AlterNet.org: Coverage Areas

Are the "New Atheists" As Bad as Christian Fundamentalists?

Frank Schaeffer, AlterNet — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 00:00:01 PST

The most aggressive members of the "New Atheism" movement have quite a bit in common with religious extremists like Pat Robertson and Ted Haggard.

Oscar-Winning Hollywood Big Shot: Why I'm Leaving Scientology

Guy Adams, Independent UK — Sat, 31 Oct 2009 00:00:01 PDT

Paul Haggis, who wrote hits like Crash and Million Dollar Baby, fires parting shot at "hate-filled and bigoted" church.

An Atheist's Review of the Book of Genesis Illustrated by a Legendary Comics Artist

Greta Christina, Greta Christina's Blog — Sat, 24 Oct 2009 00:00:01 PDT

This isn't Beatrix Potter here. It's more like "Dangerous Liaisons" by way of Quentin Tarantino. With tents, sand, and sheep.

How a Public Jobs Program Could Put America Back on Track

Julianne Malveaux, The Progressive — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 00:00:01 PST

The same nation that created a Works Progress Administration in the 1930s should create another one in the 21st century.

30 Hours Clashing with Corporate Lobbyists on a White House Committee Showed Me How Hard "Change" Really Is

Sarah Anderson, Foreign Policy in Focus — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 08:00:01 PST

The "cow-boy" model of capitalism has failed dramatically, but corporate America still wants to roam the planet free of regulation.

Want to Save Our Economy from Almighty Greed? Here Are 10 Crucial Fights and Key Fighters to Watch

Zach Carter, AlterNet — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 00:00:01 PST

If the economic crisis taught us anything, it's that bringing to heel the whiz kids of finance is a top priority.

Pot Is More Mainstream Than Ever, So Why Is Legalization Still Taboo?

Steven Wishnia, AlterNet — Thu, 29 Oct 2009 00:00:01 PDT

Obama's drug czar has said "legalization" isn't in his vocabulary. Here's why it should be.

The Case for Marijuana Legalization and Regulation

Paul Armentano, AlterNet — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 00:00:01 PDT

An exclusive look at the historic testimony prepared for a special hearing on legalizing marijuana to the California Assembly.

President Obama And Gov. Paterson Get Love For Recent Drug Policy Reforms

Tony Newman, AlterNet — Sat, 24 Oct 2009 00:00:01 PDT

We are obviously a long way from elected officials being honest and principled when it comes to dismantling the disastrous drug war. But the tides seem to be turning.

Why We Need Bees and More People Becoming Organic Beekeepers

Makenna Goodman, Chelsea Green Publishing — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 14:00:01 PST

Bees teach us how to live our life in a way that by taking what we need from the world around us, we leave the world better than we found it.

How an Entire Town Leveled By a Tornado Is Rebuilding Green

Melissa Knopper, E Magazine — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 00:00:01 PST

While the rest of rural America is being hit hard with the economic downturn, Greensburg's emphasis on green living has given the town a buffer.

Obama, It's Time to Lead on Climate Change in Copenhagen

Janet Redman, AlterNet — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 14:00:01 PST

What we need Obama to do now is direct his administration to negotiate a just, binding, and effective deal in Copenhagen.

The Raw Milk Revolution: Behind America's Emerging Battle Over Food Rights

Makenna Goodman, TreeHugger — Sat, 07 Nov 2009 00:00:01 PST

Because of its health benefits, many more people are turning to raw milk. But there's one hitch: Raw milk is illegal.

Jonathan Safran Foer's 'Eating Animals' Book Will Fundamentally Change the Way You Think About Food

Kathy Freston, AlterNet — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 00:00:01 PST

"He is the Michael Pollan of a younger generation: grittier and more daring, more insightful and decisive."

New York May Stop Heartless Health Insurers from Dropping Coverage When It Stops Being Profitable

William Ehart, Washington Times — Sat, 07 Nov 2009 00:00:01 PST

The proposed Ian's law, named after a victim of muscular dystrophy who requires an electronic device to speak would protect the most vulnerable from losing coverage.

