All Commentary
The Monitor's View'Stand your ground' loses groundAs defendant George Zimmerman tries to raise a $1 million bond in the case of the shooting death of Trayvon Martin, a new study suggests that ‘stand your ground’ laws aren’t a deterrent to crime and increase homicides.
OpinionSeventeen magazine's vow to celebrate all body types: It's about time.Seventeen magazine vows to never change the shape of girls' faces or bodies in photos. If we don’t reconfigure the way girls see themselves on TV, in movies, and in magazines, even smart teens will believe the media lie that their worth is in fastidious attention to the superficial.
- A Christian Science PerspectiveThe promised land that is yours
A Christian Science perspective.
The Monitor's ViewBaseball proudly wears its greenIn pro baseball, which holds its all-star game Tuesday, more than the playing fields are green. Teams are rigorously looking for ways to cut energy use and become better overall environmental stewards.
Opinion'Having it all' is so 1980sThe debate about Anne-Marie Slaughter’s Atlantic cover story on women and 'having it all' – career and family – is out of touch with the modern family. As a young couple, our question is how can we have just enough? We’re attuned to core joys, not status and acquisition.
- A Christian Science PerspectiveGarden prayers
A Christian Science perspective.
OpinionIf Thoreau were to move to Walden today, would he bring the Internet? Maybe.Thoreau is one of technological innovation's most famous critics. But there’s a different side to Thoreau’s relationship with technology that says a lot about our own continuing struggle to strike the right balance between individual serenity and an interconnected planet.
OpinionThe 'America effect': How immigrants fall crazy in loveImmigrants' passion for America warps plans and bends dreams. My Pakistani parents realized that America changed their approach to life, just as it has changed everything else it has touched. American freedom is even helping (slowly) moderate latter-day Islam.
The Monitor's ViewThe Internet needs its own ‘declaration of independence’A new ‘Declaration of Internet Freedom’ should spark a much-needed discussion about online rights and privacy.
OpinionWhy there will be no foreign military intervention in SyriaDespite the apparent failure of the meeting in Geneva over the weekend and a new Human Rights Watch report of widespread torture by the regime of Bashar al-Assad, a foreign military intervention in Syria is unlikely. In fact, there is reason to doubt that Washington really wants Assad to fall.
OpinionDirect foreign intervention is the only feasible option for Syria crisisThe recent Geneva agreement is ill fitted to reality in Syria, and a new Human Rights Watch report details torture by the Bashar al-Assad regime. Intervention appears to be the only means for halting human rights violations, stabilizing the conflict, and ensuring a sustainable transition.
- A Christian Science PerspectiveThe road to freedom
A Christian Science perspective: For many people in the United States, the Fourth of July inspires celebrating freedom. The quest for freedom, regardless of one's national origin, runs deep in the human heart.
- Readers RespondReaders Write: The dangers of big banks and second-hand marijuana smoke
Letters to the Editor for the weekly print issue of July 2, 2012: When power is concentrated – as in big banks like Jamie Dimon's JPMorgan Chase – expect some tyranny. Marijuana is an insidious drug, more harmful than many have been led to believe.
The Monitor's ViewWhat kind of PRI will rule Mexico?Mexican voters have done what was once unthinkable, returning the notoriously corrupt PRI to the presidency after tossing it out in 2000. But Mexico is a different place today.
OpinionThis 4th of July: The dawn of a new 'independents' dayA record-high 38 percent of Americans now describe themselves as independents. Republican and Democratic party leaders ignore this growing lack of party allegiance at their peril. Whichever party shifts to accommodate more moderate voters first will survive and even thrive.
- A Christian Science PerspectiveLove stops crime
A Christian Science perspective.
OpinionFive lessons from Kosovo on peacemaking and problem-solvingKosovo Prime Minister Hashim Thaci: The International Steering Group decides today whether to conclude its supervision of Kosovo’s independence. History offers few more inspiring examples of how democracy can prevail with strong international support.
The Monitor's ViewIn health-care decision, Roberts rules of order reignBesides his key vote in upholding most of Obamacare, Chief Justice John Roberts also pointed to a need for civility, humility, and limits in the use of power.
OpinionNetworked moms are the new soccer moms – and they're not on the sidelinesThe landscape has changed since the 'soccer mom' term gained prevalence. With technology at our disposal, we moms are now powerfully networked and politically active. Politicians take note: 'Networked moms' are definitely in the game – and changing it – not watching from the sidelines.
OpinionSen. Collins: Republicans and Democrats can agree on Myanmar (Burma)In Myanmar (Burma) the tide of democracy is growing. But Aung San Suu Kyi rightly cautions foreign investors that the country still has no ‘rule of law.’ The US must continue to support those working to further human rights and civil society while carefully watching Burma's generals.
