Journalism is defined as “the activity or job of collecting, writing, and editing news stories for newspapers, magazines, television, or radio.” In this new media age, you can add blogs and podcasts and other online news sources to that, as well. It is my firm belief that journalism – TRUE journalism – goes farther than that: it is a necessary […]

Yesterday, presidential hopeful Hillary Clinton issued a statement on the ongoing crisis in Flint, Michigan where their drinking water has been poisoned with lead due to misconduct by the administration of Gov. Rick Snyder. In that statement, Clinton called the actions of Snyder administration “unconscionable” and applauded the Department of Justice for joining the Environmental Protection Agency for investigating . […]

Imagine if you lived in a city where the drinking water supply had been poisoned by lead after cost-saving measures were enacted by an unelected, appointed official. Now imagine you were being billed for that “privilege”. Pretty outrageous, right? I mean who would have the audacity to bill people for THAT? Flint, Michigan, that’s who: Residents of the impoverished City […]

One of my favorite parts about asking our readers for donations (and there aren’t many “favorites”, I actually hate doing it) are the incredibly nice notes we get when people send us checks directly. I thought I’d share a few with you today and let folks know how much they warm our hearts and keep us motivated. Sometimes, it’s something […]

In 2000, Michigan voters overwhelmingly defeated a ballot proposal that would have introduced vouchers for public school education by a 69-31 margin. Voters rejected vouchers back in 1978, as well. And it’s no surprise. The voucher system virtually guarantees that struggling schools are closed instead of improved and would give charter schools, the vast majority of which are for-profit in […]

This afternoon I was on Sam Seder’s Majority Report radio show talking about the poisoning of Flint’s drinking water.

Here is the audio (my bit starts at the 10-minute mark):

Now that a state of emergency has been declared in the city of Flint over the poisoning of their drinking water by the Snyder administration, you might think that all resources are being brought to bear to resolve this human-made catastrophe. After all, the state government has a new website, Michigan.gov/FlintWater sporting a snazzy new logo and a quote from […]

I’m excited to announce some big news for Eclectablog readers. Two pieces of news, actually. First, the site will be undergoing a major facelift in the coming month. We will be moving to a more mobile device-friendly theme that will make reading our content even easier than it is now. We’re working on it this week and hope to unveil […]

It’s clear that the story of the poisoning of Flint, Michigan’s drinking water by the Snyder administration has finally broken through to the national news. It’s not only being reported by major national news outlets, presidential candidates are now weighing in. Today, Hillary Clinton issued this statement: The situation in Flint, Michigan, is extremely concerning. No parent should have to […]

2015 was by many accounts a good year for our Liberal agenda as it related to decisions made by the U.S. Supreme Court. The affirmation of the Affordable Care Act and the victory of marriage equality for all were important and historical steps in reality and it was, I should add, a reflection of what many of us, no matter […]

For a recent final exam, Nevada high school teacher Elizabeth Clausen showed her students this provocative painting by artist Michael D’Antuono and asked them to use critical thinking skills to form an opinion about how the art represents American society and our country’s history. A handful of parents were outraged and now Clausen is on temporary leave and may lose […]