Work Hard, but Pray for Luck

Ellen Goodman / Truthdig Jan 8, 2009 The standard male narrative about flying solo to the top, bootstraps in hand, energized only by your own talents, always seemed a bit cockeyed to me. The female narrative was not so much self-effacing as it was realistic. Dig deeper ( 3 Min. Read )

Kurt Vonnegut Dead at 84

Staff / Truthdig Apr 12, 2007 The iconic writer, who challenged conventional wisdom through 14 novels and numerous essays, died Wednesday from a brain injury. Vonnegut survived a nearly lifelong smoking habit only to succumb to a recent fall in his apartment. He once joked that he would prefer to die in a plane crash on Kilimanjaro and said he would avoid suicide "so as not to set a bad example for my children." Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )

We Must Learn Again

Paul Cummins / Truthdig Apr 4, 2007 The author takes aim at the shortcomings of the contemporary American educational system, laments the current state of arts education, and wonders what exactly schools are preparing younger generations to do -- and become. Dig deeper ( 3 Min. Read )

Married With Children in the Minority

Staff / Truthdig Mar 4, 2007 Fewer than a quarter of American households contain a married couple with children, down from half in 1960. While the numbers are lower across the board, the nuclear family appears to have become a luxury, with wealthier people far more likely to marry before having children. Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )

Ellen Goodman: Bustiers and Niqabs

Ellen Goodman / Truthdig Oct 26, 2006 Whether they're donning a slutty Halloween costume or a full-body Islamic veil, many modern women believe they are making their own choices of self-representation -- but they're actually caught in a cultural vise. Dig deeper ( 3 Min. Read )

The Enron Files (Juicy Bits Too)

Staff / Truthdig Oct 24, 2006 The "Enron Explorer" offers the politically inclined voyeur access to all 200,000 e-mails released during the fraud investigation. The "visualizer" is an excellent tool that creates a visual representation of each executive's social network. Hopefully they'll map the Abramoff scandal next. (Via boingboing.net) Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )

Marie Cocco: The Myth of the Investor Middle Class

Marie Cocco / Truthdig Aug 29, 2006 A new study reveals the "ownership society'' of conservative dreams for the fraud it is; do-it-yourself financing doesn't work when the upper class owns 80% of the nation's stock. Dig deeper ( 3 Min. Read )

Gene Gerard: White House Failing America?s AIDS Crisis

Gene Gerard / Truthdig Jun 17, 2006 A new report shows that Bush has slashed anti-AIDS programs across the board. Meanwhile, he's pandering to the religious right by pushing abstinence-until-marriage programs--regardless of the fact that they are proven ineffective at stopping the spread of HIV. Don't bother Bush with facts; his mind is made up. Dig deeper ( 3 Min. Read )

NSA Wants to Mine Data From Social Networking Sites

Staff / Truthdig Jun 9, 2006 The National Security Agency is funding research into ways to collect personal information from social networking websites like MySpace and Friendster, according to New Scientist magazine. The agency reportedly aims to combine the information with details from banking, retail and property records, allowing the NSA to build extensive, all-embracing personal profiles of individuals. Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )

Senate Dems Find Wedge Issue on Abortion

Staff / Truthdig Apr 7, 2006 The Senate Democratic leadership will push for expanded access to contraceptives and sex education--a nationally popular move, but a bitter pill for the prudish right-wingers who are desperately afraid that someone, somewhere, may be enjoying a sexual act. Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )

Immigration 101 for Beginners and Non-Texans

Molly Ivins / Truthdig Mar 30, 2006 Ivins weighs in on immigration reform, "The Fence" and corporate America's demand for cheap labor. Dig deeper ( 4 Min. Read )

Scalia Dismisses ‘Living Constitution’

Staff / Truthdig Feb 15, 2006 The Supreme Court justice drives home his misguided belief that changes in society's mores shouldn't be reflected in the Constitution. Sure: the Founding Fathers got it all right 200 years ago--including the bit about counting Americans of African descent as three-fifths of a person. Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )