Opinion

Read William Easterly's other articles on HuffingtonPost.com

The Nation -- Across the country last week thousands of Americans gathered at more than 850 house-parties organized by the Sierra Club to watch a new documentary, Coal Country.

Liberals have long sought the professorial president. But Barack Obama is starting to betray some of the vices of that virtue.

In early October, I covered a breaking story about evidence of corruption in the basic temperature records maintained by key scientific advocates of the theory of man-made global warming.

Washington - President Obama urgently needs to distance Washington from the provocative – and illegal – actions the Israeli government has been undertaking in Jerusalem.

Creators Syndicate - Here's a dirty little secret about The New York Times: It likes to leak things. Important things. Things that change the course of the public conversation. From the Pentagon Papers to the ruined terrorist-surveillance programs of the Bush era, the Times has routinely found that secrecy is a danger and sunlight is a disinfectant.

Creators Syndicate - As we gather round the Thanksgiving table, bow our heads in prayer and feast on the holiday bird, it is only fitting to take a moment to fete the unforgettable turkeys of 2009.

WASHINGTON -- This Thanksgiving, coming in the good year of Our Lord 2009, wears a cloak of indecision as it strolls around these gray city streets, topped off by a droopy hat of disappointment and a scarf of desolation. This Thanksgiving, you might say, is not exactly a "Yes, we can" holiday.

Creators Syndicate - The president and his party in Congress are attempting to dig this country so deep into debt that we may not be able to climb out. This is a strong and resilient country, but we wouldn’t be the first great nation to bankrupt ourselves.

Creators Syndicate - "This state visit is ... a terrible mistake," said Rep. Eliot Engel, chairman of the House Subcommittee on the Western Hemisphere.

LOS ANGELES -- It has become fashionable on both the left and the right to compare the United States to ancient Rome. Decline and fall: We are a militaristic power trying to make everyone else in the known world submit to our way, or we are an irreligious, hedonistic bunch going the way of all flesh. Or maybe both.

Barack Obama is back from Asia and his bow to the Japanese, his handshake with the tyrant from Myanmar and his difficult sessions with the Chinese. There sure has been a lot of talk about the president and his submissiveness in Asia.

Success in any long-running campaign breeds complacency; first euphoria, then relief, later forgetfulness. Whether the campaign for universal suffrage or the crusade to curb childhood disease through immunizations, success leads to historical amnesia.

WASHINGTON -- What do past and present leaders like Fidel Castro, Hugo Chavez, Juan Peron, Benito Mussolini and Huey Long have in common?

Right-Wingers Have Reasons to Worry About Trying KSM

It cannot be said often enough that the chief of staff of the United States Army, Gen. George Casey, responded to a massacre of 13 Americans in which the suspect is a Muslim by saying: "Our diversity ... is a strength."

Creators Syndicate - As George W. Bush famously asked, "Is our children learning?"

Creators Syndicate - The Boy Scouts' motto is: Be prepared. Who knew it meant preparing to defend themselves against purple-shirted union thuggery over community service? Kids, pay attention. This is a teachable moment for all of you on power, politics and Big Labor's culture of corruption.

Creators Syndicate - It is amazing how a phrase can emerge seemingly out of nowhere to become the statement du jour — used, overused and ultimately abused. Last year, there was "low-hanging fruit" everywhere. Today, everyone's being "thrown under the bus."

Creators Syndicate - So, as it turns out, did I not need to have my breasts squeezed in the mammogram machines every year between the ages of 40 and 50? Could I have missed the two scares in there, especially the one when both of my kids were babies?