opinion
Opinion pieces from the left, right, and everyone in between.
The Will of the Mandate
Jacobson v. Massachusetts 197 U.S. 11 (1905) Henning Jacobson objected to a Massachusetts law requiring citizens to receive a second smallpox vaccination during an outbreak. Both Jacobson and his son, already taking the first vaccine, suffered side effects from the vaccine refused. Citing possible side effects of receiving the second vaccine, Jacobson refused and was fined five dollars, which he paid. What's five dollars worth today? A hundred bucks? I don't know. The Supreme Court at that time ruled the State of Massachusetts was within their right to insist citizens take a second shot. Yes, Jacobson could have either taken the second shot, accepted the side effects, or simply paid the fine. Instead, he took the case to the Supreme Court and, essentially, wrote the script that would be read verbatim one hundred sixteen years later. A Supreme Court, which included Oliver Wendell Holmes, said that citizens do not have the right under the Constitution to exercise their individual liberties because there are "manifold restraints to which every person is necessarily subjected for the common good." Further stating that State legislatures (not federal. Let me repeat that, NOT FEDERAL) have the constitutional authority to enact compulsory vaccination laws and exercise police power to restrict or eliminate liberty during a smallpox outbreak. Whether or not they got the decision correct is purely a matter of interpretation. What I want to point out is that the decision was left up to the state! There were no federal task forces at the time. So, it couldn't have been federally mandated. Therefore, as a model for 2021, it should not be used.
By Mark Elliott 4 years ago in The Swamp
Is Joe Biden Another Gorbachev?
Is Joe Biden, for no fault of his, presiding over the decline and the collapse of the United States? Much like Mikhail Gorbachev, under whom, the erstwhile Soviet Union broke up into several "stans", Biden too seems to be the President under whom the American Empire is unraveling.
By Rammohan Susarla4 years ago in The Swamp
America falling into Civil War
When Trump is talking, I can feel my I.Q. dropping rapidly, like a thermometer placed in a freezer. When it has dropped sufficiently, about a minute into the Big Lie, I fall into a coma. I’m not suggesting that Trump is boring, no, no, it’s not that simple. His sincerity is a little…what shall I say… off?
By harry hogg4 years ago in The Swamp
My Beliefs Can't Be Summed Up on a Bumper Sticker
If you had asked me in high school what political party I ascribed to, I would have answered firmly, proudly, and adamantly: Republican. If you asked me the same question today, I would likely pause thoughtfully, and then reply, “I tend to vote for policies that more closely align with the Republican Party’s agenda.”
By Kristen Slade4 years ago in The Swamp
The Budget Does Not Compute
For the past three years I've said over and over again to people complaining about wages, "It's not the wages. It's the Rent Prices." Some understood and some didn't. I was homeless for a long time and I searched high and low for affordable "housing" which means a rent that can be paid each month with the minimum wage. It was nowhere to be found. That is a serious problem. The minimum wage set by the federal government is at $7.25 per hour. I am a recipient of Social Security. A full-time minimum wage worker and I have about the same budget to work with each month. What does that mean to us? It means that unless we live with our parents, a spouse, or a generous roommate, we will be homeless. Something is very wrong with that picture.
By Shanon Angermeyer Norman4 years ago in The Swamp
Addressing Politics
INTRODUCTION If you have been paying close attention to the development of COVID-19 since the first report from Wuhan, China on December 31, 2019, then you know how quickly it grew around the rest of the world and the impacts it has had economically speaking. COVID-19 was dubbed a hoax by the republican parties President Donald Trump. As the spread of COVID-19 was ignored in 2020, there were many things that developed as a result.
By Zachary Pierce4 years ago in The Swamp
White Privilege Does NOT Exist & I Am Not A Victim
I find it astonishing how many white people are just as uninformed, misinformed, and just ignorant (and ignorant using the proper definition of the word) as most people on this planet when it comes to race.
By Frederick Emerson4 years ago in The Swamp
Police, Soldiers, and Lawyers Oh My
As a freshman college student, I might’ve had a ‘thin blue line’ sticker on my laptop, except that it was 2012 and policing hadn’t yet become such a controversial issue. I was a cookie cutter conservative at the time and had yet to own my beliefs. Politics seemed so horribly partisan back then but was tame compared to today. Now, almost a decade later, I can’t say that I am very supportive of the police. I mean yeah, I hope they catch the ‘bad guys’ and put them in jail and I hope there is minimal loss of life in that process, for both the police and the presumed criminals… I say “presumed” because the American justice system enshrines “innocent until proven guilty” as key to justice.
By Farah Thompson4 years ago in The Swamp
