There was nothing particularly remarkable about the Biden administration’s swift approval of an emergency declaration for Florida following the extensive damage inflicted by Hurricane Idalia when it blew through the state last week.

Social scientists believe they know why America has become so divided along political lines. “The human brain in many circumstances is more suited to tribalism and conflict than to civility and reasoned debate,” The Wall Street Journal reported last month in a piece headlined “Why Tribalism Took Over Our Politics.”

The U.S. economy and economies worldwide are out of balance and still adjusting to the effects of COVID-19, the Russia-Ukraine war, higher energy prices, persistent inflation and the rapid rise of high-tech global firms. As a result, Germany’s longstanding manufacturing boom has ended, China’s economic growth is headed south and America is registering just pale GDP growth assisted by COVID stimulus spending and large government subsidies designed to make the nation less dependent on fossil fuels and imports from other countries (especially China).

How many of us have seen a school bus come to a stop and activate its warning lights and stop arm, and yet a driver proceeds to pass the bus anyway? Imagine the fear that the bus driver must feel, as he or she is tasked with the responsibility of transporting children to and from school every day.

The federal government operates three gigantic systems providing health care to millions of Americans. The VA takes care of veterans, Medicaid (whose costs are shared with states and localities) is coverage for the poor and Medicare is health insurance for seniors and people with disabilities.

The world has lost a true legend, and animals — as well as PETA—have lost a dear friend. Bob Barker was known for a lot of things, but what meant the most to him and what he spent most of his life pursuing was justice for animals.

Around parts of Antarctica last year, whole colonies of emperor penguins lost the all chicks they stoically incubated through weeks of darkness, -50C temperatures, and 100 miles-per-hour winds. This sad discovery came via a combination of commercial and government satellites that scientists adapted to spy on the penguins. These iconic birds depend on sea ice as a platform for breeding and raising chicks, but as the globe is warming, the ice is melting too early. The chicks, too young to swim, are drowning.