Breaking News

Local columns

Almanac for Aug. 29, 2026

Today is Saturday, Aug. 29, the 241st day of 2026. There are 124 days left in the year. Today in history: On Aug. 29, 2005, Hurricane Katrina struck the U.S. Gulf Coast in southeast Louisiana, breaching levees and spurring floods that devastated New Orleans. Katrina caused nearly 1,400 deaths and an estimated $200 billion in damage. Also on this date: In 1814, during the War of 1812, Alexandria, Virginia, formally surrendered to British military forces, which occupied the city until Sept. 3. In 1825, the Treaty of Rio de Janeiro was signed by Portugal and Brazil, officially ending ...

Few Democratic Socialists Are Blue Collar. Most Everyone Knows It

Classic Labor Day imagery shows men wearing hard hats and tough women in uniforms. These are Americans who did not build their muscles at a wellness club. By contrast, actual photos of the Democratic Socialists of America show seas of white faces belonging to college graduates. The only work ...

Sayonara, my friend. It was so good to meet you

“My transistor radio comes from far away; and when it's night over here, over there, it's breakin' day,” – Bob Morris and Faye Morris It was evening, about an hour or so before dark would descend, when I set out on a walk to enjoy the natural experience around me. I was with our recent ...

Almanac for Aug. 28, 2026

Today is Friday, Aug. 28, the 240th day of 2026. There are 125 days left in the year. Today in history: On Aug. 28, 1963, during the March on Washington, the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. delivered his "I Have a Dream" speech before an estimated 250,000 people in front of the Lincoln Memorial. Also on this date: In 1845, the first issue of Scientific American magazine was published; it remains the oldest continuously published magazine in the United States. In 1862, the Second Battle of Bull Run began in Prince William County, Virginia, during the Civil War; the Union army retreated ...

Ditching Net Zero

What a difference a few years make. Not long ago, politicians said climate change was going to kill us, so we must move to "net zero" emissions. This is theoretically possible. Since vegetation removes carbon, we could get to net zero by burning fewer fossil fuels. Governments everywhere ...

Almanac for Aug. 27, 2026

Today is Thursday, Aug. 27, the 239th day of 2026. There are 126 days left in the year. Today in history: On Aug. 27, 1883, the island volcano Krakatoa erupted with a series of cataclysmic explosions. The explosions (which could be heard 3,000 miles away) and resulting tsunamis in Indonesia's Sunda Strait claimed some 36,000 lives in Java and Sumatra. Also on this date: In 1894, Congress passed the Wilson-Gorman Tariff Act, which contained a provision for a graduated income tax that was later struck down by the Supreme Court. In 1964, the film "Mary Poppins" had its world premiere ...