Chris Hedges – Bearing the Cross

NEW YORK—I arrived early Friday morning, after walking through the rain, at the St. Francis Xavier Church in Greenwich Village for the funeral of the Rev. Daniel Berrigan. I stood, the church nearly empty, at the front of the sanctuary with my hand on the top of Dan’s rosewood casket. It was adorned with a single red carnation and a …

Jan-Emmanuel De Neve – Income Inequality Makes Whole Countries Less Happy

Most talk of income inequality focuses on the problems of the very poor or the broader socioeconomic implications of rising inequality. What is less well-known is that income inequality makes us all less happy with our lives, even if we’re relatively well-off. We examined data from the Gallup World Poll and the World Top Incomes Database and found that the …

Alma Carten – How the Legacy of Slavery Affects the Mental Health of BlackAmericans Today

On July 22, in announcing the federal indictment of Charleston killer Dylann Roof, Attorney General Loretta Lynch commented [3] that the expression of forgiveness offered by the victims’ families is “an incredible lesson and message for us all.” Forgiveness and grace are, indeed, hallmarks of the Black Church. Since slavery, the church has been a formidable force for the survival of blacks …

Warren Buffett’s Mobile Home Empire Preys on the Poor

Denise Pitts walked into the pawn shop not far from where she bought her mobile home in Knoxville, Tennessee, and offered up her wedding rings for $100. Her marriage wasn’t over, but her husband was battling cancer and, Pitts said, her mortgage company told her the only way to keep a roof over his head would be to sell everything …