Debate Reaction

Obviously, last night’s presidential debate was a train wreck. The debate gave everyone plenty of issues to react to today -- from the outrageous tone and conduct during the debate, lies told, name-calling and insults, not condemning racist groups, not promising a peaceful transfer of power and much more.  But there seem to be two really disturbing reactions to the debate among the general...

This Week in Bad Memes

Our Founding Fathers had one main avenue for discussing and debating the volatile political issues of their day: writing. In a slower world with no television, internet or radios, they had the time (or took the time) to sit down and write well-thought-out, at times lengthy letters to one another discussing in depth their thoughts and ideas. They wrote their own speeches. They wrote essays. This...

Fact-Checking Trump’s Paris Climate Agreement Speech

President Trump's decision to back the U.S. out of the Paris Climate Agreement was based on ignorance, short-sightedness and greed, not scientific data, input from the scientific community or any environmental or economic research. That was evident from his speech announcing his decision, which - as is common with Trump - was filled with falsehoods and misrepresentations. His speech provided a...

ROTM EPISODE 6: The Conservative Mind

If you've been engaging conservatives in debates on social media, you may find yourself bewildered by what at times seems like their willful ignorance, rejection of basic facts, and their lack of interest in questioning their own views. You're not alone. On today's episode, we discuss the mind of the modern conservative. Check it out on iTunes. Listen on Stitcher.

ROTM EPISODE 5: The Muslim Ban

Any good military strategist knows winning a conflict is as much about capturing the hearts and minds of your enemy as it is about weaponry. This episode discusses how Trump's Muslim ban does the exact opposite, making America less secure. Also, America's long, proud history of religious freedom, and the erroneous comparisons of Trump's ban to Obama policies. Check it out on iTunes. Listen on...

MORNING HEADLINES: Fake news head joins National Security Council

Wrap your mind around this for a second: Trump chose not to have the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff or the Director of National Intelligence on the National Security Council. Instead, he chose to have the former head of a propaganda and fake news site, Steve Bannon, to be making judgement calls on national security. From the Washington Post, here is an excellent read on why that is...

How to identify fake news

The rise of fake news has many people wondering if the news they're getting today is real or fake, and wondering how they can identify fake news themselves. Personally, I prefer news sources that have been around for at least 30 years and are boring as hell. If it's a source that has its roots back in the days of Edward R. Murrow and Walter Kronkite and analyzes an issue in the most...