10 of the Nuttiest Statements Elected Officials Have Made in the Health Care Battle

Joshua Holland, AlterNet — Sat, 07 Nov 2009 00:00:01 PST

Wild, over-the-top rhetoric and bizarre conspiracy theories about health reform aren't just coming from the right-wing blogs and talk-radio loudmouths.

7 Diseases That Big, Juicy Steaks Could Give You

Sara Novak, Planet Green — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 00:00:01 PST

We know meat isn't necessarily the most healthy dietary choice; it could also be a fatal one.

NYC Marathon Raises Question of Who Is American Enough?

James E. Johnson, Jr., Imagine 2050 — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 14:00:01 PST

Who gets to choose who is American or American enough? And how will they choose?

A Broken Immigration System Marks a Disastrous Failure of Government Response

Mary Giovagnoli, Immigration Impact — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 12:00:01 PST

It's a matter of priorities -- every dollar spent on the deportation iss a dollar not spent on improving immigration services and processing applications quickly and efficiently.

Deported to a "Homeland" that He Never Knew

Julianne Ong Hing, ColorLines — Mon, 02 Nov 2009 00:00:01 PST

After growing up in the U.S., Calvin James was separated from his family by and sent by immigration authorities to an alien "homeland."

Focusing on Fort Hood Killer's Beliefs Is an Easy Out to Avoid the Deeper Reasons for the Massacre

Mark Ames, AlterNet — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 00:00:01 PST

That alleged killer Maj. Nidal Malik Hasan is a Muslim is not enough to explain the attacks.

For Glenn Beck, SEIU Is 'Radical, Marxist,' Except When Its Nurses Treat Him for Emergency Abdominal Pains

Alexander Zaitchik, AlterNet — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 16:00:01 PST

Beck described SEIU nurse care as "amazing" after his inflamed appendix was removed.

Many Still Believe That Saddam Hussein Was Behind 9/11, and Now We Have Some Idea Why

Emily Badger, Miller-McCune.com — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 12:00:01 PST

Researchers looking at beliefs about al-Qaeda and Saddam Hussein have made some surprising discoveries about why peopl

The Yes Men: Pranksters Out to Fix the World

Mark Engler, Foreign Policy in Focus — Tue, 27 Oct 2009 14:00:01 PDT

The Yes Men pose as spokespeople for major companies or bodies like the World Trade Organization, and give presentations that highlight the logic of corporate greed.

Barack Obama Must See Michael Moore's New Movie (and So Must You)!

Arianna Huffington, Huffington Post — Mon, 21 Sep 2009 13:00:01 PDT

"Michael goes directly to the beating heart of the economic crisis ... The knot in your stomach starts to tighten -- and the outrage starts to build."

Michael Moore's 'Capitalism' Flick Rips into Crimes of Wall Street

Xan Brooks, The Guardian — Wed, 09 Sep 2009 00:00:01 PDT

Moore's latest documentary drew tumultuous applause at the Venice film festival, suggesting that the veteran tub-thumper has lost none of his power to whip up a response.

What Michelle and Barack's Marriage Has in Common with 56 Million Other Ones

Annabelle Gurwitch, AlterNet — Sat, 07 Nov 2009 00:00:01 PST

The first couple has tried to preserve their "date night tradition." So have my husband and I.

Falwell Power Play: Jerry's Liberty University Students Grease the Partisan Political Machine in Virginia

Joseph L. Conn, Church and State — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 08:00:01 PST

Falwell spent months developing the students at his university into a Republican voting bloc. But was what he did legal?

Thousands of Right-Wingers Rally at Capitol to Hear Lies About Health Care Reform, Courtesy of Bachmann and GOP Leaders

Adele Stan, AlterNet — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 00:00:01 PST

Days before a health bill is expected to pass the House, Republicans rallied their flock with the help of Fox News, Michele Bachmann and leading conservative groups.

Fetus-Shaped Potatoes? Going Undercover Inside the Weird World of Right-Wing Abortion Foes

Ann Neumann, AlterNet — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 00:00:01 PST

I went undercover to a Pro-Life Federation conference. What I found there was not "middle America" or even conservative America. It was fringe America.

Why It's Not Smart to Call Women Conservatives 'Whores'

Tana Ganeva, AlterNet — Mon, 02 Nov 2009 00:00:01 PST

Conservative women should be strongly criticized. But using gendered language to attack them doesn't help progressives.

