormous sums of American taxpayer money that has flowed to Israel’s wars in recent years, it is important to keep an eye on what might be a bait and switch.”

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]]> https://theweek.com/politics/instant-opinion-spain-europe-death-race-patriotism pF8C7MTag6y35QBS9Fapzi Fri, 06 Feb 2026 17:23:53 +0000 Fri, 06 Feb 2026 21:56:47 +0000

‘I’m the prime minister of Spain. This is why the West needs immigrants.’

Pedro Sánchez at The New York Times

Some “leaders have chosen to hunt” undocumented immigrants and “deport them through operations that are both unlawful and cruel,” says Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez. Spain’s “government has chosen a different way: a fast and simple path to regularize their immigration status.” Spain has “done this for two reasons. The first and most important is a moral one.” The “second reason that made us commit to regularization is purely pragmatic.” Unless Western countries “embrace migration, they will experience a sharp demographic decline.”

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‘If you are reading this it is because I’m dead: here’s what I want to tell you about how to live’

Carlos Hernández at The Guardian

“I will leave this world without understanding why the international community chose to remain impassive while Israel perpetrated a genocide right before its eyes, broadcast live,” says Carlos Hernández. That is why it “was, is and will be so important to be aware of history. Looking back is the best way to face the present, to avoid repeating mistakes and to be prepared for future threats.” Looking back “shows you that freedom, life and democracy are never guaranteed.”

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‘African American personal faith and organized traditions have had historic impact’

Anthea Butler at The Philadelphia Inquirer

When “you hear the word faith in relation to the history of African Americans in the United States, what do you imagine? Do you see a preacher, or a gospel choir, or imagine a church mother?” says Anthea Butler. They are “not the only measures of how faith informs and shapes the history of African American life.” For “African Americans, faith has not been simply about belief in a deity. By necessity, it has also been about having the faith to fight for freedom.”

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‘Is there any hope for Reagan’s “informed patriotism?”’

Daniel M. Rothschild at the National Review

While “civic knowledge and national pride may be on the ropes, they’re not down for the count,” says Daniel M. Rothschild. Reagan “warned that the current ‘resurgence of national pride’ would not last long without what he called ‘informed patriotism,’” and the “national pride of Reagan’s era has dimmed considerably.” We “need to develop new institutions to teach informed patriotism, make it an active research project for scholars and intellectuals, and invite Americans of all walks of life into the conversation.”

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