Boobs to Die For

Elisheva Wolfe, Nerve.com — Sun, 01 Nov 2009 20:00:01 PST

I love my boobs. I'm going to use them every day until they start to kill me.

"My Kids Want to Hide Their Identity; They're Scared Someone Will Attack Us": U.S. Muslims Being Targeted

Jaisal Noor, Indypendent — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 00:00:01 PST

American Muslims, especially those who wear religious clothing such as hijabs, are often targets of hate crimes.

The Execution of a Potentially Innocent Man Less Scandalous Than an Affair?

Michelle Goldberg, The American Prospect — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 00:00:01 PST

There's something really rotten in the state of Texas.

Ten Things You Can Do to Reduce Incarceration

Walter Mosley, Rae Gomes, The Nation — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 16:00:01 PST

Come out of the closet about your drug use; hire a formerly incarcerated person; vote for politicians who are smart on crime.

Instant Sex: Has the Digital Age Destroyed Relationships or Made Them Better?

Vanessa Richmond, AlterNet — Sat, 07 Nov 2009 00:00:01 PST

Digitally-enabled mating culture has opened up the mate-finding process while also generating a whole new set of dating anxieties.

"Restless Vagina Syndrome": Big Pharma's Newest Fake Disease

Terry J. Allen, In These Times — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 00:00:01 PST

The pharmaceutical industry wants you to think that if you don't have sex like a porn star, you're in need of their drugs.

Is Adultery Good for Women? In Defense of Ashley Madison, the Cheaters' Website

Jeff Schult, Your Tango — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 00:00:01 PST

Despite criticism, Ashley Madison -- a website that facilitates affairs between married men and women -- attracts an unprecedented percentage of female users. Why?

G-20 Meetings: Nothing Much Happened in the Suites, and There Was Too Much Punch in the Streets

Laura Flanders, GRITtv — Wed, 30 Sep 2009 00:00:01 PDT

Underrepresented booming countries <i>may</i> get a bigger voice in global finance. Nice. But under-represented people? They got arrested.

Activists, Big Business Converge on G20 Meeting

Jeb Sprague, IPS News — Mon, 21 Sep 2009 12:00:01 PDT

As media and government delegates prepare for the G20 Summit to be held Pittsburgh, local business and activist groups are promoting clashing visions of days to come.

Stop GOP Hooligans From Stalling Health Reform

Byard Duncan, AlterNet — Tue, 15 Sep 2009 00:00:01 PDT

Join MoveOn's fight against Joe "You Lie!" Wilson and others who are relying on town hall-style antics to mire progress.

Why Natural Gas Is Not a Clean Energy Panacea

Stan Cox, AlterNet — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 17:00:01 PST

Natural gas is "clean" only in contrast to coal -- just as a bacon cheeseburger can only be regarded as healthful compared with a double bacon cheeseburger.

Three Gorges Dam: The World's Largest Boondoggle to Be Completed

Peter Bosshard, Huffington Post — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 12:00:01 PST

After 27 million cubic meters of concrete have been poured, 1.3 million people have been displaced and up to $88 billion have been spent, it is now time to take stock.

Who Is Stealing California's Water?

Peter Gleick, Pacific Institute — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 07:00:01 PST

We must stop pretending that water is free and unlimited, available to anyone who can put a siphon in a river or drill another groundwater well.

With Unemployment at 40 Percent, Afghan Teens Enlist in Army, Police

Lal Aqa Sherin, IPS News — Sat, 07 Nov 2009 06:00:01 PST

In a matter of weeks, Afghanistan's boys can go from high school students, to uniformed soldiers.

The Victims At Fort Hood Are Casualties of War: Why Won't the Government Count Them Among the Dead?

Aaron Glantz, New America Media — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 11:00:01 PST

Perhaps the most depressing aspect of Thursday's shoot-out at Fort Hood is that none of the people who died will be counted as casualties of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Stop U.S. Meddling; Support Afghan Women at the Table

Jodie Evans, CODEPINK Women for Peace: Action Blog — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 00:00:01 PST

Meddling in Afghanistanâ€™s elections and U.S. failure at every turn to deliver security and justice is increasing the potency of the Taliban.